The New Gray-New Gloucester Optimist Club displays its blue-colored shirts. Front from left are Alina Burke, Sarah Rodriguez and Melissa Thompson. Back from left are charter members Kristin Piccone, Virginia Bennett, Geoff Robbins, Brian Gagnon, George Mathews, Cheryl Jalbert, Stephanie Haskins, Jarod Castanguay and Anthony Dahms. Charter members unable to attend included Jenny Shelley LaCroix, Jessica Farwell, Rick Riley-Benoit, Robin Mullins, Brian Gagnon, Matt Lambert and Stacy Strattard. Submitted photo

The new Gray-New Gloucester Optimist Club is off and running, completing its first community project. The club helped sponsor more than 60 volunteers on Earth Day, who cleaned up the streets, parks and yards in the community by picking up all kinds of trash and junk, according to a news release from the club.

Names were drawn from those volunteers, and many of them won restaurant certificates and prizes from local sponsors, including the Fisherman’s Net, Birchwood Brewery, the New Gloucester Village Market, Trails ‘N Ales, and the Pineland Market.

Optimist club meetings will be held at 4 p.m. the second Thursday of each month in the Gray Public Library meeting room, 5 Hancock St. The next meeting is scheduled for 4 p.m. May 12, and is open to anyone interested.

For more information, contact Melissa Thompson, GNG Optimist Club secretary, at gng.optimists@gmail.com.