The "Manhattan Optimist Club Bulletin" Vol. 2026 #1 10-1-25
VOLUME 2026 OCTOBER 1 NUMBER 1
President Greg McCune welcomed everyone, and Bill Wisdom gave us our daily reflection that was followed by the flag salute.
ACHES & PAINS: Pumpkin Spice season… be kind and enjoy the beauty!
Board Advisor – Jim Franke
Directors – Karen Hawes, Brady Lundeen, David Starks and Bryan Joy
Greg McCune handed the gavel over to new president Kelly Karl!
Kelly also shared his reasons for joining the Optimist Club; a way to start giving back to the community thru civic service, get involved and make a difference, plus Thad Hall kind of tricked him! Kelly says “Leadership is like construction: you don’t tear down what’s already standing strong. You build on it. My goal is to honor the work of those who came before me while also making room for new energy and ideas”.
Strengthen Communication Across Generations: we’re a diverse club made up of members of all ages, from our seasoned Optimists to those just joining. To keep our community strong, it’s important that everyone feels connected, included and heard. Let’s refresh how we share updates, share stories from different members in our newsletters and let’s promote mentoring.
Modernize how we work and give: If we want to stay relevant and make it easier for the people to engage with us, we need to meet them where they are. Continue to promote and offer Venmo or similar apps, try simple online sign-ups (sign-up Genius), and explore new ways to showcase our projects with quick photos/videos online.
Grow Membership through purposeful recruitment: If we’re not growing, we’re shrinking. New members bring energy, ideas and keep our mission alive. Move from “maintaining” to actively inviting, target outreach to younger professionals, parents, and community leaders and show prospects the impact we have by involving them in hands-on service, not just meetings.
Kelly left all of us with this challenge for the coming year: Let’s each bring ONE new person to a meeting. Imagine the energy, the ideas and the growth if we all did that. The law of averages is on our side!
Doug Jardine rode 535 miles and raised $4,659.00, well over his goal of 500 miles and $2,500.00! Thank you to all making donations for ending Childhood Cancer and Thank you Doug for all you’ve done.
Chili Crawl is coming together, October 18th is this year’s date. Bill Wisdom and Greg McCune sounded great Friday on the radio!
Bewitching in Westloop on Halloween, Clyde Scott and a few others will assist handing out candy.
DUES ARE DUE: October 1st, $140.00 can be given to Clyde Scott.
GUESTS: Karen Hawes’ husband Tim was our guest this morning.
Meeting adjourned with the Optimist Creed
OCTOBER 8 – NOON MEETING: Program: MHS Student of the Month and Matthew Driscoll, Asst. Head Coach: Topic: “Overview of KSU Basketball”
OCTOBER 15 – MORNING MEETING: Program: Jessa Peterson, Owner, Chapter 5 Yoga: Topic: “100 Miles of Pain – High Lonesome 100”
OCTOBER 22 – NOON MEETING: Program: Liz Holle, President & CEO, Big Lakes: Topic: “Big Lakes Overview”
OCTOBER 29 – MORNING MEETING: Program: President Kelly Karl: Topic: “Membership Meeting”
