Philatelic Interests

I have collected stamps since I was nine. These days I concentrate on stamps of Switzerland. Over any extended period of years they are the most beautiful; and until recently the Swiss were conservative and didn't issue floods of new stamps every year either (their stamp-issuing program has become Disneyfied like much of the rest of the world, so I no longer collect current issues). In particular, I specialize in Swiss airmail. I became interested in the 1913 Flugspende issues, which now are the major strength of my collection. In 1913, there was a series of events in a campaign named Flugspende, many with special flights and special stamps for those flights, to publicize the case for building Swiss military aviation and raise money for it. The campaign raised over 1,700,000 Swiss francs, which enabled formation of a unit in 1914.

I have entered exhibits in stamps shows. My exhibit of Swiss airmail has evolved into a 160-page (10-frame) exhibit, which has earned gold awards (be aware that more exhibits earn gold awards than any other award level) at several shows, most recently the Philadelphia National Stamp Exhibition in the fall of 2008. Click here to see an earlier version of my exhibit. It will next be shown at the Pacific International Philatelic Exhibition (PIPEX) in Portland, OR in May 2009. A one-frame version was judged the best one-frame exhibit at the Baltimore Philatelic Exhibition (BALPEX) in 2002.

I am a member of several philatelic societies:

· American Philatelic Society

· American Helvetia Philatelic Society – this is my main interest

· American Air Mail Society

· Greater Eugene Stamp Society

· Salem Stamp Society

Since January 2000 I have been editor of Tell, the journal of the American Helvetia Philatelic Society. Tell has been entered in philatelic literature competitions, and most recently earned a vermeil award at the APS StampShow in 2007. Click here to read more about Tell and view an archive of back issues.

One particular personal affinity for Swiss stamps is the fact that one series, issued 1854 to 1862, are known as Strubels. A set of them from my collection is shown below. Lest you think this is a great family honor, let me explain. These stamps show an allegorical figure, who was supposed to be wearing a laurel wreath. The engraving was not sufficiently detailed to do justice to the idea, so her hair just looks as if it sticks out all over. Maybe if you look closely at the stamps you can see. This kind of "strubly" (a term the Pennsylvania Germans know) hair is exemplified in Struwelpeter ("Strubly Peter") of German folklore.

Last modified December 27, 2008