The latest monthly edition of the American Philatelist, the magazine of the American Philatelic Society, shows that after the last round of dues that the society membership has slipped to about 32000. When I first started in this hobby the APS had over 60000 members.

In 1975 membership in the American Philatelic Society was required if you wanted to be involved in buying and selling stamps as a dealer or serious collector. Most stamp auction houses used APS membership as their primary reference source-if you were an APS member your bids were accepted, if you weren't, things were far more difficult. The magazine the American Philatelist was the finest in this country (though the Collector's Club Philatelist was more erudite) and was worth the price of membership by itself. Thousands of members belonged for the sales circuits where books containing thousands of stamps were sent to your home for your perusal and purchase. Quality stamp insurance was available from the APS and, for the most part, unavailable to non APS members.

Times have changed. The Internet has made purchasing stamps as simple as a click. Credit cards have made the ethical vetting that the APS provided unnecessary for sellers and has provided buyers with protection from fraud. Stamp insurance is available for non APS members and there is plenty of fine philatelic reading available on the net without the APS magazine.

So why belong? The dues are $48. But the value is still there. The magazine is the best in the hobby, the insurance plan is first rate (we use it ourselves),  and the circuits and the APS on line stamp store are good. And most of all, being able to use and support the American Philatelic Research Library is worth the price of admission itself. My family still subscribes to two daily newspapers. Could we get our news online? Sure, but newspapers still offer us something that the Internet can't. And I don't want to feel that I am in any way responsible for the discontinuation of an important institution.

So here is an offer from Apfelbaum (and we will extend it through the end of the year). If you are not a member of the APS, let us know when you purchase $500 or more from any of our sales formats and we will pay your first year's dues and initiation fees (if any). We want the APS to thrive and we are sure that once you have been a member of the APS, like the Apfelbaum family, you will want to continue that membership.