The Legacy Knights Numismatic Society kicked off its seventh season of after-school activities at Legacy Christian Academy, Xenia, Ohio yesterday with a Membership Signup Session in the school library.� Parents picking up their 3rd through 6th grade students were invited to park and come inside to ask questions, complete forms, pay dues, sign up for an upcoming field trip, order t-shirts, and meet the Club Coordinator.� The LCA students were joined by several local homeschool students.� 20 members so far are joining us for this year, some of which are returning members and some of which are brand new to our club.� We expect to pick up a few more members as signups remain open, but 20 is a good turnout.� We are excited and looking forward to a great year!Our after-school signup event prior to our first official meeting has been a breakthrough for our club.� We tried it first last year and it was such a success, we will continue doing it this way.� We will of course still accept late-joining members each year, but taking care of this administrative work gives us a great idea of how much to prepare for the rest of the year:� planning activities, buying supplies, sending in ANA YN memberships, etc.� It also gives us a jump on collecting dues, t-shirt orders, etc., so that we can make all of the above available to our members sooner than later.� Plus, our first official meeting can be spent as a real meeting, rather than standing in line turning in applications, etc.We have some fun activities planned already:� Our first official club meeting is September 19.� Club meetings are normally the last Monday of the month (except December and May)... but this September we had to change that for a schedule conflict.� Instead, we are planning to take a tour of Osborne Coinage and Mint in Cincinnati, America's oldest private mint!� Some of our students' parents may remember using tokens when visiting Chuck-E-Cheese pizzerias in the 1990s; those were made by Osborne.� Some of our students' great-grandparents may remember using blue and red OPA tokens during WW2 as ration points; those were made by Osborne.� The company's name and ownership have changed periodically over the generations (it was originally Z. Bisbee Co.), but it's been there ever since 1835.� We hope to see original dies from Abraham Lincoln's presidential campaigns (as well as a couple other famous Presidents) and see how coins and tokens are made, from design to production!Of course we will have guest speakers, a Christmas party, our annual LKNS anniversary party, and our end-of-the-year auction, as well as some activities to teach us about minting, grading, identification, and other related subjects.� We *might* even get started on another LKNS coin this year!� You can follow the fun on our club's Facebook page.I highly encourage everyone to get involved in a club... and if you don't have one, look for ways to start one.� It's a great hobby, and better when you can share it.

The Shelby County Coin Club is dedicated to the Younger Numismatists by having a SCOOP-A-COIN jar available at ALL Club functions.The membership donates: Wheaties (OLD and UNC), Buffaloes (Dateless and very nice), a few silver dimes (common Mercs and Rosies), Tokens, Medals, and lots of foreign coins.�Any Jr. Member, 16 and younger can Scoop out from the container and keep everything they get in 1 Scoop.�The Scoop is the size of the OLD COFFEE scoop in cans provided by the manufacturer.�Last year a 31 S Lincoln was inserted at the Coin Show. It to my knowledge is still in the container.�Here is the label on the container. I figured the picture would not transfer. The wording is below.�We started this during Covid. The Jr. Members LOVE it. We have added 5 Jr. members, since May.�

Shelby County Coin Club

In December 2021, SCCC celebrated 60 Years�of Existence with Covid-19 cases slightly increasing in our area.�Founded in 1961, in the basement of bank in Sidney, Ohio, SCCC has been a fixture in west-central Ohio.�Special guests included, a COINWORLD'S, World Coins Sr. Editor, an Original founding member, a City of Sidney Representative, and another area Coin Club Representative.�A banquet style meal, short speeches from special guests, a windy speech from me, Christmas gifts were passed out to all attendees. One of SCCC's members presented the club with a BOX of 50, NGC, 1961, Proof, Lincoln Cents. One for all in attendance.�The highlight of the night for the Club was when a LONG time member's 60 YEARS of SCCC 24 page Booklet was presented to everyone in attendance. He spent hours writing it. However, he was not present at the celebration. He had caught the dreaded Covid and could not attend.�

So, I belong to several different professional and non-professional networks,� and� I rub elbows with a lot of professionals outside of numismatics. I meet new people all the time and have a chance to introduce myself. I'm not sure if this is typical for ANA members, but when I meet someone new I have to decide if I should tell them about my hobbies and interests, and include or exclude my numismatic activities.� So far, I have been fairly open about my numismatic educational pursuits and invited people to local club meetings, shows, but a couple times I have have hesitated and not brought it up at all. This caused me to think!�Most people I meet for the first time can't pronounce numismatics and have never thought about numismatics. So when I bring it up, I get a range of responses, from blank stares to puzzled looks to big smiles, and everything in between. This usually causes me to go into an elevator speech, taking 30 seconds to describe my own involvement in numismatics, and then ask if they have any experiences of their own. Again, I get a wide range of responses! "I used to collect coins when I was a kid", "my grandpa was a huge coin collector", "I collected state quarters back in the day". So, then it's my turn to come back with a response, validating their limited experience, or perhaps changing the subject if I get a blank stare. Once in a while, I will go on and on and on, and talk endlessly about numismatics, only to realize afterwards that I probably didn't leave a good impression. Perhaps I sounded a bit obsessed or maybe I shouldn't have mentioned higher value items that I own or want to acquire, and just talk about entry level coins and currency that you pull out of circulation.�One of the networking groups I belong to is fairly well known, Rotary International. I posted about my coin collection there, and how I am trying to collect one coin from every country. That post was viewed by lots of Rotarians who also collect coins and currency from countries they visit. A couple Rotarians also asked for help in getting an appraisal on an inherited collection. Another networking group I belong to is Lunchclub,� where you have a virtual lunch with a like minded professional. My chamber of commerce also has networking opportunities, as does my chorus, my alumni association, and various church activities. Lots of opportunities to bring up numismatics, but I'm still not sure if these are good opportunities for numismatic outreach, or if I am going down a rabbit hole that I shouldn't.Should I invite people I just met to a coin club meeting? Should I tell everyone about the next coin show? Should I tell people how I started collecting and what my collection is like nowadays? Or should I just let out a little hint and wait to see if they take the bait?Does anyone else bring up numismatics all the time, or perhaps you never bring it up unless they bring it up first?