Orlando Florida GPAA - 2013 Meetings

Newsletters 2013

January, 2013

Hello Members;

Well, we are off to a wonderful start to the New Year. A full page of attendees on the sign in sheet, 27 in all, made it to the chapters January meeting. We would like to welcome several first timers; John and Lucy Scott, Doug Luce, Leo Pellerin, and Bruce Lane. On behalf of the chapter, Welcome and we hope to be seeing you at some of our future meetings.

Ken brought his panning supplies and set up a panning area for members. Several attendees tested their skills using gold Ken recently won at the Holiday party. Ken did a great job showing and teaching his panning skills. Note to all . There is nothing like hearing the rattle of a nice sized nugget rolling around the pan as most of the lighter material washes off.

Kens panning area.

Old Business.

As for our meeting, our chapter President Tom Davis went over the little bit of Old Business we had. The Chapter Officers for 2013 were announced, and he talked about the upcoming Florida Gold Show this September, in as much as getting some unique ideas of what we as a chapter could do at the show. With many new attendees, Tom gave a nice talk about how the chapter does outing several times a year. Spring and Fall Gold outings, with a possible metal detecting trip and fossil hunt also. Decisions on these, and other suggested outings will be a part of our February meeting.

Tom talking to the Troops.

All smiles.

New Business.

Art brought a book to be auctioned, �The best of the Buzzard�. Tony did the honors as auctioneer, and after a few bids back and forth, John Scott won. Congratulations and good reading, as there�s loads of great stories from the Buzzard in there.

Mike brought up a couple of items. First off concerning the upcoming Gold Show, he thinks the chapter might do well to have a raffle, with item(s) for each day. As Chapters at the SC Gold show looked to do pretty good, the thought is we could also. Discussions on this were about the method, i.e. tickets, bingo balls, to using a deck of cards, and if the number of tickets be limited or unlimited. Also the chapter needs to talk to the GPAA about holding a raffle at the show. Prizes weren�t really talked about much, but one would think small nuggets, or some gear, etc. would be a good starting point. A motion to look into the aspects brought up was passed so look for further discussion in February.

Next, Mike suggested in addition to all the festivities of our holiday party, the chapter should hold a raffle where attendance at meetings is used for determining who participates / number of entries etc. The item raffled could be purchased with proceeds from the Gold Show or general fund. 75% attendance, 50% attendance, to giving tickets out based upon each member�s attendance where one ticket per meeting attended, minimum participation level were talked about. A motion was carried forward to further discuss the method / prize at our February meeting.

Members not in attendance need to hear about these motions for further discussion. So it looks like Februarys meeting will be an important one.

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Bill. Congratulations.

Or next meeting is February 9, 2013. This will be a Pot Luck meeting, so plan on bringing a dish for everyone to enjoy.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

Congradulations.

Feburary, 2013

Hello Members;

We had another full house this month and the Pot Luck treats were some of the best by far. Now was it the food, or the great companionship of our members or a combination of both. Either way, or in any combination this month was a good one. We�d like to thank a couple of out of state GPAA members and their friends for stopping by. Members of the GPAA family far and wide are always welcome to join us. On behalf of the chapter we hope you had a great time.

Old Business.

The chapter went over two items from the prior month. First off, concerning Mikes thoughts on having a raffle at the upcoming Gold Show was elaborated on as Bob reported that he sent off an Email to the GPAA concerning this, and a few other bits. In general it discussed;
  a. Will we be offered booth space, as we have had at past shows, (last year excluded).
  b. Is a chapter raffle ok with the GPAA and rules we need to follow.
  c. Ideas if any from Gary Sturgil on booths he might have seen that did something out of the ordinary which we might look to repeat.
  d. Asking them to contact the Jacksonville Gem and Mineral Society about possibly offering booth space in reciprocation for space our chapter had at a past event. Plus some of their member�s might want to rent space at this show.
  e. Offering the support of our chapter in case a Gold Fever show about Florida might be in the making. Fossil hunting, Metal detecting, etc.
  f. Plus for advertising, they should also consider doing some in Orlando, as it�s a day trip from here to Jacksonville. I suggested Real Radio, the Monsters of the Morning, and the Phillup�s Phile show�s as they have a large listener base.

Since no response was received by the meeting date, further discussions on this matter was postponed. Mike noted that the Florida Gold Show was moved to a new location in Jacksonville, and Les indicated that it is real easy to get to as it�s just off the interstate. This was seen in the latest Pick n� Shovel, so make sure to look it up.

Next, we went over Mike�s proposal for a new Membership Participation Raffle. During the creation of the newsletter last month, while verifying the details with Mike, he suggested that the elected officer�s do something for once, and propose details on this raffle for the chapter to vote on. Well the officers took his advice, conducted several Email sessions and produced a proposal which was presented to the chapter as a solution. A vote was held, and it passed. Here are the details of this new addition to our Holiday Party festivities.

The Membership Participation Raffle will have a prize paid for out of the chapters general funds and the drawing will be at the December Holiday Party. Everyone will get one raffle ticket once they have attended 6 chapter events. Events include monthly meetings and chapter outings. The attendance sheets will be used to determine the totals. Every event someone attends after the 6th, will earn an additional ticket. The winner does not need to be present and is limited to one prize in case there are multiple prizes. In the case of multiple prizes, and the same person is lucky enough to win more than one, they can choose to exchange one for the other, and the one they do not want will be raffled again.

