Sunday, October 16, 2011 6:51 PM EDT  By Erica Schmitt, Staff Writer

BRISTOL — Outfitted in their Be a Rockhound shirts, members of the Bristol Gem & Mineral Club shared treasures of every shape, size and color Sunday. Their 39th Annual Gem & Mineral Show was a magnet for Boy Scouts, families, and nature enthusiasts.

Local gem stones, rocks, minerals, fossils and meteorites were for sale, along with those from around the world — most commonly China, Brazil and Russia. Some were on display in their raw form. Others were transformed into intricate pieces of jewelry.

“The shape reflects the arrangement of elements inside,” said club president and Bristol resident Dave Korzendorfer, describing the chalcolite in his hands from Bristol’s Copper mine. Yes, there are gemstones and minerals in abundance in Connecticut, you just have to have permission to hammer and chisel your way to them.

“Connecticut has a huge variety of different minerals to collect,” Korzendorfer said. “Prehnite is fairly common here, because basalt forms in the state’s traprock ridges.”

Formerly a mining exploration geologist, Korzendorfer has a master’s in geology from Washington State University and travels everywhere to discover what lies beneath the ground. He helped identify specimens brought in by visitors at the show.

Once you start, it’s hard to stop plundering for jewels, or more fairly, rockhounding. Korzendorfer knows that well.

“Once you collect and find something really neat, you get hooked,” he said.

He and the 300 other members of the club have a claim in Herkimer, New York to dig for Herkimer “diamonds,” which are diamond-like crystals in the region. “The number of places available to the public are not many,” he said. “The state requires a permit to collect.”

If you’re interested in collecting, you can join the club. Clubs carry the liability insurance and permit that most state landowners require rockhounds to have.

The state mineral of Connecticut is garnet, but because the geology here is diverse, Connecticut has an array of different minerals, including beryl (aquamarine and emerald) and scheelite, which the show had in large quantity and high quality.

About 50 club members meet at the Bristol Senior Center monthly to learn from each other and plan outings. They go on trips during gem-hunting season (April through October) and do about eight rock shows a year. They also help schools with science projects and loan out rocks for use in the classroom.

The club is hoping to open up a lapidary center at the Barnes Nature Center on Shrub Road in Bristol, where members can cut their rocks into slabs and shape and polish minerals as they wish.

“It’s a wonderful hobby. It’s amazing what you can collect, there are so many things out there that are so beautiful,” said Winsted resident Melvie Hatfield, whose passion is fossils. She was selling,among many other specimens, fossilized alligator feces from South Carolina and a mosasaur tooth from Morocco, both from the Jurassic period.

The show helped the rock buffs raise funds for their field trips, but was also a way to pick up new recruits.

“We want to get these little guys excited and interested; it keeps our club growing and keeps us vibrant,” said Manchester resident and geologist Paul Martell as he gave away free mineral samples to children seeking answers to their scavenger hunt questionnaire, one of the kids’ activities of the day. They also enjoyed a ‘Make your own stone animal’ table and the chance to split plaster to find gems hidden inside.

One of those young aficionados was Bristol resident Gabriel Bartolome, 9, a Cub Scout with Pack 425. “I like gems, I find them interesting,” said Bartolome, accompanied by his mom Dawn and 3-year-old sister Kathryn.

Bristol club members come from all over Connecticut — as far as Pomfret, Stamford and Trumbull. Guilford resident Bob Schuster is a mineral fanatic. “We have members who make their own jewelry, and others who do it because they just like getting fresh air and hiking through the woods,” Schuster said.

The club’s next trip is Oct. 29 at Green’s Farm Garnet Mine in Roxbury, Anyone interested is welcome to show up.

The three best treasure-hunting quarries in the state are Haddam’s CCC Quarry, Clark Hill in East Hampton, and Case Quarry in Portland. Bristol Gem & Mineral Club has access to all three and many knowledgeable people to help you navigate the world of lapidary. To join, go to bristolgem.org.

Posted: October 17th, 2011 under In the News.
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By FREESIA SINGNGAM
STAFF WRITER

BRISTOL — Rock, gem and mineral fans found a perfect gathering place at the 37th annual Bristol Gem and Mineral Club show at the Douglas Beals Senior/Community Center over the weekend.

