Optimist Junior Curlers Win International Bronze Medal

“On behalf of this year’s Optimist International U18 Bronze Medal Champions we are writing to thank you for your generous support of our team and for your continued support of Optimist Junior Curling.

“Team Tardi of the Langley Curling Club has had an incredibly exciting and successful year. They formed the team this year, attending camps, including the Optimist sponsored High Performance Camp in North Vancouver, entering as many bonspiels as they could. They participated in and won the Optimist International Highpoint Division 1 banner and also came first in the playoffs, gold at the BC Winter Games, and at the beginning of April had the honor of representing British Columbia at the Optimist International U18 Championships in Toronto, proudly bringing home the bronze medal for BC. They are grateful for the opportunities they have had in many parts due to the incredible financial support that Optimist International has provided to the sport of curling over the past decade…

“We appreciate the support already given to the sport of Junior Curling by the Coquitlam Optimist Club and encourage you to continue supporting Junior Curling – it truly does help make dreams of these kids and the up and coming curlers a reality.”

– Letter from Anita Tardi, on behalf of Team Tardi

Team Tardi consists of skip Tyler Tardi, his brother Jordan, third, and Nicholas Meister, second, all from Langley. Lead Zachary Umbach is from Coquitlam. You can read more about their success at http://www.surreyleader.com/sports/146685325.html.



Optimist Club Announces Raffle Winners

The Coquitlam Optimist Club is pleased to announce the winners of the 2011 Optimist-Curl BC Raffle.  The $5,000 Grand Prize winner is Tim Enno of the Richmond Winter Club.  The ten $500 prize winners are: 

Optimist Junior Interclub Curling League for OI U-18
Rick Beason & Jack Guthrie, Glen Meadows Golf & Curling Club (Sidney, BC)
Heather Mulder, North Shore Winter Club (North Vancouver, BC)
Tyler Pankhurst, Nelson, BC
Brett Kidd & Brian Bauer, McArthur Island Curling Club, Kamloops, BC
Murray Duchnycz, Cloverdale, BC
Williiams Lake Junior Curling Club, Williams Lake, BC
Dave Fallis, Kelowna, BC
Joe Bauer, Elkford, BC
Pete Frey, Tunnel Town Curling Club, Tsawwassen (Delta), BC

Congratulations to all the winners, and thank-you to all who purchased tickets to support youth curling development!

Optimist Club Offers Scholarships to Student Orators

The Coquitlam Optimist Club is offering $175 in prizes and an opportunity to win scholarships with values up to $2500 in Optimist International’s 2012 Oratorical Contest.
The Oratorical Contest is open to students under 18 years of age as of December 31, 2011, who have not graduated from secondary school. Contestants must give a 4-5 minute speech on the topic “How my Optimism Helps me Overcome Obstacles.”
The Coquitlam Optimist Club will award cash prizes of $100 for first place, $50 for second place and $25 for third place to local students. The first and second place winners will have the chance to advance through zone and regional oratorical contests. Regional winners will compete at the Pacific Northwest District contest with the opportunity to wins college scholarships worth a $2,500 for first place, $1,500 for second place or $1,000 for third place.
The Coquitlam Optimist Club’s Oratorical Contest will be held on April 18, 2012 at 7:00 PM at the Big River Restaurant, #15-228 Schoolhouse Street, Coquitlam, BC. To enter, students must fill out an application form and submit it to the club by April 4, 2012. To receive the application form along with detailed contest rules and information on the contest location, e-mail us at coquitlamoptimists@gmail.com. Contest rules and application form can be downloaded by following this link: http://www.optimist.org/Form/Oratorical_RULES_PAD-E_11-12.pdf.

2102 Junior Curling Raffle Tickets Available

The Optimist Clubs of British Columbia in partnership with Curl BC are offering a $5,000 cash prize in a raffle to support youth curling development. In addition to the grand prize, there will be ten $500 prizes. Tickets cost $20 each and are available from your local Optimist Club or your local curling club. Only 1,600 tickets will be sold.

The money raised from the annual raffle funds curling development “cluster camps” throughout the province. At each camp, 15-17 year old juvenile curlers assist a professional trainer in teaching skills to 9-11 year old novice curlers. The 2011 raffle supported cluster camps in Coquitlam, Sparwood, Squamish and Nelson. If all 1,600 tickets are sold, a larger number of cluster camps will be offered in 2012.

The 2012 draw will be held at 9:30 pm on March 26th. The draws will be made during the post-game celebrations at the Coquitlam Curling Club, 640 Poirier Street, Coquitlam, BC.

Purchasers must be 19 years of age or older. Know your limit; play within it. BC Gaming License No. 38907

Breakfast with Santa Fights Hunger

Over 300 Sparks, Brownies, Beavers and Cubs (with assorted leaders, parents and siblings) enjoyed food, fun and a visit from Santa at the Coquitlam Optimist Club's annual Pancake Breakfast.  Admission was by donation of a non-perishable food item.  Thanks to the generosity of the participants, many of whom brought bags of edibles, the event netted 554 lbs. of food for the Share Food Bank.  The youngsters left with full tummies, candy canes, balloon art and a sense of having helped the less fortunate.