Optimist Club Offers Scholarships for Student Essays

The Coquitlam Optimist Club is offering $850 in prizes and an opportunity to win scholarships totalling up to $8500 in Optimist International’s 2010 Essay Contest.

The Essay Contest is open to students under 19 years of age as of December 31, 2009. Contestants must submit essays of 400-500 words in length on the topic “The Internet: Today's Evolution or Tomorrow's Menace?”

The Coquitlam Optimist Club will award cash prizes of $500 for first place, $250 for second place and $100 for third place. The first place winner will advance to the Pacific Northwest District contest with the opportunity to win a $2,500 college scholarship. The District winner will advance to the international competition, where the prizes are scholarships of $6,000 for first place, $3,750 for second place and $2,250 for third place.

To enter, students must first fill out an application form. To receive the application form along with detailed contest rules and information on how to submit essays, e-mail us at coquitlamoptimists@gmail.com. The Coquitlam Optimist Club must receive completed essays by January 31, 2010.

2009 Walk for Youth and Free Skate

Thirteen groups of walkers representing youth sports teams, school groups and choirs raised over $5500 at the annual Optimist Walk for Youth. The average earned per group was over $400 with some groups raising as much as $1000. The Coquitlam Optimist Club set up the 5-km walking course, furnished pledge forms and signs and served hot dogs and drinks to the walkers.

Meanwhile, a few hundred children enjoyed an afternoon of skating courtesy of the Optimist Club. The skaters contributed seven boxes of food for Share's Food Bank.