Miami County Fairgrounds hosts Rock and Gem Show

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By Matt Clevenger

For the Miami Valley Today

TROY — Rocks, gems, minerals, fossils, and other rock-related items will be on display at the Miami County Fairgrounds on Saturday, April 23, and Sunday, April 24, during the Miami County Gem and Mineral Club’s 38th annual Rock and Gem Show.

“This is our 38th year,” show chairman Dewey Buck said. “We have dealers from around the region; Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina, some out-of-state dealers but some dealers from the area also. They will be selling rocks, minerals, jewelry and anything rock-related.”

The show will be held in the Duke Lundgard building at the Miami County Fairgrounds, and will run from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Admission will be $2 for adults; students and children 18 or under are free.

Food will be available, and the event will also feature live demonstrations and children’s activities. “Switzer Concessions from Urbana will be providing food,” Buck said. “We also have kids’ activities.”

“We’ll have a sluice set-up,” he said. “One of the guys makes up bags that the kids can sluice in there and have fun, so there’s a few things for the kids to do. We’ve got some demonstrators; gold panning and cabochon-making.”

The Rock and Gem Show is organized by the Miami County Gem and Mineral Club, formerly known as the Brukner Gem and Mineral Club. “Over the years, the club grew,” Buck said.

The club now includes more than 50 members and offers field trips, access to lab facilities and several annual events. “We try to do a couple of field trips per year,” Buck said. “We usually go over to Flint Ridge, north of Columbus once a year and do some collecting.”

“Our club also has a lab at the old Stouder Hospital,” he said. “We have a lab out there, and if you join the club you can take lessons at the lab.”

Information on the Miami County Gem and Mineral Club will be available at the Rock and Gem Show, and club members will also be available to answer any questions. “There will be a lot of us out there working all weekend long,” Buck said. “They can stop out and see us and get information.”

More information can also be found online at the Miami County Gem and Mineral Club’s website at mcgamc.org.

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