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Steven M. Ripley of Florida has been elected chair of the Board of Directors of the American First Day Cover Society. He succeeds Cynthia Scott of Indiana, who held the position for a number of years. In an interesting development, she replaces Ripley as chair of the Honors and Awards Committee.

Ripley has held many roles in the society, but is best known as the innovative chair of its Americover show and convention. He received the AFDCS Distinguished Service Award, its highest honor, in 2005. In addition to being a Life Member of the AFDCS, he is also a life member of the American Philatelic Society, American Topical Association, and other philatelic organizations. His specialties include the Walt Disney issue of 1968.

Outside philately, he is a supervisor of transportation and parking for major events such as the Super Bowl, NASCAR auto races, the Kentucky Derby and concerts. He also provides management services for non-profit and start-up businesses.

The American First Day Cover Society is a not-for-profit educational organization. In addition to publishing its journal First Days, the AFDCS also publishes handbooks and catalogues, and promotes the collecting of both modern and “classic” issues and cachets, as well as exhibiting FDCs. It offers awards for outstanding first day cover exhibits and an annual contest for cachetmakers, and is a co-host of the annual Great American Stamp Show.

The Chair of the Board is elected by the members of the Board. Neither the chair nor other Directors are compensated in any way for serving on the board, although they may receive reimbursement for expenses not related to serving on the board or attending meetings.

For more information about the AFDCS, visit www.afdcs.org, e-mail afdcs@afdcs.org or write the AFDCS at Post Office Box 57, Somerset, WI 54025-0057.

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AAPE celebrates 40th anniversary at Chicagopex

The American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors this year is celebrating the 40th anniversary of its founding by a small group led by the late Randy L. Neil.

A celebration is planned for Chicagopex, one of America’s largest and best shows, on the weekend of November 20-22 at the Westin Hotel in Itasca, Illinois, near O’Hare International Airport.

Social events, discussion groups and member presentations are among the activities planned to mark the anniversary. A full schedule will be announced this fall.

“Just as when the AAPE started 40 years ago, it continues to encourage its members to try new ideas and approaches when exhibiting,” said Ken Nilsestuen, association president [right]. “As exhibiting continues its evolution from ‘Here are my stamps,’ to ‘Here is a really interesting story using my wonderful philatelic collection and related items,’ AAPE should still be there sharing these developments. We hope and expect that our members will continue to be leaders in philatelic exhibiting however it changes.”

The association was founded to provide a forum for exhibitors, judges and stamp show organizers and volunteers. Most of the major changes in the exhibiting craft as well as the greatly increased accountability and consistency in judging began as ideas discussed in the AAPE’s quarterly journal, The Philatelic Exhibitor.

AAPE has also smoothed the way for hundreds of new exhibitors by connecting them with mentors, free critiques and technical guidance through articles in the journal by experienced exhibitors who write about lessons learned.

Current membership is about 625 including gold medal winners and many who are developing their exhibits toward that level. Members have access to all back issues of the journal through an excellent website that includes widely diverse resources.

Anyone with an interest in joining the friendly and helpful ranks of exhibitors is welcome to participate in AAPE events. More information and membership details are online at www.aape.org.

Chicagopex is hosted by the Chicago Philatelic Society, which was founded in 1886 and is American Philatelic Society Chapter #1. Show information is online at www.chicagopex.org.

Self-nominations are now open for the Board of Directors of the American First Day Cover Society, the largest not-for-profit FDC organization in the world. Each year, the membership of the AFDCS elects four people to serve on its board for three-year terms.

podium with microphone – vector illustration. eps 10

Those running for the board must be members in good standing and are expected to submit a statement of no more than 300 words and a photo. There is no other “qualifying process” for nominations: No 10-member petitions, minimum tenure in the AFDCS, nor the ability to recite cachet catalogue numbers from memory. Reasonable proficiency with email is expected.

Once elected, Directors are expected to attend the one in-person meeting a year (held the night before the convention, which in 2027 will be held at Great American Stamp Show in Albuquerque, NM) and ad hoc online meetings, participate in email discussions and vote electronically on matters that come before the board. The ballot and the candidates’ statements are mailed to members in the fall. The terms begin on January 1.

Bobby Liao of California is chairing the AFDCS 2026 Nominating Committee, aided by Steve Ripley of Florida and Chris Calle of Connecticut. Those wish to run, or who would like more information, should contact Bobby at bottlingcachet@yahoo.com.

The AFDCS Board of Directors consists of 12 elected members, plus three ex-officio members: the president, editor, and general counsel. (The Society’s complete bylaws are available at www.afdcs.org/bylaws). Directors are not compensated in any way for serving on the board, although they may receive reimbursement for expenses not related to serving on the board or attending meetings.