Note, that since this was voted on, and passed at the February meeting, for 2013 attending 5 events will get the first ticket. March is the initial meeting this will be in effect. Also, everyone means everyone. A GPAA Membership is not required, and husbands/wives/partners of GPAA members are also eligible. This raffle is the chapter�s way to thank those who support us during the year, and it is a new addition to our existing line up at the Holiday Party. (Membership Gift, Crazy Santa gift exchange, monthly raffle, Nugget/coin raffle.)

New Business.

The membership discussed the holiday party being at the main pavilion and Bob is to confirm the cost, so the chapter can reserve the pavilion in March. $50.00 was the cost in 2012, and it is expected to be the same in 2013.

Tom talked about the possibility of getting members name badges, as he was contacted by a company that creates them. Choices would be the standard GPAA one, or even one created just for the Florida chapter. Tom is going to get more details for presentation in March, and Les indicated he could possibly make them also as he has the equipment that cuts them. Members that have badges are suggested to bring them to the next meeting for display.

Tom brought up the possibility of doing a 50/50 raffle each month where half of the funds would be the prize, and half goes to the general fund. This will be talked about further at the March meeting.

Dana asked about posting Chapter documents online, and it was stated that every newsletter known over the years is posted online already.

We had another auction this month of two items. The chapter would like to thank Colleen for donating 2 season tickets to SeaWorld, and Bob and Camille who stopped by in February for donating a Blue bowl setup with pump, hoses, and bucket. Tom and Rae Lynn was the lucky winner of the Tickets, and Ken and Janice took home the blue bowl. Congratulations.

The possibility of having an outing to the Peace River to go Fossil hunting was discussed briefly, and Terry volunteered to plan the event by choosing a date getting the details. Look forward to getting an Email soon about this. For those interested, you might want to get a head start on obtaining a Florida Fossil Permit. This is required if you plan on keeping any fossils other than shark and ray teeth. All mammal fossils need to be reported, as you never know, someone might actually find a very rare specimen. Information can be found at this web site. http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/vertpaleo/vppermit.htm

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Les. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is March 9, 2013. Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

March, 2013

Hello Members;

Spring is arriving fast here in Florida as the days get a bit longer, and the temperatures start rising. This can only mean one thing. The itch is back and it needs to be scratched. Equipment is being checked, plans are being made, and the need to get outdoors is turning into more than an itch. Maybe a fever . Could it be Of course it is Gold Fever Watch out, this time of year its spreading pretty fast and there is only one cure.

The chapter had a nice turnout this month and would like to thank newcomers Jon Plumley, Eddie Carter, Richard Forlifer, and Gary Scruggs for stopping by. On behalf of the chapter we hope you had a great time and will join us again. Members of the GPAA/LDMA family far and wide are always welcome to join us.

Seeing that next weekend the chapter was having a fossil hunting trip on the Peace River, fossils found on prior outings were on display with the typical equipment members use, Floating screens, buckets, and shovels. Not much is needed to spend a day outdoors hunting fossils.

Old Business.

The chapter had a few items to go over. First off, concerning the gold show, Bob reported that he still didn�t hear back from the GPAA concerning booth space, and raffle details, but the chapter decided to proceed as if it�s been approved. With that in mind the membership discussed what to do at our booth this year. Ideas mentioned are;

a. Selling concentrates.

b. Raffle.

c. Displays of what Florida offers such as; fossils and metal detecting.

d. Bob offered to donate his mining art reproductions to be used as a giveaway to people who buy multiple bags of concentrates.

e. For children stopping by, Bill suggested we have separate bags that would cost $1 or $2 containing a small flake or 2. Others added that some of the fossils and other pretty rocks could be added also. Some members were willing to contribute items for this.

Keep the ideas coming.

Bob reported that the cost for renting the Pavilion remains at $50.00 for 2013, and will reserve it for the December 14th meeting.

Name Badges - Tom is still looking into this, and will have further information at a future meeting. Designs are leaning towards a unique one just related to our Florida chapter.

The thought of doing 50/50s raffle each month was dropped.

New Business.

It seems the chapter had a people contact us about selling equipment. Tom reported that a 2 inch Bazooka dredge with Air is available, and Bob reported that a 2� keene dredge (backpacking version and Brass Classifiers from 35 to 270 mesh, and a furnace are available. Check soon online at the chapters Trading Post for more details.

John took the liberty to design a chapter logo for tee shirts, which went over really well with the membership. A copy of the logo is below, and any ideas the membership might have will be appreciated and discussed at the next meeting. Bob is going to contact the GPAA about doing this, as there could be issues using GPAA and LDMA references, logos, etc.

Tony asked about having the chapter dedicate a part of the meeting for educational purposes each month, ie panning, fossils, gemstones, cleanup equipment, etc., where more knowledgeable members could teach, inform, demo, and assist other members. This was met with approval by the membership, and it was decided that Gemstones would be our topic for the April meeting. So members are encouraged to bring their gemstone finds. Tom and Ray-Lynn will be going over this in April. Since we already had fossils and the equipment used on hand, this current meeting was somewhat dedicated to fossil hunting.

The chapters Spring Gold Outing was discussed. Tom talked about our two main options, the GPAA Buchanan site, or the Georgia Weekenders site and the advantages and disadvantages of each. The membership voted on heading to the Georgia Weekenders for the outing. It will be held over the Memorial Day weekend. Check our website out for further details.

