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CRACK ‘N CAB This month’s program is: THE CHRISTMAS BRUNCH AT DRUMLINS COUNTRY CLUB Gem & Mineral Society of Syracuse, Inc. P.O. Box 801 , Syracuse, NY 13201 Volume XXXVIII Issue 11 December 2008 Radioactivity In Our Everyday Lives! THANK YOU LEN AND SUSAN SHARP! Len and Susan Sharp presented a fascinating dis- cussion and demon- stration of radioactive mate- rials and minerals in our everyday lives! Did you know some of your collectible family dishes (some possibly old heirlooms) are radioactive! Were you aware that when you go away camping the radiant glow of the lantern at night time has radioactive mantles! Fascinating and useful information to be sure, guaranteed to give a glow of enlightenment to all. Their information on Radon exposure was of particular benefit to those who are unaware of the dangers of increased levels in many un- ventilated homes. Thanks again from all those who attended for a very informative presentation. Inside this issue: President’s Message 2 Meeting Minutes 2 Club News & Events 3 Christmas Brunch Photos 3-4 Club Member News 4 Field Trips and Program Events 5 Malachite Maniac 5 The Christmas Brunch was held at the Drumlin’s Country Club Restaurant this year. It was a very nice event with a very good turn-out. The menu differed slightly from the published an- nouncement in the Nov. Crack N’ Cab. Many door prizes were won by the members in attendance. Some very nice awards and special mentionings were presented as well. Loren Patter- son, as outgoing editor, won an achievement award for his 2nd place finish in a national competition for newsletter editors. Way to go Loren! Carol Hamilton-Gibbs received the coveted ‘Rockhound of the Year’ award. Her work with the youth is both inspirational and educational to foster the interest in Geology and Natural Sciences. All in all a wonderful, festive time. MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OUR MEMBERS & THEIR FAMILIES! December 2008 CRACK ‘N CAB Vol. XXXVIII No. 11 Page 2 President’s Message Happy 2009!!!!!!!!!! Our club’s Christmas Party was a wonderful event to end our year. I would like to give many thanks to our Christmas Party committee. They made our party a big success on such a cold and snowy day. Dick Lyons, Judy Cook, Yvonne LeBlanc, Cathy and Loren Patterson worked many evenings to put it together. Party favors, Rosemary trees for raffle and there also were many door prizes for all. I enjoyed presenting my first annual President’s Award to Lou Budell for his years of service to our club as our treasurer. Lou takes painstaking efforts to make sure our funds are all accounted for. I thank him for that. Carol Hamilton-Gibbs, our Youth Group Leader, received the ‘Rockhound of the Year’ award from the Eastern and National Federation. Every year our club nominates one of our members for a hobby related award. Thank you again Carol for your continuous interest in helping our children and organizing field trips. Her continuous efforts with Bob Graham keep our children learning all the wonders of rocks and gems. She makes our children’s section at our July Gem and Mineral show a must see section for all families who visit. Loren Patterson was presented the second place award from the National Federation for the National Federation Bulletin Editors Contest. Thanks Loren! We are planning upcoming Saturday seminars to teach jewelry making. They will be held at the Parish House of the First Presbyterian Church. We’ll announce the dates next month. Carlotta Brown Club President 12.17.2008 Humorous Notes Christmas Rockhound Logic By Keith Gilmer IF I AM GOOD OR I AM BAD, A LUMP OF COAL WON’T BE SO SAD. FOR IT WOULD BE A FINE SELECTION, TO CONTRIBUTE TO MY ROCK COLLECTION! General Meeting Minutes GMSS GENERAL MEETING MONDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2008 Tonight’s agenda was a wonderful, glowing presentation “Radioactivity in Everyday Life” by members Len and Susan Sharp. It was definitely an eye-opener as to what we are using in our daily lives that is technically hazardous! Thanks Len and Susan for a great evening. Mineral of the Month: Oxides. John Davis was good enough to try to explain oxides to us this evening. He showed us slides of different oxides (pyrite, quartz crystals, ‘apache tears’, and volcanic glass to name a few). Thanks very much John – can’t wait for next month’s mineral! Announcements: The Club has Garnet Calendars (2009) and City Lights Coupon Books for sale. $8.00 for the calendars and $10.00 for the “City Lights” books – see Loren or Cathy Patterson if you would like one. SSgt. Delgado of the United States Marine Corps will be coming to our Christmas Brunch on Dec. 7th to pick up the “TOYS FOR TOTS” donation from us. Please remember to bring a toy to the brunch! Vice-President Dick Lyon has lined up speakers for next year’s meetings. The selected speakers are offering a variety of topics, all rock related, that are sure to make for some very interesting