President’s Message – February 2024

Presidents Message

From the Top of the Rock Pile .   .   .   .   .

Planning for our Gem Show is well underway. I took on the position since no one volunteered to be the Show Coordinator. I am determined to keep our show from falling to the wayside because no one is interested in volunteering for the position.

I give a lot of kudos to Mark Hohn for getting our show off the ground again in 2018. What Mark restarted is now a successful show every year and has grown year after year. Last year, Chris Vitellaro put together a great show that celebrated our 75th anniversary and was our most successful show financially. I want to express a huge thanks to both of them.

I am very excited that in 2024, we are moving to a much larger venue with better parking and a location with much more visibility to bring in visitors.

This year’s show is on June 29th and 30th, with set-up on June 28th. We have 2 rooms to cover this year. Roger is looking for volunteers, so be prepared to help when he calls or emails you.

We have 5 new families that joined our great club in December. Welcome to our club! To our members who have yet to renew this year, please visit our website and renew your membership online. If you attend a meeting, you can pay your dues with a check, cash, or credit card.

Thank you to Roger Danneman for his excellent job leading our field trips every month. Our field trips are one of our most attended club events. We are all looking forward to Roger’s field trips for 2024.

Our monthly meeting attendance continues to grow back to the pre-pandemic levels. Since our membership is growing, I hope more members will attend our monthly meetings. The larger our meeting attendance is each month, the easier it will be to book quality speakers.

I look forward to seeing everyone at our February meeting.

Kat Koch, President

Updated: February 21, 2024 — 12:53 pm

Presidents Message

  • From the Top of the Rock Pile Despite the weather concerns, our club picnic at Lake Wilderness Arboretum turned out to be a delightful event. We were blessed with a sunny day, and around thirty-five of us enjoyed the beautiful park, a good meal, and a lot of visiting. The day’s highlight was our club auction, a resounding success. Thanks to everyone’s participation, we raised over $1,100 for our club treasury, marking it the best sale. Our club auctions help cover club expenses and prevent us from having to increase our annual dues. If you’re a new member, we’re thrilled …

Meeting Announcements

  • November 14th – CMS Food Drive & Glaciers by Paul Arhberg Don’t forget to bring a food item for our food drive to support the Kent Food Bank.  What are the benefits of glaciers? Glaciers, slow-moving rivers of ice, have sculpted mountains and carved valleys throughout Earth’s history. They continue to flow and shape the landscape in many places today. But glaciers affect much more than the landscape. Show ‘n Tell: Something white, clear, or a crystal.

  • December 1st – Holiday Potluck Dinner, Election of Officers, and Club Auction. Holiday Potluck Dinner: The club provides ham and turkey. Members fill in with side dishes, rolls, desserts, and drinks. If you cannot bring anything for dinner, please come as we would like your company. We always have loads of food. After dinner, we have the election of Officers for 2025. We close out the day with the club auction. It is a great time to buy holiday, birthday, anniversary, or just because gifts. The auction prices are always a fraction of retail or gem shows. Mark your calendar now! Let’s have a great turnout. Let’s enjoy having dinner together, sitting and visiting with one another, and getting some “rock talk” in.

  • January 9th – Field Trip report of 2024 and what lies ahead for 2025. Our Field Trip Guide, Roger Danneman, will review our 2024 field trips and what was found, then look ahead to what is planned for 2025. Show ‘n Tell: Something you found on a field trip, your yard, beach, a hike, etc.

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