Chapter Logo John designed.

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Chris. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is April 13, 2013. Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

April, 2013

Hello Members;

Hold on now . It�s May already Where does the time go? It seems like yesterday we just completed the April meeting, and I was planning to attend the GPAA Chapter Summit in Las Vegas. When things have to get done, time seems to get shorter and shorter so my apologies for this newsletter being sent late.

For April, we had another nice turnout, and besides the regular meeting this month was all about Gemstones. Thanks to Mark for bringing a display case of raw stones and passing his knowledge on to fellow members. Thanks also to Bill for bringing some buckets of agates, jaspers, and obsidian to share with the members. Also on display was a selection of shark teeth that Terry dug up at the Fossil Outing in March. Thanks for bringing them in. We also learned that using a UV light for finding Gemstones might be a good idea, but one must use both short and long wave UV light for the best results.

Oooo, I like that one.

Mark, Dana and Connie looking over Gem samples.

Old Business.

The chapter had a few items to go over. First off, concerning the gold show, Bob received a call from the GPAA, and Gary informed us that we will have a booth at the show, and passed along the other bits of suggestions on to others for review. So the Gold Show in Jacksonville a GO!!!

Now as far as ideas of what to do at our booth, we have the following;
a. Offer information / field questions about the GPAA, and our chapter.
b. Sell concentrates.
c. Daily Raffle.
d. Display what Florida offers such as; fossils, metal detecting, treasure hunting.
e. Bob offered to donate his mining art reproductions to be used as a giveaway to people who buy multiple bags of concentrates.
f. For children stopping by, Bill suggested we have separate bags that would cost $1 or $2 containing a small flake or 2. Others added that some of the fossils and other pretty rocks could be added also. Some members were willing to contribute items for this. We do need some smaller gold flakes to put in these bags also. Small panning area for them to have fun, classifying and panning. (2 tubs, and lots of towels J )

Keep the ideas coming, as after our May outing, this is the next priority.

Bob received $50.00 to use as payment for renting the Pavilion for our December 14th Holiday Party meeting.

Name Badges � Since Tom was not present, this was tabled until May.

Chapter Logo. John�s design for tee shirts, etc. was approved by both the GPAA, and our membership. John is going to look at a few companies, and the officers decided to allow for the creation of some sample shirts. Up to 6 if I remember correctly. So these will be available for the membership to view at our May meeting. Frank suggests that if the chapter is thinking about selling shirts at the Gold Show, we should use most of what the chapter orders as the stock for the show. This way we will not have an inventory to worry about. If they all sell, we can reorder. What we don�t sell already belongs to members.

Chapter Logo John designed.

New Business.

The May Chapter meeting will be all about the Spring Outing to the Weekenders Site in Georgia.

Dana offered to take up to three members as guests to the LDMA Loud Mine after the outing to extend the gold prospecting adventure. He also suggested that other LDMA members might offer to do the same. Thanks Dana as this is a great idea.

Bob asked about having a metal detecting outing, and it was received rather well by the members present, so look for a future outing.

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Doug. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is May 11, 2013. This is a Pot Luck meeting so make sure to bring something to share with everyone. Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am. Remember, our GPAA/LDMA family far and wide is always welcome to join us.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler
Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
(85)

PS. About the Chapter Summit. TV show, Points, Catalogs, Maps, Colorful Boxes, Ideas. Come to the May meeting and find out more.

RJGaebler@cs.com

Congratulations Doug.

May, 2013

Hello Members;

May is here and our Memorial Day outing is just around the corner. In fact, since I�m late with this newsletter, it has already past us by. We had a good turnout for the outing, but members worked in multiple areas, 2 WEGM properties, and LDMA Loud mine, instead of the one WE Tesnatee (Allison) property. Hmmm.

Back to the Meeting. We had another good turnout and plenty of good food to go around, with lots to go over. Bob gave a talk about the Chapter Summit and Gold show over in Las Vegas. The summit dealt with the latest in the GPAA. First off, there is an incentive linked to having newly designed membership kits on hand for chapter to signup new members. This is part of their method to drive people to local chapter meetings where we would be ready. Part of this is linked to a new upcoming TV show series called Gold Trails, where the weekly show will go over membership gold, gem and treasure finds that actually occurred. Somewhat modeled after the likes of the movie National Treasure, the host, Kevin Hoagland will leave no detail unturned in the quest of how the discovery was made in this new �Real� Reality show. The Tennessee chapter president, Chuck Pharis gave a talk on club meetings and how to increase membership. Also discussed were topics on the main G PAA contacts, share-a-claim, adopt-a-claim, working with volunteers, and the new point system with its benefit catalog. Bob talked with Chuck about having our chapter heading up to Tennessee and joining in one of their outings, so tune in later as more information is known.

In attendance was Don from the Port Richey area, as he recently put up several items for sale on our trading post. It seems the 2� dredge was sold, so he decided to bring it over with the rest of the gear. Several members got good deals on some of his prospecting equipment. Check out the Trading Post page as there is still some items available.

Old Business.