meetings. Steve Albro, our Club Librarian, was introduced by President Carlotta Brown. He shared with the attended membership some information on the extent of our current library books and reference material. There is a lot of ‘rock related’ literature to include such other topics as beading and lapidary as well as fossils and minerals. All the books available are listed on the Club’s website so you can browse for your interest before borrowing your book! Tapes and magazines are available too. A simple sign-out procedure is all it takes and you can borrow what you need or enjoy. Keith Gilmer, our new editor for the Crack n’ Cab, published his 1st complete newsletter this month and did a very fine job of it! Gene Ridell reminded everyone that the Club’s Christmas Brunch was at Drumlins on Sunday, Dec. 7th @ noon. If you haven’t signed up you have to do so with either Lou Budell or Carlotta Brown. NO GENERAL MEETING IN DECEMBER (Christmas Brunch is our meeting. See you there!) Respectfully submitted by Sharon Veil, Club Secretary Vol. XXXVIII No. 11 CRACK ‘N CAB December 2008 Page 3 Executive Board Meeting Minutes No Executive Board meeting was scheduled for December. The next Executive Board meeting is scheduled for January 6th 2009 at Gannon Pest Control on 833 W. Genesee St. between Koerner Ford and Goodman Chrysler. Hope to have a good meeting with lots to do for the coming year. Club News and Special Events Christmas Brunch Wrap Up By Cathy Patterson Almost like clockwork our brunch event was on a collision course with a snow storm. Have we ever picked a date that was without snow and ice??? Despite the bad weather we had a warm gathering of 41 adults and 3 children at Drumlins. The fire was lit, the table decorated in poinsettias, and many toys were donated to the ‘Toys for Tots’ program (thank you!), and a nice afternoon was shared. A trophy award was presented to Loren Patterson for his taking 2nd place in the national bulletin editors’ competition. His award was shaped like the state of Texas where the American Federation was scheduled to have its convention in Humble, TX just after a damaging hurricane. Carol Hamilton-Gibbs was proclaimed our 2008 Rockhound of the Year and was presented with a framed certificate. The GMSS thanks her for her years of dedication running the Youth Area at our annual show and for coordinating youth group activities with Bob Graham. Coming from far away it was good to see John and Marilyn Baumler from Lee Center out Oneida way. Lori Malanoski and her son Cooper, our young, serious mineral collector, braved the weather coming from Frankfort. Lori made Cooper a special 11th birthday cake all in a geology theme complete with chocolate rocks in the frosting! Bob Spencer defied Mother Nature’s storm coming from Utica. From the south in Cortland, Steve Albro and Anne Fitzgerald made their way through the snow to join us. It was also good to see all the Kolodzies; Marie, Janet, and John in attendance as well as Kip and Harry Perkins who have been good GMSS members for years. A special thanks went to the Hospitality Committee who provided table decorations (poinsettias), table favors, and door prizes. They were: Judy Cook, Yvonne Liblanc, Cathy and Loren Patterson, and Dick Lyons. Suggestions for a new place for our brunch in 2009 will no doubt be solicited. Last Call for Dues! Eventually all good things must come to an end so if you see a red X on your mailing label on this month’s, award winning, bulletin you will be reading your last Crack ‘N Cab. Dues were due in September. Don’t miss out on great club field trips in 2009, plenty of interesting programs, club auction, summer picnic, and all the news about our wonderful rock and lapidary hobby. Still a steal at only $6 single and $9 for family membership, maybe for the last time! Dues can be paid at club meetings to the treasurer Lou Budell. Dues can also be mailed to: Treasurer GMSS P.O. Box 801 Syracuse, NY 13201 Don’t miss your last opportunity to continue receiving the newsletter and participating in worthwhile club events! Christmas Brunch Photos and Awards Here Club President Carlotta Brown is presenting Carol Hamilton-Gibbs with the ‘Rockhound of the Year’ award. Carol’s special attention to the youth group and Youth Area is very much appreciated. Here Carlotta Brown is presenting Club Treasurer Lou Budell with the ‘President’s Award’ for his many years of service not just as Club Treasurer but as “Club Conscience”! Here Club Vice- President Dick Lyon is speaking about the upcoming field trips and meeting programs in the year ahead. Photos by Loren Patterson Photos continued on page 4 December 2008 CRACK ‘N CAB Vol. XXXVIII No. 11 Page 4 Photos continued from page 3 Here Gene Ridall is offering words of thanks and praise for all the hard work put forth by the members who organized and sponsored the Christmas Brunch event. Photo by Loren Patterson Club Member News and Information Who’s Who in the GMSS By Cathy Patterson In the jewelry news around town this