Celebrating/Appreciating Young People

Guitar great George Benson once sang, “I believe the children are our future…”

(Yes, I know that someone else made that song more famous, but I am preferential to guitarists and originals.)

However, our children aren’t just our future—they are our present as well, which is why we need to celebrate and appreciate them now.

And that is where the Optimist Club of Dundalk comes in, as the Club just held its Youth Appreciation Program—“Bringing Out The Best In Children”—at the Dundalk High/Sollers Technical School.

Before beginning writing about the festivities of the evening, I must say that this was my first time inside the new school; it was truly an awe inspiring experience for me. The hospitality of the students, along with that of Principals Tom Shouldice and Mike Weglein, was exceptional.

Also taking part in the program was the South Delaware District and Governor of the Maryland Optimist International, Mark Harris.

The program featured a complete dinner prepared by the culinary students of Sollers Point Technical School, under the direction of Principal Weglein and Chef Jeffrey Smith. In fact, Weglein and Smith rose to the occasion when the guest list continued to grow, exceeding the number of expected guests. The added numbers posed no problem as the aspiring student chefs confidently met the challenge.

Here’s to our present and future!

On a more somber note, two of the Optimist stalwarts, Tom Toporovich and Shirley Panuska could not attend as both were recovering from recent surgeries.  Both members are doing well.