January 2023 Del Air Calendar of Events

Sunday January 1: New Years Day                                                                                                          Happy New Year to one and all.

Thursday January 5: General Meeting                                                                                                         7:30 pm in our regular meeting room at Northridge United Methodist Church             

Monday January 16: Martin Luther King Jr. Day                                                                                          We should all have a dream!

Thursday January 19: Board Meeting                                                                                                             At Shellie Van Winkle’s home.

Saturday January 28: Del Air Annual Whale Bone Trip                                                                                See Article

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January’s Special People - Happy Birthday to:    

05: Jeff Silverman                                                                                                                                          09: Jeff Dengrove                                                                                                                                          16: Kai Kalma, Junior Member

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General Meeting Thursday January 5, 2023 - 7:30 pm                                                                          Magical Rainbow Obsidian of Davis Creek

VGMS member Terry Wilson will recount a fun CFMS trip to Davis Creek, where the group sampled all of the rainbow obsidian collecting locations currently allowed in this remote corner of California. She will also show you how to slab and cab this special type of obsidian to bring out the best of its optical properties. She will have a table display of rough, slabbed and cabbed material to show you in person what pictures alone cannot do. Terry is Program Chair of the Ventura County Gem & Mineral Society. Her main interest is slabbing and cabbing, and sometimes silversmithing to give her cabs a place to land.

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The Rockhound Dennis Miller Show

Dennis will fill us in on January’s birthstone; Garnet. Dennis asks all members to bring in something for Show & Tell each month to share with our members and guests.

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Del Air Rockhound’s Annual Whale Bone Field Trip

It’s that time of the year again. Time to get into your cars and travel about 100 miles down the 101 Ventura Freeway to the Refugio Beach exit in Santa Barbara. We’re hunting fossil whale bones, beach agates, the beautiful San Franciscan Shale and many other colorful rocks. Low tide begins just a few minutes after 10 am. Dress in layers and don’t forget to bring yourself a picnic lunch and beverages. There are no stores in the immediate vicinity of the beach. This is a hugely popular trip every year and we regularly enjoy a big turnout. Bring your rock hammer and a sturdy canvas bag or bucket to carry your found treasures. If you’ve never been before, our Field Trip Chair, Jeff Dengrove, will be there with samples of previously found whale bone to show you what to look for. There is a fee to park at California State Beaches, usually $10, but the parking pass can be used at as many State Beaches you wish to visit that same day and there are at least two more within a couple of miles in either direction from Refugio. Save the date! Hope to see you all there.

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WHITE BUFFALO TURQUOISE 

As you all may know Maxine is very fond of Turquoise, among many other things! In our shopping here and there we see more and more of this White Buffalo Turquoise and thought you might like to know a little more about it. White Buffalo Turquoise is found in only one mine worldwide, the Dry Creek Mine in Nevada. The mine is located on the Shoshone Indian Reservation near Battle Mountain. It was discovered only recently, in 1993. It is said that its name comes from Native Americans in the area, who believe that the stone “is as rare as a white buffalo.” It is believed to form like “normal turquoise,” with the exception of the absence of copper (which makes the turquoise blue), iron (which makes it green), or zinc (which leads to yellow-green turquoise) Because of it rarity, it is also believed that white howlite is sometimes sold as white buffalo turquoise, perhaps by accident by the uniformed, or perhaps intentionally. We know at times we have questioned a piece of “White Buffalo Turquoise” for sale and the seller has said “ Sometimes this is called Howlite“. So be careful out there and look closely at your rocks.                                                    Submitted by: Bob Dearborn

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QUARTZSITE SHOW DATES 2023

Desert Gardens ShowGrounds - Jan 1 - Feb 28, 2023

Prospector’s Panorama - Jan - Feb  2023

Tyson Wells Rock & Gem Show - January 6 - 15, 2023

57th Annual QIA Pow Wow  Gem & Mineral Show -  Jan 18 -22, 2023

Tyson Wells Sell-A-Rama - Jan 20 -29, 2023

Quartzsite Sports, Vacation & RV Show - Jan 21 - 29, 2023

Tyson Wells Arts & Crafts Show - Feb 3-12, 2023

Gold, Treasure & Craft Show QIA - Feb 10 - 12, 2023

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December 2022 Del Air Calendar of Events