“It’s just a hobby but we get so much pleasure out of this,” said Ellery Borow, a resident of Maine and member of several gem and mineral clubs, including the Bristol one. He said shows like this one allowed people to bring in rocks to identify, and it gave collectors a chance to talk about their rocks, minerals and gems.

Joshua Lauretti, 5, of Bristol makes a discovery.

“That’s one thing that I really love doing — to satisfy their curiosity,” he said Sunday afternoon.

Club members and dealers displayed their collections, both for show and for sale at the event. Some also sold jewelry and books. Borow said everyone at the show would answer questions about their collections.

“They wanna sell stuff, but they want to teach,” Borow said.

Stu Benson, a vendor with his own business, Stone Age, had been coming to the show for 15 years.

“I’ve always enjoyed the show,” he said. “The only people who will come are those who have an interest.”

He called his display a “shotgun booth” because he had everything from jewelry to gemstones to cut stones. He said people will ask him questions about how a rock gets polished, and he’ll explain that it’s a more complicated process than they expect. They take a stone and cut slices on it then pick from a few different grits of polishing. Then they use a polish “finer than a woman’s face polish.”

Benson’s also asked how he got started with his business, which is based out of his home in Somers. He said he and his wife went to a gem and mineral show where someone showed him the difference between a dirty rock and a polished rock, and it intrigued him.

Fritz Moritz of the Bristol Gem and Mineral Club said the club and its events promote the hobby. The show, which includes a small admission, raises funds for club expenses like field trips.

He noted, however, that children and scouts were free, and a lot of activities at the show were geared toward children.

For example, scouts could complete a merit badge there, and there were free garnet samples plus scavenger hunt sheets for children.

Moritz said about 500 people attended the show on Saturday and maybe 300 attended Sunday.

“It’s a lot of fun,” said Janet Picano, of Colchester, who brought her 7-year-old daughter Evelena to the show. “We like rocks and gems and fossils.”

“I like it a lot,” Evelena said.

Carmen Ratte, of Bristol, said she and her husband go to the show every year.

“It’s really nice,” she said. “My husband likes the lucky stones.”

Freesia Singngam can be reached at fsingngam@centralctcommunications.com or (860) 584-0501, ext. 7259.

Posted: November 6th, 2009 under In the News.
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From EFMLS NEWS, Volume 47, Number 1; November,  2009
by Carolyn Weinberger

The 2009 EFMLS Convention and Show are now a thing of the past. I think I speak for everyone attending in thanking the good folks of the Bristol Gem & Mineral Society for giving us a wonderful weekend!

The club show was terrific! For those of us who came from as far away as Florida, seeing dealers specializing in New England minerals was a rare treat. Many of us went home with new specimens for our collections and new jewelry and gems as well.

The enthusiasm of all the club members was infectious…they were everywhere doing everything! The smiles on the faces of all the volunteers was wonderful to see…you could easily tell that everyone was enjoying their tasks.

Every aspect of the convention was handled well — from the “goody bags” that accompanied our badges to the favors on the tables at the banquet to the “convenience dinner” held between the cracker barrel and the annual meeting. The meal was home cooked by the club members and was delicious! I doubt if anyone went away hungry!

If there was a “down” side to the weekend it was the weather. Driving north on Thursday through light snow and seeing a forecast that called for more snow showers on Friday was a bit discouraging as many had hoped to be able to view the fall leaf colors in sunshine. It was cool and overcast throughout the weekend – not something the club could predict or change. Sunday, those who went to Roxbury for the field trip came back with lots of garnets and some mud as an extra souvenir.

Those visiting the Connecticut Mining Museum in Kent saw a wonderful small gem of a teaching museum. Founder Jack Pawloski has expanded the museum considerably and is in the process of revamping several of the exhibits. The focus is on Connecticut minerals and mining and many wonderful specimens line the walls throughout the museum.

We certainly thank the Bristol Gem & Mineral Society for hosting the convention and giving us a wonderful experience. Hats off…Bravo! We had a great time.

Posted: November 6th, 2009 under In the News.
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