President's Message by BCCOCO president Eric Holcomb (elected Nov. 2012 and Dec. 2013-2015)

December 2015 — Greetings!

I hope everyone enjoyed our November meeting in Bend. Now it's time to go back to Redmond for the final club meeting of the year!

So, this month's club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday December 15 at the Redmond location. The location is the PatRick fire facility at 1199 NE Hemlock Avenue. The PatRick fire facility is easy to find. You can enter the address at http://maps.google.com to see what it looks like from the street. It's a short distance east of highway 97, north of Antler Ave., and well north of the airport. There is an off-ramp coming from the south (Bend). If you're coming from the north you will need to use a different exit. More detailed directions are posted on the club's website. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM as usual, however the meeting room should be available at 6:00 PM for early arrivals.

This month's meeting is the annual holiday party, celebrating Christmas and any other holidays you'd like to celebrate at this time of year. The club will supply sandwiches, beverages, plates and utensils, etc. You should plan on bringing a small or moderate-size dish of something else; for example, a salad or dessert. As was the case last year, holiday shirts or costumes are optional - if one is good enough there may be a small prize. There will also be a prize for "show & tell," awarded in a random drawing to those who participate. The raffle will also be expanded, and will likely include a 1/10-ounce gold coin! Finally, this month we have nominations and elections of club officers for 2016, and a review of club meeting dates and locations (including any possible changes) for 2016.

November 2015 — Greetings!

I hope everyone enjoyed our October meeting in Redmond, even though the U.S. coin quiz proved a little more difficult than expected. (The questions and answers are now on our website, by the way.) This month's meeting is set for Tuesday November 17 at the Grange Hall at 6:30 PM, with gates opening around 6:00 PM. If anyone hasn't been there in a while and needs directions, please let me know, or see the club website. I'll be giving a slide presentation about "Albert Einstein medals and the 100th anniversary of General Relativity," and I promise absolutely no quizzes this time!

Coffee and cookies will be available at the meeting. If you would like to bring food, please let me know to avoid duplication.

I'd also like to have a good "show & tell" and auction at just about every meeting, so please bring an item for each, or bring one item you'd like to sell and show it first so people know what it is before the auction at the end of the meeting. I'll have my camera ready to photograph your item, and there will be at least one prize reserved in a separate drawing for show & tell participants.

Check the club's website, http://www.bendcoinclub.org/, for more information and some photos from past club meetings. In the event of any other meeting changes, I will send an email the day of the meeting or sooner if possible, in addition to posting on the website. In December, we'll meet at the Redmond location again, but it will be a special Saturday meeting starting at 2:00 p.m. on December 12 — more on that later. [Note: We're now reverting back to a regular Tuesday evening meeting on December 15. A special Saturday meeting may be held in January.]

October 2015 — Greetings!

I hope everyone enjoyed our September meeting in Bend. Now it's time to go back to Redmond for October.

So, this month's club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday October 20 at the Redmond location. The location is the PatRick fire facility at 1199 NE Hemlock Avenue. The PatRick fire facility is easy to find. You can enter the address at http://maps.google.com to see what it looks like from the street. It's a short distance east of highway 97, north of Antler Ave., and well north of the airport. There is an off-ramp coming from the south (Bend). If you're coming from the north you will need to use a different exit. More detailed directions are posted on the club's website. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM as usual, however the meeting room should be available at 6:00 PM for early arrivals. Coffee, soft drinks and cookies will be available at the meeting.

This month's program will be a combination of reports from the coin show this weekend in Portland, and a short U.S. coin quiz of some kind. Please bring something to "show & tell" even if you don't intend to sell it. An auction will be held at the end of the meeting. I'll also have my camera ready to photograph your item.

Don't forget that the club also has four dealer-style display cases. Let us know if you have an event where they could be useful.

Also, I hope to see some of you at the PNNA/WCC show in Portland (the show we'll report on) this weekend (Oct 17-18); see http://www.pnna.org/convention/convention_fall.html.

September 2015 — Greetings!

I hope everyone had an enjoyable summer (which isn't quite over yet). Believe it or not, it's time for the coin club to start meeting again! I've moved the September meeting from Tuesday 9/15 to Tuesday 9/22, because the 3rd Tuesday is so early this year, and because I'm busy at Pine Mountain Observatory the entire week that includes the 15th. I'm very sorry if anyone can't attend on the 22nd who could have attended on the 15th. If desired, we could have an informal dinner meeting on the 15th in Bend at 5:00 p.m. (in addition to the regular meeting on the 22nd) - let me know if interested, otherwise I'll hopefully see you on the 22nd.

