Malibu Optimist Club held its annual Youth Appreciation honoring 23 students on character and community involvement
The Malibu Optimist Club held its annual Youth Appreciation honoring 23 students grade 5 through 12, for their fine character and community involvement.
The International Optimist Club recognizes students for their exemplary character and positive attitude, positive contribution to society, and honors students who encourage exchange between young people and adults in the community.
Teachers, principals, and counselors from Malibu schools, including Principal Lila Daruty from Malibu Elementary, Principal Chris Hertz from Webster Elementary School, Principal Richard Nambu from Our Lady of Malibu, Principal Melisa Andino from Malibu Middle School, and Patrick Miller from Malibu High School.
Malibu Optimist Club Chair Bonnie Lockrem said the virtual recognition was held on Nov. 18, 2021.
“We had an exceptional turnout; we had almost 100 attendees on the zoom call, which included the parents, grandparents, and all their relatives, so we’re delighted that the families of the students were able to understand why the students won the award,” Lockrem said.
Lockrem said the students were able to adjust to zoom fairly quickly and were still able to do community projects such as a beach clean-up. Lockrem noted they have different programs every month that honors youth.
“A lot of the credit goes to the teachers, the principals, and the counselors for being able to identify these students,” Lockrem said. “We were grateful to have McDonald’s, Malibu Yogurt, and Lily’s Malibu give gift certificates since we weren’t able to actually take the students out as we used to.”
2021 Youth Appreciation Award Recipients
Malibu Elementary School
Sadie Regan
Madison Grace O’Hara
Webster Elementary School
Carolyn Kim
Leila Trujillo
Our Lady of Malibu
Henry Hill
Andrijana Beman
Lars Stapelberg
Finlay Wells
Maddie Foster
Malibu Middle School
Derek Vindler
Freyja Jacobsen
Sawyer Keegan
Mayeeda Wang
Piper Smith
Joshua Spiess
Malibu High School
Grant Folkerts
Caidyn Ovsiowitz
Kate Baker
Stephen Smith
Kade Kelly
Keira Petkus
Leila Iredell
Linda Morazan
About
Chartered in January 1960, the Optimist Club of Malibu’s original mission was to provide positive role models and mentors to the young men of Malibu. The motto at that time was “Friend of the Boy. “
Today’s motto, “Friend of Youth,” embraces the inclusive nature of our local community and of our club. The Optimist Club still continues to serve the children of Malibu but now includes the youth in Camp Miller in the surrounding Santa Monica Mountains as well as a co-sponsor of the 100+-year-old Optimist Youth Home in Eagle Rock. For more information, visit malibuoptimists.org.
