https://Jacksonphilatelicsociety.org
APS chapter 631
February 2021 Newsletter Volume 52, Number 2
JPS News
Two of our friends – Don Garrett, a long-standing member of JPS and Gerard Case who joined JPS a couple of years ago passed away in the last two months. We express our sincere sympathies to their families and – as in the past – JPS has made, in their memory, a donation of $ 100 each to the American Philatelic Society.
On January 30, JPS held its first Zoom meeting. Overall, it went very well and we had the pleasure of welcoming seven new applicants and members of their families. All seven family membership applications were accepted by the members present at the meeting. On behalf of JPS I welcome all our new members.
We have a secretary! Dr. Indira Rao, has volunteered for this position and a condensed version of her first minutes covering the January 30 meeting is included in this newsletter. Thank you very much, Indira!
Many thanks also to our new Webmaster and Zoom coordinator, Vijay Vedala. The JPS website has been reactivated and is again accessible at https://jacksonphilatelicsociety.org. Please have a look and submit any suggestions / requests for additional contents to me.
Upcoming Meetings
The next two meetings will again be Zoom meetings: February 20 at 10 am and March 20 at 10 am. Vijay will send out invitations via e-mail in time so everybody with e-mail will have the necessary information to access the meeting. To address the needs of our new members and their children who are new to our hobby, Dr. K. R. Rao will give a two-part presentation on stamp collection techniques (stamp collecting 101) at these two meetings.
Hoping, that the COVID-19 situation will improve by then, we are tentatively planning for an “in-person” meeting on April 17 at 10 am. Vice President Dr. K. R. Rao has kindly offered to host the meeting as an outdoors meeting in his back yard.
Presentations
To make our meetings meaningful and interesting we traditionally have short (10 – 15 minutes) presentations by members on any philatelic subject, including personal experiences with stamp collecting. Please everybody think about something you may be able to talk about and contact Dr. K. R. Rao for scheduling.
2021 Membership Dues
2021 membership fees are due. If you have not submitted your dues yet, please make checks payable to the Jackson Philatelic Society and mail them to P. O. Box 16792, Jackson, MS 39236. (Dues are: $ 5 for adults, $ 10 for families, no dues for junior members under 18.)
Junior Members – A Challenge and our Future
With the acceptance of new families into JPS, we have now 15 young girls and boys as junior members, which means quite a challenge for the “old-timers”. To keep the young people’s interest alive in stamp collecting, we have to think about how we may best support them. KR’s February presentation on stamp collecting 101 is meant to jump-start our endeavors.
It would be highly desirable to have a “Youth Coordinator”, preferably one of the parents, who could lead and guide the group. Please contact me, if you are interested in this position. All members are encouraged to support the young members with their advice and above all materially.
My first thoughts on this are:
At each in person meeting – give every junior member in attendance a glassine envelope with a dozen stamps to encourage them to build their own collection and keep their interest alive. We would need about 1500 stamps (US / worldwide, on or off paper) to cover April – December 2021. Please all members check your extra stamps sitting dormant somewhere and send them to me at 169 Eden Lane, Madison, MS 39110. I already have started to pack up glassines for distribution to the junior members, but we need more stamps.
We could also use any tools, like magnifying glasses, tweezers and stock cards / albums to give to the junior members. I have 3 magnifying glasses and a pair of tweezers to give away.
Membership List
A JPS membership list is enclosed. Members’ interests are included as far as known. Please contact me, if there are any changes required.
New USPS stamp issues
1/14/21 Love stamp Forever (55c)
1/24/21 Barns (pane & coil) 4 different Postcard Rate (36 c)
1/24/21 Brush Rabbit (pane & coil) Additional Ounce (20c)
1/28/21 Black Heritage August Wilson, Playwright Forever (55 c)
2/11/21 Chien-Shiung Wu, Nuclear Physicist Forever (55 c)
2/2/21 Year of the Ox Forever (55)
2/23/21 Garden Beauty 10 different Forever (55c)
3/9/21 Colorado Hairstreak (butterfly) Non-machinable surcharge (20c)