President’s Message – June 2022 (Click Here For More Info)

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

From the Top of the Rock Pile …. by Kat Koch
Thanks to Zach Pratt’s efforts, our general meetings are on YouTube. We do have to work out the camera positioning for the entire meeting. Please give us a month or 2 to get things right. The club intends to make this YouTube Live Stream a permanent thing – so hang in there.
Our show plans are well underway. Our show is sold out!  We need a load of volunteers for this event. I will have at the meeting a sign-up sheet listing the positions I need help with. I have broken down where I need help into small jobs so be prepared to step up and volunteer.  It is imperative that our members step up and volunteer. The show will be held at the Green River College gym on August 20 & 21, 2022.

The Board puts on the Cascade Gem and Mineral Show each year to raise funds for an indoor lapidary shop. Also, some of the proceeds from the show fund two grants to students from Green River College majoring in Geology or Earth Sciences.

The club needs volunteers now and then. The ten board members plus a few regular volunteers can’t run the club and be relied upon to volunteer for everything. CMS is again approaching a membership base of 100 families with about 210 individuals. We are now considered a large club, and it takes many hands to keep it functioning, growing, and offering the classes that members would like to have. When we need something covered the club needs you to seriously consider volunteering.
Remember, you are always welcome to bring guests to our meetings or field trips.

Kat Koch, President.

Need Another Volunteer
Now I am looking for someone to volunteer to take pictures (with your cellphone is fine) at our monthly meeting, including the Show ‘n Tell portion. Then write a short article with photos for our Tumbler each month. If you are hesitant about your writing abilities, I would be more than happy to proofread your article before submitting it to Keith, our editor. The publication deadline is the 18th of each month.
Please Help Us Find A New Shop Location
The club is still looking for an indoor space for our lapidary shop. If you know of a location that might be able to financially assist us or physically support our club with warehouse space, please let me know. The club can afford to pay utilities and possibly a small rent.
Our club owns a lot of incredible equipment, and we have members willing to maintain it and teach us how to use it. We need an inexpensive location of about 1,000 to 1,500 square feet with electricity, heating, and water.
Also, if you have a contact or relationship with someone on the Kent City Council or King County Council, please let me know. I want to approach someone on either council about possibly using excess space they may have. Our club has been a part of Kent for 74 years! Hopefully, they will be open to supporting us in some manner. Contact Kat Koch at president@cascademineralogicalsociety.org
We continue to get new members every month. Once again, we are approaching a membership of 100 families. So if you are a new member, please be sure to come up and introduce yourself at our meeting. That way, I can tie your name to your face.
                                                            Kat Koch, President
Updated: July 13, 2022 — 12:31 pm

Presidents Message

  • Digging It!  I hope you’ve all had a chance to get out and look for rocks during the lovely weather we enjoyed in July – it’s been mostly perfect rockhounding weather. And for those of you who were able to come on the field trips led by our fearless wagon master Roger Danneman, I hope you found some good material. Big thanks to Roger for getting us all out there and helping us find beautiful rocks! August is a bit of a break from the usual club meeting cadence – instead of having our club meeting on the second Thursday …

Meeting Announcements

  • Our August meeting will not be happening at the American Legion – instead, this month’s meeting is our annual club potluck and picnic on Saturday, August 15. Join us from 12-4 at Gene Coulon Park, South Shelter 2 – setup begins at 10:30am. Bring something you want to share and/or donate to the club auction, also happening during the picnic. 

  • September’s program is coming soon. We will update this page as soon as we know more.

  • Noelle Barnes will present Using Gaia for Rockhounding, an overview of the features and tricks associated with the app Gaia and how you can use it for GPS, saving waypoints, navigation, photo tagging, trail recording and more. Show and Tell: Bring the rock(s) that have the best “story” – and tell everyone how you found them and where!

  • Club board member Paul Ahnberg will talk to us about the impact of wildfires on our lives – from protecting your home to staying safe while out rockhounding – and what we can do today to help mitigate our risk. Paul will combine his knowledge gained from learning at both the WSU Green School (Master Gardener) and WSU Climate Steward programs. Show and Tell: Bring something you found, from a place that you know has since been impacted by floods or wildfires – or was impacted shortly before you arrived. Tell your story!

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