October is National Stamp Collecting Month

  • Published
  • By Staff Reports
  • U.S. Air Forces in Europe Public Affairs
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany --  During October, 31 Air Force and Department of State Post Offices throughout the U.S. Air Forces in Europe will help celebrate the 29th annual National Stamp Collecting Month and USAFE's 15th year of participation.

APOs will give away more than $20,000 in free commemorative and philatelic products to postal patrons throughout the command.

"Stamp collecting has been called 'the king of hobbies and the hobby of kings'," said Yvonne Radloff, the USAFE postal branch public affairs officer. "It's one of the world's most popular hobbies and one that brings enjoyment to young and old alike, no matter what their station in life."

Stamp collecting can be an educational and entertaining pastime. "It's fitting that we spotlight it with special recognition during October," she said.

Ms. Radloff added that the free philatelic products participating post offices will give include most of Disney series such as Imagination, Celebration, Romance Post Cards and Prints; Sunday Funnies Keepsake, Space Discovery, Simpsons, Marvel Super Heroes, and more.

Participating APOs will host a variety of programs involving communities, schools, and children ages 8-12. Check with your local postmaster to see which programs are available.

Tips for Collecting Stamps

 Get some stamps! You can get new stamps at any post office. Most post offices will have some of the cool stamps issued in 2010. You can also order stamps from the U.S. Postal Service at www.usps.com and click "Stamps," or call the toll-free phone number at 1-800 STAMP-24 (1-800-782-6724). Another cool way to get stamps is to trade with your friends. For older stamps, ask your parents, grandparents or neighbors for old letters, postcards, or unused stamps. Or, go to a stamp dealer or check stamp collecting sites on the Internet. There are even stamp shows where people come from all over the country to add to their collections.

 Organize your collection. Like what you collect and collect what you like! Your stamp collection should express your own unique personality. You can collect stamps from around the world or from just one country. Pick several topics-like animal stamps, sports stamps, or stamps about history.

 Protect and display your collection. Now you've got stamps, what do you do with them? Put them on StamperSaver Cards and keep them in a cool album where you can show them off. For individual stamps or stamp panes, you can buy a stamp album or make your own using a three-ring binder. Don't tape or glue your stamps. That destroys their value. Instead, slip them into specially designed plastic pages with pockets. Or if your album has paper pages, use hinges or mounts.

You can create a stamp collection about almost anything. Let the stamps be your guide!