THE WALT WIDDER MEMORIAL SCRAMBLE IS A 4 PERSON TOURNAMENT FOR BOTH MEN AND WOMEN. PRIZES WILL BE AWARDED TO THE 1ST, 2ND, AND 3RD PLACE TEAMS, AS WELL AS 1 LUCKY RANDOM TEAM VIA DRAWING. CONTESTS TO WIN PRIZES FOR BOTH MEN AND WOMEN WILL INCLUDE CLOSEST TO THE PIN, LONGEST DRIVE, AND LONGEST PUTT. THERE WILL ALSO BE SKINS, RELOADS, AND A 50/50 RAFFLE AVAILABLE.

PROCEEDS FROM THIS GOLF TOURNAMENT ARE DONATED TO THE WEST FLINT OPTIMIST CLUB. $8,000+ WAS DONATED IN 2017!

REGISTRATION INCLUDES:

• Green Fees & Cart
• Hot Dog at the Turn
• Steak Dinner
• A sleeve of Golf Balls

Dutch Hollow Golf Course
8500 Lansing Rd
Durand, MI 48429

Visit www.widdergolfscramble.com

Our Club will once again furnish a snack/lunch for the returning Flint area athletes –we have been involved in every one of the prior 60 years of CANUSA!–on Sunday, August 12.  As has been our custom the last few years we will plan to do an “assembly line” preparation of the lunches a few days prior to that– probably AUG 7 or 8.  We will need 10-12 people for that part of the operation and likely no more than 4 to make the trek to Port Huron to place the snacks on the buses. So, please mark your calendars in order that we have plenty of help on those days.

Sean and Jim also made these points:

–the Flint Olympian Games (the “qualifing” events to determine CANUSA athlete selection in the Flint area) Opening Ceremony is July 10 at Houston Stadium on the Northwestern High School campus–all are welcome.

–the CANUSA Appreciation Dinner is Thursday, July 26–we can send several West Flint Optimists to this; and the Golf Outing fundraiser is Friday, July 27–do we want to send a team representing West Flint Optimists?

–CANUSA Leadership is seeking major sponsorships for the Games and has begun some affiliation with the Crim Foundation.  Depending on whether the Games are HOME or AWAY, the cost ranges from $120,000 to $150,000 for each year and they have no more than a year’s funding on hand. With Sean Croudy’s relatively new position as Director of Community Recreation for the City of Flint (he was in the Counselling Department of the Flint Schools for many years) there is now some improved coordination between the Schools and the City.

–Our Club’s involvement with the rich heritage of the CANUSA Games is significant: in addition to the lunch/snack in “away” years and the continental breakfast in the “home” years, we also provide monies for the Ralph Boyer CANUSA Scholarship Fund to help Flint area athletes with the cost of attending the Games when they are held in Hamilton.  We have a great association with this very worthy event and the fine people of the CANUSA Leadership. In case you weren’t aware, they help at our Chicken Dinner fundraiser (selling/buying tickets and working the floor at the dinner) and for several years they have bought tickets and attended our $5,000 Raffle, so we truly have partners in this group.

Workers from our club included: Bill Hentgen, Mic Goulet, Jack Medemar, Bonnie Kelley, Tina Olshove, Phil Holmblade, Greg Hilliker, Joe Bushey and his son, Michael, Steve Schlott and his wife, Rose.

We also had two of our CANUSA Partners to help: Dan Berezny and Rooster Daly.

In addition to the above workers bringing/supplying diners, these members also brought groups to dine: Jeff Dennings, Joe Farah and Ken Cullen.

Apologies to anyone I may have missed.

Bill will have a report soon to indicate the financial results. In the meantime, anyone who still has money out for sold tickets, or any unsold tickets, please get all of that to Bill as soon as possible so he can finalize the results. Remember, any sold, but unused, tickets boost the bottom line profit of the activity.

Thanks to all, especially Bill for his leadership in chairing this event.

Submitted, Steve Schlott

Dutch Hollow Golf Club
8500 Lansing Road
Durand, Michigan
9:00 a.m: Registration
10:00 a.m. Shotgun Start

Saturday, September 30, 2017

Prizes will be awarded to the 1st, 2nd, 3rd place teams and 1 lucky random team, closest to the pin, longest drive, longest
putt, skins, and 50/50 raffle.

