Diane and Randy Walker are busy these days, preparing for the Rock Your World event set for May 3-4 at the Chester Frost Park Pavilion.
The event is for rock and mineral lovers of all ages and will include approximately 30 vendors, exhibits, displays, door prizes and lots of child-friendly activities, and best of all, it's free to attend.
For Diane her love and passion for precious stones and minerals started early. She was only 10 years old when her mother Vivian Hicks encouraged her father Bill to drive them to North Carolina to check out the ruby mines. Since then, her life has been full of precious stones and minerals.
“My mother had seen an article in the paper about the ruby mines in North Carolina,” she said. “Those mines were a big thing back then. They still had quite a bit of the native rubies and sapphires available up there. My mom persuaded daddy and I to go up there, and we got hooked on mining for stones.”
Diane said she started dating her husband in college and immediately plunged him into her world of rocks and minerals. But he didn’t mind it one bit as his passion for Mineralogy grew.
Diane’s parents were the charter members of the Tennessee Valley Rock and Mineral Society. They served as the society’s President several times. The TVRMS has been a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit, educational organization dedicated to being a local resource for people who want to learn about rocks, minerals, fossils and how to work with gems. It’s been around for more than 50 years.
The couple inherited the vast collection of rocks and stones Diane’s parents had acquired over several years. Some of the precious stones come from different continents and countries.
The couple explained that Tennessee has more agates and fossils instead of precious stones. The Rock Your World event provides them with an opportunity to gather with other collectors, artists, and the public.
Rock Your World will offer educational displays, hands-on activities and demonstrations that make geology and earth science exciting and accessible to everyone. From jewelry making and wire wrapping to lapidary arts, attendees can witness several skilled artisans at work.
The couple also transform their stones and minerals into various works of art. Diane admits she dabbles in a little bit of everything. Randy said his primary focus in the hobby is faceting but he also specializes in making glass beads.
At the event, future geologists can dig for fossils and find ancient treasures buried in the sand. For the more adventurous, breaking open geodes will reveal the hidden beauty within. It is never too late or too early to start a rock or fossil collection. Rock Your World will present the perfect opportunity to collect beautiful specimens from around the world. There will be lots of experts on hand to identify rocks in your collection and to answer questions. Last year, the event drew in close to 1,000 visitors.
The TVRMS club meets monthly for educational meetings and organizes rock hunts all over the region.
For more information visit: https://tennesseevalleyrockandmineralsociety.org/
Event Details:
- Saturday and Sunday, May 3 and 4, 10 a.m. until 4 p.m.
- Chester Frost Park Pavilion, 7989 Causeway Road, Hixson, TN
Admission and Parking: FREE!