Craig Boring – Optimist International Foundation Executive Director

Special Announcement

Beth Duncan announced there will be no Zoom meeting on 9/29/2020 at noon. Instead, join us that evening at 6:30 PM on Zoom for the annual Officer Installation and Awards Ceremony. All members and spouses are invited to see the installation of Debe Dockins as president and of the new board members. Beth promises it will be fun.

Announcements

Nancy Lehren, the chair of the Childhood Health and Wellness committee, announced that a drive through Build-A-Bear for TOPSoccer will be held on 9/20/2020. They expect 75 to 100 kids to show up.

Community Events

9/15/2020, 12 PM, a special version of our weekly Zoom meeting will be held. It will be a NOW (New Optimists Welcome) event. Please invite friends, family, and other contacts to attend the meeting. There will be presentations about our fundraisers and community events.

Announcing the CNO Dime-A-Day Lottery

Dime-A-Day is a program where members are asked if they can contribute $36.50 to the Optimist International Foundation (OIF). Greg Wasmund is the CNO Club Foundation Representative (CFR) for the OIF and he said there is a prize for two lucky participants in the 2020 Dime-A-Day program.

Here are the details

• The lottery ends October 31, 2020.
• Every person who signs up for the Dime-A-Day program through Greg Wasmund will have an entry in the lottery.
• Mail completed applications with your check to Greg Wasmund, 9569 Whispering Stream Ct, Dayton OH 45458. Put club #24403 on the form.
• There will be two winners – each receiving a Kindle Firestick!
• This is a PDF of the form you can print

Happy Birthday Doug Reno and Karl Frydryk

Today, 9/8/2020, is a shared birthday for Doug Reno and Karl Frydryk. Mark Meeker played happy birthday on his guitar while the rest of us sang.  Something amazing happened – we sang almost in tune!

Craig Boring, Optimist International Foundation

Greg Griffin introduced Craig Boring, the Executive Director of Optimist International Foundation. OIF is the charitable side of Optimist International and it is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization. The foundation is about helping Optimists help kids.

His presentation was titled, “What the Foundation Can Do for You!”

You can view the slide deck here. 

Boring said that the contestants for the Oratorical contest adapted to the challenges of COVID and did great over Zoom.

He showed us a video titled, “Oratorical – Dominique’s Story”. You can watch the video by going to this page. The video is an example of the support OIF gives to the world. Dominique needed speech therapy growing up. The Oratorical contest gave her confidence and $17,500 in scholarships.

The OIF was Founded on February 18, 1971 and will celebrate 50 years in 2021. The idea for OIF came from a long-term strategic planning committee of OI that began in 1969. Charles Campbell, the President of OI, signed the incorporation papers and the Optimist International Foundation became a 501 (c) (3) organization.

OIF gives support to local Optimist Clubs. They also support other youth related charitable organizations such as the Ronald McDonald House and Johns Hopkins Pediatric Hospital.

With COVID in 2020, revenue is down 17%. They foundation knew it would be a difficult year but they decided to provide the same support to Optimist International Clubs so they can support kids.

OIF Vision

We envision a Foundation that can provide significant funding for Optimist International’s youth and service programs and is proudly supported by individual Optimists, their Clubs and the community at large.

OIF Mission

Seeking, receiving, and managing funds and real personal property for the benefit of Optimist International and its member clubs for charitable, literary and educational activities.

How Does OIF Support Optimist International?

OIF supports the funding and prize money for OI districts

• Scholarships
• World Oratorical Championship
• Fundraising from Outside Organizations
• Reel Optimism Video Contest
• New Club Building Grants
• JOI clubs – 45% of the operating budget for Junior Optimists Clubs is provided by OIF

OIF Provides Grants to local Optimist Clubs

• Club Matching Fund
• Childhood Health and Wellness/Childhood Cancer Campaign (CCC)
• Disaster Relief (this started with Hurricane Harvey)

How Does OIF Fund Ongoing Projects?

• Member Donations
• Club Donations
• Endowments and Sponsorships
• Outside Revenue
• Investment Resources (which consistently have good returns, including for 2020)

Giving Programs for Clubs

• Dollar-A-Day
• Club Campaign Fund
• Pass Through Program (they charge no fees for this service)

The pass-through program allows people and organizations to give tax deductible donations to OIF, which then transfers the funds back to clubs that may not be setup as a 501 (c) (3) organization.

Programs for Individuals

• Dime-A-Day ($36.50/yr)
• President’s club
• Friends of Today
• Friends of Tomorrow
• Christian D. Larson
• William H. Harrison Society
• Women’s Philanthropy Council

The Role of a Club Foundation Representative (CFR)

• Communication
• Contributions
• Send contributions to OIF

Contacting OIF for more information

• oifoundation.org
• 800.500.8130 Ext 203
• [email protected]

Craig Boring thanked us for everything CNO does for kids and the support for OIF.

Thank you, Craig Boring, for joining us to educate CNO about the Optimist International Foundation.