President’s Message – January 2023 (Click Here For More Information)

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

We are starting to plan our 2023 Cascade Gem and Mineral Show. We still need a Show Chairperson. The show dates are September 16 & 17, 2023. The venue has been booked, we have a 1st Co-Chairperson, and many major show areas already have volunteers committed to covering them. Now we need a coordinator – that’s the Show Chairperson. I have copious notes on what needs to be coordinated. I am very willing to work closely with the Show Chairperson; to guide them, share my knowledge, and give you my two cents when you ask for it. Please seriously consider volunteering. It is a coordinating job that can be done from home.

2023 is the year our club starts its 75th anniversary. There is so much to celebrate in reaching this milestone. There was a period of about 5 or 6 years after the club left the Boeing property and also had to change its name that the board didn’t think we would survive. Today we are entering 2023 as a financially healthy, growing, and active club. Thank you to everyone that has contributed to our success and the ability to celebrate 75 years!

We have two interesting meetings coming up for January and February. I hope all of you attend the meetings. It is always great to see everyone at our meetings and to get a chance to visit with each other.

Welcome to all our new members. I also appreciate all the members that renewed their membership! When you attend our monthly meeting, please introduce yourself to me, as I look forward to meeting everyone.

Kat Koch, President

Updated: December 31, 2022 — 12:16 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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