PROMISE YOURSELF Jim Alley, President

Optimist Club of Coronado Pres.08-09 Leslie Crawford

Post Office Box 180251 President Elect John Bowen
VPs-Irish Flynn & John Bowen
Coronado, CA 92178-0251 Stu Powell, Secretary
June 26, 2008 John Freeman, Treas.
One’s idealism about a problem increases in direct USNA ’45 Publishers
proportion to his distance from that problem. A group that’s too noble for fear
John Galsworthy www.sportsfiesta.net

Meetings at 7AM on Thurs at Coronado Yacht Club

Executive Summary

You all got a free membership in the Family Gym and Spa courtesy of Joe Ochoa who is determined to make
our fair city the fittest city in the country. And so it all starts with you getting off that couch and onto that bike.

End of Executive Summary

Another Thursday, another grey morning in America’s (soon to be fittest city). Powell and Beh were at the table
warning us off the fat pills and urging fruit. Jim Alley struck the bell. Carla Fargo began her prayer—“Oh, Lord,
I’m so confused…”. Mark Blumenthal kicked off the pledge—“Ready begin”. I thought I was back in the 3rd
grade. A big bus pulled up into the parking lot. Have they come to take our class to the zoo???

Carla Fargo announced that Joe Ochoa is shrink wrapping a 22 foot Airstream with Sports Fiesta stuff and, if it
is finished, it will show up in the July 4th parade surrounded by marching goldenrod shirts. And Joe is also
putting a big tent up on the beach to advertise the Sports Fiesta. Joe spoke with enthusiasm of the partnership
that he hopes will lead to a healthier Coronado. Since you folks in goldenrod have to take the lead Joe is
offering a year’s free membership to all Optimists (worth $595—or ten tanks of gas) to get you started. How
can you say no? Move those buns, ladies and gentlemen.

Carla did have a couple complaints. We won’t be able to sing to her on her birthday which is in July when she
will be cooling off in Indiana. And she didn’t like the color of my shirt—fire engine red with the Optimist logo.
Bullshirt can give you a long sleeved shirt w/o collar for sixteen bucks with the logo. Ask for goldenrod if you
don’t want to stand out. About Carla’s birthday—HBTY, HBTY, HBDear Carla, HBTY. Put a buck in the hat.

Dick Madouse introduced his guest Don Hamer who will be our guest speaker in two weeks. Don came to
check out the audience and the chow. Do you think that he will come back?

It was nice letter reading time and Leslie Crawford fired both barrels. Our 2nd place essay winner was Max Mer.
He sent a very nice letter of thanks for the award and talked in glowing terms of what the experience of
speaking before the Optimist Club meant to him. We should all be pleased about what Max told us. Some of
you may remember Johanna Michael who was the cute little kid who kept showing us winning essay contests
and Oratorical Contests and charming us with her sparkle and verve several years ago. Leslie pointed out that
Johanna has a letter in the latest Optimist magazine (the one with the green cover with the cute picture of kid
that is sitting on your table). Johanna has graduated from USC and is about to start law school. She is using
the scholarship that she won in our contest to help out the tuition in U of Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law.

“The Optimists have instilled within me all of your creed”, Johanna writes. “However, one phrase above all has
and always will influence me the most: ‘To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only
the best’ and I add, for the greater good of all. What a marvelous opportunity you have given me. Thank you.”

The next time you drop into our library say hello and thank you to Johanna’s mom who works behind the
checkout desk. No wonder her mom is always smiling.

Pat Gowan was smiling ‘cauz he won the drawing. $35 to Pat.

Ledge Hakes told us that the meetings for Sports Fiesta will be face to face. Be ready with you answers. And
Paul Dudley told us that the watch bill for golf is coming. And he needs a couple more of you to do double duty.
I asked if I could bring my little grandson and Paul said that the kids tend to snicker too much.

Oh, the bus. Jim Cooper arranged for a very special hybrid bus built for the Metro Transit System to visit us.
Phil Monroe represents your fair city on the MTS Board and he came to talk about the 904 shuttle and the
board. Rob Schuppe is the marketing director of for the MTS and Harry Meyer is with ISE which is the Poway
firm that built the bus and its unique Compress Natural Gas Hybrid Electric Drive System. They develop
vehicles that run on all kinds of fuels—electricity, gas, diesel, ethanol, hydrogen, cgn and liquid natural gas.

Mass transit need is increasing as the fuel cost go up. The MTS is heavily subsidized. Fares bring in about 1/3
of the costs of operation. They hope that such buses as we crawled around with increase the fleet efficiency.

Next week we will have a special program with members of the lacrosse teams that we support coming down
to say thanks. Be on hand. These kids are getting up early when there is no school.

Promise yourself.
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