National Insulator Association Newsnotes
Reprinted from "INSULATORS - Crown Jewels of the Wire", November 1978, page 2
Hello to everyone. I'm Ray Klingensmith, your National Insulator Association
Executive Director for the 1978-79 year. I've been collecting since August of
1970. Only about four of these eight years have been on a real serious level. I
became interested in insulators and old bottles when an uncle visited from
California and told how "big" they were there. Well, the bug bit, and
as the years went by "insulator fever" seemed to take over. I became
more and more enthused over the history behind insulators, the fun at shows, and
the warmth and friendliness of many collectors.
Ray Klingensmith, NIA Executive Director
Besides collecting insulators, I
enjoy cross country running. (I hope to qualify for the Boston Marathon in the
near future, and some day complete a 2,050 mile hike from Georgia to Maine on the
Appalachian Trail.) I also collect old bottles, Imperial slag glass and
antiques. The insulators are the main hobby; but I always have felt it's good to
have more than one hobby to make life more interesting.
Regarding "What
will I do this year as Executive Director?", let me say I plan to do
everything required of me by the NIA By-Laws. And I am setting up a few new
rules for myself. In the past the letter answering has fallen behind, sometimes
due to a busy schedule. Rule number one is to answer all mail within 24 hours.
I will serve you, so if you need any help, just let me know.
One project I would
like to become involved in this year is the assigning of style numbers to
threadless insulators. I feel that both the U and CD numbers are a great work.
Jack Tod and Mr. Woodward are to be thanked for their great efforts. At the same
time, I feel there is a large interest in threadless; and many collectors want a
separate group of numbers for these early insulators. So with that in mind, I'd
like to do as much as possible in helping with the numbers. At this time,
exactly how involved the NIA will become in this project is unknown. As your
Executive Director, I will serve as the person to contact on any questions about
the threadless style numbers. Hopefully, in the near future committees will be
formed, and anyone wanting to be involved can do so.
As a member of the NIA, I would like to see a slight change in our hobby. I
feel that the NIA is a very strong backbone of our hobby, and I honestly can't
see any reason for a collector not to join. It's there for our own good. Join
today if you're not a member. I'd also like to see more shows. Most of the shows
are well organized; but keep in mind that it's best to plan well in advance.
Proper advertising and NIA sanctioning are a great help.
I'm here to help you and our hobby. I hope to meet all of you soon and to
hear from many of you.
Sincerely,
Ray Klingensmith, NIA Executive Director
P.O. Box 50 - 709 Rt. 322
East Orwell, OH 44034
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