With the Gold show table approved for Jacksonville, Bob went over the items the chapter mentioned we could do; offer information / field questions about the GPAA, and our chapter, sell concentrates, daily raffle, display what Florida offers such as; fossils, metal detecting, treasure hunting, small bags of concentrates for kids costing $1 or $2 containing a small flake, fossils and other pretty rocks added. Again, Keep the ideas coming, as we now really need to plan for this.

Bob got the pavilion rented for our December 14th Holiday Party meeting.

Bob also mentioned that he would plan a metal detecting outing for either August or November.

Name Badges � Tom had no further info on this.

Chapter Logo design. John couldn�t attend the May meeting so there is no further information at this time.

The meeting now turned to discussing the upcoming Outing. Tom talked about the WEGM Allison (blueberry patch) property, the need of Nonmembers linked to WEGM members. He got a list of all WEGM members with phone numbers, and the nonmembers assignments. It seems most of us going are now WEGM members. Members are staying at a wide range of places, from Camping on site, to Gold n� Gem Grubbin, LDMA, and Motels nearby. Tom indicated that the split will be between the equipment owners and the members them helping out. Bob mentioned that Dana offered to take up to three members as guests to the LDMA Loud Mine after the outing to extend the gold prospecting adventure.

New Business. We didn�t discuss any new items.

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Chris. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is June 8, 2013 and will be all about processing concentrates via Classification and Panning. There will be a tub or two and classifiers from 1/8th through at least 100 mesh available for members to use. So bring your favorite pan, concentrates, snuffer bottle and vial(s), as it�s time to clean up the concentrates from the outing.

Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am. Remember, our GPAA/LDMA family far and wide is always welcome to join us.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

June, 2013

Hello Members;

The June Gold Bugs, ( lol ) were buzzing a bit showing off some of the gold they acquired while up in Georgia over the Memorial Day weekend. It seems each of them separated the gold from their concentrates prior to the meeting, so the chapter never did set up the classifying and panning area. All the better I guess, as there was a lot to talk about this month.

This marks the sixth meeting in a row this year that the sign-in sheet had to be flipped over to accommodate the membership attending. Way to go everyone. The chapter would like to welcome Terry and Toni. We hope you had a good time, and made a few new friends. We hope to see you a future meetings.

Old Business.

Name tags. There was nothing new from Tom about this, but Les brought a nametag he designed for the chapter. We went on to discuss the overall design, cost associated, timing to get them made, etc. Voting took place, and it was approved. Everything worked out except the colors will be changed to green background with gold showing through as the design is cut. The overall cost per name tag should be in the range or $5.00 to $7.50 each, and the members present gave Les a list of names. These tags could be ready by next month. The chapter forwarded the supply cost, and members will need to pay back the cost as the nametags are made. Members not in attendance that would like to purchase one should Email Les at lproehl@bellsouth.net. Please let him know the name you would want on it, and if you want more than one made. Note: there is limited space for lettering, so members with long last names may want to stick with just their first name. The design is shown to the right.

Concerning the Gold show coming up in Jacksonville this September, Bob discussed the need for volunteers, both for our booth and the GPAA also, as they need people to help out at the show during the show hours. Bob is going to contact the GPAA to get numbers needed each day, so we will know more about this for the July meeting. Look for signup sheets coming soon. As for our booth, both Bob and Eddie decided to man the booth as long as is needed, in case others cannot make it at certain times. Tom and Chris volunteered to handle the daily raffle, by making sure we have prizes, and the necessary tickets, etc. Tom is also going to look into getting any Gold the chapter may need, i.e. for the daily prizes if we go with nuggets and small flakes for the children bags. Other members should bring in any donations at the July meeting. I.E. Fossils, Gemstones, Dirt, Rocks, Bags, Labels, Gold, or anything else you think that could be used at the show. Some items, like pans, tubs, tablecloths, displays can be brought directly to the show.

Chapter Logo design. John couldn�'t attend the June meeting, but forwarded the details for the cost of getting 6 shirts made up. Along with this was a newer design. Overall this new design is better than the older one, using less colors also. Making tee shirts cost more for each color used, as screens need to be made for each. The new design was approved in no time, as we all agreed it looks better than the prior one. The cost however was another subject. John located an on line company, at CustomInk.com that doesn�t charge any set up costs, and will ship for free, but the cost per shirt for these six samples was high, and several members thought we needed to shop around, even though the cost will be cheaper at higher quantities. Due to this the chapter decided to skip the samples, and look to getting shirts made. Bob, Chris, Dana, John, and Les all will be looking at getting quotes from businesses they know for orders of 50 and 100 shirts, in black, or light colors, ( white, gray or tan ). One quote for both the crest logo on front with the large logo on the back, plus one for just having a large logo printed, ( front or back should not matter ). When these quotes come next month, the chapter will make a decision, and order the shirts. At this time, the chapter needs to know the number and sizes of tee shirts you will want to order. For instance I�d like 2 - XL. We need this to get an approximate total, as the quantity affects the final price per shirt. Email Bob ar rjgaebler@cs.com with the tee shirt information. The new logo is shown below.

New Business.

Les brought up the idea of having another outing over Labor Day weekend, as it doesn�t coincide with the GPAA Gold show. Labor Day is Monday, September 2nd, and the GPAA Gold Show is Sept 6th and 7th, ( Friday and Saturday ). We will talk about this more next month.

