American Philatelic Society

APS Support

The donations of stamp albums, stamps & other supplies from the American Philatelic Society to chapters can play a large part in recruiting new members.

While APEX is available to all of the members of the Chapter, those who are also members of the APS receive a substantial discount (about 40%) off the normal fees. Member discounts can cover their annual APS dues if they submit just 3 or 4 items annually.

The APS Quick ID Program also offers a member discount (this time 50% off the non-member fee).

Visits to the APS
Ask for some “retail therapy.” Request to have a “stamps by the bucket” activity set up for a nominal fee.

For chapter members who like ‘playing’ with stamps, APS can set up a sorting area where they can prepare bags of stamps from donations to take back to their clubs for their stamp show beginner areas or junior collectors night. You might say you are providing ‘sweat equity’ in return for some material for your outreach programs to junior collectors and/or schools.

Ask for introductions to services APS can offer, including some training in areas where the chapter needs advice.

Experience the APS Headquarters as a precursor to attending the Summer Seminar and/or Volunteer Work Week.

If you would like us to arrange for a short seminar there could be costs involved for speaker fees, etc., or ask for a presentation on one or more of our services.

Visits during the regular APS working hours give you convenient access to all of the services. Check with us for ‘black out’ dates, mainly for Penn State Activities that make overnight accommodations scarce and expensive.

We ask for advance notice when chapters want a multiple-day visit, so we can invite other chapters within driving distance to come and join in the fun. More visitors would decrease any per-person costs. The visit would be named in your honor as the first to schedule that event.

Chapter Contests
The APS offers awards for entries in two annual competitions for newsletters and web sites. Judged by experts, awards are presented based on content and layout along with critiques with suggestions for improvements. Entry is free.

The American Philatelist is sent to each Chapter. Also members as well as your club memberships can view The AP online when logging in as the club!

APS Chapters may publicize information about their sponsored exhibitions in the special "SHOW TIME" section of our monthly magazine and in our online show calendar. Click here for Show Calendar details.

Upon request, sales circuits containing stamps and covers based upon the collecting interests of the members of each individual chapter are sent as often as once a month. They are shipped to arrive just prior to the Chapter's scheduled meeting date and may be retained for 7 days thereafter. See the Circuit Sales online information for more details.

More than 140 slide programs are available for rent and several have been converted to a DVD format for purchase in our DVD Shop. A list of current slide programs with instructions on how Chapters may participate is available online.

More than 90 accredited judges are available to serve at Chapter exhibitions. Click here for Accredited Judges.

An APS Chapter and all its members are entitled to use the resources of the American Philatelic Research Library. A nominal fee is charged to cover the costs of book loans and photocopies of short articles. The Library publishes a quarterly journal, Philatelic Literature Review, to which APS Chapters may subscribe. Any requests for book loans by non-APS members must be through an APS member in good standing who will be responsible for return of the borrowed materials or via inter-library loan. Visit the Research Library.

Awards
Medals of Excellence and Research Award are available to WSP Shows.
Chapter Exhibition Medals are available for Chapters to award as they wish at their own philatelic exhibitions.
Club Sparkplug Awards recognize those members who provide the energy that keeps your club moving!
Certificate - Any exhibition sponsored by an APS Chapter which does not meet the criteria for presentation of APS Medals of Excellence and the APS Research Medal.
Nicholas G. Carter Volunteer Recognition Award - The ultimate award for a local club volunteer is the Carter Volunteer Recognition Award for local promotion/service, named for the former APS President. Chapter status of the nominating club and APS membership of the nominee are not requirements. Nominations are accepted throughout the year and are retained for up to three years.

APS Chapter Champions
The purpose for the APS Chapter Champions is to encourage the recruitment of APS members within the local APS chapters.

All APS chapters that meet the specified requirements will be designated as APS Chapters of Excellence, will be provided with a specially designed logo for use on their websites and will be eligible for consideration for the APS Chapter Champions. Visit the webpage for more information.

Special pricing is available to clubs to purchase mailing lists to promote membership or invite local APS members to your next show.

Send out one e-mail message per year for any World Series of Philately show, chapter or affiliate per the guidelines.

APS Produced & Maintained Chapter Webpages - click for details.

The APS encourages collectors to showcase their exhibits and allow others the opportunity to view, and learn from them. Click to view our current listing of online exhibits.

Recruiting Benefits – An APS recruiting package is available to all Chapters as are APS promotional business reply cards. Interested collectors mail the post-paid cards to the APS requesting detailed information about Society memberships. The Chapter receives credit for all new memberships resulting from this recruiting technique. One year's free dues or the equivalent credit may be earned by Chapters for every five new APS members sponsored during a calendar year. The APS also can help a Chapter recruit new members. Upon request, the APS makes available the names and addresses of APS members residing in the locale served by the Chapter.

Club Meeting Flyers - Advertise your upcoming club meeting or stamp show with flyers provided in 8 1/2 x 11 format - click here to view available flyers.

The American Philatelic Research Library can be a resource for your stamp club programs. (We can't always promise this quick of a turnaround, but we'll do our best!) If you're working on a program and need a book, an article or an image, don't forget about the library!