Today was the first day of the Northwest Federation of Mineralogical Society’s 2008 show in Ontario, Oregon. I thought this would be a great event for the family so we loaded up the car and headed to Ontario.

We arrived at the show just after it opened. Right away we could tell that this show was larger than the local shows we had attend before. It wasn’t long and we started running in to friends. The first people we ran into were the Stringers from Nampa, Idaho; they actually had a booth at the show. As I was talking with Bill Stringer along came Bill Henn and John Howell from the Owyhee Gem and Mineral Society. We had a good talk about the field trip that is scheduled for tomorrow.

There are a lot of dealer at the show. We spent almost three hours looking at what they had to offer and talking about rocks. After that my wife and son were getting quite tired and wanted to leave. We started heading to the exit but I couldn’t help myself, I had to stop at the silent auction and bid on a few rocks. As we continued to the gate I noticed a few dealers that we hadn’t visited yet so once again I had to stop.

The last dealer we talked to was Emory Coons form Burns, Oregon. He had many arrowheads and blades that he knapped from obsidian and jasper. My wife actually had won a large arrowhead that he made earlier in the day when a gentleman at the show decided he wanted her to spin the wheel of fortune and bought her a couple of spins. It was good to meet the artist that created the arrowhead. I had a good talk with Emory. He explained a lot about working with obsidian and where to find it at Glass Butte which is near Burns.

Once we finally left the show we headed into Ontario looking for a place to eat. We ended up at a restaurant named DJ’s Family Restaurant. The food was very well prepared with quality ingredients and priced right. The waitress also provided excellent service. I normally wouldn’t plug a restaurant on this site but after eating eight to ten meals in restaurants over the past week and having mediocre food and service at best I just have to point out a business doing it right.

The Gallery below shows a little bit of what you will see at the show if you are going.

68th Annual NFMS Show

Up and Coming in Ontario

June 20-22, 2008

Ontario, Oregon, Malheur County Fairgrounds Convention Center

Meetings held in the Malheur County Fairgrounds Multi-Purpose Room

Features:

Top exhibits of minerals, fossils, gems and jewelry, field trips every day, silent auction, kids activity building, dinosaur eggs & trackways, games & prizes, scavenger hunt

Dealers:

The finest dealers of jewelry, minerals, mining equipment, fossils, flint knapping, and hobby supplies

Time:

10:00 AM to 5:00 PM each day

Admission:

Adult $5.00, Senior $4.00, Students (10-17), Children 10 and under free if accompanied by an adult.

Host:

STALLKNECHT MUSEUM GEM AND MINERAL SOCIETY

 

Margaret Stallknecht, 2008 NFMS Show Chairman
P. O. B0x 171, Letha, ID 83636-0171
Phone: (208) 365-1653
Email: mestallknecht@yahoo.com

The Magic Valley Gem Club held their annual gem show last weekend. This was a smaller show but was just as fulfilling as the resent shows in Boise and Caldwell. I picked up some nice materials at great prices. The pictures below show some of the displays and materials from this show.

Last weekend was the Owyhee Gem and Mineral Society’s 54th annual gem show. Since I am a member of this club I had arrived early for the show hoping to assist with any last minute setup needs but found that everything was covered. I used that time to take a few pictures before the doors opened and to take a sneak peek at what the venders had to offer. Once the show opened to the public I spent most of time participating in the silent auction. I bought so much rock that I had to make a trip out to the car just to empty my backpack.

After lunch I help the gem club sell grab bags of tumbled rock. Expecting that this would be a tedious project I was surprised to find it fun and entertaining. I was under the impression that the grab bags were mainly for children but found that adults enjoyed them just as much as the kids. Some of the grab bags contained a gold rock that could be traded for a prize. There was one little guy that kept having his mom buy grab bags until he got a gold rock. After finding the gold rock he was so excited he left his last bag dumped out on the table when he ran to collect his prize. Watching the kids was the best part. I think that some of the adults enjoyed that part enough to buy bags for kids that just happened to be at the table when they came by.

After selling grab bags I took some pictures of some of the displays and spent another hour at the silent auction. Unfortunately I was not able to return on Sunday.

This Saturday I will be in Twin Falls for the Magic Valley Gem Show. Next week I will hopefully have more stories and pictures to share.