Bob contacted the Tennessee GPAA Chapter about having a join outing this summer highlighting the July 4th weekend, but the Email response indicated they had no outings planned, The chapter decided that with all the events coming up, it might be better if those that wanted to visit Tennessee do it by themselves. For those interested, they should visit the Tennessee chapters website for further information. Just a reminder the free dredging permit has to be picked up on a weekday. Their Website is at: http://www.cokercreekgpaa.com/

Carlin mentioned that he will have a winch on hand at any chapter outings he attends. This was brought up as one of our members got stuck in wet conditions on Thursday prior to our outing at the Allison property. He also mentioned that the chapter should consider having a snake bite kit handy just in case, but the membership thought this should be a personal gear decision.

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Tom. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is July 13, 2013 and our newest member Terry may be bringing in his Gold Cube for a demonstration. So you might want to bring your concentrations of fine gold for processing.

Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am. Remember, our GPAA/LDMA family far and wide is always welcome to join us.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

July, 2013

Hello Members;

Summer is here and our membership attendance thins out a bit this time of the year. Gold Prospecting has a priority which we address as time allows it, and some of our members were long gone far away from Orlando. Due to the heat the meeting was held under the shade of the live oaks instead of the usual three covered picnic tables. Better the live oaks sweat a bit instead of our membership.

Old Business.

Name tags. Les brought completed nametags for the members that ordered them in June. They�re laser cut green with gold lettering and look wonderful. The cost for each is set at $7.50. Members in attendance picked up their tags, and a few asked Les to make theirs. Jim has all name tags not paid for, and members can pick them up at future meetings. The money paid to Les for this was returned to the treasurer, as Les is awaiting a final bill. It�s still not too late to get one if you haven�t ordered one. Email Les at lproehl@bellsouth.net to let him know what name to have printed.

Concerning the Gold and Treasure Show coming up in Jacksonville this September, Bob discussed the need for volunteers, both for our booth and the GPAA also. The GPAA needs volunteers for handing out general information, answering questions, putting on and checking wrist bands. Signup sheets allocating three hour shifts were passed around. Member�s signed up for several shifts, but more are needed. For our chapter�s booth, there was also a signup sheet broken into 1 hour shifts. The chapter sheet is not as important as the GPAA one, as most members as in past shows naturally end up the chapter�s booth. It was decided that one officer should be present at the booth at all times.

Chapter Tee shirts. This month was a big month as the chapter had several members getting quotes for these shirts. In the end after comparing them, Chris�s supplier provided us with the best price for the Job. His cost per shirt was at least $1.50 cheaper then the next, no setup fees, and can do embroidered Polo shirts at an even better savings. Tee shirts sized small to extra large are all the same price with larger sizes having an extra charge. Polo shirts will be embroidered. The membership held a vote on the color between white, natural, and ash. Ash won 9-5, with no one voting for white. Members filled out an order for the shirts they wanted. An order form will be sent out to the general membership, and the initial order will be placed around July 23. The chapter hopes this initial order will be ready for our August meeting.

New Business.

Dana brought an item of interest for our holiday party. It�s small .999 gold bars embedded in a credit card sized plastic holder. They come in sizes from .125 of a gram through 1 gram. He had a couple on hand to show to the membership. Members can see this at Noble Mint�s web site, http://www.noblemint.com/. Might the chapter have a few on hand for the holiday? We�ll have to see.

Labor Day weekend outing. Les mentioned a pay to dig weekend is available to the membership, and Chris indicated he will be going to the WE site in Georgia. These Ideas for an outing are in the open for decisions at the August meeting. Let it be noted that our membership wants more outings. Bob stated he will be having a Metal Detecting Outing in November, ( the date and area to be decided in the future ). It was also brought to attention that members need a better method of communicating with each other about prospecting trips. Ideas for passing out everyone Email Addresses, to having a bulletin board on our web site were made. Decisions on how to better accomplish this will be offered at the next meeting.

Carlin mentioned that he is certified in CPR, and it is thought that other members might want to be trained also. We never know when it may be needed.

The Chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Carlin. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is August 10, 2013 and it will be a Pot Luck, so bring a dish for everyone to share.

Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am. Remember, our GPAA/LDMA family far and wide is always welcome to join us.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

August, 2013

Hello Members;

This one should be short, since my printer was broken I didn't have a printout of the minutes from the July meeting, I was winging it from memory, and with CRS setting in, I'm sure I skipped some items. This month was a Pot Luck, and we had a wonderful layout of good food for everyone to enjoy. Chris arrived with our chapter Tee Shirts which came out looking really great. Thanks again to John Scott's work in designing the Logo, and Chris for taking care of handling the supplier.

Once Tom arrived, we spent a good 20 minutes getting everyone's order distributed, before we started the meeting. It must of been past 10:30 before we finally got underway. Our meeting was fairly short with 2 items of interest. Tom received some promotional items for the upcoming Gold and treasure show, flyers and discount admissions, and explained that we're supposed to set them in shops, etc. A bit of advertising goes a long way.

It was mentioned that members were heading to both the WE property, and to Thermal City over Labor Day weekend. Neither of these are official chapter outings, but both places are good for gold prospecting. The Thermal City event is a shared common outing. Details are posted on the chapter's web site.

