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| Scranton Stamp Club & Mid-Valley Stamp Club |
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| 1938 Stamp Show label picturing the Bellevue Breaker in Scranton, PA |
Our Club Officers
President: Rufus Wilson
Vice President: Ky Maria
Secretary:
Donald Schurr
Treasurer: Betty Perry
Sergeant of Arms: Robert Hawk
Librarian: Mike Jaskulski
APS Representative: Richard Degillio
Activities Commitee: Joe Lenahan (chairperson), Richard Degillio, Robert Hawk, Ky Maria
Newsletter/Web: Rufus Wilson
Become a Member!
We meet on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of each month, excluding December, at the Covenant Presbyterian Church, 550 Madison
Avenue (corner of Madison & Olive), Scranton, PA. The meetings start at 7:30 pm however, our members arrive anywhere between
7:00 pm and 7:30 pm for discussion, trading, etc. You may either stop in to visit and introduce yourself at our meetings
or contact one of our officers. Dues are $10 per year. We welcome all those that want to discuss and share the
joys of philately.
The first meeting of the month consists of our business meeting followed by a presentation or program. The program
can be anything from a presentation given by one of our members or a guest, a film or documentary, a mixture sale, or a nice
little "exhibition night" where all members create a one page exhibit.
The second meeting of the month usually consists of an auction with lots provided by the members, which takes place after
our business meeting.
We do try to make it to the shows within a driving distance of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area. We normally attend
the ASDA Shows in New York City, PNSE (PA Natl. Stamp Exhibition) in King of Prussia, Lancopex in Lancaster, NOJEX in New
Jersey, and New Jersey Garden State Stamp Show in Totowa, NJ (formerly in Wayne, NJ). We make a trip in the summer/fall
to the APS (American Philatelic Society) where our members can go through the circuit sales books or use the
APRL (American Philatelic Library).
December is our Christmas Dinner. We do not hold any meetings during this month, but have fun at the dinner to
reflect upon what a great year we have had.
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History of Our Club
The Scranton Stamp Club was founded on a spring evening in 1949 at the Chamber of Commerce building in Scranton,
Pennsylvania. It is officially known as the Northeast Pennsylvania Philatelic Society (NEPPS) and is governed by four officers
that oversee the club's business & functions, as well as providing the proper atmosphere for collectors to enjoy and prosper
in the hobby.
The stamp club actually started long before that March 9th meeting in 1949. There was in existence a
group of collectors who were known as the Scranton Stamp Club and held irregular meetings. It lacked formal recognition in
the prevailing stamp community and failed with time due to a lack of leadership.
However, on the second meeting of
the newly formed Northeast Pennsylvania Philatelic Society, March 22, 1949, Mr. Maurice Goldstein was elected as its first
president. Mrs. Mary Rhinelander was elected to the position of Vice-president in accordance with the popular feeling among
the members, that both men and women should comprise the officer body and that the younger members of the society be represented.
By June of that year the club had grown to over forty members with dues set at $1.00 per year, being collected at
a previous meeting "on the spot" to get the club off on a "cash basis". That was mainly to cover the cost of postage for their
newsletter which was also newly inaugurated.
The newsletter "NEWS-PEPS" was sent to each member's home once a month.
Shortly thereafter, the name of the letter was changed to NEPPS-PEPS, more to illustrate the society. Somewhere in the club's
history the letter again change to Stamping Around. This was around 1983. The newsletter was discontinued for a number of
years, to make a return in August, 2006 under the name of NEPPS Philatelic Inquirer. The current newsletter is still following
the monthly format which is mailed to the member's homes.
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