News0204

January 14th was a snowy, blustery day which made the roads a bit tricky, but twelve (12) members and 2 guests still
managed to attend. One of our guests was Dan Betz who had originally contacted us via e-mail. The word is spreading
about our little club, let's keep up the good work! The other guest was Joe Stuive, a friend of John Chirco's, who was
interested in finding more out about the club. Apparently he found what he was looking for because he is now a full
fledged member!

A raffle was held which brought $9 for the club. These items are donated from club members in order to help raise
money for club expenses. This meeting's winner was Marc Middleton who won a 1oz. Silver bar, which was donated by
Dick Blake.

On to the meeting discussion notes. Led by Tom Baldwin, the club President, the following were mentioned and either
discussed and resolved or put out on the table for discussion at future meetings.

Previously mentioned topics: (dates listed are original newsletter publication)

*ANNUAL CLUB HUNT DATES-No discussion regarding the possibility of two hunts per year or changing to a fall hunt.
There is an update on the 2004 hunt in the new topic area. (July 2003)

*SUB SALE-The sign up form is included with this month's newsletter. The sale ends on February 11, 2004 with delivery
scheduled for March 10, 2004. (July 2003)

*PAMPHLET IDEA-No discussion. (September 2003)

*MEMBERSHIP DRIVE-No discussion (December 2003)

*FUNDRAISING IDEAS- No discussion. (October 2003)

*STATE LAW ISSUE-No discussion (January 2004)

*GRAND RAPIDS CITY APPLICATIONS-These were not able to be brought to the January meeting as previously
communicated. Copies will be brought to the February meeting. If you complete them during the meeting, they will be
sent in together. If you choose to complete at a later time you will be responsible for submitting this on your own

New topics

*ANNUAL MAY HUNT- Ann Wooden will be confirming the exact date of this year's hunt. The possible dates are
Saturday's, May 8 or May 15. This will be confirmed by the February meeting. Look for more information in next month's
newsletter.

*SILVER FOR THE MAY HUNT-Dick Blake has said that he does not have much silver on hand for the May hunt. John
Chirco will call for price of silver for estimating May hunt's financial needs for any silver coins that will be needed to be
purchased.

*FIND OF THE YEAR-This was originally scheduled to be voted on at the January meeting but due to the low attendance it
has been rescheduled to the February meeting. Please remember to bring your treasure!

*FMDAC LIST - The FMDAC needs a list of our members and their addresses. This will be sent in after the February
meeting. If your dues are not paid by the end of this meeting your name will NOT be submitted to the FMDAC as a
member and, if you are planning to attend the Spring FMDAC hunt, you may not have your card in time.

*WINTER CANCELLATIONS- The decision has been made concerning any winter meeting cancellations. We are
meeting at a new location thus the old rules of meeting cancellations are no longer valid. The new rule is that:

If the Hudsonville Public School evening activities are canceled, our meeting will also be canceled.

Meeting adjourned.

Coin/Token...........

Jewelry.................

Dick Blake - 1916S penny

Other submits: *none

Marc Middleton - 14K Plumb ring (3rd win in a row for this category)

Other submits: *none

Dick Blake - St. Sebastian religous medal

Other submits: *none

Marc left with an Ellis Island commemorative proof, 1986 Liberty half dollar. For Dick's
two wins he received a 2003 Silver Eagle and a 1 oz. Silver bar, which he graciously gave
back to the club for a raffle drawing.

The January meeting prizes were also given out since they were not brought to the
January meeting. John Chirco received a 1971 $1.00 proof set and Marc Middleton
walked away with his two prizes of a 1 oz. Silver bar and a Commemorative uncirculated
1989 half dollar.

End of Newsletter.

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Newsletter Subscription

The club needs our generous members to bring in donated items to be used during our monthly meeting raffles. The
proceeds are used for the May hunt expenses. Your donated items are tax deductible to our non-profit club.

Remember, your club is depending on your generosity to make this year's hunt a big success.

Here is some food for thought. How many times to you bend over and dig while treasure hunting? I recently wrapped the
coins I have accumulated over a period of time. The dollar value was $309. That was 2,700 pennies, 440 nickels, 990
dimes and 680 quarters worth of bending for 3,820 targets. Do you ever wonder why you would have a back ache or your
knees are sore? Surprisingly, most of us would say never. By the way, that 3,820 does not represent how many scoops
it took to get those coins out of the water, how many rings were dug, how many pull tabs were found, how many artifacts
came up, also nails, cans, bobby pins and what-have-you. Maybe the actual count is more like 8,000 scoops, plugs and
targets, but who is counting? Every one of those targets was approached with a smile and great anticipation of what
treasure might be hiding under the coil. I can't wait till spring! I really have to force myself to pull those batteries out of my
machines for winter storage. When I do, it will mean that I accept winter is really here. We have five inches of snow today
and I still have not taken the batteries out---maybe there will be another hunt day coming unexpectedly, so I want to be
ready.

Good hunting, John Chirco

1/5/04

Here is a reminder in case you missed it in the meeting notes. The Find of the Year vote will take place at the
February meeting due to low attendance at the January meeting (due to inclement weather).

You can submit anything that was found during 2003. It doesn't matter if you submitted it for the Find of the Month
or if you found it during a hunt, as long as it was found in 2003 that's what counts.

So bring in your found item that you think could be the 2003 FIND OF THE YEAR!

Promoting Treasure Hunting

Our club received an e-mail from Tom McCue regarding the idea of promoting treasure hunting. His purpose is "to
introduce metal detectorists with people who need their service and expertise in finding a lost ring, jewelry, heirloom,
long lost family cache, family treasure, etc�" His intention is to find volunteers from every state in the USA that would
be willing to help people that need it.

If you are interested in finding out more or about signing up with Tom the web site is
http://www.angelfire.com/mi4/treasure. This will bring you to a place with contact information and more details
about what Tom is attempting to do.

Please let other members know if you have volunteered to do this and have had the opportunity to help someone out
with finding a lost item via this web site. Furthermore why not drop the newsletter author a line and have your story
published in an upcoming newsletter!

It is always interesting to find different ways to promote metal detecting and to educate people on what it is all about
and the rewards that goes along with it!

Here's a reminder of the deadlines for the Spring FMDAC hunt being held in
Virginia Beach, VA on April 30, May 1 and May 2, 2004.

*$65.00 entry fee until March 1st, 2004

*$75.00 entry fee from March 1st-April 1st, 2004

*$100.00 entry fee after April 1st, 2004

The postmark date will determine the eligibility of the entry.