Bob went over the Gold shows need of volunteers, and ask for more members to signup. A reminder to those that did will be sent out prior to the Treasure Show. We also discussed the need for members to assist with the kid panning area, but no one volunteered to work that part. I guess we'll have to see how it goes once the show is here. We also talked about having a raffle prize, which again was left up in the air. One member suggested donating a New Magic Bullet mini blender/food processor. It might just have to do. Well everything always works out, as it always does. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what the raffle prize for the show will be each day.

Bob reminded everyone that he'll be planning a Metal Detecting outing this fall. So details should be know better by the September meeting.

Congratulations to Marty on winning this months raffle, a bag of concentrates.

Our next meeting is on September 12. Member start arriving at 9am, and the meeting should start about 10am.

See you at the Gold and Treasure Show.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

September, 2013

Hello Members;

People, Prizes, and Gold. September was a good month to be associated with the GPAA. The Gold and Treasure Show was in Jacksonville, Fl. over the weekend of September 6th and 7th this year, and while not nearly the size we hoped for, it still ended up being one of the best. The chapter met with many people from Florida, several which didn�t know that Florida had chapters of the GPAA. I believe the final count of new GPAA memberships credited to our chapter is 4. We signed up 2 at the booth and 2 others at the main GPAA booth. As for prizes, it looks like chapter members won almost half of the raffle prizes. We hope to see these new toys put at work at the next outing. Tom announced to the membership that the sluice box he won will be donated to the chapter as an extra raffle at this year�s Holiday Party in December.

As for Gold, several members were off to Thermal City in North Carolina over the Labor Day weekend for Thermal City�s dig event. Frank and Maryanne, Les, Dave and Toni all made the trip, and Frank pulled the #2 chip. Congratulations.

The chapter would like to welcome Dave and Betty, Barry and Erin Jo, Edward, Dennis and Connie, Janice and James, Dave and Pat, and Robert and Toni. Thanks for making the trip over and we hope to see you again at future chapter events.

Old Business.

With all the new members at this meeting, Tom went over a bit of the chapter, and introduced them to the membership. It�s great seeing many of the people we met and talked to at the Gold Show.

By far the biggest bit of old business was the Gold Show. Tom took the time to thank the membership for the support at both the booth and GPAA areas where members volunteered throughout both days, and the teardown activities also. Bob also thanked the volunteers as many stayed longer then they needed each day with some putting in double shifts. This support was great. Tom also made sure that member knew that this gold show was atypical, being that it so much smaller than other shows. 25 booths just cannot compare to the 100+ at other east coast shows, and the 400+ at Las Vegas so don�t let this sway your opinion . While at the show Tom and Bob presented a chapter polo shirt for Tom Massie, and chapter tee shirts to both Kia and Ally. The chapter�s booth layout was similar as other past shows, with displays of Florida Fossils, Metal Detecting finds, Chapter Information, Tee Shirts, Free Rocks and Fossil Shark teeth for kids. Mike brought a large Gold Panning Wheel for display/sale, and Frank brought some Florida prospecting pins.

The November metal detecting trip is set. Bob asked for a show of hands looking forward to attending, and its estimated 20 members will make it to this outing. Tom looked up dates, and Saturday, November 2th looked best. After a quick vote it was set. Checking the tides afterwards, it looks like this day is perfect as low tide on the east coast is at 1:45pm. Stay tuned for further details as they become available. Bob is planning several events so don�t think the member with the best gear will win this year�s trophy. Of course there will be a main hunt, plus an area to check your detector out in a depth test bed, but there will be 4 other events at the least. Some a bit tricky I hear. Hmmm, we will see

Members also picked up chapter Tee Shirts and Name Tags that were waiting for them. Tom talked about the Polo Shirts as it seems the logo needed to be enlarged, and the stitch count increased to get the full detail of our logo. This increased the embroidery cost to $13.00. Adding in the shirt cost, and it�s now estimated to be about $23.00 - $25.00 each. If this additional cost is too much for some members, the chapter will bear the unexpected additional $8.00 cost. Bob noted that most places charge setup fees for embroidery work of $50.00 to $100.00, plus the set charge per piece, so in effect it�s as if we are now adding that in. The Polo Shirts are still not completed with the exception of the 4 brought to the Gold Show. Hopefully the rest will be ready for the October Meeting.

New Business.

Tom informed the members that our upcoming Holiday Party in December is our Chapter�s Officer Elections, and that due to his work and other time constraints he is not able to give 100% to the office of president. He has enjoyed the years as president but believes it time for another to take over. Keep this in mind for December.

Eddie informed the chapter about the Gold Rush Days that will be held up in Dahlonega, Ga. over the weekend of October 19th and 20th, 2013. This is a major event in the area with lots of arts and crafts plus gold prospecting attractions. Visit http://dahlonega.org/index.php/festivals/162-gold-rush-days.html for further information.

The chapters raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by new members James and Janice. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is October 12, 2013 and it will be a Pot Luck, so bring a dish for everyone to share.

Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am. Remember, our GPAA/LDMA family far and wide is always welcome to join us.

Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

October, 2013

Hello Members;

Fall is in the air, well almost. This morning was still a bit warm but you could feel a slight change in the air. Thanks to everyone for bringing a dish to share, as this Pot Luck was one of the best.

Old Business.

The Chapter�s Polo Shirts have arrived It took a bit longer to get them all made, and along with the Tee shirts, the chapter now has everything members ordered months ago. Chris is doing a great job handling the order and distribution. So please see him at the next meeting to pick up your order.

