dmm district dispatch · 2019. 2. 1. · 2 dmm district dispatch issue 18.19.05 february 2019 the...
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
2018-2019 Officers
DMM Governor Dave Martin
DMM Secretary/Treas. Greg Honl
International President Rebecca Butler Mona
Great Plains Region VP Edie Harris
DMM Governor Elect Sally Damm Norby
DMM Governor Candidate Carmen Bakken
DMM Immediate Past Governor Kevin Hammell
What you’ll find in this issue…. 2nd Qtr Conf Call! ......................... page 3 60 Year Member: Gordon Lyng .. page 12 Avoiding email Scams ................. page 14 CCDHH Contest ............................. page 9 Club Anniversaries ........................ page 3 Club Fitness ................................ page 16 Club News ..................................... page 4 DMM/OI Gatherings ..................... page 3 Dreamin’ with Gov. Dave ............. page 1 Essay Contest................................ page 9 Growth/Membership ................... page 5 Hartford Charter Members .......... page 6 ID-ing Spoof/Phishing emails ..... page 17
Kids Speak Out Press Release ...... page 3 Let’s All Go To Louisville! ........... page 13 Minnesota State Fair 2019 ........... page 7 OI Foundation ............................ page 13 Optimist Creed ............................. page 2 Optimist Day—2/7/2019.............. page 4 Oratorical Contest ........................ page 8 PDP Level II ................................. page 10 Vermillion Tanager Take-Out ..... page 11 Welcome Harford Optimists! ....... page 9 Why We Lose Members ............... page 7
Dreamin’ with Gov. Dave . . . So . . . what have I been dreaming of lately? I keep looking at the Optimist Creed sitting on my desk, and two phrases keep jumping out at me: “to work only for the best and expect only the best” and then, “to for-get the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.” So that’s what I’m concentrating on. The DMM has taken a big hit these last four months as clubs have culled their rosters of folks who have not paid their dues and have indicated they wish to “resign” or they have moved or died. I have no problem with cleaning our rosters, as long as those members have been contacted in person and have also been given an opportunity to become a “Friend of Optimists”. Now then is time to “work for and expect the best”, which means we need to get to work and go out and replace those lost members – and add even more!
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The GO TO place for DMM info: http://www.optimist-dmm.org/
International President
Rebecca Butler Mona’s Theme
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
The Optimist Creed
Promise Yourself
To be so strong that nothing can dis-turb your peace of mind. To talk health, happiness and pros-perity to every person you meet. To make all your friends feel that there is something in them. To look at the sunny side of every-thing and make your optimism come true. To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best. To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own. To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achieve-ments of the future. To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living crea-ture you meet a smile. To give so much time to the im-provement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others. To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
Editor: Curt Sandberg THANKS to everyone that submitted articles for this newsletter. For those who wish to submit articles for future issues, please email them to me at [email protected] by the 27th of each month. Thank you!
Find the DMM on Facebook! Just search “Optimistdmm” and click the “Like” button. https://www.facebook.com/optimistdmm
On January 21, we got a big kick-start towards that challenge when we welcomed the new Hartford (SD) Area Optimist Club and its 33 charter members. That’s a great start, but it’s only a start! Let’s jump on that bandwagon and add a couple more clubs (take a serious look at the Club Within a Club option) and from here on, add two members for every one member we need to drop. Don’t pro-crastinate – do it NOW! Please adopt a plan, if you haven’t already, to have a strategic plan to add members. Try an informal New Optimists Welcome event, ask every speaker you have to join you in service to youth, ASK friends, co-workers, neighbors to join you – and don’t prejudge their interest or availability! Keep that front door open and inviting (get new members involved immediately and ask for their input – and then listen to them). And while we’re keeping that front door open – let’s shut the back door, where we lose members because of neglect and not connecting with them. Work on retention from the day they join! Think about it and then let’s do it – because Together we Can Make a Difference. Your dreamin’ Optimistic Governor, Dave Dave Martin DMM Governor [email protected]
Dreamin’ with Gov. Dave . . . (Continued from page 1)
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
DMM / OI Gatherings
2nd Qtr Conference Call 7 PM, CST, Sunday, February 10
3rd Qtr DMM Gathering May 3 & 4, 2019 Watertown Event Center Watertown, SD 605-886-8011
Optimist International Conv. July 1-3, 2019 Louisville, KY
4th Qtr DMM Convention August 8-10, 2019 Ramada Inn Grand Forks, ND 701-775-3951
1st Qtr DMM Assembly October 25 & 26, 2019 Bismarck, ND
2nd Qtr DMM Conference Call February 27, 2020 7 pm—8 pm CST
Club Anniversaries During February North Suburban February 3, 1966 Brandon February 28, 1969 Sioux Valley February 25, 1976 New Ulm February 27, 1997
REMINDER: 2nd Quarter BOD Call 7 pm CST Feb. 10 The DMM Board of Directors, which includes officers, Lt. Governors and Club Presidents will meet via video conference call on Sunday, Feb. 10 at 7 pm CST. Doc-uments for review will be emailed to all members on the Monday before the meeting. The video call-in information is located on the DMM website, under District Meetings, 2nd Quarter District Conference Call, FreeConferenceCall.com.