$260 per Foursome
($65 per player)*
Includes:
– Green Fees & Cart
– Hot Dog at the Turn
– Steak Dinner
– Sleeve of Golf Balls

Sponsorship
Hole Sponsorships – $100

MAIL REGISTRATION WITH PAYMENT BY SEPTEMBER 1, 2017 TO: Mark Widder – 32363 LAKE ROAD, AVON LAKE, OH 44012
P: 810-845-1785 E: marwidde@gmail.com

*Proceeds from this golf tournament are donated to the West Flint Optimist Club. $4,900+ was donated in 2016!

Walt is greatly missed and his sons along with Security First Benefits Corporation are hosting a golf outing to benefit the West Flint Optimist Club in his name.

Please join us at Dutch Hollow Golf Club on Sept. 24th for the Inaugural Memorial Golf Scramble.

9:00 am registration, 10:00 am shot gun start.
8500 Lansing Road, Durand, MI

Thank you to Security First Benefits Corporation for sponsoring this event.

Cost is only $260 for a foursome. ($65 per player)

Included:

• Greens Fees
• Hot Dog at the Turn
• Steak DInner
• Sleeve of Golf Balls

Hole Sponsorships are only $100

Mail your registration including team name, players and contact information to Mark Widder  32363 Lake Road, Avon Lake, OH 44012 or call 810-845-1785  marwidde@gmail.com

Eric Pionk
Group Sales Representative
(517) 485-4500 ext. 256
www.lansinglugnuts.com/newshell

Download using this link: Group Outings Flyer

Download their schedule using this link: 2016 Lugnuttiest Days

2015 Suits & Sauce Annual Dinner to be Held at New Location: Flint Farmers’ Market

FLINT, MI (October 1, 2015) – More than 200 guests will visit the Flint Farmers’ Market on Wednesday, October 14, 2015 to celebrate the 13th Annual Suits & Sauce Dinner presented by Fathead, LLC; QuickenLoans and Famous Dave’s BBQ. The 8th Annual Patrick McInnis Community Hero Award will be presented to Congressman Dan Kildee at this year’s ceremony, Growing Famous Futures. The evening kicks off at 6:00 pm with a silent auction and cocktail hour sponsored by Diplomat Pharmacy followed by the dinner at 7:00 with the meal compliments of Famous Dave’s.

The Community Hero Award was established in 2008 as a way to recognize an individual or group for a significant investment of time, talent and treasure in youth living in Flint, Michigan.  The award was named in recognition of Fathead CEO and Flint native, Patrick McInnis, whose investment in the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Flint has directly resulted in a more vibrant and positive organization where area youngsters can learn, play and grow into productive citizens.  Congressman Kildee joins other distinguished past award honorees such as Dr. Nita Kulkarni, Judge Duncan Beagle, Detroit Shock, Tom Izzo, Congressman Dale E. Kildee and Mateen Cleaves.

Congressman Kildee is being honored for his dedication and support of our youth, as well as our families throughout our community.  It is a great honor to recognize Congressman Kildee as the 2015 Patrick McInnis Community Hero Award recipient.

The Suits & Sauce Dinner is a key component in the success of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Flint. This event has helped grow the local organization to include two sites, Averill Avenue and the Haskell Youth Center, to serving more than 6,100 youth per year with more than 2,400 of these youth as registered members.

QuickenLoans and Fathead LLC, a leading brand in sports and entertainment graphic products, are the official sponsors of the event. Dinner tickets per individual are $150; table sponsors which seats 7 people are available for $1,500; various sponsorship opportunities starting at $100 are available, as well.  For more information about the event e-mail event coordinator, Marcia Heller at mheller@bgclubflint.org, or call (810) 249-3452.
Connie Peters
Development Director
Boys and Girls Club of Greater Flint
3701 N. Averill Avenue
Flint, MI 48506
Office Phone: 810-249-3413
Direct Line: 810-249-3452
Fax: 810-249-3439
www.bgclubflint.org

“It is the mission of the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Flint to inspire and enable all young people; especially those who need us most, to realize their full potential as productive, responsible and caring citizens.”

So, at this point we know we will need a minimum of 2-4 volunteers to help us throughout the day on Friday.  We will have a volunteer area set up for breaks with complimentary coffee from Coffee Beanery and we will provide lunch as well. Use the sign up sheet below to volunteer.

For more information on the event, Genesee Valley Center has created an event on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/events/770531329725938/), posted the event on their website (http://www.geneseemall.com/event/bottled-water-drive/2145462683) and they have sent out an email blast to their email database.

