Join us May 11th for Donald Baumgartner

Presenting “The Fossil Fish of the Green River Formation
— Window into Eocene Aquatic Communities”

Wyoming is home to one of the most famous fossil sites in the world. The Green River Formation holds a huge diversity of animals and plants from the Eocene Epoch, including the finest and largest deposit of freshwater fish, providing a window into life 52 million years ago.

Donald covers the topography and geology of the area, its coal, oil, and soda ash foundations, its early history as a train depot en route to the California gold rush and the small town of Kemmerer today. He describes the subtropical animals and plants preserved, especially the fossil fish, how they interacted, and their habitats and communities. Advice and guidance is provided to visit the quarries and collect fossil fish.

Longtime CRMS member Donald Baumgartner is a medical entomologist employed as a life scientist in pesticide regulation at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Chicago. He also is adjunct faculty in biology at W. R. Harper College in Palatine. President of a small fossil retail company, The Fossil Hut Ltd., Donald has given talks on a variety of fossil topics at club shows, the Lizzadro Museum, and community libraries.

Join us June 8th for Helen Serras-Herman

Presenting “Carved Gems – Inspiration & Expertise”

a lecture and book signing

Gem sculptor, sculptor MFA and gemologist FGA Helen Serras-Herman, an award-winning gem and jewelry artist and 2003 National Lapidary Hall of Fame Inductee, will share her passion for carved gems, the interconnection between fine art and the spellbinding natural mineral world, and her personal journey from sculpture to gem sculpture. While showing examples of her 41 years of artwork, Helen reflects on her sources of inspiration from her world travels to mines and archaeological sites, ancient Greek mythology, and her southwest environment. She will share her Copper Trails and Arizona Gems Collections that focus on rare and unusual Arizona gemstones and bring copies of her recently-published book, Carved Gems – Inspiration & Expertise.

Helen Serras-Herman’s art has been exhibited worldwide and published in over 300 trade magazines and books. She is a graduate gemologist (FGA) and apprentice to the last master of the English school of Glyptic Arts. Helen is a member of the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA), a Fellow member of The Gemmological Association of Great Britain (FGA), and a member and past president of the Gem Artists of North America (GANA). You can visit her website at www.gemartcenter.com and her Facebook page, Gem Art Center/Helen Serras-Herman.

Meeting Dates for the 2023-2024 Year

We are still meeting the second Saturday of the month at St. Peter’s United Church of Christ in Skokie.

We Need Your Help!!

With so many board members having retired their posts in September, we have many positions that still need to be filled. Please consider taking over one or more of the following positions. We will help guide you should you decide to take any of the positions. If you have questions or want to hold one or more of the following positions, contact us at: info@chicagorocks.org.