So, our first coin club meeting of the new season is scheduled for Tuesday September 22 at the Grange Hall at 6:30 PM, with gates opening around 6:00 PM. If anyone hasn't been there in a while and needs directions, please let me know, or see the club website. As is traditional for the first meeting of the fall, anyone is welcome to talk about summer numismatic experiences including the ANA Summer Seminar in Colorado Springs, or the ANA Anniversary Convention in Chicago.

Coffee and cookies will be available at the meeting. If you would like to bring food, please let me know to avoid duplication.

I'd also like to have a good "show & tell" and auction at just about every meeting, so please bring an item for each, or bring one item you'd like to sell and show it first so people know what it is before the auction at the end of the meeting. I'll have my camera ready to photograph your item, and there will be at least one prize reserved in a separate drawing for show & tell participants.

Check the club's website, http://www.bendcoinclub.org/, for more information and some photos from past club meetings. In the event of any other meeting changes, I will send an email the day of the meeting or sooner if possible, in addition to posting on the website. In October, we'll meet at the Redmond location again, provided they aren't too busy with the fire season.

June 2015 — Very Sad News

It is with very great sadness that I report what some of you already heard on the news - that Michael Graham, club member and owner of Mountain High Coins in Bend, died in early June in a single-vehicle crash near Sisters. The only good news is that no other persons were involved. As a result, the delayed June 30 club meeting will now be a memorial to Mike, instead of having a regular program. Anyone who wishes to do so can share their experiences with Mike, and perhaps show any items purchased at the shop. The club will also consider some kind of memorial donation, perhaps to the ANA YN program.

The meeting will also have a mini-potluck. Consider bringing a small side dish, dessert, etc., and I will obtain a meat and cheese platter or some similar item. No need for any fancy cooking. There will be coffee as usual and soft drinks. Ted says he may be back in town for the meeting as well.

Check the club's website, http://www.bendcoinclub.org/, for more general information and some photos from past club meetings, including the March and April meetings. In the event of any meeting changes or cancellations [the June meeting was postponed two weeks], I will send an email the day of the meeting or sooner if possible, in addition to posting on the website.

May 2015 — Greetings!

I hope everyone enjoyed our April meeting in Bend. This month we meet in Redmond again before returning to Bend in June.

So, this month's club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday May 19 (not quite two weeks from now) at the Redmond location. The location is the PatRick fire facility at 1199 NE Hemlock Avenue. The PatRick fire facility is easy to find. You can enter the address at http://maps.google.com to see what it looks like from the street. It's a short distance east of highway 97, north of Antler Ave., and well north of the airport. There is an off-ramp coming from the south (Bend). If you're coming from the north you will need to use a different exit. More detailed directions are posted on the club's website. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM as usual, however the meeting room should be available at 6:00 PM for early arrivals.

Presumably Paul will discuss the remaining questions in the ANA National Coin Week 20-question challenge, but if anyone else would like to speak this month or next, please let me know. We'll still have an expanded "show & tell" (please bring something even if you don't intend to sell it) and also a very brief report on the PNNA convention last weekend near Seattle. An auction will be held at the end of the meeting if requested. I'll also have my camera ready to photograph your item(s). To encourage "show & tell," we'll give you a ticket for a separate prize drawing if you participate.

Don't forget that the club also has four new dealer-style display cases. Let us know if you have an event where they could be useful.

PNNA 75th anniversary medals are available for online ordering at http://www.pnna.org/medalsales.html. Sorry, the medals will be shipped from Salem, so I can't bring them to the meeting myself and save you postage. (However, I will have a sample set of silver, copper and brass.)

April 2015 — Greetings!

It's time for the club to meet again, this time at the Bend location!

The April coin club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday April 21 at the Grange Hall at 6:30 PM, with gates opening around 6:00 PM. If anyone hasn't been there in a while and needs directions, please let me know. This month we'll have a brief program pertaining to the National Coin Week theme of Building Tomorrows: Inspiration and Innovation at World's Fairs. Paul will likely discuss the 20-question ANA Club Trivia Challenge, and I'll show images of a few So-Called Dollars issued for World's Fairs. Would you like to try the trivia challenge yourself? Let me know, and I'll forward the questions.

