the BIRTH of a coin club
Geoman
Posts: 2,491 ✭✭✭
Well, I have decided to take the plunge and try and get a local coin club going. I have been toying with the idea for several months, and have asked questions and was given some very useful info (thanks Conder and others) regarding how to start a club.
I live in a smaller city (~80,000 people) and we only have one coin dealer in town. I have talked to him, and he is willing to support us, with the donation of a Red Book, some coins, etc. for raffles and drawings. He also said I could put up flyers in his store, and told me the local newspaper will print ads for free for clubs. He also told me that there used to be a coin club in town (Duluth, MN), but it died many years ago.
It seems like 9-10 years ago, there was a coin club that met twice a month. However, there was a group of older ladies that needed a place to play BINGO at night, so they started to come to the meetings. They would never buy raffle tickets, bid on any auctions, swap coins, or even be interested in coins. However, they would soon take over the tables and start their BIGNO game, and it got to the point where there were many older ladies playing BINGO, and only a few coin people showing up. Thus, the coin club died.
I found out that there hasn't been a coin club since, for almost 9 years. And coin collecting has changed a lot in the past 10 years, with 3rd party grading services, being able to buy online (ie: eBay), etc. that I thought I'd give it a try.
So, if any of you live in NE Minnesota, or NW Wisconsin, please get ahold of me. I am hopeful that I can get this club up and running in a few months; thinking about spring for our first meeting. Lake Superior Coin Club is already used, so I am thinking about calling it Twin Ports Coin Club (for Duluth, MN and Superior, WI). However, the first meeting will be very informal and all present there can voice their opinions, and hopefully several others will volunteer to help out with other activites of starting a coin club.
-Geoman
I live in a smaller city (~80,000 people) and we only have one coin dealer in town. I have talked to him, and he is willing to support us, with the donation of a Red Book, some coins, etc. for raffles and drawings. He also said I could put up flyers in his store, and told me the local newspaper will print ads for free for clubs. He also told me that there used to be a coin club in town (Duluth, MN), but it died many years ago.
It seems like 9-10 years ago, there was a coin club that met twice a month. However, there was a group of older ladies that needed a place to play BINGO at night, so they started to come to the meetings. They would never buy raffle tickets, bid on any auctions, swap coins, or even be interested in coins. However, they would soon take over the tables and start their BIGNO game, and it got to the point where there were many older ladies playing BINGO, and only a few coin people showing up. Thus, the coin club died.
I found out that there hasn't been a coin club since, for almost 9 years. And coin collecting has changed a lot in the past 10 years, with 3rd party grading services, being able to buy online (ie: eBay), etc. that I thought I'd give it a try.
So, if any of you live in NE Minnesota, or NW Wisconsin, please get ahold of me. I am hopeful that I can get this club up and running in a few months; thinking about spring for our first meeting. Lake Superior Coin Club is already used, so I am thinking about calling it Twin Ports Coin Club (for Duluth, MN and Superior, WI). However, the first meeting will be very informal and all present there can voice their opinions, and hopefully several others will volunteer to help out with other activites of starting a coin club.
-Geoman
0
Comments
Dan
Best of luck to you in this endeavor. I too, live in a small city of about 80,000 and have recently re-joined our local club. (I was a member as a young teenager). We meet once a month in a city facility, rent free, I believe it has to be reserved every 6 months for the next 6 month period. (This will keep the ferocious blue-haired old ladies from taking the room over for bingo!). We have drawings every month for 5 or 6 coins and/or mint/proof sets with tickets 4 for $1.00. This pretty much pays for the coins at wholesale and generates interest for the members/guests. Every other month we have a auction and about every 3 or 4 months we have a mini coin show where everyone can sell or trade to everyone else. We also sponsor a small annual coin show with outside dealers. Our club is growing and has a fairly high percentage of YN's, with annual dues at only $15.00 per person or $20.00 per family. We take turns bringing drinks and snacks so that doesn't come out of the treasury. It's a lot of fun and I look forward to it each month, again best of luck to you.