Here’s the main portion of an actual press release from Vermillion.*
Local Optimist Club to Sponsor Kids Speak Out Con-test for Middle School Students The Optimist Club of Vermillion is encouraging area middle school students to speak their minds about a topic and prepares his or her presentation that is 2-3 minutes in length. All students will receive a certificate and scoring is based on this criteria: Poise (20 pts.), Content of Speech (20 pts.), Delivery and Presentation (40 pts.) and Overall Effectiveness (20 pts.). The contest is open to Middle school students or younger. The Contest dead-line will be announced at a later date. Contact Sarah Wells for a copy of the guidelines. Sarah Wells, Chair for the program, "I am excited to have a program available to the kids to gain experience and confidence speaking in front of a group of people." “As they prepare for their future, many of our local students need experience expressing their thoughts and opinions to an audience,” Club President Den-nis Steffen said. “The Kids Speak Out Contest challenges them to do just that and also offers an opportunity to prepare for the future. In this way, our club hopes to bring out the best in each of them and help them achieve their goals for the future.” For more information contact: Sarah Wells 605-659-0622 [email protected] * See Cheryl Bergstrom’s writing press release tips on page 8.
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Club News from club bulletins
WEST ST PAUL — For the 22nd con-secutive year, the Optimist Club of West St. Paul coordinated the ISD 197 Spelling Bee. Trophies were present-ed to the seven school winners. The Elementary and Middle School cham-pions were awarded plaques. The event was held in the high school au-ditorium on Monday, 1/14/19. DEVILS LAKE — held a baked potato bar fundraiser during the city’s Tail-gate Party in December and appeared on a local radio show to promote their participation in the January Win-ter Party. They decided to try a “Pay-It-Forward” gift wrapping event next Christmas patterned after Bismarck and Grand Forks. ROCHESTER — club members helped judge a Science Fair at Kellogg Middle School, heard from their city’s 911 Call Center Mgr., and are prepping for their 17th Frozen Goose Run and Walk coming up Feb 2 to support Childhood Cancer and Brighter To-morrows. ROSEVILLE — continues to feature high profile motivational and inspira-tional speakers at their monthly meetings. They record and post each of them on the club’s web page. To view them go to: https://www.rosevilleareaoptimistclub.com/past-meeting-videos/ RUSHMORE NOON — is exploring an alternate meeting date/time for those unable to attend Wednesday noons. If one can be found they’ll op-
erate as a “Club-Within-A-Club.” They are following-up with several schools in an attempt to get more Oratorical and Essay contestants. WATERTOWN — received help from the Great Plains Lutheran High School Basketball team to tear down their Winter Wonderland decorations. Sally Damm Norby [DMM Governor Elect] and Dee Bormann [Zone 5 Lt Gov] visited their club. A Valentine’s Day New Optimists Wanted event is scheduled. Also scheduled is a “Sleep in Heavenly Peace” representative. BROOKINGS — planned a fellowship, social at a bowling alley for late Jan. A recent speaker told them more about wild turkeys than you can believe. Ask them and they’ll pass along some facts you never knew—guaranteed! PRIOR LAKE-SAVAGE — encourages members to start a ‘book box’ for those books that no longer seem rele-vant in their family for a future dona-tion to the Prior Lake Library. Mem-bers are encouraged to help spread the word about their local Essay and Oratorical Contests. Brainstorming on a Club-Within-A-Club and Lakeville Club membership are also on their docket. VERMILLION — Robotics of Vermil-lion, a middle school-aged kids pro-gram that the club supports, ranks 136th in the world, 105th in the U.S., and the elementary aged team ranks 105th in the world and ranks 57th in the U.S. They will participate at the U.S. Open in Council Bluffs on April 1st-3rd and the World competition in Louisville, KY on April 28th-30th! They will also participate in the Polar Plunge to support Special Olympics in