We will finalize our press release to include the Optimist International as our volunteer partner and we will make the addition to our web and social media posts.  We also have a flyer in development that I will forward to you, feel free to share as you see fit.

[sign_up_sheet id="9"]


Only 150 raffle tickets are sold at $100 each for the grand prize of $5,000. The first ticket and every tenth ticket pulled from the barrel wins $100. Drawing continues until the last ticket drawn determines the winner of the $5,000. Suspense builds dramatically as the evening progresses. When there are only five tickets left in the drum, remaining ticket holders are invited to the stage for a secret ballot vote and can elect to split the $5,000. If anyone wants to draw, the drawing continues until there is either a unanimous decision to split or the final ticket and $5,000 winner is drawn. Lastly there is a drawing from all the losing tickets for consolation prize of $500.

“Not only is this a fun event, but it raising lots of money for local children,” said Jeff Dennings, President of the West Flint Optimist Club.

The event also raises money with a sideboard that is set up with numbers 1-150. For $10 you can win $50 if your sideboard number is a winning draw in the $5,000 Raffle. Generous prize donations will also be raffled off during the evening:

• $500 Gift Certificate from Gaines Jewelry
• HDTV from Karen’s Carpetmax
• 3 Night Stay at Jockey Club in Las Vegas from Superior Travel Service

All raffle proceeds stay local and will go toward the charities supported by West Flint Optimist Club, which include but are not limited to Whaley Children’s Center, Special Olympics, CANUSA Games, Children’s Miracle Network, Michigan School for the Deaf, YMCA, Hurley Hospital Pediatrics, Swartz Creek Special Education, Old Newsboys of Flint, Greater Flint Boys & Girls Club, University of Michigan – Flint Scholarships and Camp for Children with Cancer.

Tickets go on sale September 10th and can be reserved through Optimist Club Members, emailing JeffESCM@gmail.com or by going online at OptimistsInAction.com. Click here to download the Flyer or here to download the Press Release.

About West Flint Optimist Club

West Flint Optimist Club was founded in 1963. They are a local non-profit associated with Optimist International. The club volunteers and raises money to support local charities that involve children. Optimist International is a worldwide volunteer organization made up of more than 2,500 local Clubs whose Members work each day to make the future brighter by bringing out the best in children, in their communities, and in themselves.

If you would like more information about this topic, please contact Jeff Dennings at 810-429-3634 or email at JeffESCM@gmail.com.

Flushing’s Optimist Club, which could be Michigan’s 100th, could also sponsor Childhood Cancer Campaign and Internet Safety projects and Tri-Star Basketball contests. In addition to the Optimist Oratorical, the Downtown Flint Optimist Club wants to bring over their Why I Volunteer essay contest, the scholarship program for 11-12th grades and other projects, to reward children, boost their self-esteem and reinforce positive behavior.

Cherryl Thames, governor for the Michigan District, has high regards for an organization that raised $220,000 for the previous one-year reporting period, with just 63 percent of totals counted. “On a scale of one to 10, Optimist Clubs are a 12″ she said.

Michael Murphy, Michigan District Optimist – Lt. Governor for the Flint, Davison, Lapeer and Grand Blanc areas, member of the Downtown Flint Optimist Club and Grand Blanc resident has confirmed two meetings to launch the Flushing effort at:

Kathy’s Restaurant and Lounge ● 126 E. Main St.● Flushing, MI 48433

The first is an Optimist Leadership Development meeting – Saturday, September 19, 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. followed by New Club Building “Boots on the Ground” community engaging and recruitment.

The second is the Flushing Optimist Club informational and organization meeting – Saturday, September 19, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

“We have already received some great feedback,” Murphy said.   “I believe the club should really focus on those students who may not have much but are looking for a better way of life. The more people that join our organization, the more we can help children, families and communities.”

Flushing needs 15 charter members to form its own Optimist Club. Thames and Murphy are excited and hopeful that the club can be organized on September 19th.

Local clubs have the independence to decide how they want to help their communities. They may also choose to collaborate with other local clubs on projects. “For Flushing to have its own local club is wonderful, Murphy said, and for us to be able to add another Optimist Club in this area is ideal.”

For additional information, contact Michael Murphy by: Phone: (810) 610-7782 Email: mjmurphy101@hotmail.com