Fred was a steady go-to guy for me throughout his entire business life. I will miss him and his professionalism

So sorry to hear of Fred Lake's passing. I'd see his friendly face at the FUN show every year. He will be missed.

I was saddened to learn of the passing of Fred; he was a credit to the Numismatic community. Our business contacts over the years were not extensive - I only met him once or twice at various coin shows, but he was always knowledgeable, helpful, and a true gentleman.

When I first started selling Numismatic Literature in 1982 there were only a handful of dealers specializing in the field and by 1990 a handful plus a couple of fingers and only a very few earning enough at to make a living income. I recall Kolbe, Wilson, Bourne, Burns, Davis, Lake, Katen, Lowe & Xenos. John Burns used to chide me from time to time (to paraphrase): “To be a literature dealer only required one to have five letters in their name”, Wilson and Bourne being the exception. It required much more than that, it required passion and commitment beyond the concept of profit; Fred lake exhibited all of those qualities. From the old crew we are now down to two active in the business.

I just opened my email and saw the news of Fred Lake's passing. I have many fond memories of Fred stemming back to an EAC Convention in Vegas many years ago. He and a number of other copper weenies were at the craps table. Fred had the dice and started a roll that was unbelievable, the gallery was cheering him along. I don't remember how many passes he had but it was like a tsunami. He was throwing naturals, little joe's and all sort of crazy rolls. When it was finally over he was sweating like mad and had an amazing, victorious, smiling face that was a joy to behold. A lot of folks made side bets on him and enjoyed the ride. Rob Retz and I stood with him as he came down from his unbelievable run.

Thanks Fred for this and so many other joys that I'm sure others will remember as well.

Wow, that was so fast. We knew it was coming, but it's still a surprise that he succumbed so quickly. I'll really miss Fred.

The news of Fred's death came as a shock, even though he made it known that he had a progressive and incurable illness. In doing so, he showed courage and grace.

He put me on his mailing list from day one, and I saved all of his catalogs and PRLs, writing his name on the PRLs after he dropped it in the 1990s. When he put the catalogs on line I told him to save postage and just include the paper catalogs with lots that I won. That way I kept the set complete. His own set was not complete, and he once asked me to photocopy an early sale for a customer, which I was happy to do. He made me a special comb-bound copy of an early sale that included a consignment from me.I went 0 for 4 in his final sale, but he sent me that catalog anyway.

My parents retired to Sarasota in the 1960s, and when we visited them I brought along boxes of material for Fred, who met me at the Tampa airport. His house in nearby Saint Pete was chockablock full of numismatic literature, including the garage. I never heard a complaint from his wife Joan, in fact she was an important participant in the business. Joan had major surgery several years ago; according to Fred she has made a full recovery.

Fred was very active in Florida United Numismatists (FUN) whose annual convention is in January. The orange jacket he often wore is part of the FUN "uniform". There will be many stories told about him at the coming convention, and many glasses raised in his memory, as it should be.

Fred would be delighted an honored that a SUPER RARE special edition of The E-Sylum was created to feature him and his accomplishments. Fred was a very nice person, a credit to numismatic bibliophila as well as to numismatics overall—setting a very high standard.

Please consider making a donation toward Fred Lake's Memorial Ad that will run in the February 6, 2017 issue of Coin World. This particular issue will be distributed at the Long Beach Expo & World Money Fair. To have your name included in the ad the deadline for submission is January 16, 2017. Any collected proceeds above the ad cost will be given as a gift to Fred's widow, Joan Lake, to help her with expenses. *** When making your donation please add a personal note for Joan ***