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Optimist Day February 7, 2019
Members of Optimist International will celebrate Optimist Day through-out the world the first Thursday of every February to promote our efforts in bringing out the best in youth, our communities and our-selves. On Optimist Day, Optimists around the world are asked to wear Opti-mist attire - shirts, pins, hats, etc. Post your best Optimist attire on so-cial media and tag Optimist Interna-tional or use the #OptimistDay hashtag. Send your photos to [email protected] to be featured in future publications. For more info, check out: https://www.optimist.org/member/optimistday.cfm AND … we’d like to share what YOUR club did to observe this day in the March issue of the DMM District Dis-patch. Send your article / pictures to: [email protected]
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Growth / Membership February Growth Target: Healthcare Professionals First of all, I would like to thank everyone for their re-cruitment efforts over the past month as we were able to bring in 58 new Optimist members across our dis-trict. Awesome work! Please join me in welcoming the new members listed below and on page 6. The targeted recruitment group for the month of February happens to be “Healthcare Professionals.” Several folks in this industry happen to be well connected within the community and very well might have an interest in serving youth. Speaking of recruitment, I would encourage your clubs to consider a recruitment incentive program. A couple years ago, our Bismarck Optimist Club offered a $250 VISA gift card to the Optimist member who recruited the most new members to our club during the course of a 6 month period. Our club ended up getting several new members over that period of time as a result of some friendly competition in our club with recruitment. Please give some thought to a prize/cash incentive for membership recruitment within your club- you might be amazed with the results!
Welcome to the following new members in our dis-trict who joined Optimist in the month of January! Please see the list of Hartford Area, SD charter members on Page 6 Jerry Haas DMM Growth/Membership Chair [email protected]
Club New Member Sponsor
Brandon Valley Brenda Thornton AJ Menden
Central Minnesota Noon Emily Steinmetz Wendy Haus
Grand Forks Caleb Schoonover Curtis Sandberg
Grand Forks Laura Satek Nicole Kringstad
Grand Forks Pat Demars Timothy Goetz
Grand Forks Path ND Inc Timothy Goetz
Grand Forks Plains Chiropractic & Accupuncture Curtis Sandberg
Grand Forks Schiele Family Curtis Sandberg
Mitchell Area Eric Krietlow Kourtney Hauge
Mitchell Area Jessica Olson Jill Beaton
Mitchell Area Sidney Walton Amanda Johnson
New Ulm Jennifer Gareis Deborah Hertling
New Ulm Kevin Johnson Deborah Hertling
Rushmore Noon-Black Hills Greg Litton Mark Kline
Rushmore Noon-Black Hills Jordan King Jerred Koppmann
Seven Oaks Winnipeg Adam Pitt Fred Urso
Seven Oaks Winnipeg Gerry Troughton Fred Urso
Sioux Falls Morning Equipment Blades Inc Deb Ziemke
South Winnipeg Pam Gilroy-Rajotte Debbie McCallum
St. Cloud Christopher Goering Renee Dingmann
St. Cloud Marit Ortega Shari Wahlin
St. Cloud Pete Cheeley Dale Wahnschaffe
St. Paul Lauren Schmitz
St. Paul Michael Smith Terry Gorman
Valley City Junell Bishop Susan Carlsrud
Valley City Mike Bishop David Carlsrud
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Welcome to our Hartford Area, SD Charter Members!
