November 2016 Meeting Minutes


Minutes of the Meeting of Shenandoah Valley Gem and Mineral Society
Meeting date: November 14th, 2016
Intro:
Vice President Leo Coulter called the meeting to order. There were 22 members and 4 visitors present.

Old Business:
Election of officers was not held.

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New Business:
Wayne announced that he was still accepting input from the field trip questionnaires he sent out. He has not received many responses.

Program Report:
Our field trip coordinator, Wayne Peterson, gave us the scoop on field trips. He had lots of advice and spoke from years of experience.

He told us to “know before you go” – do some research about the area as well as what specimens can be collected.

Micros are hard to see in the field, but are amazing under the scope once they are observed.

Study the weather, the type of terrain, availability of food, water, bathrooms, etc before leaving.

Second, “prepare!” – know what equipment you’ll need – different sites need different items:

  • Buckets
  • A cart
  • Shovel
  • Pick
  • Rock “scoop”
  • Waders
  • Cloth bags
  • Paper for wrapping
  • Crowbar
  • Certified hard hat
  • Steel-toed boots
  • Rope
  • Protective glasses
  • Mosquito spray
  • Wheel chocks
  • Etc.

Be sure you have PERMISSION to collect – most commercial sites have very strict rules, and you may have to sign a safety agreement before even entering the site.

Last, be sure to “communicate” with the field trip advisor. Wayne spends many hours preparing for the trips and one person can ruin future trips by not knowing what to do.

Thanks, Wayne for all the advice and planning.

Next Meeting: December 12th at 6:30 pm at Waynesboro Church of the Brethren.

This is our annual Christmas dinner. Don’t forget to bring a gift to exchange if you choose and the money for the meal. Be sure you RSVP’d before attending, as this is a catered sit down meal.

Field Trip Info: Check out information here. Wayne is working on some field trips and info for us. More information was sent to members on 10/23/2016 by the club secretary.

Looking ahead:
  • PLEASE EMAIL WAYNE BY DEC 31ST if you are planning on going on the overnight field trip to Kentucky in April 2017. He is still making final plans.

If you’d like to present a program, please talk to an officer at a meeting or sign up at this link:
http://www.shenandoahvalleyrockclub.org/next_neeting_program/sign_up_to_present_program.php

Anyone can sign up to bring snacks for a monthly meeting by clicking this link:
http://www.shenandoahvalleyrockclub.org/next_meeting_info/sign_up_to_bring_refreshments.php

Be sure to keep up with our website www.shenandoahvalleyrockclub.org and our Facebook page Shenandoah Valley Gem and Mineral Society for updates and information.

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Notes from The Rock Shop - October 2016:
The Rock Shop was open for its monthly session on Saturday, November 19th, 2016.

We had eight members attend to work on various projects.

Charles: Plume agate

Jilly: miscellaneous preforming and polishing

Scott: slabbing local stone

Justin: Polishing bloodstone, lapis, green quartz, aquamarine, and chrysocolla

Calvin: slab and form cabochons from basalt with garnet inclusions

Austin:

Tom: Gem silica, cut tiger eye, unakite, banded amethyst and red jasper

Jack: cut and polished a zebra quartz cab sample

It’s great to see the variety of materials being worked and having a chance to enjoy the outcomes people are achieving.

Everyone took part in the cleanup and the shop was left in good order for the next session, which will be Saturday, November 19th, 2016.

NOTE: As noted previously, we are going to experiment with having two Rock Shop sessions per month, with Charlie Rhoads leading the second session. The plan would be to continue the current schedule of the Saturday immediately following the club’s monthly meeting, and add a second session two Saturdays after that. Plans are still being finalized, but the tentative initial date for this second session is January 28th, 2017. Please visit the Events At A Glance page for subsequent dates, once established.

SECOND NOTE: As also noted previously, the club is anticipating the purchase of a second Diamond Pacific Titan cab-making machine and doing some storage and power improvements over the course of the next several months. This is possible in large part because of everyone’s excellent efforts at making our gem and mineral show a success this year. With these additions and doubling the number of sessions per month, we hope that this will give everyone adequate access to the tools and space to enjoy the hobby!

Thanks,
Jack

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Volunteers for Refreshments, 2016:
February: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
March: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
April: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
May: Jilly Weigel
June: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
July: N/A - Club Picnic
August: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
September: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
October: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
November: TBD <<--NEED A VOLUNTEER!!
December: N/A - Club Christmas Dinner

Deborah Grimm, Secretary

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Club Officers and Staff 2016
President – Michael Pabst
Vice President – Leo Cloutier
Show Co-Chairs – Dean Hostetter/Scott Gregory
Educational Outreach -- Deborah Grimm
Secretary/Newsletter -- Deborah Grimm
Field Trip Coordinators - Wayne Petersen/Scott Duresky
Treasurer – Scott Gregory
Web Site Coordinator – Jack Glenn

Club web site: shenandoahvalleyrockclub.org
Club Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ShenandoahValleyGemMineralSociety
Club email: svgem-min-club@live.com


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