Thursday December 1: Annual Holiday Party & Potluck                                                                                  6:30 pm in our regular meeting room at Northridge United Methodist Church

Sunday December 11: Chatsworth Kiwanis Holiday Parade & Festival                                                        See article 

Thursday December 15: Board Meeting                                                                                                          At the Dearborn’s home

Sunday December 18: Hanukkah Begins                                                                                                      It’s gonna be eight crazy nights!!

Sunday December 25: Christmas Day                                                                                                       Santa is Coming!

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December General Meeting: Our Annual Holiday Party - Members Only

“It’s A Pearl Party Potluck”. We will be presenting a video, “Pearls - The Documentary” as well as a complimentary “Del Air Wish Pearl Kit” to all paid members where you can harvest your own pearl from an actual oyster and make a beautiful pendant. We have made up a total of 50 kits. We will also be holding elections for our 2023 Board of Directors. We hope to see you all there for our year end party and potluck.

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The Rockhound Dennis Miller Show

Dennis will fill us in on December’s birthstones; Tanzanite, Zircon and Turquoise. He will also bring in a new stepping stone he created. Dennis asks all members to bring in something for Show & Tell each month to share with our members and guests.

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News From the CFMS - www.cfmsinc.org    

THERE WILL BE A 2023 SHOW!! 

After speaking with several societies in their area and finding no takers, the Executive Committee reluctantly decided that CFMS needed to hold a no-host show for 2023. As all are aware we were unable to have our traditional show in 3 of the previous 5 years–in 2018 although a club in northern California graciously invited us to hold a Directors Meeting at their show, as a Federation we were not part of their show except for the Endowment Fund table. COVID prevented us from having a show hosted or otherwise in 2020 or 2021. You can plan to be in Lodi June 23-25, 2023. The show committee is hard at work finalizing all the various forms so these can be posted to the CFMS website as soon as possible. The event will be held at the Grape Festival and Harvest Fair in Lodi, CA. This is the same site of a successful no-host show in 2015. First Vice President/President elect Bob Rush will be Show Chairman with Jim Barton acting as his assistant Show Chair. Unlike a hosted show, a no-host show doesn’t have a pool of club members to handle all the tasks involved. We are asking those in the nearby area to let Bob or Jim know how you can help. Volunteers will be needed to help with set up, security, admissions, demonstrations, etc. Most importantly all the clubs will have the opportunity to meet members of the public who could possibly become your future members. Bob plans to put the tables promoting membership at the front of the dealers building so these are the first thing visitors see when they enter the building. Be watching the newsletter for details and information as it evolves. The basic framework for 2023 was begun in 2021 so the committee is basically picking up where it left off when we had to cancel last time due to the uncertainties surrounding the pandemic. Here’s to yet another successful no-host show!

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The Art of Being the Meaningful Historian                                                                                                  By: Jennifer Haley, AFMS Historian - Oct 2022 AFMS Newsletter 