Jerry Haas DMM Growth/Membership Chair [email protected]
Club New Member Sponsor
Hartford Area Adam Dejong Charter Member
Hartford Area Amy Larson Charter Member
Hartford Area Beth Grocott Charter Member
Hartford Area Blair Bathke Charter Member
Hartford Area Brad Berens Charter Member
Hartford Area Bret Werning Charter Member
Hartford Area Carla Luke Charter Member
Hartford Area Cole Grocott Charter Member
Hartford Area Dave Larson Charter Member
Hartford Area Emily Berg Charter Member
Hartford Area Jason Zomer Charter Member
Hartford Area Jayme Werning Charter Member
Hartford Area Jeff Canfield Charter Member
Hartford Area Jesse Fonkert Charter Member
Hartford Area Jill Fredrick Charter Member
Hartford Area Joel Martens Charter Member
Hartford Area Justin Eich Charter Member
Hartford Area Kelsey Fonkert Charter Member
Hartford Area Lisa Dvorak Charter Member
Hartford Area Lisa Helvig Charter Member
Hartford Area Logan Swanson Charter Member
Hartford Area Mark O'Hara Charter Member
Hartford Area Merlin Goebel Charter Member
Hartford Area Michael Frederick Charter Member
Hartford Area Rickie Kunzweiler Charter Member
Hartford Area Scott Nelson Charter Member
Hartford Area Sean Stokke Charter Member
Hartford Area Shala Eisenbeisz Charter Member
Hartford Area Shannon Ward Charter Member
Hartford Area Shellie Kunz Charter Member
Hartford Area Shere Lilyquist Charter Member
Hartford Area Sherri Goebel Charter Member
Hartford Area Tony Axtell Charter Member
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Why We Lose Members If only we could keep those members we work so hard to re-cruit. How many times have we uttered that state-ment? During December, when we lost 67 members, I started asking that question of myself once again. While I don’t think the reasons on the roster adjustment form are in-clusive, they do offer a glimpse of why. Here are the reasons checked: 22 for non-payment of dues; 18 resigned (why?); 13 lack of interest (what does that really mean?); 6 moved; 1 died and 1 transferred to another club. I think we really need to focus on asking those members why do you want to resign (the real reason), what do you mean by “lack of interest’? Could it really mean that no one really “connected” with them, or we didn’t get them involved in our projects? But the really disturbing observation was that most of these members who dropped their membership because of “lack of interest” (9 of 13) or “resigned” (13 of 18) did so within the first two years of joining. Those figures can be greatly reduced if we would have solid mentoring, involvement and retention programs. So how about it? Let’s make those new members really feel welcomed and appreciated. We need to ask for their ideas, listen to their input and find out what programs in which they want to participate. And then follow through! Remember, Together (all of us) We Make a Difference. Dave Martin DMM Governor [email protected]
First off, thank you so very much to the clubs that quali-fied for the early incentive drawing that took place at the MCOC meeting on Thursday January 17th. In alphabetical order: Bloomington----Eden Prairie----Glen Lake----Minneapolis----Minnesota Valley/Mankato----Prior Lake/Savage----Richfield----St. Paul----West St. Paul. All of these clubs sent in their $125 contribution by the 12-31-2018 deadline. Each club will receive 6 admission tickets to the 2019 Minnesota State Fair. So thank you so very much to those 9 Optimist Clubs for their support. We picked two winners. The first winner pulled out was Eden Prairie! The last entry pulled out was also a win-ner—Glen Lake! Please note, we need more clubs to participate to be able to pay the expenses we incur. So please make your check payable to the: West St. Paul Optimist Club for $125 and mail to: Chuck Spavin, 12045 Point Douglas Dr S, Has-tings, MN 55033. We invite all Optimist Clubs in Minnesota to participate by sending money, volunteers or hopefully both. The Minnesota State Fair gives us a huge opportunity to tell our story to literally thousands of people. Each year we distribute a tremendous number of Creed cards. So, if your club has not participated—please run it past your board. We need your help! Thank you!! Sincerely, Chuck Spavin [email protected] State Fair Chair Optimist Club of West St. Paul P.S. The 2019 dates for the Minnesota State Fair August 22 thru Labor Day, September 2, 2019
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Oratorical Scholarship News
Here we are into January and most all of the clubs should have the information on the contest disseminated.
Some Clubs have better luck drawing contestants than others, as it helps having that local con-nection to reach out to the kids.
Everything is laid out on the www.optimist-dmm.org site to get the information you need as Club Chairs, Lt. Governors and anyone looking for what is needed to get in the contest.
