Category: Minutes

8/7/23 MBRGC Board Meeting Minutes

Meeting held at Portal Way Clubhouse, meeting called to order at 6 pm. In attendance: Michael, Ralph, Dick, Deb, Wes, Bonnie, Candi, Sharon, Trevor, Todd

Secretary Report: recent emails regarding rocks & items people would like to donate to the club. I am currently working on coordinating pick up. We agreed to keep the phone at the mall plugged in to avoid it dying. 

Treasurer Report: recent costs include: Tables (Lowes), reimbursement to Wes for tables, bearings and stabilizers for lap room, brochures, Mike Marsh reimbursement, wheels/casters, grit, honey bucket (picnic), store supplies.

Membership: 2 new members, 152 active emails on membership list

Federation: Show just ended 8/6, temps were in the 70’s with thunderstorms. WA mineral council overnight outing 8/19 & 8/20 in Greenwater. To participate, meet at Enumclaw ranger station at 9 am 8/19.

Lapidary: 3 new people took class and are eligible to use the machines, use of the lap room has been steady.

Mal Report: mall in general is bustling with back-to-school traffic, though it has not impacted our store sales positively or negatively. 

The July picnic was a success with ~ 32 members attending. Any ideas on how to increase awareness or participation next year?

Vests: minimum order of 20. Cost is $35/each, two pockets and very sturdy. After discussion, a movement was made, and approved (all in favor) to order 30 pieces in varying sizes. Extras to be sold in the mall store. 

Discussion about guest “speakers” at meetings. Please obtain board approval before inviting guest speakers, as we already have a series of presenters and curriculum lined up, and time during meetings is limited. Monthly meetings are not an appropriate place for our members to be solicited to, and gaining approval will help prevent conflicts of interest. Guests are always welcome to attend open meetings, to observe our club and decide if they want to join, etc. 

September Meeting: Presentation about flint knapping by Jim Fackler, club member.

RRR: 10/21/23, Same day as Bellingham Comicon, also held in Ferndale at the event center at exit 262. Discussion about auction and whether to move it, will it interfere with RRR? Decision was made to keep all dates the same. There are 6 remaining tables available for RRR – cost is $10 for 10′ space. Plan to bring your own lunch, snacks, chairs, tables, table cloth, etc.

On account of Labor Day weekend being the first weekend in Sept, our next board meeting will take place on the 2nd Monday of 9/11/23. 

6:50 pm – Meeting adjourned!

Minutes submitted by Trevor Duncan, club secretary.

July 17, 2023 General Meeting Minutes

Meeting held at 2007 Cherry St, Ferndale, WA 98248. Called to order at 7 pm by President Candi Gerard.

Welcome to the 9+ guests in attendance! Congrats to raffle winners Francisco, Jeffrey, Michael

Secretary Report: Confirmed requirements for the 15 person shuttle rental at Fountain Rentals; driver must have valid driver’s license, working credit card, personal liability insurance policy. I (Trevor) qualify to be the driver on October 7th to the Marysville rock and gem show.

Treasurer Report: bills including dump run, light bulbs, paper & toner for flyers < $100, repairs to lap room 80/100 grinder, pebble ID fold-out pamphlets, tables from Lowes (incomplete order). 

Federation: Mineral Council gathering 7/22 @ 11 am, Gold Hill to dig for Travertine. Darrington rock show July 22 and 23. Next field trip during the show, starts at 10 am. More info about the show HERE. The next field trip will be in August, in Greenwater, WA. This is an overnight excursion, meeting up 8/19 at 9 am at the Enumclaw Ranger Station. Continues through 8/20. NW / National chapter show in Billings, MT 8/3 – 8/6. 

Lap Room: back into full service as of Tuesday, July 18th. Thank you Harold, Roy, Gordy for your help with troubleshooting and repairing the equipment! Friendly reminder, please sign up for Thursday lap room time by Tuesday, and pay in advance to secure your spot.

Vests: please contact Bonnie Keel, or reply to this message with your size and quantity needed. The cost is $35/ club vest. To order, we need a minimum of 12 vests to be claimed (any size).

Upcoming – club picnic, Sunday, July 30th, at the Gerard’s. (1371 Paradise Rd, Ferndale, WA 98248). Arrive as early as 10 am to socialize and/or tailgate. This is a potluck, so please bring your own chairs, beverages, plate settings, and a dish to share. Water will be provided. Food will happen at 1 pm, so please arrive by then. 

RRR: $10/space, bring your own table(s), we have a lot of interest, but still have spots open. The event is Saturday, October 21st. Members are welcome to sell their rocks and rock-related items. The event is open for the public to shop.

Guest Tyler from North Idaho will be hosting a three-day pop-up Mineral and Gem sale Friday, Saturday, Sunday 7/21-7/23. 10am – 7pm daily, address: 1407 E Maryland St, Bellingham, WA 98226.

Show ‘n’ tell was obsidian, we saw some incredible specimens. Thank you to all who shared.

