The recent articles on Bob Julian's Medals of the United States Mint have been fascinating . Readers might find my history of the Franklin Mint that appeared several years ago in COINage Magazine interesting. My late brother John L. Alexander spearheaded the issue of the first stock in General Numismatics Corp. (GNC) through the securities firm of Hill, Darlington and Grimm, of which Franklin Mint was only one department, John and I spent days at the ANA convention following in the wake of the incredibly energetic Joe Segel who should have been an Olympic walker!

A word on Joe Segel's scattering of stock among numismatic organizations. This generosity was correctly seen as a deterrent to possible criticism of GNC's later business practices. In TAMS' case this was less necessary as the late Virginia Culver remained a Franklin Mint loyalist even after Morley Safer and "Sixty Minutes" published their documentary expose years later.

The then-flourishing Society for International Numismatics (SIN) was an organization which resisted temptation, selling its donated Franklin Mint stock immediately before its value sank out of sight. SIN highly valued its independence.

Quite a saga.

It's hard to believe that this month makes seventeen years since Fred Lake advised his customers about a new service at that time: PayPal. Following his encouragement and recommendations it was the first time that some of us used this then-new facility. It also was the same month in 2000 that Fred said he was taking the liberty of sending my e-mail address to you so that I'd receive The E-Sylum.

Fred also recommended that I should join Early American Coppers /EAC. When I had several airline delays in January 2005 for the 50th anniversary of the F.U.N. show for which he actively worked, Fred made sure that he had a badge waiting for me, and a very nice seat at the evening's banquet table, together with a commemorative Red Book for the occasion.

I participated in a majority of Fred's auctions, and he was very helpful in assisting me in the expansion of a working reference library. Fred always was promoting the hobby and events connected with it. He was a true gentleman, a very knowledgeable resource, a friend to so many people, and a hard worker. As each year passed and as he neared auction number 125, I'd comment to him that his dedication was remarkable, simply measured by the sheer tonnage of the tens of thousands of books that he continued to pack and mail to his customers.

Fred enjoyed what he did, and generously shared his interests with others. It's exceptional to find and know someone like Fred, with such clear perception in life, and who holds an appreciation for doing things with and for others.

I would like to thank everyone for their donations made toward honoring Fred's service to the numismatic community. The ad space has been ordered and paid for thanks to your generosity. I placed a quarter page black and white ad that will be published in the February 6, 2017 issue of Coin World that will circulate at the Long Beach coin show.

Attached is a self-explanatory clipping I found while chasing a research thread.