Presiding – Brooke Hamstrra

Greeters – Rick Kerlin & Ot Schroeder

Invocation – Dave Benning

Guests – Madison, Director of Development, Cardinal Center

Birthdays – David Haines & Tom Ray

• Announcements
• Fundraisers
  • Car Show – Tom Tearney & Ken Shamblen
  • Triathlon – Jeff Owens & Adam Heckaman
  • Fall Displays – Kris Williams
  • Golf Outing -Chris Hanson & Chris McCray
• Directory Committee update – Ot Schroeder

50/50 – $43 to Chad Goon

Membership – Angie Tom/Paul Finley

• Heather Stockman-Sponsor Brittany Lyon (2rd Reading)
• Allyson Taylor-Sponsor Stacey Leek (1st Reading)
• Megan Davis-Sponsor Rick Swaim (New Member Induction) – Mitch Goon

Sergeants – Members were asked to throw a “Javelin” through a hoop, if successful no fine for the table, if not, $1 fine for the table.

Program – We recognized the Students of The Week from Warsaw Community High School.

Optimistic Quote/Did You Know –

• Did you Know – Spring flowers can grow through snow? Crocuses and snowdrops are early bloomers.
• Quote – Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can. Arthur Ashe

Next week’s program – Optimist Oratorical and Essay Winners

Presiding – Brooke Hamstra

Attendance – 70

Invocation – Dave Turner

Greeters – Jeff Owens & Logan Anderson

Guests – Judy Becker

Birthdays – Randy Polston, Abby McClaren & Charlie Wagner

Announcements –

• Fundraisers:
• Car Show (05/17/26) Tom Tearney & Ken Shamblen
• Triathlon (06/27/26) Jeff Owens & Adam Heckaman
• Fall Displays (sale starts Kris Williams
• Golf Outing Chris Hanson & Chris McCray
• Oratorical Contest (03/29/26, from 12-3pm) – Letricia Nichols “The Moment I Realized I Belonged – My Definition of Community.
• Spring Break Skate will be April 6-10, Monday – Friday at East Lake Skate Center

50/50 – $33 to David Haines

Membership –

• Megan Davis, third reading, Sponsor, Rick Swaim
• Heather Stockman, second reading, Sponsor Brittany Lyon
• Allyson Taylor, first reading, Sponsor Stacey Leek

Membership Moment – Abby Smith was interviewed for our membership moment.

Sergeants – Jim Smith, Jeff Owens & Abby Smith led the charge for the Sergeants fining members for various bogus reasons.

Program – Lakeview Middle School students were recognized as “Students of the Week”.

Optimistic Quote & Did You Know –

• Did you Know – Spring flowers can grow through snow? Crocuses and snowdrops are early bloomers.
• Quote – Let your hopes, not your hurt, shape your future – Robert H. Schuller

● Next week’s program – Student of the Week – Warsaw High School

Presiding – Brooke Hamstra

Attendance – 72

Greeters – Joel Wihebrink & Everett Nifong

Invocation – Jim Smith

Birthdays – Amy Roe

Announcements –

• Thanks to Kris Williams for running point last week in my absence
• Grant Committee – Rick Kerlin, Austin Donovan, Jeffrey Servies, Nick King, & Paul Finley
• Fundraisers
  • Car Show – Tom Tearney & Ken Shamblin
  • Triathlon- Jeff Owens & Adam Heckaman
  • Fall Displays – Kris Williams
  • Golf Outing- Chris Hanson & Chris McCray
• Oratorical Contest, Sunday March 29, 2026, 12-3pm – Letricia Nichols
• Elections April 29, 2026

Birthdays – Amy Roe

50/50 – $32 to Marv Miller

Membership – Angie Tom/Paul Finley

• Megan Davis-Rick Swaim (2nd Reading)
• Heather Stockman-Brittany Lyon (2rd Reading)

Sergeants – Middle School stories, of when they got into trouble, were told by various members. Members were asked trivia questions about March 14 and Saint Patrick’s Day.