As Historians, you have a meaningful job and are a great value to your organization. You are the keepers of all things memorable and significant. You are the storytellers of the past, for today, and the storytellers for the future generations of historians who will be thumbing through your files to celebrate the joys of the earth sciences, and the practice of lapidary arts and crafts. Think of your file boxes as gift boxes given to you, and the gift boxes you are creating to give to the future of our hobby someday. I thought this might be a good time to begin talking to you about the many ways you can take care of your society and federation historian files. Over the many years there have been society, federation and AFMS historians. Lots of boxes and even metal cabinets have been passed from one historian to another over generations of time. This accumulation of so much history can produce a sense of anxiety and a quandary of wondering how to manage not only the space to hold the material, but how to protect it and how to find what you are looking for. Some have asked if it’s even valuable enough to hold onto so much accumulated material. Especially for federations and the AFMS, transporting all the files from a retiring historian to someone new can pose a problem due to the vast traveling distances within their territory. There aren’t any hard-set rules of how to go about this, unless your society or federation states them. You or your society may have piles of file boxes that haven’t been looked at in ages. You might be wondering what condition they are in at this point and thinking, what on earth should be done with them. I am here to offer some good pointers and some creative ideas to help you out. There are so many treasures in those boxes when you are able to find them. Maybe not 100% that you might find personally interesting, but gems in the figurative sense and literally to inspire your members today. As historians, you are usually the backup for storing copies of your organization’s business meeting minutes and reports. You also have the special job of keeping copies of your organization’s newsletters, photos and news clippings of the year’s events and sometimes storing mementos. You are the person members will say at some time or another, “thank you so much for keeping the good memories and for remembering us.” There are different aspects of being a historian. There are various choices available to you about how you can take care of your files, along with ideas to make finding things in the future easier for you . Some organizations are digitizing their files, but if that’s not your cup of tea right now, that’s alright too. Stick with me over the next few months, and in between other historian articles for the AFMS, we’ll go through those boxes together.

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A Field Trip Teaser…Save the Date!

Our wildly popular annual Fossil Whale Bone field trip to Refugio Beach in Santa Barbara has found its date: Saturday January 28, 2023. Full details in the January bulletin.

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On Sunday December 11, 2022, the Del Air Rockhounds will once again have a booth at the Chatsworth Kiwanis Holiday Parade and Festival.. Set-up begins at 9:30 am and the event runs from 12:00 noon until 5:00 pm. Two of our core members, Shellie Van Winkle and Bernadette Friedman are out of town on this day and will not be able to work this event. So…even more than ever…we need club members to step-up and volunteer to help out at this event. We will have three 10 x 10 pop ups featuring the Spin-a-Wheel, grab bags, our jewelry, fossil and specimen boutique, touch and feel table, fossil reproductions, free educational game and more. Our booth will be on Canoga Ave just south of Devonshire St. in Chatsworth. Show your Del Air spirit and volunteer to help out. Please let Maxine Dearborn, Chris Ward or Bob Knox know of your intent to help out.

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Del Air Rockhounds November 2022 Calendar of Events

Thursday November 3: General Meeting                                                                                                    7:30 pm in our regular meeting room at Northridge United Methodist Church

Sunday November 6: Daylight Savings Time Ends                                                                                        At least in California it does! 

Tuesday November 8: Election Day                                                                                                            Cast your vote or keep your mouth shut!

Friday November 11: Veteran’s Day                                                                                                        Honor our War Vets!            

Thursday November 17: Board Meeting                                                                                                        At the Becker’s humble abode!

Thursday November 24: Thanksgiving Day                                                                                           Turkey and all the fixin’s!

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General Meeting: Thursday November 3, 2022 @ 7:30 pm:

The Geological Wonders of California’s Channel Islands

From volcanic sea caves to out-of-this-world sedimentary formations, the Channel Islands are a collection of geologically varied islands. Keri Dearborn will take us on a tour of the Channel Islands to see some of their unique geology, including San Nicolas Island which is a U.S. Navy Base and closed to the public.

The geology of the Channel Islands directly affects the plant and animal species that live there. This is called biogeology. We’ll look at the role geology has played in shaping the living species on the islands in the past and how it continues to do so today. We’ll look for fossils, archaeological sites, and evidence of islands on the move.  

Join Keri for an evening discovering the geologic wonders of the Channel Islands.

Emmy Silverman - Program Chair

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The Rockhound Dennis Miller Show:

This month, Dennis will fill us in on November’s birthstones, Citrine & Topaz. He will also bring in some treasures he found at Jewell Tunnel. Dennis asks all members to bring in something for Show & Tell each month to share with our members and guests.

