Strait Stamp Society hosts annual show Saturday at Sequim Masonic Lodge

SEQUIM — Like the back of stamps, there’s something that makes collecting postage for enthusiasts in the Strait Stamp Society stick. 

There’s a story behind many of their collections and individual stamps. They’ve either searched for years for one elusive stamp or uncovered a rabbit trail into a new world of collecting.

Each month, collectors gather at the Sequim Library to share what’s new in the world of stamps and their collections.

‘Show and tell’

At their Aug. 3 meeting, their “show and tell” centered on the letter “D” and despite not every piece being directly linked to the letter or even stamps, club members didn’t mind.

Collectors spoke about researching Swiss stamps, awaiting letters from friends out of the country with unique postage, working on the Port Townsend ferry and many other things.

They ended the meeting with the opportunity to swap stamps, magazines and sort through penny stamps, which will go toward the club’s annual show Saturday in the Sequim Masonic Lodge, 700 S. Fifth Ave.

Strait Stamp Society’s 24th annual show will be from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The stories begin anew or continue at the show as collectors look for more missing pieces or find a new rabbit trail to collect.

Show chairman Cathie Osborne of Sequim anticipates 15-plus vendors selling stamps of all kinds who continue to appraise collections of all ages and sizes for free, she said.

Collectors also share their stories through visual displays with 40-plus exhibits about stamps from club members including a focus on different countries, states, animals and much more.

As is tradition, the show brings in a contingent of Canadian visitors and to celebrate the country’s 150th anniversary, Sequim club members offer an anniversary cancel and cachet.

While the show features collections and exhibits from an array of people, members of the Strait Stamp Society range from newcomers to experts to hobbyists rekindling their interest such as Dan Brooks of Port Angeles.

Brooks, a retired school teacher from southern Oregon, said he’s been collecting U.S. stamps and pre-cancels for about a year now after finding his stamp collection from junior high school.

“And it’s still interesting,” he said.

He and many other collectors find sifting through a bag of random stamps for lost treasures to be a lot of fun.

“It’s almost therapeutic going through a bag of stamps in a morning,” Brooks said.

Collectors of all ages can sort through the penny table, as club members call it, looking for rarities or fun oddities such as cartoon characters or dignitaries from other countries.

Those stamps are free for children and entry is free for all. The U.S. Postal Service will be at the show, too.

For more information on the club and/or show, visit www.straitstamp.org.

The club meets next at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, at the Sequim Library, 630 N. Sequim Ave.

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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. Reach him at mnash@sequimgazette.com.