I had the opportunity for the first time this year to attend the East Coast Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Show hosted by Martin Zinn Expositions in West Springfield, Massachusetts on Friday, August 8 through Sunday, August 10. The guest exhibitors this year were Herb and Monika Obodda showcasing their collection of Afghan and Pakistan minerals, gems, and collectibles.
I arrived at the site of the show, Better Living Center, Eastern States Exposition, Friday morning just about the time it opened. The facility struck me as being a little run down and needing some work in a number of areas. The bathrooms especially were not well maintained and needed attention. The floor space was certainly adequate for the 200+ dealers present. I did notice that spending a number of hours walking from dealer-to-dealer on the concrete floors really took its toll on my legs. They did have a very nice concession area with plenty of open lines and a seating area after getting food/beverages.
I especially liked the topics and selection of speakers for the lectures they had scheduled. On Friday I attended two lectures; America’s Finest Minerals by Bob Jones and Women and Mineral Collecting by Gail Spann. The lecture room was very small and dingy. The talk by Bob Jones was based largely on the theme of this year’s Tucson Show on American Minerals. He presented a slide show and discussion on many of the popular American mineral localities. The talk lasted about 45 to 50 minutes. Mr. Jones is very down-to-earth and his talk was very interesting and well received. The talk by Gail Spann was also a slide show (which I assisted her in running) and really focused on the increased presence of women in our hobby and her own journey in particular. The enthusiasm she displayed was very infectious. I only wish the room was larger as we really did have a standing room only crowd. On Saturday I attended the lecture of Herkimer Diamonds which was presented by Nancy Millard and Minerals of Afghanistan and Pakistan presented by Bob Jones. The talk by Nancy Millard was based on how Herkimer Diamonds are formed and really dealt with the scientific explanation of this very unique deposit. As I have always had an interest in this topic, I really enjoyed this particular talk. She also brought a number of killer crystals to pass around which really added to our appreciation of these rare finds. The talk by Bob Jones included a slide show on the more prominent minerals from Afghanistan and Pakistan. He prefaced his talk with the fact that he shouldn’t be giving it, Herb Obodda should. Ah, I would love to hear some of Mr. Obodda’s stories of his over 100 trips to this area of the world! All in all, I thought the lectures were excellent and the speakers very easy to understand, ask questions of and even approach.
As mentioned earlier the guest exhibitors this year were Herb and Monika Obodda. They filled fifty-three (53) display cases with examples of their minerals, gems and collectibles. Granted the display cases were small, that still required an awful lot of pre-planning, arranging and execution. What I really liked were the many photographs they placed in each display case showing places and people they came in contact with while there. There were cases of Pakistan and Afghanistan minerals and gems, display cases of their other minerals and gems collected throughout the world in their travels, and a number of cases representing many of the antiques and collectibles they acquired while abroad. The Oboddas also frequently made themselves available in the display area and were kept very busy during the show answering questions and just plain exchanging stories.
One thing I liked about this show is its focus on quality mineral dealers. Most of the real quality mineral dealers were there. Also present were several fossil, jewelry, and bead dealers so there was something for everyone. The crowds Friday were average but I noticed on Saturday a huge increase in the attendance at the show. The entire hall was packed with people. I have to assume the dealers were really happy about this. They all looked very busy all day long. I didn’t attend Sunday but if Saturday was any indication I am sure it was also a busy day. I almost forgot to mention that there was also an area of the hall which was segregated for wholesale dealers only. They had this area set up with a controlled entry point to make sure any buyers entering the area had credentials to buy wholesale.
My overall impression of the show was positive. There was much I liked about it with the main drawback the maintenance of the facilities and the fact that driving ten hours from Virginia to Massachusetts is no picnic. Being an East coast show, I would love to see it located closer to the Washington, D.C. area so many of the hobbyists in the southern areas of the East coast could easily attend. They do have a new show also hosted by Marty Zinn in Georgia the week following the West Springfield show but many of the quality mineral dealers present in West Springfield are absent in Georgia. Will I attend the East Coast Gem, Mineral, and Fossil show in the future, probably. There are many positives which make it a real fun place to spend a weekend. Did I mention my birthday was also on the Saturday of the show this year? Now that is where I like to spend my birthday, being around and talking about rocks! Just doesn’t get much better than that!!!

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