President’s Message – June 2023

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

  • Digging It!  Thanks to everyone who joined us in March for Maureen Carlisle’s fascinating look at the world of professional paleontology digs. Our next meeting on April 9 is a great club tradition: Rock Bingo! Whether you’ve been a member for decades or you just joined last month, Bingo is the ultimate fun night for everyone kids included. All you have to do is bring three rock-related gifts (rocks themselves are just fine!), wrapped so that they are hidden, and then show up at 7pm on the 9th. Everyone is a winner – win a new treasure for your shelf and

Meeting Announcements

  • 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. 

  • Our own Mike Blanton will bring his expertise to this club meeting program – he will share the tools, tips and tricks he has developed to drill holes in stones and minerals so you can do more with the rocks you find. Show and Tell: bring a rock you’d like to make into something else.

  • Club Wagonmaster and rock shop creator Roger Danneman will present an overview of the new club shop – including equipment, scheduling, stewards, and what you can expect from this exciting new resource.  Show and Tell: bring a rock you want to polish or make into a cabochon (or something you’ve already polished or made)

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