DATELINE: Tuesday, February 4, 2003. President Erika Kirtdoll opened the meeting and then gave the invocation and led us in the pledge of allegiance.

INTRODUCTION OF GUESTS: There were no guests other than our guest speaker.

BIRTHDAYS: There were no birthdays this week.

BRAGS: Craig Krassow bragged on his daughter who was chosen as Junior Class Princess at a recent school festival. Congratulations Ms. Krassow! John Willis bragged on the excellent staff at the YMCA and said what a wonderful job they are doing during soccer registration. They are doing such a good job that John is getting very few phone calls. So, Hats Off to the YMCA!

ANNOUNCEMENTS: John Willis announced that we need volunteers to help with putting kids into teams on Saturday morning. They will be meeting at Wesley United Methodist Church at 9:00 this Saturday morning and will need all the help they can get. President Kirtdoll announced that the next Board of Directors meeting will be held Monday, February 10^th at 6:00 p.m. There will be a Zone Meeting to follow at 7:00 p.m. Also, the next District meeting is February 22^nd. If you would like to attend, please see President Kirtdoll. There will be a Dragon Boat and a Tri-Star basketball meeting later this month. Tri-Star Basketball will take place at the YMCA on March 22^nd. As a reminder, all Optimists are to wear Red or Pink (preferably with a heart) on Tuesday February 11^th in honor of Valentines Day. Fines will be doubled for nonconforming attire. President Kirtdoll also handed out the 2002 – 2003 Optimist Calendar of Events and the List of Events and Chairmans for each. She reviewed some of the upcoming events with the group. Robert Todd announced that guest speakers were needed for March 11th and March 18^th as well as for the remainder of the year. Please contact him to schedule your guest speakers.

50/50 RAFFLE DRAWING: Dana Trowbridge conducted the 50/50 raffle. David Morse won the $8 pot. Congratulations David!

GUEST SPEAKER: President Kirtdoll introduced today’s guest speaker as Lori Ryan, Athletic Director for Niles Community Schools. Lori said that Niles athletes are doing a lot of wonderful things. She talked to the group about the academic side of these athletic teams. She said that there were 160 kids participating in cheerleading, boys' basketball, girls' volleyball and wrestling. The 160 students are divided evenly; 80 males and 80 females. More than 75 of these athletes have better than a B+ average. The grade point average for most of the 160 is better than 2.92. That’s pretty impressive. In fact, the football team recently was named one of the top state academic scholar athletic teams. Our kids are involved in many activities, but they are still doing well academically. These kids are active in sports year round. Lori said that 61% of all girls playing sports in Niles have an average GPA of 3.25. Not only that, but their overall team average is 3.55. On the male side, the team with the highest GPA is the J.V. Basketball team with 3.25. One of the reasons our children are doing so well is because of the dedication of the teachers and coaches. Teachers work long hard hours and still find time to volunteer more hours for after school practices and games. They also stay after school to help students with their academic concerns. This "tutoring" allows our kids to be as successful as possible. Our teachers focus on turning out quality citizens that make a difference in our community. Students are taught to Win With Dignity and Play With Dignity. Sometimes they complete community service projects as a team helping them to grow even more. Lori pointed out that on February 21^st there is a home basketball game against St. Joseph. This is the game where all the award presentations will be made. On February 26^th the last home volleyball game will be held and on February 28^th their will be a home volleyball game against Portage. Lori invited the group to check out the Niles School website for any information regarding the athletic teams at the high school. We give our thanks to Lori Ryan for being our guest speaker today.

CLOSING CREED: David Morse led the group in reciting the Closing Creed at the end of the meeting.

"There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest." Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and 1966 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize

TODAY IN HISTORY: January 28th

1789: The Electoral College unanimously votes George Washington to be the first president of the United States.

1945: The Yalta Conference convenes with Franklin Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, and Joseph Stalin to establish the formulation of Allied military strategy in World War II.

1987: Flamboyant pianist Wladziu Valentino Liberace, famous for his four-minute version of Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata," dies in Palm Springs, California.

1991: The National Baseball Hall of Fame induction committee votes unanimously to bar Pete Rose from the Hall of Fame.

1997: J.C. Watts is the first African American to give the Republican response to a presidential State of the Union Address.

Rosa Parks, civil rights activist (1913)

Ida Lupino, actor (1918)

Betty Friedan, feminist leader (1921)

Dan Quayle, 44th United States vice president (1947)

When a boat is at anchor, five of the rungs on the rope ladder over its side are underwater. If the rungs are 30 cm apart and each one is 3 cm thick, how many rungs would be underwater four hours later, if the tide rises at 35 cm per hour?

Five. The boat is afloat, so as the tide rises, so does the boat!