We had a wonderful presentation about Tourmaline, a pegmatite gemstone by member Ray Cline. He shared about the mines in San Bernardino, CA and Mesa Grande. He broke down the varieties of Tourmaline and many different color presentations. Tourmaline is classified as a semi-precious stone and the gemstone comes in a wide variety of colors. It is a piezoelectric mineral, meaning that when warmed, it attracts dust and other lightweight particles. Thanks Ray, for sharing your incredible specimens with us as well.

Please email mtbakerrockclub@mtbakerrockclub.org if you are interested in taking the shuttle to the Marysville rock and gem show. Saturday, October 7, 2023. Be sure to include your phone number so we can reach you. We are limited to 15 passengers, first come first served.

Minutes submitted by Trevor Duncan

Mount Baker Rock and Gem Club board meeting, 6/5/23.

Meeting held at Portal Creek clubhouse, meeting called to order by President Candi Gerard at 6 pm.

Secretary Report: It’s time to renew minutes on our phone for the mall – okay to purchase another $20 phone card? Voted – passed.

Steve Duncan placed an inquiry through email about sharing info with his club from CA to come rockhound our area. We agreed to tell them about the shop in the mall to pick out a book. The Bushman rock sale is still happening in Sherwood, OR through Sunday, June 11th. 14901 S. W. Glade Lane, Sherwood, OR 97140. Rockhound pre-estate sale in Marysville, WA 6/30 & 7/01. Details will be shared at general meeting.

Show Report: Marysville Rock & Gem Club, 47th Annual Rocktoberfest 2023, October 7-8, 2023. Discussed possibility of a shuttle to a nearby rock and gem show – Candi will inquire about rates & availability.

Treasurer Report: incoming – dues, donations, lap room, classes, club sales, space rent. Outgoing – kitchen supplies.

Membership Report: 1 new in June, 7 new in May

Federation Report: Mineral council has a field trip on Saturday, June 10th at Saddle Mountain. Map here.

The gathering for 2024 will be May 10-12th in Hermiston, OR.

Mall Store: going well, please be sure to collect the funds for scheduled classes in advance; if no-call, no-show, forfeit the funds as a donation. Get their email and phone #.

Lap Room: all is well, staying busy on Thursdays. May train Trevor on saws so we can have a third host soon.

Todd: talked about ways to use web sing-ups for events, also interested in having a presentation to the club about earthquake preparedness. Does anyone know any city or local officials that could help present/educate on the topic?

Old News: discussed grit prices, readjusted pre-polish and polish to $10/lb. to stay competitive. Bonnie shared info about vest pricing and the need to gather interest/sizes for order of 12+ vests. Upcoming member presentations: July – Ray Klein, September – Jim Fackler (flint knapping). Dave Sarna would like to present about faceting. Club storage clean-out to occur before the end of June. Interest in an AM field trip to Racehorse Creek. Reschedule Olivine/quarry dig from 2022?

Next Lapidary intro class: Tuesday 6/20, openings available ($30, must pay in advance.) 

Minutes submitted by Trevor Duncan

Next general meeting: Monday, June 19th, theme is Rose Quartz for show and tell.

Club Web Address:  www.mtbakerrockclub.org
Visit us on Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/groups/mtbakerrockclub
For Questions, Club Email:  admin@mtbakerrockclub.org
==============================================================
Club Retail Store, Bellis Fair Mall, Space 424 (JC Penney Wing)
Hours:  Closed Mondays, Tuesday-Saturday 11 am to 7, Sunday Noon to 6 pm
Phone: 564-565-0840

6 pm – Meeting was called to order by President Candi Gerard at the Portal Way Clubhouse.

Secretary Report (Trevor): Upcoming Seattle Mineral Market, flyers sent to mall

Treasurer Report (Deb): < $100 purchase for a fire extinguisher at mall. We need to update our address with insurance provider to reflect 1 Bellis Fair Pkwy as opposed to “Bellis Fair.”

Membership (Wes): 2 recent renewals

Federation (Michael): 3/18 Proposed field trip near Hood Canal, don’t have details

Lapidary (Gordy): The lap room has been filled up recently with 4 occupants on Thursdays, should we overflow to another weeknight? (Next intro class is in April.)

SHOW (Wes): Security with Fire Dept. fell thru – already booked. Bonnie suggests local Eagle Scout troop for the overnight Friday and Saturday. She will follow up. 21 display cases to be filled, will have to get creative with placement. Club members can drop by the mall to sign up for various volunteer tasks during the show.

We have enough trucks for transporting material to/from the show, thank you!

Vending space all filled up, full fee due by the weekend of the show

President Report (Candi): Grants burgers will be the food vendor for our show.  Should we do another summer picnic in August? Rock exchange with Tulip City put on back burner until after show. 

We were featured on Whatcom Talks website – great article about the club: HERE

Scholarships (Todd): 3 eligible applicants; motion by Deb to award all three $1000 was put to a vote. The vote passed unanimously with all in favor. (Trevor will follow up with a congratulatory letter to recipients.) Traditionally, they accept funds at  ~4 pm Sunday at the show.