holiday season are a few of our GMSS members who are making the scene with their creative lapidary works of art. Carol Stanyon who on December 6, along with 6 local artists, was featured at an open house at Heather Hennigan’s in Liverpool. Deb Laun created a buzz with her lovely seed bead and silver jewelry creations at the Stone House Gallery in Marcellus. Earlier in the season Carrie Gannet had a warm reception of her natural stone beaded jewelry at her invitation to the SU campus special arts show and sale. Carrie is also one of several well known local artisans in residence at Art Mart in downtown Syracuse. Just before jetting to South America for a vacation with husband Bob, Lorraine Markley won accolades at the annual May Memorial art show and sale in November and was most successful at her own open house in Fayetteville. In a different vein, our own Joe Kapelewsk i, “Mr. Herkimer Diamond,” called recently to say he and Dad, Tom, were given due mention in the 2008 American Mineral Treasures, a hard cover book sold at the Tucson show. At $85 this respected volume quickly sold out. Joe and the author of the article John Medici prospected together in the 1980’s. Steve Chamberlain was also mentioned as a classic collector of New York State minerals. “Herkimer diamonds can be found anywhere in the world if the conditions are right but only in Middleville, NY specifically the Herkimer Diamond Development Corp., Benchmark Quarry, and Ace of Diamonds yields the very clearest and best formed crystals,” says Joe, based on a lifetime of digging experience. Joe has articles submitted to Rock and Gem Magazine and Rocks and Minerals. We’ll eagerly await seeing his articles written from the perspective of a rockhound who loves the thrill of being the very first human being to see the beautiful crystal creations the Earth has formed. Down Oneonta Way in Morrisville Marge Mathis is getting around but not without discomfort due to a pulled muscle in her leg back in October. Be sure to check out this website of the most amazing cave in Mexico Marge sent me in August of 2007. No words can describe it! The website The website address is: http://www.slideshare.net/random13579/naica-crystal- cave/ John Burrow, former GMSS officer-of-many-hats, came out of "retirement" on the 30th of October to do two performances, with the Rome Community Theater, of a recreation of the 70 year old radio thriller "The War of the Worlds" that had the whole country thinking there had been a Martian invasion at the Rome division of Mohawk Community College. John’s collecting specialty is green minerals from around the world. Send your “Who’s Who in the GMSS News” tidbits to Cathy Patterson at cp@gmss.us or 638-8817 for future publication. Miscellaneous Club News Going, Going Gone! Unique Mineral Calendars featuring garnets of all manner and color will be available at a special reduced discount price for GMSS members – only $8. These normally sell for $12 (if you can find them at book stores!) These are real beauties you’ll enjoy showing off or giving as gift, (January birthstone). With only a few left, your last chance to buy is at January 18th meeting. Don’t’ Pay Full Price! Enjoy the City dining and service books are still available, with last call at the January 19th meeting. Look at all the offered restaurants and services at www.enjoythecity.com/syracuse Editor’s Notes By Keith Gilmer At the Christmas Brunch the recommendation was made to attempt to add as many members to the e-mail newsletter distribution list as possible. I made a point of mentioning the potential cost saving for the club regarding both postage and printing costs fairly high and ever increasing. I would like to request as many paid members submit their e-mail address to editor@gmss.us so I may add you to the list for the e-mailed version. It offers not only colors by active website links directly to your computer. Thank you for your attention to this request. I would like to wish all the members and their families a very Merry Christmas! Crack n’ Cab Editor Keith Gilmer GMSS Recipe (full of healthy minerals!) Fresh Veggie Pizza – served at last year’s GMSS meeting Submitted by Cathy Patterson Bake 2 pkgs Crescent Rolls – Roll out on baking sheet pressing edges and sections together to create a sheet. BAKE at 350º for 10 minutes or until golden Recipe continued on page 5 Vol. XXXVIII No. 11 CRACK ‘N CAB December 2008 Page 5 Recipe continued from page 4 MIX until smooth 2 8 oz. pkgs cream cheese 1 cup mayonnaise 3 TBSP (1 oz.) dry ranch dressing mix Spread Mix onto cooled “pizza” base. Sprinkle Sprinkle finely chopped carrot, broccoli, green, red, yellow pepper onto pizza. Add grated/shredded cheese of choice. Makes one, large sheet of fresh vegetable pizza appetizer. Save remaining mayo mix, if any, for vegetable dip. Field Trips and Program Events GMSS 2009 Field Trips & Shows Wish List Albany Bus Trip - Mineral & Flower Shows Feb. 21 & 22 Sign up at XMAS Party Fossil Hunting with David Arcaro NJ / MD