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News of Upcoming Club Shows:

November 6, 2022 – Lake Elsinore, CA

Lake Elsinore Gem & Mineral Society

32097 Corydon Road, Lake Elsinore, CA 92530

Hours: 10 AM – 4 PM

Winter Festival Rock & Craft Show

Contact: Berylman50@aol.com

Find us on Facebook

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November 19-20, 2022 – Santa Cruz, CA

Santa Cruz Mineral and Gem Society

Santa Cruz Live Oak Grange, 1900 17th Ave., Santa Cruz, CA 95062

Hours: Saturday 10 AM – 5 PM, Sunday 10 AM – 4 PM

Santa Cruz Holiday Sale – Rocks, Minerals, Gems, Fossils, Jewelry

Contact: (831) 459-0572, scruzmgs@gmail.com

Website: https://www.scrockngem.org

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February 18-19, 2023 

Antioch Lapidary Club

Contra Costa County Fairgrounds, 1201 West 10th St. Antioch, CA 94509

Hours: 10 AM to 5 PM Saturday and Sunday

Jewelry, Gems, Findings, Supplies, Auction, Grab Bags, Exhibits and hands on projects for kids

Contact: (925) 301-6957, edysnyder@gmail.com

Website: http://www.antiochlapidaryclub.com

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February 25-26, 2023 – Vallejo, CA

Vallejo Gem and Mineral Society

Solano County Fairgrounds, McCormack Hall, 900 Fairgrounds Drive, Vallejo, CA 94589

Hours: 10 AM-5 PM

Gems, geodes, fossils, beads and minerals from around the globe. Discover lapidary and stone crafts from vendors and live demonstrations. Something for everyone! Silent auction, geode cuttings, and games of chance and discovery for kids!

Contact: (415) 254-1506, ddahonvgms@gmail.com

Website: http://vjgems.co/

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March 4-5, 2023 – Ventura, CA

Ventura Gem & Mineral Society

Ventura County Fairgrounds, 10 W. Harbor Blvd., Ventura, CA 93001

Hours: Saturday 10 AM-5 PM, Sunday 10 AM – 4 PM

50 exhibits of gems, minerals, fossils and lapidary arts; ongoing demos of lapidary and jewelry making; raffle prizes & silent auctions; a Second-Hand Treasures Store & plant sale; 15 dealers; children’s activities and free resources for teachers. A SoCal tradition for 6 decades and counting!

Contact: (805) 312-8467, info@vgms.org

Website: http://www.vgms.org

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Report on our Malibou Lake Event - Saturday, October 1, 2022

Yes, there is a Malibou Lake in the Santa Monica Mountains. And, it has been there for 100 years! Who knew? I didn’t but our club was invited to their centennial festival through the efforts of our member, Jon Meredith. Our booth consisted of two 10 x 10 canopies from 10 am to 6 pm and we talked to a constant flow of people. They were all interested in the free educational game, touch and feel area, spin-a-wheel with its goodies and many kinds of rock materials available for purchase as well as providing general information on the local rocks and fossils. Our members, Chris Ward and Maxine Dearborn gave a one hour PowerPoint talk on the history and geology of the Santa Monica Mountains and they had a very large audience. They also had a lot of questions about the subject because a lot of the people were from the surrounding local areas. Our club had a great time at this festival. It was a long day but we had a lot of help and the weather was just right. Members attending: Chris Ward, Bob Knox, Shellie Van Winkle, Bernadette Friedman, LaVere & Christine Schmidt, Jon Meredith, Jeff & Emmy Silverman and Bob & Maxine Dearborn.         Bob Dearborn-Education Outreach

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Del Air Rockhounds October 2022 Calendar of Events

Saturday October 1: Malibou Lake Centennial Event                                                                                        Tuesday October 4: Yom Kippur - Begins at sundown.                                                                              Thursday October 6: General Meeting - 7:30 pm at Northridge United Methodist Church                            Thursday October 20: Board Meeting - 7:30 pm at TBD                                                                      Saturday October 22: Granada Hills Street Faire                                                                                    Monday October 31: Halloween - Spooky Spooky Spooky

