Calaveras Gem and Mineral Society expands kids’ zone, demonstrations for March show; club highlights field trips and reuse of historic mine waste

The Gem and Mineral Society will hold its annual show the fourth weekend in March, with hours scheduled from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Adult admission will be $7; children are free with an adult, organizers said.

The show will expand into three buildings this year and add a larger “kids zone” with hands-on activities including a mock mine shaft, sand sifting, gem-clay digs and geode breaking, Claudia, a demonstrator and volunteer with the society, said on the Senior Moments radio program. “There’s plenty for them to do,” she said, adding that the juniors program meets monthly and serves roughly kindergarten through eighth-grade children.

The event will feature member display cases, vendor booths and demonstrations of cabochon cutting, tumbling, wire-wrapping and mineral identification. Rich, a retired geologist and longtime society member, said about 30 members maintain display cabinets and that the club expects several thousand visitors to the show. “We’re having fun,” Rich said. “It’s one of the ways we keep the club well equipped and useful for our members.”

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