No Stone Unturned News and Views from the CAIRNS MINERAL & LAPIDARY CLUB Inc. A GREEN STONE CLUB Pictured (left) is a Maori mere, a weapon shaped from the legendry New Zealand Green Stone. Greenstone is the name for nephrite jade that comes from the South Island of New Zealand. It is also known as pounamu. Nephrite is principally a calcium magnesium silicate. It is made up of tightly felted crystal fibres which is the reason for its incredible toughness. This unique structure, makes it easy to work and the finished carving has a surface with a smooth glowing lustre and a greasy or wax-like quality. As well as being popular as a medium for jewellery, New Zealand Greenstone has great significance to Above: A Maori mere (war club) carved from New the Maori people. Read Zealand Green Stone. It belongs to Mike Rashleigh. B more about “greenstone” B in this edition of “No Stone The sign says it all ! A “Ninja” DaveUnturned”. finds a new Sauna! FEBRUARY 2016 ISSSUE What Can You Do for the Club in 2016? 1 OTHER PERSONNEL Assistant Secretary Catherine Wilkinson Assistant Treasurer position vacant “NO STONE UNTURNED” Purchasing Officer Bill Hall EDITOR & PUBLISHER Jeanne Mora. Specimen Curators David Croft, Laurel Voigt Ph 40330028 Email: [email protected] Cabochon Instructor Michael Hardcastle [email protected] Silver Instructors Sylvia Rose, Bill Hall For $12:00 per year you can have your copy of “No Faceting Advisors Jim Lidstone , Joe Ferk Stone Unturned” posted to you each month. For Machinery Curators Jim Lidstone, David Croft. NSU to be emailed to you, please ensure the Editor has a record of your current address. Bill Hall CLUB PATRON DESLEY BOYLE Gem Testing Vic Lahtinen GENERAL INFORMATION Specimen Tester David Croft QLACCA Delegates Geoff Robins, Bill Reece CLUB PHONE No: 04 5018 5250 Youth Centre Delegate Bill Reece CLUB EMAIL [email protected] CLUB ROOMS 129 Mulgrave Rd, Librarian David Croft Cairns. Gem Festival Convenor Bill Reece Queensland 4870 Club Auditor GKS Chartered Accountants POSTAL ADDRESS PO Box 389 PURCHASING POLICY Westcourt. Queensland 4870 If you wish to make a purchase for the club, please tell the purchasing officer. MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE CLUB WORK SESSIONS President Bill Reece Sessions cost $4:00 per session and must be paid be- fore you begin work Vice President Michael Hardcastle Monday : (1 session) 4:00 to 9:30pm Secretary Jeanne Mora Wednesday: (2 sessions) 8:30am to 12:30 Treasurer Michael Rashleigh !:00 to 4:00pm Junior Vice-president Cathy Wilkinson Saturday: (2 sessions) 9:00am to 12:00 GENERAL MEETINGS 1:00 to 4:00 pm General Meetings are held at 1:00 on the second Saturday of each month (Unless other- NB: Club is closed on Gazetted public holidays unless otherwise advised. wise advised) following a sausage sizzle. We keep the meetings as short as practical. We wish to thank Federal Member for If you have a matter you wish to raise at the Leichhardt, the Honourable Warren Entsch general meeting, please write a short description for the colour photocopying of this magazine. and a proposed solution in the Agenda Book (On We thank him for supporting the Cairns the front counter) Mineral & Lapidary Club Inc. Members should try to attend at least some of the monthly meetings. The Editor reserves the right to choose and Your attendance at General Meetings, ensures edit all the material featured in this that you can voice your opinions and/or concerns, magazine. Although all care is taken to vote on club matters and meet other club ensure the accuracy of the material herein, members. Members must be financial to vote. the Editor does not accept responsibility for any inaccuracies which may inadvertently occur. FEBRUARY 2016 ISSSUE What Can You Do for the Club in 2016? 2 NEW PRESIDENT, VP & JVP: Around Bill Reece was elected club president at the recent Special General Meeting. The new Vice-president the Club is Michael Hardcastle and the Junior Vice- president is Catherine Wilkinson. The club would like to thank our retiring President Happy New Year to All. Geoff who worked hard to bring into effect many changes to streamline the efficient running of the SOME REMINDERS: club. Thanks Geoff from us all. Membership fees are now due. Only financial Thanks also to Emma our retiring Junior members are insured, can use any of the Vice-president. work areas and vote at General Meetings. ANNUAL RAFFLE All faceting machines are for general use but learners will be given priory access to the Our Annual Monster Raffle is always popular and machines in the main room. Anyone wishing earns a goodly sum of money for the club each to use the two machines housed in the