Attendance: 99

Greeters: Ken Anderson

Invocation: Brent Mock

Guests: Daniel Fulkerson, MD (Speaker), Sue Kolb, Ashley Bishop, Eugenia Fulkerson, Reggie Berry (Daren Maierle), Charlie Wagner (Luke Becknell), Jody Claypool (Jeff Servies), Dawn Fenby (Brittany Petersen), Lindsay Gergely (Jason Gergely), Timothy Kessler (Jim Kessler), Claire Hickerson (Joey Hickerson), Doug Ault (Dr. Dave Haines), Carmen Flores (Joy Lavender), Mike Hawkins (Jeff Servies), Jim Redmond (Harry Gigous)

Birthdays:  Claire Hickerson (guest), Fred Nieter, Ann Sweet, Mike Gavin, Craig Snow

Membership: Joey Hickerson conducting

3rd Reading: Reggie Berry, Charlie Wagner

Induction: Jeff Owens conducting

Welcome to our new members – Megan Farver (sponsored by Anne Cuahuizo), Jody Claypool (sponsored by Jeff Servies), and Carmen Flores (sponsored by Joy Lavender)!

Committee Reports/Announcements:

Hoops for Hope – Bob Jackson reported that the Terry Polston Hoops for Hope event raised over $3,ooo for the cancer fund.

Club Visitation – Ron Chambers share that 13 members attended the visitation to the Noon Optimist meeting on Monday, November 20.

Fall Displays – Ott Shroeder reported that 170 fall displays were sold and that he will be presenting the final results of the fundraiser soon.

Oratorical Contest – Chris Mahan again challenged members to sponsor youth for the contest to take place January 28th. First table to turn in a completed application will win Chris as their butler for a Wednesday morning meeting along with donuts or cinnamon roles. Contest flyer and application can be downloaded by clicking here.

Salvation Army Bell Ringing – Volunteers are still needed for the December 2nd time slots. (Contact Pam Galloway for more information)

Santa House – The Optimist Santa House needs volunteers to play Santa or to act as a supervisor on weekends during the holiday season. Shifts are 4 hours long. Octagon club will be filling in as Santa’s elves. (Contact Andrew O’Connell for more information and to volunteer)

Check Presentation: $2,000 presented to the Baker Youth Club, Executive Director Tracy Furnivall accepting. Tracy share that these funds help BYC ser over 200 kids in Warsaw and 80 in the Wawasee school district. Also the club will be hosting a Christmas party providing a meal and presents to over 500 kids from the community.

CEO Report: Trace Hansen (Brittany Petersen conducting) – Trace has been a member of Warsaw Breakfast Optimist for over 10 years. He is the owner of Eastlake Skating Center, Warsaw, along with 2 other facilities in other areas/states. Trace, who was originally from Seattle, WA, moved here in 2007 with his wife Shannon. They have three children: Jordan (22), Ella (5), Delaney (3 1/2). His favorite club memory was the adult dressed up in a diaper to represent the New Year’s baby.

Daniel Fulkerson, MD

Program: The club welcomed former Warsaw resident, neurosurgeon, and author, Daniel H Fulkerson, MD, to speak about his experiences with medical outreach in Kenya. He presented slides and talked about IU School of Medicine’s connection with the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya. The goal is to develop sustainable healthcare in the area. Each year the Moi facility treats 140,000 HIV patients, delivers around 10,000 babies, and cares for 8,000 oncology patients. During Dr. Fulkerson’s last visit to Kenya, their neurosurgical team handled 49 complex surgical cases. Some of the biggest challenges they face are the lack of equipment and necessities such as electricity. Opportunities for outreach through their program include equipment donation, skill transfer, resident training, and teaching. For anyone interested in Dr. Fulkerson’s book, you can find out more on Amazon.

Sergeants-at-Arms: No presentation

Optimist Quote of the Day: President Steve Hollar did his best to try and get Fred Nieter to reveal his age asking, “Fred, how many birthdays are you celebrating this year?” Fred slyly answered, “Well I am going to have just one this year…. and next year I only plan on having just one too.”