Bob talked briefly about the upcoming Metal Detecting Outing Nov. 2nd. There will be a depth test bed for members to check out their detector. Five events during the day will test member�s skills, and the member who wins the most will receive a trophy supplied by Kelly Co. Besides a Main hunt based on a point system, there will be events for Pinpointing, determining the depth of items, What is it? (Item, type of metal and quantity), and How many targets? Note: for most of these answers will be supplied. One just has to be correct in their choices. There will be a prize for each of the event winners, and in case of ties, there will be a mini hunt to determine the winner. Bob asked for a vote on location between a nice small park in South Daytona, or going to Marineland, an old Florida attraction site that has produced silver coins in the past. It�s at this time a third location was introduced, Lori Wilson Park over in Cocoa Beach, (throwing a bit of a monkey wrench into Bob�s plans Lol ). Tom took up the vote, and with Lori Wilson being the closest for most members, it won hands down. Visit www.orlandogpaa/nextout.htm for further details on the outing with directions, maps and photos of the area we�ll be meeting at.

New Business.

At the holiday party in December, our chapter gives a gift to all active memberships. Due to complications surrounding last year�s confirmations of members status with the GPAA, Bob ask the chapter to vote on requiring members to have their valid GPAA/LDMA membership cards with them as proof. This passed, so please make sure when attending the holiday party to have your up to date Membership Card.

Just a bit of news about our GPAA/LDMA memberships. The chapter receives points which can be redeemed for various prospecting and GPAA items. I�d like to thank all the volunteers at the Jacksonville Gold show as that added 45,000 to our total. With 4 new memberships, and a Gold membership our total is up over 150,000 now. One thing members must do, is make sure they are linked to our chapter so we get credit for these points for future renewals ,and LDMA dues, etc. While I believe most members are, there is a chance a few of us are not. So make sure to add a comment with your online renewal stating that your part of the Orlando Chapter, as Louis is no longer allowing the club to make this decision. Please feel free to contact Louis at: lescarcega@goldprospectors.org

The chapter�s raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by new members Robert. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is November 9, 2013. Members start to arrive about 9am, and the meeting starts around 10am. Remember, our GPAA/LDMA family far and wide is always welcome to join us.

Hope to see everyone there, or earlier at the outing on the 2nd.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

November, 2013

Hello Members;

November is here, and the season has changed. The major heat is gone, and it�s time for Florida�s great weather to really shine. Today meeting was a lengthy and eventful one. We had a good turnout of the membership with 25+ in attendance.

Old Business.

With Tom out of town in Arizona on business, VP Doug began the meeting, He went over the bit of old business concerning the GPAA Gold Show, bonus points earned, and thanked the volunteers for all their efforts. He also mentioned the fact that members need to contact the GPAA to make sure they are linked to our chapter so we get credit for membership points for future renewals, and LDMA dues, etc. While most members are, there is a chance a few of us are not. So make sure to add a comment with your online renewal stating that your part of the Orlando Chapter. So, please feel free to contact Louis at: lescarcega@goldprospectors.org with this information.

Concerning the Holiday Party, both Doug and Bob went over the details. December 14th, at the main pavilion, starting one hour later than normal. So plan to arrive at 10, with all the festivities starting at 11am. Speaking of which, plans so far include our Crazy Santa gift exchange. If you�d like to participate, bring a wrapped gift valued from $10.00 to no more than $20.00. Usually they are related to mining, camping and the outdoors, but anything is fine. You�ll get to pick one, keep it or swap it for a different one. This is open for everyone attending, so if family members are in town, and they�ll be joining you they can have some fun also. ( Note: Being picked first is best. )

Next the chapter gives all active memberships a gift, and one lucky member is going home with a really nice gift. ( Note: Being last here is the best. ) If you attended this meeting, you know what it is J If not, I guess you�ll be surprised Please Remember to bring your GPAA/LDMA Membership Card that is not expired as proof of membership. This method was decided at the October meeting.

This year is also the first year for the Membership Appreciation Raffle, where attendance at chapter events gets members their initial entry, plus bonus entries for each event after the fifth one. This is the main reason you hear the �Did you sign in � statements 3 to 4 times at each meeting lol Also there will be the normal monthly raffle, plus maybe 2-3 more raffles for differing items of interest. Eddie is donating a New Magic Bullet blender/mixer with lots of attachments as the prize for one of the raffles, and there always seems to be a nice nugget in the mix also.

Along with the above giveaways, and raffles, this is by far the meeting with the best and diverse brunch/luncheon our chapter puts together. Jim on behalf of the Chapter will be getting a honey baked ham. Also, as Tom and Ray Lynn are reading this they are finding out that the officers elected Tom to bring the Turkey. Thanks Tom J Or should we be thanking Rae Lynn whom might very well be doing the cooking. ( I sense an Email or phone call coming shortly lol )

Concerning other foods, we discussed what typically past partied had, such as baked ziti, Lasagnas, baked casseroles, Salads, cakes, pies, etc. and a sign-up sheet was started. Look for another Email detailing what items will be there, as we look to avoid much of the duplication that regular monthly Pot Lucks tend to have at times.

