A mail order Mineral of the Month Club seemed the perfect way to accomplish just that. While discussing the idea with friends and other dealers, the Sittingers learned that their concept was not exactly original. From 1972 until 1982, Russ and Alexandra Filer, of Yucaipa, California, had operated the Mineral of the Month Club, which at its peak had nearly 1,500 members. The Filers had offered a single level of membership and charged inexpensive fees, but provided only small, study-grade specimens of crystalline minerals, rock-forming minerals, and rocks.

The Sittingers decided to go ahead with their own version of the mineral-of-the-month club—which would include a number of major changes. First, they would offer two membership levels: Junior and Deluxe, with both receiving the same type of mineral each month. Junior-level members would receive small, study-quality mineral specimens. But Deluxe-level members would receive higher quality specimens that were larger and more attractive. Both membership levels would also receive detailed, accurate report about each mineral.

"We wanted to provide our members, especially our Deluxe members, with quality collectors’ specimens that they could both study and display," Richard says. "And we wanted our written reports to make each mineral an educational experience."

The Sittingers adopted the same name as the original club of the 1970s—the Mineral of the Month Club. They enrolled their first member in February 1996, then sent out their first mailing in March. The original seven club members of the Sittinger’s Mineral of the Month Club each received a specimen of pyrite from La Rioja, Spain.

"By January 1997, we had 40 members, most of whom we had signed up at shows," Richard recounts. "We knew we had to increase our membership, and we saw two ways to do it. We could advertise heavily, or we could continually upgrade the quality of our specimens to make them more attractive to potential members. We decided to invest in better specimens."

The make-it-or-break-it year for the Mineral of the Month Club was 1997. Although the Sittingers approached advertising conservatively, a friend suggested placing an ad in Earth magazine, a now-defunct publication that presented the earth sciences to a general readership. That single ad proved extremely effective, and membership more than quadrupled within the following year.

"With higher enrollment, we could begin volume buying," Richard says. "That enabled us to acquire better specimens to pass on to our members."

By 1998, the Mineral of the Month Club had become successful enough to attract media attention, first from the hometown newspaper in Cambria, California. Then, in the October 1998, Mineral News editor Lanny Ream wrote, "I looked at the [Mineral of the Month Club] specimens for recent months and noted that they appeared to be good buys, that is, definitely worth the money."

And when the Seattle Weekly and The Denver Post ran feature articles about such pop-culture trends as the growing number of "of-the-month" clubs, the Mineral of the Month Club again received favorable mention. And when a writer for the men’s magazine wrote a somewhat derogatory review of the club, in which he implied that mineral specimens simply weren’t exciting enough for his tastes, a few more new members joined.

The publicity, both from the media and from word-of-mouth promotion by satisfied club members, paid off. In 2000, the Mineral of the Month Club membership surpassed 200. And by February 2003, membership hit 300.

Mineral of the Month Club members include teachers, students, folks from a broad variety of professions, and retirees. They include both beginning and experienced rockhounds, many of whom simply don’t have the time to collect minerals in the field or who live in areas not near collecting locales. Membership even includes a number of professional geologists.

"Because geologists already know a great deal about minerals, you might not think they would join the Mineral of the Month Club," Richard explains. "But many geologists are so busy mapping and exploring energy-related resources that they don’t have time for field collecting. They join our club to keep involved with collectible minerals."

The Mineral of the Month Club’s Junior memberships are based on a rate of $7 per month. Six-month trial Junior memberships are available for $42, and full-year junior memberships for $77. Junior-level specimens are usually thumbnail to miniature size and measure roughly ½-by-1 inch to 1-by-2 inches.

Members who choose the Deluxe level usually receive "fist-sized" specimens measuring 2x3 to 3x4 inches. Deluxe membership is based on a rate of $22.50 per month and is available as three- and six-month trial memberships for $76.50 and $135, respectively. A full-year Deluxe membership, which provides 12 specimens at a bargain 11-month rate, costs $247.50. All new club members receive a copy of the 160-page DK Pocketbook Rocks & Minerals.

All members receive each monthly specimen accompanied by a detailed, comprehensive report, called a "write-up," about that specific mineral. Write-ups explain the physical and chemical properties of the mineral, name variations, types of mineralogical occurrence, and a listing of noted occurrences and collecting localities. Also explained are the mineral’s jewelry and decorative uses, history, lore, and technological uses, unique properties, unusual crystal forms, and when appropriate, even the composition of the matrix.

Each thorough, referenced write-up, is the product of several days of research and writing. The write-ups are part of the regular Club Newsletter, which covers events and news in the mineral world, upcoming minerals of the month, new club members, and the upcoming shows that Richard and Cheryl will be attending. On average, each write-up and newsletter is twice the twice the length of a typical Rock & Gem feature article. Deluxe members receive a handsome presentation binder with 25 plastic manuscript sleeves in which to file their monthly write-ups.

"To make the Mineral of the Month Club experience as educational as possible, we put a great deal of time and research into our write-ups," says Cheryl. "Many of our members have joined for the sake of their children. Nice mineral specimens get kids really excited about the earth sciences—especially when they have material that answers all their questions about the mineral."

"I especially like the write-ups on the specimens," wrote one club member. "I feel like I’m learning something about what the minerals really are, rather than just accumulating rocks."

The Sittingers work three to four months in advance to have specimens and write-ups ready for their on-time monthly mailings. Acquiring specimens means tracking down leads and investigating reports of new finds. They buy as directly as possible, often right from the actual collectors, mine sources or from primary agents representing the mines.

Sometimes club members receive specimens that represent new finds made only months earlier. As an example, the Mineral of the Month for August 2001 was inesite from a new find in China. The composite inesite specimens sent to members also included crystals of hubeite, a mineral still in the process of gaining formal recognition as a new species.

Club members are informed a month or two in advance of what mineral they will be receiving—and have the right to refuse, for any reason, a mineral they may not be interested in. Beyond that, however, the minerals they will receive will be surprises. In March 2003, the Sittingers’ 85th consecutive monthly mailing consisted of rough diamonds from the Mbuji-Mayi diamond fields in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

A subscription to the Mineral of the Month club provides a lot of learning and enjoyment and also makes a great gift for anyone interested in minerals or in the earth sciences. For further information, contact The Mineral of the Month Club, 1770 Orville Ave., Cambria, CA 93428; telephone 800-941-5594; e-mail Richard@mineralofthemonthclub.org. Or check out the club’s website at www.mineralofthemonthclub.org. (You're already here!)