A Year to Celebrate

A year to celebrate... not the upcoming Y2K event that is consuming the media, but this past year. In the June issue of The United States Specialist I reported the events of our Annual Meeting at ROMPEX in Denver. It is worth mentioning some of the highlights of that meeting and the remaining months of this year.

We are celebrating the first anniversary of Len Piszkiewicz's editorship of The United States Specialist. Taking the mantle from Charles Yeager, Len produced twelve excellent issues containing the finest in U.S. philatelic research and delivered them on schedule every month.

Treasurer Dave Sugar gave us cause for celebration when he announced that, for the first time in several years partly from a more efficient operation that revenues from dues, contributions and publication sales exceeded expenses in 1998. The Board approved the 1999 Budget, which projects a second year of modest gains.

We published The Transports, by G.H. Davis. It is a thorough study of the 1941-44 Transport Airmail stamp issue, discussing historical context, stamp design and development, production data, examples of rate and route usage. It is an excellent companion to The Prexies of the same era.

On own web site http://www.usstamps.org is up and running. Thanks to the efforts of webmaster Mike Lampson, we now offer visitors the opportunity to learn about the organization, current events and the research published in the Specialist and related literature. The site is a work in progress. We hope it will attract and interest the membership as well as all collectors interested in United States philately.

Another Year to Celebrate

The year 2000 marks the 70^th Anniversary of our Organization. In the coming months you will be reading of plans to celebrate this event during NAPEX, in Washington, DC in June. In addition to holding our Annual Meeting, we are planning a private tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and an Anniversary reception at the National Postal Museum.

Thanks to Jewell Meyer, Vice President, our participation in local and regional stamp shows has increased significantly. Jewell plans to achieve a new record in show representation next year. Stop by our show table, or better yet, offer to spend a little time to promote our goals to others.

Keeping The United States Specialist strong continues to be our number one focus. I urge you to consider sharing your interests with the membership. It only takes a letter, a short article, a summary of your research or knowledge, and our editor can help you become a writer for the journal.

We have established ourselves as the premier society for research and information on U.S. 20^th Century stamps. It is my hope that we continue to carry this mantle into the next century. In the June issue of the Specialist I reported on the Board's decision to seek the membership's approval to formally change our name to the United States Stamp Society. The Board asks you to decide favorably on this important change and return the ballot with your dues. I look forward to seeing many of you an NAPEX during 2-4 June 2000.

Roger S. Brody, Chairman

June 1999 Message from the Chairman