Four-time Olympian to speak to McCall Optimist Club

Hello Friends and Optimist,

I am very excited to announce this week’s speaker. We are fortunate to have four time Olympian Lyle Nelson as our guest. As many of you know, Lyle is a native of McCall and a national celebrity. Lyle is a very interesting, energetic and fun speaker and will share his message of “optimism” with us.

Here are a few of his biographies:

“Lyle Nelson competed in biathlon for the US at four Winter Olympics, and carried the US flag at the 1988 Opening Ceremony in Calgary. He won 13 US and North American championships during his career. Growing up in McCall, Idaho, Nelson captained the football, track, and ski teams at McCall High School. Nelson graduated from the US Military Academy with a degree in engineering in 1971. A US Army veteran, Nelson resigned in 1977 as a Captain, and then earned an MBA from Southern Cal and a PhD in human development from the Fielding Institute. He has since then become the Program Director for Integrative Medicine at the McCall Memorial Hospital. In his honor, the Nordic and snowshoe trail system at Tamarack Resort, near his home, was dedicated in his name.”

“The biathlon accomplishments of Lyle Nelson are founded in the sport’s demanding ingredients: discipline, dedication and determination. A native of McCall, Idaho, Lyle was a highly-acclaimed 1971 graduate of the United States Military Academy and later received a Master’s Degree in business from the University of Southern California. His biathlon skills and expertise helped advance the sport to the lofty position it enjoys worldwide. 

Nelson was a member of the U.S. Olympic Biathlon team in 1976, 1980, 1984 and 1988 and winner of 13 National and North American biathlon championships. He served as president of the United States Biathlon Association and was a national TV analyst for Nordic events during the 1994 and 1998 Olympic Winter Games. Nelson served as a sports and venue director during the Olympic Winter Games of 2002 and was founder and past president of the Soldier Hollow (Utah) Legacy Foundation.

An author and editor, Nelson was president of the Willamette Writers Association, one of the largest writers’ groups in the country.”

Come listen to Lyle speak this Tuesday, October 16th at our 0700 Breakfast Meeting at the Pancake House. Invite a friend. We hope to see you there!

Tom Crawford

Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

Next meeting - October 2

Hello Friends and Optimist,

Tuesday, October 2nd at our 0700 Breakfast Meeting at the Pancake House, we have Ray Alford as our guest. Ray is the coordinator for the Senior Center here in McCall. The Senior Center is going through some changes and Ray would like to come talk to us about the status and the future of the facility.

Also, please come to the meeting to pick up your Harlem Ambassador tickets or call Mike Kohout at 630-5019.

 Mark your calendars to reserve the evening of October 10 for the Installation Dinner and welcome our new Officers for the McCall Optimist Club. We will start with a non-host cocktail hour at 5:30 PM and then dinner at 6:30 PM. We'll discuss the details this Tuesday.

We hope to see you there!

Tom Crawford
Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

Next Optimist Club Meeting Sept 25

Hello Friends and Optimist,
This week we have John Barth coming to talk to us about the events and programs coming up at the Manchester Ice and Event Center. John wants everyone to know about a discount on season tickets for the Jr Steelheads games. They will only be available for a short time.

Also, we have Harlem Ambassador tickets to distribute for sale now. Please come to the meeting to pick up tickets or call Mike Kohout at 630-5019.

We hope to see you there.

Tom Crawford
Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

Meeting on Sept 18 and Harlem Ambassadors

Hello Friends and Optimist,

Jim Crawford, Horticulturalist and owner of Buffalo Berry Farms of Lakefork, will come speak to us about native plants, the industry, and the opportunities here in McCall. Jim and his wife Margo Conitz, have successfully owned and operated Buffalo Berry Farms since 1994. BBF has conducted many educational field trips for our students and has provided several first time employment opportunities. Jim and Margo are very active in the community and are a great asset to natural resource management and native landscaping. Jim will show us a few slides and give out a few pointers about working with native vegetation. Here is their website: http://buffaloberryfarm.com/home.html

Important Info: We have Harlem Ambassadors tickets to distribute with instructions. Please try to attend the meeting to receive tickets to sale. If you can’t make the meeting contact Mike Kohout at 630-5019. We will need everyone’s participation to make this family fun filled event a success!

We hope to see you there.

Tuesday, Sept 18th, Meeting 7:00am at the Pancake house.


Tom Crawford
Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

Optimist Meeting, Sept 11 - Harlem Ambassador tickets available

Update: Tuesday, September 11, 2012. We will distribute the tickets and posters for the Harlem Ambassadors with instructions. We need everyones participation to make this family fun filled event a success!

Hello Friends and Optimist,

Meeting 7:00am at the Pancake house.

This week as guest speakers, we have Cathie Largent and Ned Crossley, Code Enforcement Officers of the McCall Police Department. They will introduce the Business Watch program. This program is similar to Neighborhood Watch with the focus on businesses. The Business Watch Program is new to McCall and a sign up process is underway. Attached is a brochure with additional information regarding the program benefits. Tell all your business owner friends about this new program and invite them to our breakfast meeting!

We hope to see you there.

Tom Crawford
Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

Optimist Meeting September 11

Hello Friends and Optimist,

This week as guest speakers, we have Cathie Largent and Ned Crossley, Code Enforcement Officers of the McCall Police Department. The will introduce the Business Watch program. This program is similar to Neighborhood Watch with the focus on businesses. The Business Watch Program is new to McCall and a sign up process is underway. Attached is a brochure with additional information regarding the program benefits. Tell all your business owner friends and invite them to our breakfast meeting!

We hope to see you there.

Tom Crawford

Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

Meetings begin this week!

Hello Friends and Optimist,

I hope everyone has enjoyed the Summer. The kids are back in school and we are ready to kick off another great season of Optimist activities.

Important Meeting August 28, 2012 at the Pancake House at 7 AM
We have many things to discuss and assignments for Jazz on the Green. Alan Morrison from the McCall Golf Course will be our speaker. He will give us the last minute instructions on where he wants us to help with the Jazz on the Green. We will need to collect on the tickets the members have sold. Also at this meeting we have the Harlem Ambassadors Announcement ready to show to everyone.

Labor Day Weekend Flags!
We are be accepting "volunteers on a first come first serve basis" for this Labor Day weekend. We will put up Friday morning 8/31/12 at 7:00am and take down Monday evening 09/03/12 at 7:00pm. Volunteers should contact John Mansisidor, johnmansisidor@gmail.com at 634-6970 or 325-4458 to secure their position on the crew.

We hope to see you there.

Tom Crawford
Promise Yourself....To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.