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October’s Special People: Happy Birthday:

03   Dennis Miller                                                                                                                             04   Bernadette Friedman                                                                                                                                    06   Chris Ward                                                                                                                                  07   Dan Farber                                                                                                                                                09   Michael Tschacher                                                                                                                                      20   Steven Koch                                                                                                                                                20   Louise Ratliff

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Del Air Rockhound’s 2022 Annual Silent Auction Thursday Oct 6 @ 7:30 pm

Come join us for our annual Silent Auction. We will have several auctions, all lasting about 10 to 15 minutes each. Most minimums will start at $1.00 with a maximum increase of $1.00. We will also have an extended auction table that will be the last auction called for the evening. Please bring small change as it is quite difficult to make change for twenty dollar bills on a $1.00 purchase. Bring a bag or box to take your treasures home in.

The Rockhound Dennis Miller Show:

This month Dennis will fill us in on October’s birthstone, the Opal. As well as a report on the Jewel Tunnel field trip on Monday September 12.

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Education Outreach

Saturday October 1, 2022 - Malibou Lake Centennial Celebration

Set-up is at 8:00 am and the event runs from 10 am to 7 pm. Parking is at Paramount Ranch and costs $15 and needs to be made online in advance at eventbrite.com. There are shuttles that run back and forth from Paramount Ranch parking to the event site. There is no on-site parking. We will be allowed to drive in to unload at 8:00 am but all cars will need to be off-site no later than 9:30 am. Malibou Lake is on Lakeview Drive near Malibu Creek State Park about one mile from Kanan Rd where it crosses Mulholland Dr. We will be running our booth with two 10 x 10 pop-ups with a free educational game for the kids, touch and feel, spin-a-wheel, grab bags and selling our boutique items such as jewelry, fossils, mineral and crystal specimens. Maxine & Chris will be giving a talk on the Geology of the Santa Monica Mountains in the clubhouse at 12 noon. 

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News of Upcoming Club Shows:

October 8-9, 2022 – Redwood City, CA

Peninsula Gem and Geology Society AND Sequoia Gem and Mineral Society

Redwood City  Community Activities Building, 1400 Roosevelt Ave., Redwood City 940612

Hours: Saturday and Sunday 10 AM – 5 PM

Contacts: 650 575-3144 cci@pacbell.net, 650 743-7447 catphalen@comcast.net

Websites: http://pggs.org  or https://www.sequoiagemandmineralsociety.org/sgms-gem–mineral-show.html

October 8-9, 2022 – Grass Valley, CA

Nevada County Gem and Mineral Society

Earth’s Treasurers Show 2022

Nevada County Fairgrounds, 11228 McCourtney Rd., Grass Valley, CA 95945

Hours: Saturday, 10 AM – 5 PM, Sunday 10 AM – 4 PM

General admission $3 person. Children, age twelve and under free with a paid adult.

 Military with I.D. free. Free Parking!

Contact: 4vanclan5@att.net Website: https://www.ncgms.org/show-info/

October 9, 2022 – Fallbrook, CA

Fallbrook Gem and Mineral Society-Fall Festival of Gems & Minerals

123 W. Alvarado Street, Fallbrook CA 92028

Hours: 9 AM-4 PM

Contact: (760) 728-1130, info@fgms.org  Website: http://www.fgms.org

October 15, 2022 – West Hills, CA

Woodland Hills Rock Chippers

First Methodist Church, 22770 Sherman Way, West Hills, CA 91204

Hours: 10 AM – 5 PM

A variety of vendors selling slabs, findings, displays, minerals, beads, craft tables, carvings, diamond tools for foredoms and dremels, raffle, gold panning and more.

