The Tulip City Gem & Mineral Club has an active junior membership. In addition to many opportunities to participate in the annual Show and organized fieldtrips, junior members of Tulip City Gem Mineral & Club have their own monthly meetings. During the business portion of the adults’ General Meeting, juniors convene in a separate room for a program geared to their specific age level. Topics range from specific crystals, minerals, and rocks to broader geological processes like the Rock Cycle and the formation of geodes. At each meeting, juniors receive a take-home specimen related to the program topic accompanied by an identification card. Parents and guardians may join their children at these juniors programs.
Special Junior Member Event - October 10, 2020
Sapphire Gravel Sifted for Gems. In a grassy area at Holland's Kollen Park, five Tulip City families used screens with assorted size mesh to filter out pastel-colored sapphires. Sapphires are the non-red Corundum crystals (Mohs 9). The unwashed gravel originated in S W Montana near Helena on the El Dorado Bar of the Missouri River. The Club ordered several packages from Montana Gems of Phillipsburg.
Nine Juniors plus ten adults enjoyed the sunny morning. After sifting out any larger pieces of rock, the remains were dumped onto paper plates. Groups spread out on tarps, so that not even sand was lost in the grass. The process took patience, but at the paper plate stage, it was easier to pick out the roughly 6-sided translucent Sapphire gems! Each scoop of gravel was like a lottery ticket but with more promise of reward. The small sapphires were jumbled in with clay, jaspers, quartz, hematite etc. Every Junior went home with several "gems in the rough" and all were pleased with their prizes. Of course, part of the joy was just getting out with friends who love the outdoors and finding treasures created within the earth.
Nature worked eons to create the gravel everyone worked with. Montana's mountains were created by tectonic uplift before the erosion of rain, snow and wind plus the force of gravity brought rocks to the river to break them down further. After spring floods, gravel bars were built up by slower moving water and the river sluiced the smaller rocks onto these bars.. All of this so we can have a gem discovery!
Many thanks go to Jon Mull for making this special event happen - plus donating half of the gravel. Thanks also go to Ken & Betty Hoekstra for providing sifting tips in preparation for this program.
Linda Winkelmann, Junior Club Co-Chair
Sapphire Gravel Sifted for Gems. In a grassy area at Holland's Kollen Park, five Tulip City families used screens with assorted size mesh to filter out pastel-colored sapphires. Sapphires are the non-red Corundum crystals (Mohs 9). The unwashed gravel originated in S W Montana near Helena on the El Dorado Bar of the Missouri River. The Club ordered several packages from Montana Gems of Phillipsburg.
Nine Juniors plus ten adults enjoyed the sunny morning. After sifting out any larger pieces of rock, the remains were dumped onto paper plates. Groups spread out on tarps, so that not even sand was lost in the grass. The process took patience, but at the paper plate stage, it was easier to pick out the roughly 6-sided translucent Sapphire gems! Each scoop of gravel was like a lottery ticket but with more promise of reward. The small sapphires were jumbled in with clay, jaspers, quartz, hematite etc. Every Junior went home with several "gems in the rough" and all were pleased with their prizes. Of course, part of the joy was just getting out with friends who love the outdoors and finding treasures created within the earth.
Nature worked eons to create the gravel everyone worked with. Montana's mountains were created by tectonic uplift before the erosion of rain, snow and wind plus the force of gravity brought rocks to the river to break them down further. After spring floods, gravel bars were built up by slower moving water and the river sluiced the smaller rocks onto these bars.. All of this so we can have a gem discovery!
Many thanks go to Jon Mull for making this special event happen - plus donating half of the gravel. Thanks also go to Ken & Betty Hoekstra for providing sifting tips in preparation for this program.
Linda Winkelmann, Junior Club Co-Chair
Joe Moran Memorial Geology Scholarship
Purpose: To recognize an active Junior Club member whose college study program will be directed toward a career in the geosciences.
Name of Award: This scholarship is established in recognition of Joe Moran, Director of the City of Holland Recreation Department, who organized the Club in 1967 under the auspices of the City.
Award Amount: Up to $500.00
Requirement: The student must be graduating from an area high school in the current academic year and planning to enroll full time in a bachelor’s degree program at an accredited higher education institution in the fall directly after graduation. The student, or family of the student, must have been a member of this Club for a minimum of three years to be eligible for consideration.
Selection Criteria: After recommendation by the Junior Leaders, the Board will take into consideration family participation and contributions in Club activities such as working at the annual Show, having served on the Board of Directors, presented a program at a monthly meeting, or participated in a geology related community outreach activity.
Student Requirements: The student shall submit a letter (one page) describing the applicant’s interest in or passion for a career in the subject. It should include any special awards or notable accomplishments received in high school. Consideration will be given to achievement of good grades, school related involvement, (clubs, etc.), extra-curricular involvement including participation in community service, Science Olympiad, interests and/or hobbies, a desire to learn about the world. A letter of reference shall be provided from the high school faculty.
The letter and any additional information shall be submitted to the Board by February 1 of the graduation year.
Presentation of the Award: The President of the Board or his/her designee shall present the award at a regular meeting of the Club with comments about the achievements of the recipient.
Board Follow-Up: The Board shall designate a member to arrange for appropriate media coverage, including a photo of the recipient receiving the award.
Approved by the Tulip City Gem & Mineral Club Board, March 15, 2017
Juniors weighing geodes to see if they could be hollow