Coffee and cookies will be available at the meeting. If you would like to bring food, please let me know in advance to avoid duplication.

I'd also like to have a good "show & tell" and auction at just about every meeting, so please bring an item for each, or bring one item you'd like to sell and show it first so people know what it is before the auction at the end of the meeting. I'll have my camera ready to photograph your item. Also, and perhaps most important, this month we continue the new practice of giving out an extra prize to show & tell participants in a random drawing. To receive a ticket for this special drawing, you must have a numismatic item to show. Of course we'll have the regular raffle with tickets you can purchase as well.

March 2015 — Greetings!

I hope everyone enjoyed our February meeting in Bend, and the ANA National Money Show in Portland last week. (At least four club members including myself attended the show. See the PNNA webpage for this show at http://www.pnna.org/ana/ana_2015_portland.html.) This month we meet in Redmond again before returning to Bend in April.

So, this month's club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday March 17 (one week from now) at the Redmond location. The location is the PatRick fire facility at 1199 NE Hemlock Avenue. The PatRick fire facility is easy to find. You can enter the address at http://maps.google.com to see what it looks like from the street. It's a short distance east of highway 97, north of Antler Ave., and well north of the airport. There is an off-ramp coming from the south (Bend). If you're coming from the north you will need to use a different exit. More detailed directions are posted on the club's website. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM as usual, however the meeting room should be available at 6:00 PM for early arrivals.

According to Paul, we may have a speaker this month, but if not, we'll still have an expanded "show & tell" (please bring something even if you don't intend to sell it), ANA show reports and info about National Coin Week in April. An auction will be held at the end of the meeting if requested. I'll also have my camera ready to photograph your item(s). To encourage "show & tell," we'll give you an extra raffle ticket or have a separate prize drawing if you participate. This month's regular raffle also features a $50 gift certificate from metaldetector.com!

Don't forget that the club also has four new dealer-style display cases. Let us know if you have an event where they could be useful.

February 2015 — Greetings!

It's time for the club to meet again, this time at the Bend location!

The February coin club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday February 17 at the Grange Hall at 6:30 PM, with gates opening around 6:00 PM. If anyone hasn't been there in a while and needs directions, please let me know. This month we'll answer any final questions you may have about the upcoming ANA National Money Show in Portland, March 5-7, 2015. Coffee and cookies will be available at the meeting. If you would like to bring food, please let me know to avoid duplication.

I'd also like to have a good "show & tell" and auction at just about every meeting, so please bring an item for each, or bring one item you'd like to sell and show it first so people know what it is before the auction at the end of the meeting. I'll have my camera ready to photograph your item. Also, and perhaps most important, this is the month we begin giving out an extra prize (or perhaps two) to show & tell participants in a random drawing. To receive a ticket for this special drawing, you must have a numismatic item to show. Of course we'll have the regular raffle with tickets you can purchase as well.

January 2015 — Greetings and Happy New Year!

I hope everyone enjoyed our December holiday meeting in Redmond. This month we meet in Redmond again before returning to Bend in February.

So, this month's club meeting is scheduled for Tuesday January 20 at the Redmond location. The location is the PatRick fire facility at 1199 NE Hemlock Avenue. The PatRick fire facility is easy to find. You can enter the address at http://maps.google.com to see what it looks like from the street. It's a short distance east of highway 97, north of Antler Ave., and well north of the airport. There is an off-ramp coming from the south (Bend). If you're coming from the north you will need to use a different exit. More detailed directions are posted on the club's website. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM as usual, however the meeting room should be available at 6:00 PM for early arrivals.

If you would like to be a speaker this month, please let me know as soon as possible, otherwise we'll just have an expanded "show & tell" (please bring something even if you don't intend to sell it). An auction will be held at the end of the meeting if requested. I'll also have my camera ready to photograph your item(s). To encourage "show & tell," we'll give you an extra raffle ticket or have a separate prize drawing if you participate.

In regard to the ANA National Money Show in Portland, March 5-7, I have decided to drop the idea of having a club table due to insufficient interest. Since most of you will only have a very limited time at the show (especially if you aren't staying overnight), it's understandable that you don't want to spend valuable time at a club table. I will still try to have a brochure about our club at the PNNA host table. For more show information, please see http://www.pnna.org/ana/ana_2015_portland.html and the linked ANA website.

See previous messages: 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010.