The 2018-2019 Oratorical Contest Planning Guide is a must to refere to. This lays out the steps in conducting a club contest to make sure you have thought of everything. Getting judges that can be Optimist members but may not be acquainted with the contestants. This may be the hardest part in getting that confirmed. A timekeeper and Sargent of Arms to guard the door is very important as well. The medals are available on the Shumsky site to order. Lt. Governors also get a set for your Zone contest as well. Lt. Governors are responsible for the medals for your Zone contest. The District picks up the cost of the medals and unframed certificates, so save your invoice for reimbursement by Greg. Please get me your club and zone details to me as soon as you get them organized. Most do the contests in April, so it all happens fast to have the club, then zone contest before the deadline to get me your $100 entry fee and necessary paperwork by the WEEK before the DMM contest in Watertown, SD on May 3rd and 4th. Make reservations for your contestants also. Clubs that have the contestant move on to District is responsible for the entry fee, room and board for 1 night and travel expenses. Let the contestants know that the club sponsors the con-testant all the way to the District. The District handles the tab up to $1,200 to advance to Regional/International com-petition. A club can send 2 contestants to zone and then 2 on to the District. With 9 zones now, there could be a maxi-mum of 18 contestants and fewer. The certificates are also on the DMM site to make it easy to get a certificate for each contestant so they have that document to show that they got involved in Optimism. Zone 7 Lt. Governor Ryan Affolter sent out to his Club Presidents, Oratorical Chairs and Treasurer's in his Zone, a great plan including dates, budget and needed tentative information for clubs to prepare. If your Zone has additional expens-es besides the medals, I need your projected cost so that I can inform Greg and Dave. Usually aside from the cost of medals ($8.00) each, the contests can be run for little if any other costs. 1st Place medal item # 1431, 2nd Place #1432, 3rd Place #1433. Clubs that have a contest and has the Lt. Governor, order 2 sets at one time to save time. Clubs, please get your contest information if you are having an Essay, CCDHH, Oratorical or Jr. Golf contest to your LT. Governor or Greg ASAP. That way by the February 10th Conference call, District Chairs can share that information at that time.
Questions please direct them my way. "Is There a Fine Line Between Optimism and Reality?"
Dennis V. Steffen Oratorical Chair [email protected]
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Welcome new Hartford Area Optimist Club
Thirty-three Hartford, SD, residents have joined the ranks of the DMM District when they chartered on Mon., Jan. 21.
Sponsors for the Hartford Area OC were the Brandon Valley and Sioux Valley clubs, with builders Jon Hartsuiker and Jeremy Risty (BV) and Greg Honl and Dave Martin (SV).
Leading the new club are Emily Berg, president and Shannon Ward, secretary/treasurer. Former Luverne (MN) Opti-mists, Sherri and Merlin Goebel were also instrumental in the establishment of the club.
Welcome to the Dakotas Manitoba Minnesota District, Hartford Area Optimists!
DMM CCDHH Contest
Hello fellow Optimists!
The CCDHH district contest is fast ap-proaching.... Topic for the 2018-19 School Year is : “Is There a Fine Line Between Optimism and Reality?”
Please let me know if your club plans to send a contestant or two to the contest so that I can be assured that we will have enough participants to officially hold the contest.
Again the entry fee is $100 this year. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to call or email.... my cell is 651-261-4312 - or visit the Op-timist International website: https://www.optimist.org/member/scholarships2.cfm for all the rules and regulations and entry information.
Thank you for all that you do!
Lori Cook DMM CCDHH Chair [email protected]
DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
OPTIMIST INTERNATIONAL ESSAY CONTEST 2019
“When All the World’s Problems are Solved, is Optimism
Still Necessary?”
*CLUB WINNER ENTRIES MUST BE RECEIVED
ON OR BEFORE FEBRUARY 28, 2019!
District Chair: Star Munch 110 W. Doral Ct. Sioux Falls, SD 57108
*Local Club Essay Chairs send date of local contest to DMM Essay Chair, Star Munch, no later than Jan. 15, 2019. [email protected] *Consult Planning Guide for Official Rules, How to Conduct a Local Contest and how to obtain materials if needed. Questions? Contact [email protected] or 605-321-4888 ***The following completed information must accompany the Club winner documents (due on or before February 28,2019: *2018-2019 District Essay Contest Winner’s Information Form Social Security Number or SIN (for Canadian contestants) * Application for 2018-2019 Optimist International Essay Contest * District Essay Contest Entry Form Signed by contestant Number of contestants that participated in Club Contest Appropriate signatures (Club President, Club Contest Chair) *Birth Certificate or Passport (copy if legible) *Printed copy of Essay( attached title page) *Entry Fee
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
PDP – Level II Change your Optimist club from “the best kept secret” to the best known service organization! Each level of the PDP (Professional Development Program) includes a Marketing requirement. Earn credit toward your Level II certificate while generating more publicity for your club.
The marketing requirement in Level II is to prepare a press release for a specific event. A press release can get your club’s name in the media. When practical, prepare a press release before an event or project. An example is writing a press release for your club’s Optimist Essay Contest to attract more entries. After an event, prepare a press release to let community members learn about a completed event. After the Optimist Club of West St. Paul’s Spelling Bee, I wrote a press release providing information on who won each school bee and the winning words.
