Meet Clarkston Optimist Dawn Schaller.  Dawn has been an Optimist for about two years but has been volunteering with the club for four years. 

“I like the Optimist Club and the good things they are doing for the kids in Clarkston,” said Schaller, “My favorite project is Friendly Forest, it’s a great kid’s event.  I began volunteering at Friendly Forest when my daughter was asked to be a character in the park for the event, I just came along to help.”  Schaller has chaired the event for the Clarkston Optimists, who partner with the Independence Township Parks, Recreation, and Seniors to put the event on each October.

For Dawn and her husband Mike, the Clarkston Optimist Club is a family affair.  Mike is one of the great Optimist cooks and Dawn always helps with the braut wagon.  She especially likes working at the Renaissance High School Field Day in June and preparing hot dog lunches for the kids.  Dawn can be found in July helping with the SCAMP Field Day lunch and the games with the SCAMPERS. 

Dawn worked almost 20 years in the IT service field for IBM and shares many of those skills when needed with the Optimist Club.  She has designed the program for the last two Clarkston Optimist fundraisers.

Her message to people new to the community is, come out and join the Clarkston Optimists and meet some great people.  Schaller said, “By participating in the Optimist events, we’ve met a ton of people and made many new friends.  When your child(ren) leave school, you have time to volunteer or if you don’t have children, joining the Optimist Club is a way to do something for the kids in your community.”

The Schaller family works together to make Clarkston a better place and they enjoy being members of the Clarkston Optimist Club.