Latest News:

Mental Health Forum on Channel 7!!

[posted June 7, 2023]

Our community Mental Health Forum was featured on Channel 7 News. Special thanks to Anchor Mike Duffy to hosting and showcasing our Forum.

Click HERE to view the video.

Southfield-Lathrup Village student wins 2nd place in District Contest!

[posted May 24, 2023]

Zora Nunley, winner of the Southfield-Lathrup Village Optimist Oratorical Contest, went on to win 2nd place at the Michigan District Optimist Oratorical Contest!! Congratulations Zora! - posted May 25, 2023

A Message from Police Chief on Mental Health

[posted April 27, 2023]

Southfield Police Chief, Elvin Barren, promotes the Teen Mental Health Awareness Forum that is happening on Sunday, May 7! Click HERE to watch the video.

To attend the Forum, please register HERE.

A light lunch will be available beginning at 1:15PM.

2023 Oratorical Contest Winners

[posted March 28, 2023]

SVL Optimists are proud to announce our winners for the 2023 Oratorical Contest!

1st Place: Nadia Johnson - Senior at Southfield Christian School

2nd Place: Zora Nunley - Member of Hope United Methodist Church

1st place winner will head to the District’s regional contest.

2023 Teen Mental Health Wellness Forum & Essay

[posted March 15, 2023]

The Southfield Lathrup Village Optimists, in partnership with The City of Southfield, Southfield Public Schools, Lawrence Technological University, Metro Detroit Youth Clubs, and the City of Lathrup Village, present a Teen Mental Wellness Community Forum on Sunday, May 7, 2023, at 2:00 p.m.

Essay contest is open to all 6th-12th grade students who live, attend school or are a member of a youth mentoring program in Southfield or Lathrup Village. All entries must include three separate documents (application, essay cover page, and essay) emailed to slvoptimist@gmail.com by Friday, April 14.

Advanced registration is required. To register click HERE.

The forum will also include a segment Especially for Teens: An engaging presentation and activity with Delivery Drones presented by Captain Woodrow “Joe” White and Crew from +5 Technologies. www.p5drones.com.

Let’s Talk About Optimism!!

[posted February 20, 2023]

The Southfield-Lathrup Village is having a talk on Optimism! We welcome any and all that want to know more about what we do as a community service organization. Please come and join on Saturday, February 25 at 10AM on Zoom! RSVP by Thursday, February 23 by emailing svloptimist@gmail.com. See you there!

International Optimist Day 2023

[posted February 8, 2023]

February 2, 2023 was International Optimist Day, and the Southfield Lathrup Village Optimists celebrated it by serving the community and all the accomplishments it has done to support the youth.

2022-2023 Oratorical Contest

[posted January 26, 2023]

The Southfield-Lathrup Village Optimists are excited to present this year’s Oratorical Contest. The topic is “Discovering the Optimism within Me”. Applications and guidelines can be found on our Youth Programs page.

Happy New Year 2023!!

[posted January 10, 2023]

The Southfield-Lathrup Village Optimists want to wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year!! Thank you for all your support to our community during the 2022 year.

Making a Difference JOI Club Fundraiser - Honey Baked Ham

[posted December 6, 2022]

Help the Making a Difference JOI Club purchase Socks for Those in Need "Right Here and Right Now!" fundraiser for the homeless and youth in crisis. The purchased socks will be donated to Lighthouse in Pontiac, MI and Covenant House - Detroit. 20% of your purchase to Honey Baked Ham Company will go towards purchasing socks for the two organizations. Click the link to go to the fundraising page.

Honey Baked Ham Fundraiser

Teen Mental Wellness Community Forum

[posted November 16, 2022]

The SLV Optimists have partnered again with the City of Southfield, City of Lathrup Village, Southfield Public Schools, and the Metro Detroit Youth Clubs to bring a FREE Teen Mental Health Forum. This forum will be moderated by Community Health Director, Kenneth Coleman, LPC from Ascension Michigan School-Based Health Centers. There will also be expert panelists that will be able to answer question you may have on Teen Mental Health.

Celebrate Community 2022

[posted October 11, 2022]

On Saturday September 24, the Optimists, along with the Southfield Lions, and Kiwanis, celebrated service to the Southfield community by helping out at the World Medical Relief Center.

New Optimist Welcome (NOW) Event & Installation

[posted July 27, 2022]

On June 28, Southfield-Lathrup Village Optimist Club had a New Optimist Welcome (NOW) Event at Fuddruckers in Southfield! A lot of fun activities, friendship, and good food! On July 23, FOUR new members were installed at Field Zone. Welcome new members!!

2022 Robert and Susanne Di Giulio Memorial Scholarship Awardee

[posted June 14, 2022]

The SLV Optimist are pleased to announce the 2022 recipient of our memorial scholarship, Diala Princeton Ajaero. Diala will be attending the University of Michigan in the fall.

Teen Mental Health Forum

[posted May 3, 2022]

On May 1, The Southfield-Lathrup Village Optimist, along with the City of Southfield and the Metro Detroit Youth Clubs presented a forum for Teen Mental Health.

Click the link below to listen to winner of the Teen Mental Health Essay

Watch Video

Congrats to the Oratorical Winners!

[posted April 24, 2022]

The Southfield-Lathrup Village Optimists want to congratulate our 2022 Oratorical Contest Winners. The first-place winner will be heading to our regional contest, with hopes of making it to our district contests. Nadia Johnson received 2nd place in the District-wide contest!!