President's Message

STAMPTROTTER NEWS - August 2025

     August 14, 2025 Minutes of Business Meeting  - 14 members in attendance
The treasurer reports all bills are paid and we have $7,814.52 in our checking account.
He reported that he sent out the APS mailing; it cost $65.14 for postage and printing (he
donated $25 in postage, as well as his own labor, to the effort).
     President noted that elections are nearing. Terms are now for 2 years per our updated
By-Laws. All four slots have one candidate: Craig will run for another term as treasurer;
Charlie will run for another term as president; Ed will run for secretary; and David will run for vice president. Any member may self-nominate and run for any of the above
seats.
     The appointment of a nominating committee was suspended, as viewed as unneeded.
     Our current 2024-25 dues have been extended to 31 December 2025. Consider this a bonus 3 months. They remain $15 per year and are due by the end of January 2026.
Dues are payable to the Secretary who will maintain the club member list. It is strongly
urged that payment be made by check to make the Secretary’s life easier and the payee’s chance of being credited more likely.
     Members not renewing by 31 January will be deemed to be "not in good standing"; and lose all member privileges.  These include loss of voting privileges, paying the non-
member fees of 20% for auction sales, and the inability to sell personal material at the
club show table. [please note, Charlie had indicated that non-members paid extra for
auction purchases; this is incorrect]
     Charlie asked for a volunteer who would organize and conduct our Holiday Social
exhibit competitions? About 50% of those attending the social participate and there
have been some very interesting submissions. For more information or to volunteer
contact Craig.
     Charlie recounted our FOSC experience, saying selling at an FOSC Stamp Show is a
great way to reach a larger buying audience with more varied collecting interests. The
club rents a couple of tables and provides this opportunity as a benefit of your
membership.  All are encouraged to participate. However, for this to work, we need to
have commitment from members. At the July show we had coverage but came up a bit
short.  Two of our "usual suspects" had other obligations and could not attend, meaning only two members did the work of the usual four. We could use a couple more folks who are available to fill in and give us some depth manning the table. It is not a big "work" requirement: keep an eye on things, help potential buyers with purchases, and keep a list of which seller gets the cash. Let Charlie know if you'd like to help.

     Charlie noted that for the first time the club did not sell enough to cover the cost of the
table, selling $54 but committed to paying $85.
      Next FOSC show is October 19, we have our table reserved.
      Craig also asked for help: he’d like to take the occasional meeting off as the treasurer.
Ed volunteered. Others might also want to join the fun.
      Charlie gave a little show-and-tell on a circa 1813 impressed British duty stamp and the
accompanying Cypher Label that he picked up buried in a bunch of WWI-era German
Locals.  This is the earliest stamp in Charlie’s personal collection.  Not enough for a new
vehicle but very interesting.  Too much to go into here but search "The royal cypher
label & impression duty tamps of Great Britain 1694-1922" for an excellent series of
posts explaining this whole subset of collecting.  Lots of photos.
     Paul brought in 3 banker boxes of covers, as advertised in the meeting announcement.
They were a big hit; thanks Paul. Attendees searched for treasure til past 730, then we
conducted the meeting, followed by about another 30 minutes of searching.  We hope to
repeat this process at our September business meeting.
     Hope to see a good crowd at the auction on the 28th.
Charlie