Growth & Retention Recognition

2025-2026 First Quarter Growth & Retention Recognition – The Story Behind the Numbers

Congratulations to all recognized clubs and districts. Retention and growth are not just numbers — they reflect people choosing to belong, serve, and bring out the best in youth, communities, and ourselves.

During the first quarter of the 2025–2026 Optimist year, clubs and districts across Optimist International demonstrated that commitment through membership growth and retention.

We are pleased to recognize the following clubs and districts whose efforts reflect engagement and growth in action — welcoming new members while keeping existing members connected and involved.

Each of the Optimist Clubs and Districts listed below will receive a certificate of recognition and a digital badge that can be used in their marketing efforts.

Top 10 Districts in Growth

#	District	# Start	# Adds	% Adds	Rank	Governor
54	Quebec East North Shore	348	30	106.62	1	Marie Elen Plante
47	Central Ontario	1043	93	104.51	2	Larry Harper
52	Quebec South	273	11	104.03	3	Linda Lajoie (VP)
49	Eastern Ontario	359	16	103.9	4	Marc Roy
53	Quebec West	615	19	103.09	5	Nicole Geoffroy
50	Quebec Central	431	12	102.78	6	Benoit Latreille
55	Quebec East Acadie	288	5	101.74	7	Dany Pelletier
33	Maryland South Delaware	700	19	101	8	Pamela Bowman
34	Tennessee Arkansas	316	7	100.95	9	Tom Rasmussen
44	North Carolina West	612	10	100.82	10	Betty Parker

Top 10 Clubs in Growth

District	Club	# New Members	% Adds	Rank	President
Eastern Ontario	Alfred, ON	11	183.33	1	Yoan Ethier
Quebec South	Mansonville, QC	7	140.00	2	Marie-Ève Fontaine
Michigan	Brighter Days	11	110.00	3	Fred Clary
Quebec West	La Sarre, QC	11	73.33	4	Florentin Lesage
Colorado - Wyoming	Academy Colorado Springs, CO	2	66.67	5	William Ashbee
Quebec East - North Shore	Ville de la Baie, QC	9	64.29	6	Jonathan Maltais
Southwestern Ontario	Kids Mental Health-Canada, ON	5	62.50	7	Ed Finlan
Atlantic Central	Wildwood-Wlldwoods, NJ	8	53.33	8	Jay Fetsick
Southwestern Ontario	Brigden, ON	12	50.00	9	Denise Annett
Quebec South	Rock Forest, QC	2	50.00	9	Sylvain Houde
Pacific Northwest	Dutch Brothers of Grants Pass, OR	1	50.00	9	Brian Maxwell
Quebec West	Ste-Julienne, QC	1	50.00	9	Emilie Pétrin

Net+ Clubs with Fewer Than 7 Members

District	Club	# Start	# End	President
Eastern Ontario	Alfred, ON	6	17	Yoan Ethier
Quebec South	Mansonville, QC	5	12	Marie-Ève Fontaine
Quebec South	Rock Forest, QC	4	6	Sylvain Houde
AMS & NW	Penhold and District, AB	5	6	Carol Ramage
Ohio	Toledo-Westgate, OH	5	6	Matthew Meeker
North Carolina East	Northern Wake, NC	4	5	Christy Dixon
Colorado - Wyoming	Academy Colorado Springs, CO	3	4	William Ashbee
Louisiana	Baton Rouge, LA	3	4	Lenzie Dupuis
Pacific Northwest	Dutch Brothers of Grants Pass, OR	2	3	Brian Maxwell
Quebec West	Ste-Julienne, QC	2	3	Emilie Pétrin

Strong retention reflects engagement in action — members choosing to stay because they feel connected, valued, and inspired.

Top 10 Districts in Retention

*When Districts achieved the same retention results, percentage of membership growth was used to help highlight a diverse group of Top 10 success stories.

Rank	District
1	North Carolina West
2	Quebec Central
3	Atlantic Central
4	Quebec East – North Shore
5	Eastern Ontario
6	Arizona
7	Quebec West
8	Quebec South
9	Pacific Northwest
10	GATEway

Top 10 Clubs in Retention

*When Optimist Clubs achieved the same retention results, percentage of membership growth was used to help highlight a diverse group of Top 10 success stories.

Rank	Club	District
1	Alfred, ON	Eastern Ontario
2	Mansonville, QC	Quebec South
3	Brighter Days Optimist Club	Michigan
4	La Sarre, QC	Quebec West
5	Ville de la Baie, QC	Quebec East – North Shore
6	Kids Mental Health-Canada, ON	Southwestern Ontario
7	Wildwood–Wildwoods, NJ	Atlantic Central
8	Dutch Brothers of Grants Pass, OR	Pacific Northwest
9	Rock Forest, QC	Quebec South
10	Ste-Julienne, QC	Quebec West

Click the following links to see all Net+ Clubs and Net+ Districts