Cascade Daily – Todd sent a flyer about the show. He also has cones/signs for the parking lot Friday 3/24.

Bonnie mentioned critters & painted rocks for the show, we anticipate about 200 to hand out.

Ralph will confirm with Westside Pizza about the food for volunteers Friday. Bellis Fair mall will be closed Easter Sunday 4/09 – do we want to participate in a mall-wide egg hunt Saturday the 8th? He will clarify about the eggs. Diligence requested of mall volunteers due to broken/missing items.

General: interested folks want to share knapping, faceting, Tourmaline, Tucson Gem show presentations/demonstrations at upcoming meetings. We can discuss more about the schedule after the show.

7:15 Meeting adjourned. Notes submitted by Trevor Duncan.

7:06pm: Meeting called to order by President Candi Gerard at 2007 Cherry St. Ferndale, WA 98248

*Raffle* guest Joe, and member Violet won. Congratulations!

Presidents Report: Shared articles about lab created diamond terminology. Glenn from Hawaii sent a copy of their mineral society newsletter. Next month’s (March) meeting will be centered around the gem show, no show and tell. Club books for sale on the side tables, please check out with Deb.

Secretary Report: Tulip City, MI wants to do a rock/mineral exchange. By filling up a large flat rate box and sending through the mail. Flyers available for 3 upcoming nearby gem shows.

Treasurers Report: Incoming – dues, club sales, donations. Outgoing – grit, belts, nametags, saw oil, NFMS dues, show fliers, books for store, business cards, table rentals, postage to FL. Savings are looking good.

Membership: 2 new members in February; welcome to new members who joined at tonight’s meeting. 

Show updates: will need help to load/unload UHAUL on Friday 3/24 at Candi & Gordy’s house. Please sign up if you’d like to utilize a display case. Still looking into food truck options. For those with access to a pick-up truck, please check in with Wes about transporting rocks to & from the show. Volunteers are what make the show possible, thank you in advance to all who plan to help with door prizes, spinning wheel, greeters, club sales, etc. Wes has a map for the vendors, spaces will be marked with tape the day of set up.

Federation / Mineral Council: NW Mineralogical Society currently has 67 active clubs in AK, WA, ID, MT, OR. *UT. Big show in Billings, MT 8/3-8/6. Talk of a 2024 show in Hermiston, OR but dates not yet announced. Did anyone go on the S. Skagit field trip with Ed on 2/18? Next proposed excursion is for March 18th at Beaver Valley, near Port Ludlow, WA for Calcite, Copper, Pyrite.

Chad informed us about the WPMA Gold & Mineral show – this was their best year yet, expanding beyond “just” gold into gems, minerals. The Everett show is upcoming at the Monroe Fairgrounds. The WPMA includes WA, OR, ID, MT. Cost of membership is $65 first year, $50 annual renewal. Membership provides access to multiple Carl Carlson Ellensburg Blue claims.

Todd shared a new page on our website about volunteering for the show. It can be viewed HERE. 

Important items the club needs help with for our show:

#1 Display cases – pick a theme, label items in big letters for legibility. 

#2 Critters & Painted rocks – we need more before the show

#3 Loading the truck at the Gerard’s Friday morning, unloading at the venue

#4 Greeters to hand out rocks, help with door prizes, ticket sales, collect donations, etc.

     Spinning wheel $.50-$1/spin, club sales (cash handling, weighing product)

Sunday night we will all be tired, but still need help packing up and loading club property back to the Gerard’s

Break-out for snacks.

Big shout out to Walt Hekala for donating a plethora of items for door prizes at the show. You ROCK Walt! Thank you also for your presentation about Trapiche amethyst.

A few members shared rocks & hand cut gems at show and tell, then the meeting was adjourned.

________________________________________________________________________________
Club Web Address:  www.mtbakerrockclub.org
Visit us on Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/groups/mtbakerrockclub
For Questions, Club Email:  admin@mtbakerrockclub.org
==============================================================
Club Retail Store, Bellis Fair Mall, Space 424 (JC Penny’s Wing)
Hours:  Closed Mondays, Tuesday-Saturday 11 am to 7 pm, Sunday Noon to 6 pm

Minutes submitted by Trevor Duncan, club secretary

7:00 pm – Ferndale Pioneer Pavilion. Meeting called to order by president Candi Gerard. Approximately 20-25 members in attendance, we enjoyed a successful potluck.

7:42 pm – new board members sworn in

7:55 pm – gift exchange

8:00 pm – meeting adjourned, cleaned up and appreciate the leftovers.

Thank you to all who were able to attend. Looking forward to seeing you again in the new year.

Minutes submitted by Trevor Duncan

Other Club Information:
Club Web Address:  www.mtbakerrockclub.org
Visit us on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/mtbakerrockclub
For Questions, Club Email:  admin@mtbakerrockclub.org

Club Retail Store, Bellis Fair Mall, Space 424 (JC Penny’s Wing) Hours:
Closed Mondays, Tuesday-Saturday 11 am to 7, Sunday Noon to 6 pm