Middleton Optimists

Our club pays the Optimist International dues for each member. Members can choose to support the club by paying annual dues of $100.00. However, the Middleton Optimist Club will waive the dues of any member during their first year. (Our calendar year runs with the fiscal calendar of Oct. 1 through September 30). After the first year, the Middleton Optimists will waive the dues of any member who fulfills two volunteer shifts annually.

What are the advantages of membership? Membership provides valuable networking opportunities and opens lines of communication with many business people. The Middleton Optimist Club provides the opportunity to meet professional men and women who work and live in the community. With membership, you will enjoy the fun and fellowship of others who share a common vision to make a difference in the lives of our youth. In addition to working with young people in our community, members have the opportunity to develop important leadership skills. You may choose to hold a club office or serve as a chair of a club project. If your interest is in the fellowship and leadership beyond our immediate club, members may participate in both district and Optimist International meetings. These meetings offer a variety of courses in leadership training.

No. While the Middleton Optimists recognize that good turn out for meetings promotes fellowship and a great chance to network with fellow members and to grow through learning about the experiences of our featured speakers and student award winners, there is no demand or requirement to attend meetings.

No. While the Middleton Optimist Club encourages its members to be active participants in our community, there are no mandatory requirements for volunteer hours with the Middleton Optimist Club. However, the Middleton Optimist Club will waive the annual dues for any member that participates in two volunteer shifts during the previous fiscal year.

Yes. Because we work with children, volunteers are screened with a background check.

The Middleton Optimists have volunteer opportunities with the following events and organizations: 🔹 The Middleton Good Neighbor Festival. The Middleton Optimists are a founding organization of the Good Neighbor Festival and have participated in the event for over six decades. In addition to hosting the festival's hamburger and hot dog stand, the festival provides two Trustees to the Good Neighbor Festival Board who plan the festival year round. At present, four current Optimist members have served as Festival President. The Festival treasurer is a Middleton Optimist 🔹 Concerts at Breese Stevens Field. Through a partnership with Breese Stevens, the Middleton Optimists sell beer at concerts and food at Forward soccer matches. Volunteering with the Optimists for a Breese Stevens concert is a great way to enjoy a free concert and fun with your fellow Optimists. The Breese Stevens concerts allow us to keep the tips we earn at the beer stand, which contributes thousands of dollars annually toward our programs, grants and scholarships. 🔹 Cops and Bobbers. In partnership with the Middleton Police Department, the Middleton Optimists host a morning of fishing at Lakeview Park. 200 children are given a free fishing pole and bait and can fish with a Middleton police officer. Pizza and snacks are served. Volunteers are needed for the day of the event, as well as prior to the event for fishing pole assembly. 🔹 Middleton Parks and Recreation. The Middleton Optimists support the Middleton Parks and Rec department by helping twice a year with Lakeview Park clean up. The Optimists also provide volunteers for events that Parks and Rec holds, such as a bike rodeo in the spring, pumpkin hunt in October and candy cane hunt in December. 🔹 The Middleton Optimists are always looking for ways to make Middleton an even better community, to that end the Optimists are always ready to help out where needed and may pick up miscellaneous volunteer jobs throughout the year.

We give a Student of the Month Award and Rising Star Award to students from Middleton High School and Clark Street Community School. We give a 4 year scholarship to a Middleton student who will be studying for a career in a youth related field. We hold a Cops and Bobbers fishing day each year in September. We help sponsor a national oratorical contest each March. We hold informational meetings with local leaders and groups of interest to the Middleton Optimists at our breakfast meetings. We provide leadership to the Middleton Good Neighbor Festival as a founding member of the Festival Board since 1964.

The Middleton Optimists provide regular financial support to BSA Troop 940, the Middleton Baseball and Softball Commission, and to four annual scholarships for Middleton High School students preparing for a career in a youth related field. The Optimists also provide grants and donations to local groups with a youth focus such as a recent donation to the Middleton Public Library for its new Bookmobile, as well as a donation to the Middleton High School newspaper to allow it to publish a print version of its journal.