Past Projects: Community
“Fishing Derby” with Community Living
It’s a great opportunity to connect with the Community Living.
St. Charles County Fair Beer Garden Booth
Our Club started volunteering to serve beer at the St. Charles County Fair in 1972. This event took place at the old St. Charles County Fairgrounds, located on Fairgrounds Road near the City of St. Charles. When the Fair Grounds land was sold, the County Fair was moved to the old St. Charles Speedway on Hwy 94 South for a few years, where our Club continued to volunteer. During that time, the Fair Board attempted to purchase land near Cottleville. When the residents denied the purchase, our club donated $10,000 to the Fair Board to support the purchase of land near Wentzville.
In the Auction Barn at the current Fair Grounds at Rotary Park in Wentzville, a sign was posted designating the Optimist Club of St. Charles into the “Circle of Honor”. Our club donation sparked many other donations that enabled the County Fair to grow and develop into a 5-day event with many activities. Our Club has continued to serve in the Beer Gardens throughout the years.
Our Optimist Club members work in the Beer Garden booth and donate profit from the beer ticket sale back to the Fair.
Helping Hands for the Holidays
Starting in 2022, our Optimist Club has participated in the annual Helping Hands for the Holiday event, which has been hosted at the Saint Charles Convention Center since 2008.
This three-hour free event makes a difference in our community by providing delicious hot meals, winter essentials, health services and connection to different community organizations. It is a great opportunity to share the spirit of Christmas and spread some holiday cheer to those in need who live nearby.
Salvation Army Bell Ringers
It has been an annual tradition of the St. Charles Optimists to ring a bell for the Salvation Army’s Red Kettle at Schnuck’s Lindenwood. Our Club is proud to participate in this essential community fundraiser for the Salvation Army in December. We invite everyone who is in the area to visit our bell ringers and donate loose change to support the SA food program.
Mobil Market Food Distribution
The St. Louis Area Food Bank distributes thousands of meals to St. Charles County low-income and at-risk families. One of the key ways they do this is through a program called the Mobile Market, which takes a given location and turns it into a temporary food distribution point for a couple of hours. Families are notified of the Mobile Market location and they drive their cars through a line in the facility’s parking lot where volunteers place prepackaged food in their trunks. The process is quick and easy and is a highly efficient and effective way to distribute food to those in need.
