Optimist Club begins in Olive Branch

From left, board members Stanley Robinson, Joy Henderson, Ken Adams, and Annie Webb, treasurer Alethia Allen, Optimist District Gov. Ester Stubbs, Cora Gibbs and Pamela Black. Not pictured is Megan Stott, vice president and Rena Robinson, club secretary. (Courtesy photo) 

DeSoto County residents relish the opportunity to step out and serve when and where needed/ People in the Olive Branch area have another way to do that now. 

An Olive Branch chapter of Optimist International has been chartered and it is the second such organization in DeSoto County after the Hernando Optimist Club, which sponsored the Olive Branch group. The Hernando group also assisted in chartering the Olive Branch club, which has started with 26 members, according to president Antonio Anderson.  

Optimists seek to find ways to “bring out the best in youth, our communities and ourselves,” according to the Optimist International website.

Anderson said the club will be looking for ways to work in the community, especially with children. Promoting an essay and oratorical contest is among the first things Anderson believed the club will be involved in.  

There are presently 1,445 clubs in the United States and 13 in Mississippi, including the Hernando and Olive Branch organizations. Optimist Clubs exist in 33 nations, including the USA.   

The first official Optimist Club was formed in Buffalo, New York in 1911. Groups took on the name Optimists to express their desire for a positive outlook in the face of problems brought by urbanization and industrialization moving through the country.  More on the club’s history is found here. 

Olive Branch Optimists meet the second Tuesday evening of the month, starting at 6:30 p.m. at McAlister’s Deli in Olive Branch, 8120 Camp Creek Blvd.

For more information, you may contact Anderson at 662-571-9676 or by email at rolanderson@yahoo.com. 

More on Optimist International is found from this video.