GNA event draws YNs, national experts

Bob Hartje led a Young Numismatists program during the Georgia Numismatic Association show.

A crowd of slightly more than 2,100 people came to the 53rd Georgia Numismatic Association Coin & Currency Show held April 21-23 at the Dalton Convention Center in Dalton, Ga.

The show opened at 10 a.m. on Friday, with the ribbon cutting performed by American Numismatic Association President Jeff Garrett and GNA President Greg Ison.

The ANA had a membership table at the event to provide information, sign up new members, and offer general information to the public. Amber Bradish, seminar coordination for the organization, was on hand throughout the show.

On Saturday afternoon, the Young Numismatists Program had a crowd of over 110 people attending, with more than 55 young people. Led by Bob Hartje, a group of students presented the play “Charles Barber vs. Teddy Roosevelt--Lady Liberty Gets a Makeover.”

All YNs received a goody bag of numismatic items, which were donated by dealers at the show and the GNA. At the end of the YN Program, the YN Exhibit Awards were handed out to the winners.

A large competitive exhibit area featured 20 exhibits by 16 different exhibitors, which filled 53 display cases. There were nine YN exhibitors, and each prepared their own exhibit. This was the largest number ever of YN exhibitors at a GNA show. Awards were given to first-, second-, and third-place winners in YN Class, Large competitive class (exhibits with more than four display cases), and Small competitive class (exhibits with one to three display cases).

Six educational programs were held at the GNA show. These 30- to 45-minute presentations covered a wide range of numismatic topics, and many of the speakers were nationally known experts.

The next GNA event will be the 54th Coin & Currency Show on April 13-15, 2018, at the same location.

Future show information can be found online at www.gamoney.org.