A press release should include
• Club Logo • Your contact information (name, email, phone number) • FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE [DATE] (or HOLD FOR RELEASE UNTIL [DATE] • Headline • City and State • Body including an introductory paragraph • Boilerplate • ### (to indicate the end)
The body of a press release should include the following information:
1. Who 2. What 3. Where 4. When 5. Why
The Optimist International website includes fillable press releases for the scholarship programs. The one for the Opti-mist Essay Contest is at https://www.optimist.org/member/programs5.cfm
The boilerplate used for that press release is:
The Optimist Club of CLUB NAME has been participating in the Optimist Essay Contest for NUMBER years and has been active in the community since CHARTER YEAR. Other programs and service projects that the Club is involved in include CLUB PROJECTS.
Include additional contact information, such as
• Your club’s website address • A member’s name and contact information • When and where your club meets
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
By including additional information in your club’s press release, a potential member may follow up. One time, my club had three articles in a local monthly newspaper. A reader called me and asked for more information about Optimist clubs. She joined an Optimist club closer to where she lived. Another reader sent me an email, visited a meeting, and joined our club’s Optimist Minute email list. She later joined our club.
Writing press releases can help bring out the best in your club.
For a fillable online form to track your progress, see http://www.optimist.org/Forms/Professional_Development_Requirements_Fillable.pdf
A club may obtain 50 PDP brochures by contacting Jackie Moore at (314) 371-6000 x263 or [email protected].
Cheryl Bergstrom DMM Personal Growth Director [email protected]
PDP – Level II (Continued from page 10)
Tanager Take-Out At Vermillion The Vermillion Club provides monthly support for this program at Vermillion High School that is open from 3 pm to 5 pm each Fri-day. Pictured on the left is a recent donation from the club that prompted the following response from those administering the program: “Yesterday in the middle of Tanager Take-Out, Mr. Huska asked if we were expecting a Hy-Vee delivery. I said no, but John said maybe. The driver found his way to Tanager Take-Out and delivered several gro-cery bags full of cereals, soups, and potatoes! Dennis Steffen and the Optimist Club, what a won-derful and much appreciated surprise! Thank you for all you do for the people in our community.”
late February. Thankfully that wasn’t scheduled for late January! RICHFIELD — has a new weekly newsletter editor: David Kriesel-Koll. He recaps their prior week’s speak-er’s presentation, upcoming speak-ers’ topics, member’s birthdays, posi-tive news in the life of members, and upcoming project dates — all in a colorful, easy to read format. 2019 Avenue of Flags goal is 500 vs 450 in 2018; 175 renewals are already se-cured. GRAND FORKS — reminds everyone to keep Aug 8,9, & 10 open for the DMM MARDI GRAS Convention! Please send your club’s newsletter to [email protected] to have your club’s activities listed in up-coming issues of the DMM Dispatch.
Club News (Continued from page 4)
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
60 Year Member: Gordon Lyng 91 year old member 35150-2640 of Sioux Falls Morning Optimist since 6/02/1958
I began my volunteer career as a Boy Scout leader for my son—the next five years became a teaching experience for me with boys, fathers & den mothers. We worked together toward achieving the highest awards and developing warm relationships lasting many years.
In 1957, as my wife and I were getting ready for the Sioux Falls Morning Optimist Club Install-ment ceremony, I dropped ashes from my cigarette onto the newspaper & my shirt, resulting in an impossible to remove black stain. I had no other shirt to wear - something triggered in my mind telling me to quit smoking once and for all. Until one decides mentally to quit, you try again and again without success. I thank the Optimist Club for being the instrument in stopping a really bad habit. My wife could not stop & spent much of her later life living with smoking consequences.
Shortly after joining Optimist I was asked to start a new program, the Bantam Baseball Program for Boys ages 8-12. We started with 4 teams, sponsors and no coach! Once again, my son stepped up, telling me I could do it just like he did with the Boy Scouts. I coached 7 years for 5 months in the summer, led Boy Scouts during the school year -never had time to have any more kids of my own.
The baseball program grew every year so more boys could play because I was concerned about turning away kids that wanted to play!
I learned many Optimistic lessons from the boys I coached through baseball. One boy was too young to play on the team but persisted until I allowed him to practice with the team. He became my assistant encouraging the other play-ers, pushing them to do better, evaluating play & eventually becoming a great shortstop and an all-star team player because his desire was so great!