Program – Edgewood Middle School Students were recognized today. Also Sam Wysong was recognized as Teacher of the Month @ Edgewood

Optimistic Quote/Did You Know –

• Did you Know – Walking outdoors boosts creativity? Studies show up to a 60%increase.
• Quote – Spring is nature’s way of saying, Let’s Party! – Robin Williams

Next week’s program – Student of the Month – Lakeview Middle School

Presiding – Kris Williams

Attendance – 75

Greeters – . Gina Voelz, Marlene Betances

Invocation – Steve Block

Announcements –

• New Speakers – Big Thank You to Jeff Owens and Marty Becker
• Fundraisers
  • Car Show (05/17/26) = 74 days Tom Tearney & Ken Shamblen
  • Triathlon (06/27/26) = 115 days Jeff Owens & Adam Heckaman
  • Fall Displays (sale starts 08/01/26) = 150 days Kris Williams
  • Golf Outing (09/08/26) = 188 days Chris Hanson & Chris McCray
• Oratorical Contest (03/29/26, from 12-3pm) = 25 days – Letricia Nichols
• Next Board of Directors Meeting 03/09/26 @ 5:30pm
• Elections upcoming, April 29, 2026

50/50 – $44 to Mitch Reinholt

Membership – Angie Tom/Paul Finley

• First Reading for Heather Baker
• Induction – Logan Anderson

Sergeants – Jim Smith, Jeff Owens and Abby Smith as sergeants harassed members and charged them $1.00 for bogus reasons.

Program – Jason Pogue and Tippecanoe Valley Youth Speech Team – Jason Pogue, a TVHS math teacher and speech and debate coach, described himself as “an over-exuberant parent and a former speech student.” He volunteered as an assistant coach with Roe when his daughter competed and later made it a priority to launch a team at TVHS. The program began this school year.

Jason stresses that winning is not the primary goal. “Winning’s not our ultimate goal, this is about lifelong skills and experiences,”.

“The interest is not blue ribbons — I’ll go buy them if they want them. My interest is in making them better communicators,” said Jason.

Alexandra Keaton, a TVHS freshman, competes in original performance, combining her own poems into a single piece. She has earned a first-place blue ribbon and a “picket fence,” meaning every judge ranked her first in each round, and has placed at varsity-level tournaments despite being on a first-year team.

Optimistic Quote/Did You Know –

• Did you Know – Optimism improves heart health? Studies link it to lower cardiovascular risk.
• Quote – The best thing to hold onto in life is each other: Audrey Hepburn

Next Week’s Program – Student of the Month – Edgewood Middle School

Presiding – Brooke Hamstra

Greeters – Max Mock & Luke Becknell

Invocation – David Haines

Guests –

Birthdays – Jamison Huscher-Pahl had his eighth birthday recently

Announcements –

• Car Show (05/17/26) = 81 days Tom Tearney & Ken Shamblen
• Triathlon (06/27/26) = 122 days Jeff Owens & Adam Heckaman
• Fall Displays (sale starts 08/01/26) = 157 days Kris Williams
• Golf Outing (09/08/26) = 195 days Chris Hanson & Chris McCray
  • Optimist Essay Contest (Winning Essay due by 02/25/26) – Shari Benyouksy
  • Oratorical Contest (03/29/26, from 12-3pm) = 32 days – Letricia Nichols
  • Directory Planning for 2026 – Committee to help lead the charge – Ot Schroeder
  • Community Quiz Bowl (Warsaw Education Foundation) 03/10/26, from 7-9pm – 2 teams of 5 – Kris Williams

Next Optimist Board Meeting – March 9, 2026

Elections are Upcoming – Paul Finley updated us on the annual election of for the Optimist Board of Directors for the club.

Membership – Megan Davis had her first reading

Sergeants – Jamison Huscher-Pahl was asked to collect eight dollars from members to celebrate his eighth birthday.

Program – Terry Sweeny, Main Street Warsaw. Main Street Warsaw Mission “To further encourage the economic development of Warsaw’s Central Business District through investments in people, buildings, businesses, and land.”

The Warsaw Community Development Corporation, now known as Main Street Warsaw, began as a downtown association in 1976. It was a group of business people concerned about the problems that were manifesting themselves in the Central Business District. This association began working to find solutions to problems of vacant buildings, deteriorating store fronts, parking and traffic flow — all common to small cities and towns at the time.

We heard about plans to continue to transform downtown Warsaw into a community center.

Optimistic Quote/Did You Know – Did you Know: Optimism improves heart health? Studies link it to lower cardiovascular risk. Quote: The best thing to hold onto in life is each other: Audrey Hepburn

Next week’s program – Tippecanoe Valley Youth Speech Team