The American First Day Cover Society is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) educational organization, established in 1955. It publishes the award-winning bimonthly journal First Days, as well as handbooks and catalogues, maintains a YouTube channel, and promotes the collecting of both modern and “classic” issues and cachets, as well as the exhibiting of FDCs.

For more information about the AFDCS, visit www.afdcs.org, e-mail afdcs@afdcs.org or write the AFDCS at Post Office Box 57, Somerset, WI 54025-0057.

Financial wrongdoing? Sexual improprieties? Collecting FDCs? Nope, none of the above. It’s because he decided he personally would boycott Boston 2026, because of his “moral objection to the current political climate in the United States.”

Read the Canadian Stamp News article here.

The Young Philatelic Leadership Fellow who is sponsored by the American Philatelic Society Writers Unit #30, Cole Longcor, will make a brief presentation on his project at the YPLF event on Monday May 25th at 11 am. He will talk about the extensive research paper he is submitting to the Postal History Symposium.

His subject is the relationship between the expansion of mail systems and the development and growth of the territories/states in the Northwest territory along the Ohio River, sparked by an interest in the Northwest Territory issue (Scott 837) of 1938. It is titled, “The River Runs Through It” and examines the relationship between the Ohio River and the postal system in the three states of the Northwest Territory through which the river runs: Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

“A mixed media approach is used,” Longcor said in his proposal to the symposium. It includes “investigating artifacts from personal and museum collections, analyzing Richard Helbock’s Post Office dataset, and reviewing past literature, including sources from Marietta College Legacy Library’s Special Collections and philatelic publications.”

Longcor has a BA in journalism and political science from Marietta College and a MA in Public Affairs Reporting from the University of Illinois Springfield. He has worked for NPR Illinois and Capitol News Illinois and has been published by papers such as The Chicago Sun-Times.

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New APS Director of Education

The American Philatelic Society is pleased to welcome its new Director of Education, Jeff Puhala. Jeff is an experienced educator and instructional designer with 26 years of experience in the field. He began his career in K–12 education, teaching every grade level over a span of 16 years. He later transitioned to higher education and recently completed a 10-year tenure at Penn State University, where he served primarily as an instructional designer.

During his time at Penn State, Jeff specialized in designing, developing, and delivering digital learning experiences for adult learners. His work included leading the redesign of online speech courses for returning adult students, a curriculum area he supported for nearly eight years. Jeff also has extensive experience in online teaching at the higher education level. He is excited to bring his expertise to the APS and contribute to advancing its education initiatives.

Jeff holds a Doctor of Education in Curriculum Leadership from Northeastern University; a Master of Education in the Administrative Program for K–12 Principals from California University of Pennsylvania; a Master of Music in Saxophone Performance from Penn State University; and a Bachelor of Science in Education, Music Education from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. A trained professional saxophonist, Jeff performs with several community groups in his spare time and also enjoys playing golf.

Please join us in welcoming Jeff to the APS team!

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APS 2026 Awards & Honors

The APS and APRL are proud to announce the 2026 winners of our annual Awards & Honors. Additional details about each award winner will be available in the May issue of The American Philatelist.

Please join us in congratulating our 2026 award winners!

The John N. Luff Awards
For Distinguished Philatelic Research: Larry Lyons
For Exceptional Contributions to Philately: Charles J. G. Verge
For Outstanding Service to the APS: Elizabeth Hisey

Ernest A. Kehr Award
For enduring contributions that help guarantee the future of the hobby
Glenn Silverman

Hall of Fame

• Nancy Clark (1946-2024)
• John Lievsay (1932-2025)
• Wade Saadi (1949-2025)
• Richard Winter (1937-2025)
• Max Ohlman (1881-1957)

The Nicholas G. Carter Volunteer Recognition Awards
National:

• Alan Barasch
• Carol Bommarito
• Mark Butterline
• Melanie Rogers
• Steve L. Swain

Local:

• Wylie Irwin
• Len Kasper
• Mary Rosina Major
• Jim Meverden
• Joe Petronie
• Karen Robbins
• John P Stefanek
• Richard Weichle

John Walter Scott Dealer Award: Michael and Cecelia Ball of A to Z Stamps

The United States Stamp Society/Barbara Mueller Award: Calvin Mitchell and Baasil Wilder, for “A Study in Race, Racism and Presidential Politics,” published in March 2025.

Charles J. Peterson Philatelic Literature Life Achievement Award: Yamil Kouri

Thomas F. Allen Award (For the best article published in a single year of The Philatelic Literature Review): Rick Barrett, for “How the Epic Story of Captain Tim Unfolded,” in the Fall/Winter 2025 Philatelic Literature Review.