Website: http://www.rockchippers.org

October 15-16, 2022 – Santa Rosa, CA

Santa Rosa Mineral & Gem Society - 45th Annual Mineral and Gem Show

Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial, 1351 Maple Ave., Santa Rosa, CA

Hours: Saturday 10 AM -6 PM, Sunday 10 AM – 5 PM

Minerals, gems, rough rock, slabs, jewelry, beads from 30 vendors. Kids activities, gold panning, raffle, door prizes and Silent Auction. Displays, demonstrations, scavenger hunt and fluorescent minerals.

Kids under 12 are free with paid parent and there’s Free Parking.

Contact: (707) 849-9551, jolene4srmgs@gmail.com  Website: http://SRMGS.org

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Granada Hills Street Faire

Saturday October 22nd, 2022 - 10:00 am to 5:00 pm

The Del Air Rockhounds will once again have our booth at the Granada Hills Street Faire. Set-up will begin at 8:00 am. We will be having two (2) 10 x 10 pop-ups at this event and we will be hosting our Spin-a-Wheel, Grab Bags, our Boutique of Jewelry, Fossils and Minerals. We will also host our free educational game for the kids (and adults too) as well as our Touch and Feel Specimens. This is a great event that allows us to interact with the general public and talk about rockhounding and the earth sciences. We will be needing volunteers, as usual, and ask that you please contact Chris Ward or the Dearborns to advise when you can help out.

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Del Air Rockhounds Pull Top Honors at the 2022 Antelope Valley Fair & Alfalfa Festival

Del Air Club members Kai Kalma and Chris Ward both earned First Place, Best in Division and Best in Show awards for their displays at the 2022 Antelope Valley Fair & Alfalfa Festival. Kai in the Junior Division for his self collected Coprolite Display and Chris in the Adult division for his Cultured Pearl Display. Chris also earned the coveted Committee's Choice award. It was a great year for the Del Air Rockhounds. Here’s hoping we can get even more members to participate in next year's fair. 

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September 2022 Del Air Rockhounds Calendar of Events

Thursday September 1: General Meeting -                                                           

7:30 pm in our regular meeting room at Northridge United Methodist Church

Saturday September 3: Grab Bag Fill Day - (See Article)

Monday September 5: Labor Day - Celebrate America’s Workforce.

Thursday September 15: Board Meeting - 7:30 pm at Shellie Van Winkle’s Home

Thursday September 22: First Day of Autumn - Hopefully the Heat Will End

Sunday September 25: Rosh Hashanah - Begins at Sundown

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September’s Special People

Happy Birthday:                        Happy Anniversary:

07   Lourdes Koch                        05   Roger Hsu & Spouse

11   Vincent Santoro                          12   Jeff & Emmy Silverman

14   Evelyn Brown

16   Coriolis Koch P/P

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General Meeting: Thursday September 1, 2022 @ 7:30 pm

“Other Than Pretty, What are Bloodstone and Fluorite?”

Presented by: Tina White

Tina White, an Earth Sciences instructor at various Los Angeles colleges and member of the Sierra Pelona Rock Club will share information on the what, how, why and where of these interesting and beautiful objects of interest to rockhounds and lapidaries everywhere. Come join us for her powerpoint presentation. A program not to be missed.

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Big Three Estate Rock Sale

Come join us for the Del Air Rockhound Club's 3 Estate Rock Sale spanning more than 50 years of collecting from around the country and the world. Saturday August 13, 2022 from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at 10037 Louise Ave., Northridge, CA 91325. Our 501(c)3 non profit educational organization will be selling piles of rough rock, windowed rock, slabs, crystals, agate, jasper, petrified wood, obsidian, fossil whale bone, serpentine, onyx, fossil turritella agate and more. Sold by the piece or the pound - cash or credit card accepted. We will also be selling jewelry, mineral & fossil specimens, crystals and good lapidary equipment such as saws, grinders, high end microscope and more. Bring you own crate and totes to carry your treasures home with you. We would like to thank you all for coming out and supporting our club. Your purchase helps us fund our many Education Outreach programs which we provide free of charge to local elementary schools throughout the area. Hope to see you all there!

Del Air Rockhounds May 2022 Calendar of Events

  

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