Early March? Fossils - Pathfinder Lodge Cooperstown late May or early June, Overnight Cabin Cost (2008); $35.00/heated cabin [Sleeps 8] (3 available); 30.00/unheated cabin–separate outhouse; Meals Cost (2008); $20.00 per person for three meals. Signup at Feb. / Mar. Meeting(s) Garnet Mine after Memorial Day (May) - Overnight Trip GMSS 2009 Meeting Programs January 19th Speaker - Dr. Steven Chamberlain Consulting editor for Rocks and Minerals, chairman of the Rochester Mineralogical Symposium, and coordinator of the Center for Mineralogy at the New York State Museum. He was inducted into the Rockhound Hall of Fame in 2003. Topic: New Discoveries at the Powers Farm, Pierrepont, NY. *This is the site of the classic black tourmaline known as Uvite*. February 16th Speaker - Jay Tinker Jay received the 2003 The Katherine Palmer Award for promoting the collecting and study of fossils with children and adults from the Paleontological Research Institution of Ithaca. As President of GMSS, 2002-2003, his goal was to convert all the members of the club into fossil collectors. The Tinker family has a substantial collection of fossils. Since the 1990s, the family has donated hundreds of specimens to PRI. Jay has written award winning articles. He created the award winning slide show: The recovery of the Hyde Park Mastodon. Topic: Fossil Slide Presentation Mineral / Fossil Competition March 16th Speaker - John Sweeney John Sweeney is a past president of the GMSS and is very active in the Lapidary scene. John is also a BOCES instructor in Lapidary and has provided teaching and training to many of our club members! Some current club members gained their interest from John’s instruction and were encouraged to join because of it. Topic: Lapidary April 20th Speaker - Bob Lyons Bob is a Sedimentology PHD student at SU and son of Dick Lyons Topic: Bob participated with an international team of 26 scientists obtaining core samples of sediments at Lake Malawi in east Africa over a period of several weeks in 2005. The samples hold clues to 2 million years of climate change in an area where early humans walked the Earth. Lapidary Competition May 18th Speaker - Dr. David Millis aka ‘Rock Doc’ Dr. David Millis has a PhD. In Physics and has acquired a tremendous amount of knowledge in mineral and rock identification. He is a member of every Central New York gem and mineral club as well as holding memberships in some Pennsylvanian clubs and some New Mexico clubs! Dr. Millis is always eager to teach and train interested people in the techniques of mineral identification and frequently travels around to various clubs doing just that! Topic: Mineral Preparation – Garnet The Malachite Maniac Speaks By Keith Gilmer I am shamelessly asking for a line on some Russian or European Malachite. If anyone in the club has information on the availability of Malachite from these areas I would be forever in your debt! I am looking forward to exhibiting again and maybe even presenting the ‘mineral of the month’ topic in the future. Thanks to All! Keith Gilmer [The Malachite Maniac] P.O. Box 801 Syracuse, New York 13201 First Class Mail December 2008 Time Dated Material Crack ‘N Cab The newsletter of the Gem and Mineral Society of Syracuse, Inc. Eight persons organized the Gem and Mineral Society of Syracuse in 1951. Since that time it has grown in membership to include adults, families, and young folk. The Society was incorporated in 1969 under the name. The objectives of the Society are to stimulate interest in mineralogy, paleontology, and the lapidary arts. Individual interests include collecting, identification, and display of minerals and fossils, and many aspects of jewelry design and fabrication. The monthly meetings stimulate the social and educational factors. Frequent field trips provide collectors with opportunities to find specimens as well as to enjoy the benefits of outdoor exercise and potential friendships. The Society meets on the third Monday of every month at 7:30 PM in the Parish House of the First Presbyterian Church, 620 West Genesee Street, Syracuse, New York. (Except in July, August, & December.) Visitors are always welcome. Annual membership dues: Single Adult - $6 Junior - $3 Family - $9 Honorary Life Membership - $3 For more information write to the Gem & Mineral Society of Syracuse, P.O. Box 801, Syracuse, New York 13201. Officers 2008-2009 President Carlotta Brown 458-4636 Vice-President Dick Lyons 488-6444/672-5328 Treasurer Lou Budell 673-1891 Secretary Sharon Viel 488 -6356 Sergeant-at-Arms Bill Viel Show Chairman (To be announced) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Librarian Steve Albro 607-756-2298 Sunshine Gloria Royer 677-3730 Refreshments Joan Livingston 446-4505 Editor Keith Gilmer 699-5161 5682 Williamson Pkwy. Cicero, NY 13039 Email: Editor@gmss.us Visit us online at: http://www. gmss.us Permission is hereby granted to reprint material contained in the Crack ‘N Cab if proper credit is given to the author, if known, and this bulletin.