With my own son and other boys, I learned the value of listening to problems, providing a place to ask for advice, and setting an example as an Optimist to pass on to the next generation. I encouraged boys to look at their playing in posi-tive ways, making suggestions of how to improve.
I also learned to give every boy the opportunity to play - one never knows what great things can happen! A player once told me I was a solid coach who always made kids feel like they were able to do anything they set out to do. This became an inspiration to start his own business and encourage his granddaughter to work for me.
Sometimes, it was necessary to remind parents we were playing to teach sportsmanship &and allow each boy to play the position he wanted-pitching being the most desired position - winning was not the only reason we played baseball. The baseball program, started with an Optimist request, continued to grow, keeping boys off the streets and out of trouble.
During my over 60 years as an OPTIMIST, I credit my quitting smoking and getting involved with the programs such as the Bantam baseball, Worlds Greatest Rummage Sale, Boys Club, Boots and Mittens for Kids and my 35 years of perfect attendance.
Gordon Lyng Fellow Sioux Falls Morning Optimist Ken Munch helped Sioux Falls Morning Optimist Gordon submit this to OI for “Celebrating Optimist 100”.
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THANKS to Tim Goetz / MARCO for printing many of the handouts for our quarterly gatherings and annual conventions. PLEASE consider MARCO for your technology needs.
DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Let’s ALL Go to Louisville! The Optimist International Convention is hap-pening June 30 – July 3 ,2019 in Louisville, Ken-tucky and you want to be there. There is train-ing specifically for the District Growth Chair Designate, District Club Fitness Advisory Chair Designate, Leadership Development District Chair Designate, New Club Building, Club Presi-dents-Elect, Club Secretary-Treasurer, Lt. Gov-ernors-Elect and District Secretary-Treasurer. In addition, there are many other workshops available that can help both you and your club be successful! It is also a great chance to network and share ideas with other members. I have met a lot of new people and learned a lot of things at the International Conventions I have attended. It’s fun and educa-tional! This year we have a chance to win $100 convention registration for ALL the members of our district. That is less than half of the $209 Early Bird Registra-tion fee! All we must do is start 2 new clubs in our district and be +15 in membership by March 31st, 2019. We already have 1 club in the books and if we add one more club and add 57 more members (less than 3% of member-ship), ALL members in our district will be able to register for the International Convention for $100! In addition to education and networking, there are some leisure activities also available. Churchill Downs, Kentucky Derby Museum, Louisville Slugger Factory, The Bourbon Experience, and riverboat cruises are among some of the other activities available in Louisville. It is always fun going to new places and learning new things! So, let’s take advantage of this opportunity to help our district grow so more of us can attend the International Convention which will also help us grow. This in turn will help the children in our commu-nities grow! “To give so much time to the improvement of yourself, that you have no time to criticize others” Let’s build ourselves, build our clubs, and build our communities. Please plan on attending the International Convention, you won’t regret it. Kevin Hammell OI Convention Ambassador [email protected]
The Winter 2019 edition of The Opti-mist magazine recognized Carmen Bakken, DMM OIF Representative, and the DMM for contributing $24,098.79 as of 9/30/2018 which was eighth among all the districts in OI. Well done, DMM! Thanks, Car-men for your leadership. AND . . . Jo-Anne Pelzer, DMM CCOF Representative was recognized for attaining an average contribution per member of $40.96 which ranked third within OI! Donna Suggitt attained Honored Ben-efactor status having contributed $2,500 and William Reilly reached Benefactor status with a lifetime con-tribution of $1,000.
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Email Scams and how to avoid them
Back in 2016 when I was president, my Club Treasurer received an odd email request from me, asking her to
send a check to a certain place. While this is not the norm of how we do things at our club, she did the cor-
rect thing and sent the check. Just kidding, she called me like she should have. After she forwarded the
email to me, I pointed out to her that while the FROM said Tim Goetz, if she hovered over the email address,
it showed a totally different address.
I am not sure where the Scammer found out that I was President and she was Treasurer, but information is
out there everywhere. This is why we have our District Directory password protected on the DMM website.
On Jan 17, the same type of SCAM, but in a more sophisticated way, was sent to our DMM District Sec/Treas
from our Governor “Dave Martin” – Note his email address
Greg knew better, he tried calling and texting Dave, but he was unavailable.
So he replied to see what was up.
