President’s Message – June 2023

News

From the Top of the Rock Pile …. by Kat Koch

Table Lamps – Remember we are looking for new table lamps for our show ‘n tell tables. If you go to Goodwill, a similar store, or would like to donate, the lights must fold up easily for storage. Save the receipt and the club will reimburse you.

Our June meeting is Rock Bingo!

Rock Bingo is always a fun night for all members, young and old. The Kent kids are out of school, so they don’t have to worry about school the next day. 

The club is looking for schools or libraries to put in rock and mineral displays. If you have any ideas on what schools or libraries we can contact, please let Linda Jorza or Kat know. We will do the rest.

Our gem show is fast approaching. Chris, Show Coordinator, needs several volunteers as much prep work needs to be done. Elsewhere in this newsletter is her call for help. It takes a village to put on a show of our size! Please consider helping her.

A lot of effort goes into putting on a show like ours. The venue, advertising, dealer support, food, displays, set up and tear down, and much more go into the planning of our annual show. We have several new vendors and activities planned this year. Please pass the word around about our upcoming show. Our attendance goal this year is 5,000 visitors.

We will need a work party in July or August to fill bags with polished rocks, make case liners, and price items for the club sales table.

Peggy is also busy booking the case displays and organizing the new activities for the show.

Your volunteering has a lot of value as all the profits from our show go towards obtaining an indoor shop and a new meeting room. Please volunteer!

This a reminder that the Billings Montana show is on August 4th through 6th. The NFMS and AFMS combined show and only happen every 7 years. Not only is it a big show, but they also have numerous free speakers and classes. Montana is a dinosaur country, so you will find displays and speakers discussing them. We also get to see material from areas outside of Washington. It would make a great family vacation. It is a show on steroids!

We continue to get new members weekly by registering online or in person at our monthly meetings. We welcome each of you to our great rock and gem club. When you attend our monthly meeting, please introduce yourself to me, as I look forward to meeting everyone.

I also appreciate all the members that renewed their membership!

I am looking forward to seeing everyone at the May meeting.

Kat Koch, President

Updated: October 8, 2023 — 12:58 pm

Presidents Message

  • From the Top of the Rock Pile Our annual club picnic went off great. The grass and Arboretum area was not wet or muddy, plus it didn’t rain while we were there. We had the usual club members attend, plus a few new faces. I forgot to count how many people attended, but I estimate around 40. Thank you, Angie and Brian, for shopping for the food and setting everything up. Thumbler’s Tumblers donated a tumbler for our picnic auction and another one for our holiday auction in December. The new double-barreled 15# tumbler sold for $120, approximately one-third the …

Meeting Announcements

  • Many of our members may recognize Tom as a vendor from our gem show and many other shows. His booth is “A Point in Time.” His presentation will focus on regional archaeology and how it relates to geology, paleontology, astronomy, and more. He promises to be a “traveling museum of prehistoric artifacts,” many of which can be passed around! He is always so interesting to stand at his show booth and listen to him talk. This meeting will be fascinating and hands-on. Show and Tell: A fossil of any type.

  • Our wagonmaster, Roger, will go over the field trips he has planned for this year, including samples of what you can find at each location.   Show and Tell: Your Best Rock Find Of Last Year.

  • We’re still developing the 2026 calendar of events, but we know one thing for sure – our March general meeting will happen on the 12th at 7pm. We hope to see you there! Show and Tell: also coming soon!

  • Come one, come all and play ROCK BINGO! With schools out for many local school districts, we invite members, guests, and especially families and kids to come and enjoy one of our most fun nights of the year. Everyone is guaranteed to win at this FREE event! All you have to do is bring three wrapped presents – presents can be rocks, gems, minerals, crystals, fossils, cabochons, slabs, jewelry, tumbled stones – anything you think might be a nice gift for a rock enthusiast. 

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