On to the metal detecting outing. Bob talked about the day, where we competed with Surfing Dogs for the park. It seems at the last minute we learned that the Park was permitted in its entirety for a regional Dog Surfing Contest. We quickly adjusted to the southernmost beachside pavilion. While we were well away from most of the events of the day, the immediate beach area was allocated for walking dogs of all types. The weather also wasn�t the best as a cold front was moving through the area, and a slight drizzle was in the air at times. With the winds blowing the Chapter was able to get off 4 of the 5 planned events. We ended up skipping the main hunt and just doing the pinpointing, guess the item, guess the depth and how many target events. Out of 10 members that made the event, we had 5 winners. Michael won the Pinpointing Contest getting within 7mm of the target, Marty and Warren both tied for guessing the number of targets by both detecting every target. Bruce won the guess the item event, and Doug won the guess the depth event. Each of these events had some tricks in place. Some hard to detect items, and even though contestants had a list of answers for some, once an answer was used they were not able to change their prior choices. This had a major effect on the guess the depth event.

Since the chapter had 5 prizes, we are giving each of them one. Bruce, Doug, and Marty were present and picked up theirs. We�ll have to catch up with Michael and Warren at a later date. To determine the overall winner of the events, Bob calculated each participants overall position, by taking the place they finished in each event and adding them up. So if someone was 3rd, 4th, 6th, and 1st, they would have a total of 14. The member with the lowest total is the overall winner. Bruce came in third an overall score of 12, Warren was second at 11, and Doug with a lucky 7 was the overall winner. A first place, and three second places. Congratulations on winning the Orlando GPAA 2013 Metal Detecting Trophy.

All of the contestants will be getting the detailed results emailed to them so they can see how they did.

New Business.

Les mentioned that the LDMA will not be doing any future Gold Outings that will include the GPAA. So, joining the LDMA is the only way to get access to these for now.

In addition to this Bob mentioned that he Emailed the GPAA, with concerns, and that they should be expanding them, and even allowing a number of general public to join in.

Bob also mentioned that there are some concerns on the East Coast. With the West Virginia Gold Show cancelled, Tom received an Email about a potential conference to go over items of concern. Most had to do with these changes, the show cancelling, and lack of sites. Not much more is known at this time, as the officers have only seen this one Email, and we�re not even sure if this will take place.

The chapter�s raffle of a bag of concentrates was won by Connie. Congratulations.

Our next meeting is December 14, 2013. Remember for this meeting only Members start to arrive about 10am, and the festivities will meeting start up around 11 am or so.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

December, 2013

Hello Members;

Ho ho ho Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a Happy Hew Year to all. With this newsletter marks the end of another year, which was celebrated at our annual Holiday Party. We had a great turnout, with loads of fantastic food, gifts of all types, and some raffles of goods donated by members. Hats off to everyone whom helped out this year.

Special thanks to;

John for his work in designing our Chapters Logo.

Chris for his efforts in getting the lowest cost tee shirt printer and handling the purchases and sales for 2013.

All the volunteers, too many to list here, whom dedicated hours and hours at the Jacksonville Gold Show. You know who you are, and most of the chapter members do also.

Without members such as you, we wouldn�t have accomplished everything this past year.

As for the December meeting, we did have to perform one major task which interrupted the Holiday Party festivities. This was to hold elections for the 2014 chapter Officers. Both Bob and Jim decided to stay on as Chapter Secretary, and Treasurer respectively, which met with the approval of the membership. Our President and Vice president spots were open as Tom and Doug both decided that it was time for a change. Influences from work and personal life effected their decisions to step down. On behalf of the chapter membership there is one big Thank You to each of you for your service over the past years to the chapter.

When Tom asked the membership concerning a new Vice President it took but a moment for Eddie to step up and volunteer for the position. With a vote of approval from the membership, Eddie is now the chapters Vice President. Eddie is a Life Member of the GPAA, and has been associated with our chapter for over three years now.

As for President, this too went quickly as Tom nominated Chris for the position. This was quickly seconded, and with Chris�s approval of the nomination, the chapter overwhelmingly approved him as our new President. Chris has been with the GPAA and our chapter for over three years now, and has lead efforts in several chapter functions.

Congratulations to our new chapter officers for 2014.

As for the Party, the Crazy Santa gift exchange was as Crazy as usual as we had a bit of a tussle about the rules. Lol Happens pretty much every year as new members can�t believe we let gifts get opened before allowing swapping of gifts. Always makes for a bit of fun. This year a blue bowl concentrator and a bottle of Jack took first and second place as the most swapped items. They seemed to be jumping after every gift was opened.

Lots of raffles took place. Too many to list here, but a whole hearted congratulations to all the lucky winners.

This year the chapter gift to the membership was a tiny vial full of black sand. Hmmm I guess Santa couldn�t find any coal. Lol Inside of each was a nice little surprise or two. Frank also donated 20 gold colored Alaska rounds for the first 20 members. There also was one 3 Stack Gold Cube of one lucky member. One by one members poker chips were drawn, and each came up a picked up a vial and coin. It came down to Warren and Dana with the last two chips remaining. Warren�s chip was picked next, which left Dana getting the Gold Cube. Congratulations Dana.

Let the future New Year be better.

Our next meeting is on January 11, 2013. Members start arriving at about 9:00am with the meeting starting up at about 10:00am. Hope to see everyone there.

Bob Gaebler

Secretary � Orlando Chapter, GPAA
RJGaebler@cs.com

Here are some Photos from our 2013 Holiday Party. Thanks to Bob, Mike and Ray-Lynn for the pics.