The SCAMMER replied.
(Continued on page 15)
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Here is where Greg did the correct thing to try flush this Scammer out.
But this Scammer wouldn’t give up. They replied this.
(Continued from page 14) Email Scams and how to avoid them
(Continued on page 16)
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Greg finally received a call back from Dave and confirmed this was a Scam.
The moral of this story is to always double check with someone via phone before sending any money any-where.
Call the person directly and you won’t be SCAMMED.
Sincerely, Tim Goetz DMM Technology Guru and Webmaster
Look for 10 simple tips on how to identify a phishing or spoofing email on page 17 of this Dispatch.
(Continued from page 15) Email Scams and how to avoid them
Club Fitness
Last month I talked about CLUB FITNESS and the different ways to increase membership in your clubs. This month I want to focus on a couple of the ways:
First, a NOW Meeting (NEW OPTIMIST WANTED) • Schedule a special meeting for the 3rd week in February and September; always hold it the same week every year
so your members know when this will be. • Provide an invitation (postcard size) your members can give to guests. • Decide if you want to have a guest speaker (use an organization that you give money to as your speaker). • Make sure to introduce all guests and members at the meeting. • Have some members tell about WHY they are a member. • Provide an application and tell guests the cost to join your club. • You can have a special prize for the guests that sign up the day of your NOW meeting. • Keep the meeting to a minimum to not over whelm the guests. • Allow time for questions and answers.
Second, Increase Membership: • Hold a NOW meeting. • Talk to your President/Board members about a special price for spouses, if you club does not already have one —
maybe 1/2 price. • Hold the 1st meeting of the month as a breakfast/coffee meeting. This might help members who can not come to
your meeting at the regular scheduled time make this meeting. • Hold the last meeting of the month during a Happy Hour. Again this might allow members to be able to attend that
could not at another time. • You could also hold a NOW meeting during the Happy Hour. • Think of local businesses that have just hired a new employee; ask them to your meeting. • Look at your deleted roster — past members can sign up for $30 for their first returned year. • Talk to your school district — current and past education employees can join for $30 for their first year * * * * REMEMBER IF YOU NEED TO DROP A MEMBER — FIND A WAY TO ADD TWO MEMBERS! * * * *
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DMM District Dispatch Issue 18.19.05 February 2019
Here are 10 simple tips on how to identify a phishing or spoofing email
Tip 1: Don’t trust the display name A favorite phishing tactic among cybercriminals is to spoof the display name of an email. Here’s how it works: If a fraudster wanted to spoof the hypothetical brand “My Bank,” the email may look something like:
This fraudulent email, once delivered, appears legitimate because most user inboxes only present the dis-play name. Don’t trust the display name. Check the email address in the header from—if looks suspicious, don’t open the email.
Tip 2: Look but don’t click Hover your mouse over any links embedded in the body of the email. If the link address looks weird, don ’t click on it. If you want to test the link, open a new window and type in website address directly rather than clicking on the link from unsolicited emails.
Tip 3: Check for spelling mistakes Legitimate messages usually do not have major spelling mistakes or poor grammar. Read your emails care-fully and report anything that seems suspicious.
Tip 4: Analyze the salutation Is the email addressed to a vague “Valued Customer?” If so, watch out—legitimate businesses will often use a personal salutation with your first and last name.
Tip 5: Don’t give up personal information Most companies will never ask for personal credentials via email. Don ’t give them up. Tip 6: Beware of urgent or threatening language in the subject line
Invoking a sense of urgency or fear is a common phishing tactic. Beware of subject lines that claim your “account has been suspended” or your account had an “unauthorized login attempt.”
Tip 7: Review the signature Lack of details about the signer or how you can contact a company strongly suggests a phish. Legitimate businesses always provide contact details.
Tip 8: Don’t click on attachments Including malicious attachments that contain viruses and malware is a common phishing tactic. Malware can damage files on your computer, steal your passwords or spy on you without your knowledge. Don ’t open any email attachments you weren’t expecting.
Tip 9: Don’t trust the header from email address Fraudsters not only spoof brands in the display name, but also spoof brands in the header from email ad-dress.
Tip 10: Don’t believe everything you see Phishers are extremely good at what they do. Just because an email has convincing brand logos, language, and a seemingly valid email address, does not mean that it’s legitimate. Be skeptical when it comes to your email messages—if it looks even remotely suspicious, don’t open it.
Tim Goetz, DMM Webmaster and Tech Guru