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Junior Optimists Deliver Magic Hugs to Kids at Botsford Hospital

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Being in an emergency room can create anxiety in anyone, but what if you’re just a child? Imagine being young, not sure what’s going on and you’re sick, hurt, scared or worried about a loved one. That image is just what inspired a group of Farmington Hills-area high school students to take action.

Wanting to do something to ease children’s anxiety at Botsford Hospital, the Farmington United Junior Optimist Club donated brand new Beanie Babies wrapped in Magic Hugs Squares. The tag on the Magic Hugs Square reads: “This magic blanket was made especially for you.  It is made out of hugs.  When you are sad or mad or scared or bored, hold this square close to you and it will give you the comfort of a million hugs.  It will love you no matter what!”

Dr. Sanford Vieder (far right) accepting a donation of magical stuffed animals for children treated or visiting Botsford Trauma and Emergency Center. Pictured left to right with Dr. Vieder are Cathy Neal (Optimist Club), Diana Kohler (Botsford Foundation), and Morgan Webb and Dana Iles (Junior Optimists).

And the lovable plush toys just might work. EMTs in Missouri have been handing out stuffed animals for years and have found that they actually do calm children and lessen fears.

Giving back to the community has already started to pay off for Junior Optimists Morgan Webb and Dana Iles. While they were here making their special delivery, the Harrison High School students were treated to a tour of Botsford Trauma and Emergency Center by medical director Dr. Sanford Vieder. They had a great learning experience and Dr. Vieder even gave them sage advice on becoming a doctor. As it turns out Dr. Vieder is a Harrison High grad himself, so they’re already on their way!

The Farmington United Junior Optimist Club is comprised of high school students from Harrison, Farmington and North Farmington High Schools.  They are one of the many Junior Optimist clubs in our area sponsored by the Farmington/Farmington Hills Breakfast Optimist Club.  For more information about Junior Optimists clubs go to their website at www.f2hjunioroptimists.org.

If you’d like to donate or find another way to make a difference for patients at Botsford, visit www.botsford.org/foundation.

Junior Optimists Kickoff 2012-13 Program

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On Thursday night, September 27, students and parents representing 17 K-12 schools in Farmington and Farmington Hills will meet to kickoff the Junior Optimist program for the 2012-13 school year. Here are some of the things interested parents should know if they missed the meeting:

Students need to register for their individual school on this web site. Follow this link, and be sure to check the box(es) at the bottom for the Junior Optimist ListServ at your school(s). That will insure that you receive messages about upcoming meetings and events at your school, and your parent leader will know who you are and how to contact you.

Following our district-wide kick off, the next meeting will be held at your school. To prepare for that meeting, there are two "homework" assignments. Students who wish to run for office need to fill out a candidate bio, and all students are asked to come up with at least one community service project proposal. Forms for both of these can be found at this link. Check the web site calendar for the dates and locations of upcoming school and district-wide meetings.

Students will also have a chance to hear from Sweet Dreamzzz about our Fall 2012 project. Sweet Dreamzzz is a non-profit organization committed to improving the health, well-being and academic performance of at-risk school-aged children by providing sleep education and bedtime essentials.

Sixth grade student Margaret Amshay will offer a presentation about her service initiative called "One-Can-A-Week". Margaret has collected over 700 cans of food in the past year from people who live on her street. Neighbors simply put a can of food by their front door on Sunday mornings, and Margaret collects them and gets them to the Neighborhood House Food Pantry in Farmington Hills.

Margaret created this program at age 9, and now hopes to expand it throughout the community through our Junior Optimists. She'll be visiting with all of our clubs this year to talk about the program. Check the student forms area of the web site for more information, or contact Margaret Amshay (through her mom).

Welcome!

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You have arrived at the brand new web site for Farmington - Farmington Hills Junior Optimists and their parents. The F2H Junior Optimists are the largest service organization in our community, with over 200 active members. This new web site was specifically designed to help you and the members of your club communicate and share information with each other and our other local Junior Optimist Clubs. Please take a moment to register with the site (bottom-left). You'll be able to sign up for the ListServ(s) for your school or schools during the registration process. You'll also gain access to forums and the individual news and updates page for your school. We look forward to working with you this year in serving our community.

In March 2012, we will be honored to host the Michigan Dsitrict Junior Optimist Convention. Junior Optimist Student Leaders from around the state will descend on Farmington Hills, to share best practices and participate in team-building exercises. We were given this honor for having more Junior Optimists Clubs than anywhere else in the state of Michigan. As the host chapter, all of our Junior Optimists will have the opportunity to participate.

Power Junior Optimists 2010-11

Gill Junior Optimists 2010-11