Platteville Optimist Club

L-R: Optimist Club Vice President Mark Essex, Platteville Holiday Project Representatives Jo Roling and Tischa Busch Jo Roling and Tischa Busch from the Platteville Holiday Project committee accepted a donation from the Platteville Optimist Club. The organization helps families in our community who are in need of assistance during the holiday season. They are wrapping up their project for the year and will be putting together more than 90 food baskets for families over the

L-R: Platteville Optimist Club Vice-President Mark Essex presents a check to Jacqueline Varholik on behalf of Christmas For Kids Jacqueline Varholik, representing "Christmas For Kids" accepted a check from the Platteville Optimist Club to assist with their annual fundraising project. Jaquie reported that they just finished their application process and will be helping 413 children in Southwest Wisconsin this Christmas. They're looking for volunteers and shared that their "

Kevin Bernhardt with one of his favorite pictures of his mom, Lois, on the slide in the background Slide in background of James (Jimmy) Byrnes, U.S. Secretary of State under President Truman, signing the United Nations Charter in 1945. Lois is sitting behind Byrnes in the picture Slide of Jimmy Byrnes, her former boss, giving away Lois in marriage to Kevin's dad, Bob Bernhardt L-R: Optimist Member and Kevin's wife, Daneen Bernhardt, Kevin Bernhardt, and Optimist Part-Preside

Maggie Kleisath & President Barb Stockhausen Maggie Kleisath accepted a check for the Girl Scouts. The grant was awarded to help offset costs of the Girl Scout Camp In event. Girl Scouts have been in Platteville since 1919 and have the distinction of having troop #1 for their original council, and that troop number has remained with them even though the council configurations have changed. Our fellow Optimist Maggie Kleisath has been involved in Girl Scouts in Platteville fo

L-R: Optimist Daneen Bernhardt, CASA Marie Whisenant, Optimist President Barb Stockhausen Marie Whisenant has been a volunteer court-appointed special advocate (CASA) for the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services for almost three years. After hearing a radio ad about the program, Marie felt her experience as an adoptive parent and a foster parent would make her a good fit. Being a CASA requires the ability to effectively communicate verbally and in writing, the ability

L-R: Lucas Rameker, Coach Gard, Optimist Daneen Bernhardt, and President Barb Stockhausen Coach Gard UW-Platteville Men's Basketball Coach Jeff Gard and Senior Guard/Forward Lucas Rameker were our featured speakers on Friday, October 16, 2026. Coach Gard is the winningest active WIAC coach, has led the Pioneers to one of the strongest eras in program history, including back-to-back WIAC regular-season and tournament titles, multiple NCAA tournament runs, and a 20

Left: Chelsea Middendorf, Outreach Promoter at Sinsinawa Mound Center Right: Optimist Member Daneen Bernhardt, Chelsea Middendorf, and Optimist President Barb Stockhausen Chelsea Middendorf, Outreach Promoter for the Sinsinawa Mound Center, was the speaker at our weekly optimist meeting on October 9, 2026. Chelsea spoke about the privileges of her work with sisters and lay people and their core values. There have been nearly 3,400 Dominican sisters since inception 179 yea

Scott Onson showing his winning card President Barb Stockhausen and Scott Onson For the third time in 2026, we have a Joker Draw Winner! Scott Onson drew the joker and was presented with a check for $231 from Optimist President Barb Stockhausen.

L-R: SWTC President Jeremy Pickard, Optimist Barb Stockhausen, SWTC Foundation Director Stacia Stephenson, and Optimist President Terri Ellis Jeremy Pickard is just 90 days into his new position as President of Southwest Wisconsin Technical College (SWTC). He began by asking us how we think colleges have measured success. After listening to our input, he explained that SWTC measures success by looking at Access, Completion, and Post College Success. People pursue a college ed

We are honored to report that Platteville Optimist Club's very own Howard Crofoot has been selected to be the 2026-2027 Vice President of the Great Plains Region of Optimist International. When asked to describe his history with the Platteville Optimist Club and his new role as Great Plains Vice President, Howard stated: Howard Crofoot As the 2026–2027 Great Plains Vice-President, I am honored to work with amazing leaders at all levels of our organization. I joined the Pla

The recipient of the President's Citation must be a member of the club that embodies the spirit and essence of Optimism. They must be someone who is an inspiration to the club. Duane Borgen has contributed in an exceptional way to the advancement of Optimism in the club and community, Duane keeps records a Treasurer of our club and works hard to make sure checks are awarded to our grant winners, organizing recipients to attend meetings and receive checks eaxch month. Duane

The Chuck Thalmann Service award goes to someone who is an outstanding member of the Platteville Optimist Club. Chuck Thalmann was dedicated and active in serving others through various venues including church, community, and the Optimist organization. The member receiving this award must be an individual who has shown outstanding service, loyalty, and devotion to our club. Jerry was instrumental in the work that led to the matching grant with Optimist International to secure

President Terri Ellis selected Dianne Jentz as the 2026 Optimist of the Year. Terri explained that whenever she needed something, she would ask Dianne Jentz and she was willing to help. She generously served and volunteered a considerable amount of personal time and talent. She stepped forward often to make sure projects were successful - including mixing all the batter for cheese curds. Thank You and Congratulations, Dianne.

2026-2027 Officers and Board of Directors with SWIS District Governor Elect Kim Burlage Our annual Installation, Appreciation & Awards Banquet was held on Sunday, September 20, 2026 at the Lutheran Church of Peace. President Terri Ellis was the emcee for the event. Terri began by recognizing the 2025-2026 Board members. She then reflected on the year mentioning the programs we enjoyed throughout the year and the many excellent speakers who joined us on Friday mornings. Terri

Dairy Days: Thank You, Thank You, Thank You to all our amazing volunteers who worked so hard to make this another successful Cheese Curd season.

Far Right: Optimist Member Barb Stockhausen, Carol Lange, and Optimist President Terri Ellis Carol Lange, retired teacher, principal, and most recently a university elementary education instructor, shared her personal story which she titles "Mr. Wales Went Phishing and Got Caught". Her story is about being scammed and a victim of elder financial abuse. Scamming is the act of using a dishonest, deceptive plan or trick to cheat people out of money, valuables, or personal inf

The Optimist Club went on a field trip September 11th to the newest childcare center in Platteville, located on the Southwest Health Center campus. Tammie Richter, Foundation Director at Southwest Health Center, spoke about how they started working to pull funds together for the facility four years ago and it opens to the public on September 14th. She then introduced our group to Platteville native Paige Wagner, Assistant Director at New Horizon Academy, who gave us a tour

R: Optimist member Ron Weier, Dr. Jeff White, and Optimist Vice President Barb Stockhausen Dr. Jeff White gave an informative talk about GLP-1's to the Optimist Club on August 28, 2026. GLP-1 stands for glucagon-like peptide-1, which is a hormone your body naturally produces in your gut. GLP was first discovered in the 1980's. GLP-1's came out fifteen years ago and worked well for diabetes. Its main role is to help regulate blood sugar after you eat, but it also affects d

A BIG Thank You to our wonderful volunteers for making our cheese curd sales at the Grant County Fair a huge success!

L-R: Ron Weier, Dr.Ian Stormont, and Optimist President Terri Ellis Doctor Stormont is the Chief Medical Officer and Board-Certified Urologist at Memorial Hospital of Lafayette County (MHLC). He grew up in Monroe, WI and received his undergraduate degree from UW-Madison. After teaching for several years, he returned to UW-Madison's School of Medicine and Public Health for his medical degree. He completed his residency in Urology at the University of Maryland Medical Center.