Title: U. S. Orchid Postage Stamps - 2008?
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I was involved with the issue of the set of
orchid stamps issued at the 11th WOC in Miami back in 1984 and conducted the
first Orchids on Stamps Forum at a WOC at that time. I began writing to
the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee about 3 years before the Conference.
Every letter I wrote was answered with a form letter until, lo and behold, I
received a letter informing me that they were considering issuing a set. I
then sent them my recommendations as to the orchids to place on the
stamps. I was of course most interested in having epiphytic orchids that
grow here in South Florida but did recommend the Cypripedium which was
pictured. Not too long after that I received a letter that they were
indeed going to issue a set. They decided to use orchids from various
parts of the country in order to make it a national issue. I don't know
what influence my correspondence had on the Committee but I did receive one of
the dozen or so Presentation Folders from the Postal Department. At that
time I was not aware of any time limits being placed on the issue of a new
set. The rules may have changed since then. I understand that the
leadership of the Miami Conference also was involved and seem to remember
someone telling me not too long ago that they were seeking a set of stamps for
2008. It certainly would not do any harm for as many people as possible to
contact the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee about the possibility of them
issuing a set of orchid stamps. Maybe someone knows whether the Committee
has been approached by the conference leaders about this matter. I too am
hoping that another set of stamps will be issued. Let's hope that it
happens.
Andy Lanier
Dear Colleagues:
Does anybody know of
any efforts to try to persuade the U. S. Postal Service to issue postage
stamps bearing images of orchids to correlate with WOC-19 in 2008?
The
idea has been on my mind for some time and I have done some probing with no
positive results so far. I even wrote to a high level official at AOS
about a month ago, thinking that organization might be our voice in the high
councils of the nation, but I have not received a reply. So, I now turn
to this forum, although it may be too late.
>From a citizen�s and
orchidist�s point of view it seems like a wonderful idea, especially with some
of the terrific orchid artists who are turning out beautiful works of art.
It makes sense for many reasons, not the least of which is the growing
popularity of orchids (2nd most popular house plant in the U.S.) and a number
of other reasons that don�t need defending here.
I have learned the
following:
Selection of stamp designs is done long ahead of the time of
issuance. A 15-member Citizens� Stamp Advisory Committee has been
appointed to examine all proposals and make recommendations to the USPS.
The composition of that committee and the guidelines for
submitting proposals for new stamp designs are found at the following web
site:
http://www.usps.com/communications/organization/csac_print.htm
For
anyone interested in pursuing this matter further, it is worthwhile consulting
the information at that web site.
Be aware, the prospect of getting
orchid stamps in 2008 may be a moot issue, for two reasons. In fine
print, the guidelines say that proposals should be submitted to the Citizens�
Committee not less than 3 years prior to the proposed date of issue.
Also, no stamp will be considered for issuance if the same subject has
been issued within the past 50 years. There may be exceptions, but . . .
Four orchid postage stamps were issued in 1984 at the time of the
11th WOC in Miami. If this is pursued at all, it is probably best
not to mention 1984.
Is there any hope? If so, it is worth the
effort to help move some mountains. Are there loopholes to squeeze
through? Has anyone had experience in this arena before? If it is
hopeless, none of us has the energy or time to waste spinning wheels.
But, I cannot let go until I learn something firm. What a shame it
would be to miss the opportunity.
Hoping against hope.
Charles
Bracker
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_______________________________________________
the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD)
[email protected]
http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