Joe
Heehee... sure we could try "Grandma's" out. Except it would probably be the first, and LAST, meeting, as we would already be setting ourselves up for little old ladies.
BTW, you must have been to Duluth, or to Grandma's before.
I belong to or know of several clubs in the Boston area. Our biggest problem is that we can't get very many new members and the core of the membership is ageing. With employers demanding so many hours of work from their empolyees these days combined with the many activities that kids have, it's hard to get people to come to club meetings.
I hope it works out for you. Clubs were a lot bigger 20 to 30 years ago than they are now.
New collectors, please educate yourself before spending money on coins; there are people who believe that using numismatic knowledge to rip the naïve is what this hobby is all about.
I agree, that one of the "bigger" problems in local coin clubs are not enough YN. I have talked ot many people, and one person said that there are only 8 people in his local coin club, and he is the youngest at 52 years of age. He thinks their club will probably die in the next 5 years, as they can not get anyone young interested. I have some ideas to try, such as contacting the local schools to see if I can get any kids interested. And seeing if I can get any boy scouts interested as you can get a badge for collecting.
Jon,
I like your idea of "calling" the people that would have won if they would have shown up. Maybe it would generate some interest, and get some of these people back to the meetings.
The Boeing Employees' Coin Club always provides incentives for YN's who attend meetings - state quarters, wheat pennies or even circulated mercs or buffaloes are not too expensive to provide. Camp Fire Boys and Girls also give merit badges for coin collecting. Medal design contests are always enjoyable for YN's.
The "show and tell" portion of the meeting is the most fun for BECC, collectors always like to boast about their coins, a theme is always chosen beforehand, our next month's theme is "presidents, chiefs, and monarchs".
Best of luck, always have fun and never criticize - the people will come back.
Bill
<< <i>BTW, you must have been to Duluth, or to Grandma's before. >>
MMMM.... Haven't been there in almost 4 years ('course I haven't been back to the US in as long.)
My parents live near Grand Rapids, and when I visit we make the drive to Duluth to do, among other things...go to GRANDMA'S!
Try every way you can to get younger folks recruited as well...I'm not talking about YNs (although welcome them with open arms)...hopefully the dealer(s) near you would know the clientele and can target them.
I'm 43, and often the youngest member in attendance in the 3 clubs I belong to, except for the few YNs who come with Dad. The members are all great folks, and I consider them good friends...but I'd love to see more people closer to my age.
I was Secretary for many years as well as Bourse Chairman.
Muskegon has a population of about 40,000. We run 100-120 members right along. We have new people joining right along.
We have around 60 Life Members. The rest pay their dues annualy.
At the meetings we pass out tickets and have 3 door prizes for the members. We sell raffle tickets at 4 for a dollar and have 10 raffle prizes.
We have door prizes for the junior members and they all get a door prize, in the order that their ticket number is drawn.
We have a door prize just for the life members, of a Silver Eagle.
We have a raffle for a $5 Gold eagle, tickets are $5 each but are drawn only when 100 tickets have been sold.
We also have a 50/50 drawing. Tickets are $1 each, whatever is in the pot gets split 50/50 with the person who has the winning ticket.
We have 2 coins shows annually, with around 40 tables...about 30 different dealers.
The club is a nonprofit. The moneys the club earns from the raffles and shows is spent for the annual Christmas party and for funding special events.
In the past, we have chartered buses to take club members to far away coin conventions.
Some of the money is used to buy books for the club library.
All the money from life memberships is in certificates of deposit, and only the interest is ever removed.
The club president writes a newsletter each month, and the cost of the newsletters including postage comes from the club treasury.
Our dues are $6 a year, or $60 for a life membership.
Oh, at the Christmas party, there are gifts of coins and other things, and all the members receive something, as their tickets are drawn.
The last ticket drawn gets a gold coin.
Ray