President’s Message – February 2026

Presidents Message

Digging It

Welcome to February 2026, the month when our Seahawks brought home a long-overdue second Super Bowl win! 🙂

I’m delighted to be starting my two-year term as the club’s new president. Thank you for electing me to this position, and thank you to Kat Koch for leading our club for the last decade.

As we move into February and beyond, I hope to see more of YOU – at meetings, on field trips, in our rock shop, at our show, picnic, and holiday party. To me, the best part of this club – aside from the rocks, of course – is the community of great people who share this passion for rockhounding and minerals. The people are what make this club great, and I hope you’ll consider joining your fellow rock enthusiasts for outdoor adventures, fun programs at our meetings, show preparation and execution, and so much more.

Our Cascade Gem, Mineral & Jewelry Show is June 27-28 this year at Kent Commons. We are starting up our Show Board meetings, which are online on the second Monday of each month at 6:30. If you would like to join us, please email me.

I joined this club back in 2021 when I was hoping to find some outdoor time with like-minded people who just wanted to go out into the woods and mountains and find cool stuff. Since then, I’ve found more than I could have ever dreamed – and made some incredible friends along the way. Thank you for putting your trust in me to lead this club. I hope you’ll reach out with ideas and feedback for what you’d like to see this year.

Noelle Barnes, President

Updated: February 9, 2026 — 3:52 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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