silver year. Please help Bill Reece (our Raffle Manager) room will need to have their own laps and get some great prizes together. Maybe ask your favourite business for a donation. (The major materials. grocery retailers are probably already helping No Stone Unturned reports on any changes many not-for-profit organizations.) The club will to club procedures decided at meetings. You promote any prize donors. We have drafted an can have this magazine mailed to you for official letter for this purpose. Please ask Bill $12:00 a year. If you wish to have the Reece for a copy. magazine emailed to you as a PDF file, please let me (Jeanne) know and make sure GET WELL WISHES you give me a current email address. To all of our members who are feeling under the weather, Members are required to make themselves aware of all designated work areas and the we wish you a speedy Government Workplace Health and Safety recovery. requirements pertaining to their use. Rules HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO: are put into place to protect members and/or JANUARY: machinery. Richard Barham, Stephen Budd, Robert Members read and unanimously voted to Guiliany, Dwayne Hall, Joanne McCulloch, adopt and abide by the present rules at a Devendar Polapolli, Robyn Ridley and Laurel Voigt General Meeting. All members were sent or handed a copy of the rules and asked to FEBRUARY: suggest any amendments they wanted to be Greg Brown, Lesley Collins, Bill Collins, Colin considered. Cruickshank, Damien DeSabbata, Kevin Franklin, New members are required to read and sign Ben Hogendoorn, Stuart Howe, Jan Lidstone, a form to accept and abide by the club rules Michael Rashleigh, Sally Sprague and before they are accepted as club members. Caroline Whittaker. FEBRUARY 2016 ISSSUE What Can You Do for the Club in 2016? 3 DAVE BETTENS …...gone fishin’ It is with great sadness that I wish to inform all club members of the sudden passing of Dave Bettens. Dave passed away on Sunday morning 14th February 2016. We wish to extend our deepest sympathies to his lovely wife Lyn and all of his many friends.. Dave was a valued member of the club’s Manage- ment Committee, the Assistant Treasurer and the club’s Workplace Health & Safety Officer but more than that, he was the good friend of club members, a man of rare good humour and a man always ready to roll up his sleeves and help out wherever needed. He especially loved the Club field trips and readers will remember him for his humorous field trip reports as the “Minister for Bloody Everything”. In “No Stone Unturned”.. Dave out in the field, unearthing nature’s treasures. His other great loves were faceting and fishing. COURSES Dave will be sadly missed by all who knew him. BASIC SILVER WORK Rest in peace Dave A course in basic silver work begins on Saturday, 20th February. Sylvia will begin the ARTICLES FOR “NO STONE UNTURNED” course before she and Allan leave for a 3 month vacation in Europe. (Bon voyage to you both). Members are reminded to hand the Editor any jokes or other articles (preferably of a Lapidary Bill Hall will continue and complete the course when he returns from his trip. nature). LOST WAX CASTING If you have silver work patterns, faceting patterns and photos of your own lapidary work, please The next casting days will be 2nd April. consider submitting them for publication. Members are advised that wax orders need to CHRISTMAS RAFFLE be in by 14th March so that the waxes will be at the club by the first Casting Day. The Christmas Raffle winners were: PRESIDENT’S REPORT Dave Bettens won the silver bracelet donated by Jeanne Mora, Bill Reece won the set of knives and As Bill Reece has only just taken over the reins Vic Cummings won the camp chair donated by of Club President again, he has not written a Brothers. report for this month, however his reports will continue in the next edition of “No Stone Congratulations all. Unturned” FEBRUARY 2016 ISSSUE What Can You Do for the Club in 2016? 4 Let’s Laugh a Lot The morning after the Zoo New Year’s Eve Party! FEBRUARY 2016 ISSSUE What Can You Do for the Club in 2016? 5 Aussie Bush Etiquette is recognized throughout the civilized world; but we all need to be reminded from time to time. In General: 1. Never take an open stubby to a job interview... 2. Always identify people in your paddocks before shooting at them. 3. It's tacky to take an Esky to church. 4. If you have to vacuum the bed, it's time to change the sheets. 5. Even if you're certain you're included in the will, it's rude to take your ute and trailer to the funeral. Eating Out: 1. When decanting wine from the box, tilt the paper cup and pour slowly so as not to bruise the wine.