Volunteering at the Annual Show

Bring your friendliest smile

The Houston Gem and Mineral Society is an all-volunteer-run earth science education organization. As a 501(c)3, we take pride in the fact that we hold several events throughout the year, each of which is staffed by our generous members and other rock-lovers volunteering their time and talent. (Minimum age to volunteer is 16 except at the Youth Section booth.)

Our premiere event is the Annual Gem, Mineral, Jewelry, and Fossil Show—it’s also the largest of its type in the state of Texas. This three-day show is held on the second weekend of November each year at the Humble Civic Center, 8233 Will Clayton Parkway, Humble, TX 77338. The Annual Show has 140 different slots that need to be staffed over the three days, totaling 200+ shifts.

Please be generous with your time and help us continue to hold the best show in Texas! To thank you for participating, we’ll be drawing for Volunteer Prizes during every shift.

Volunteer Sign-Up Form for the HGMS Annual Show
Areas involving money are the Ticket Booth, Info Booth, and Swap Area Cashier
Activities include merchandise sales, silent auction set-ups, and providing directions per the floor plan map. There are always several people per shift. It is usually busy with a lot of interaction with the general public. NOTE: Info Booth volunteers check in 30 minutes before the start of their shift for a brief orientation.
Ticket Booth volunteer sells tickets at the front entrance. Ticket Taker volunteer collects the tickets from people entering the show at the front entrance. Swap Area volunteer exchanges cash for swap dollars. Volunteers check in 30 minutes before the start of their shift for a brief orientation.
Primary duty is to walk around the Show maintaining a security presence and wearing an orange vest identifying you as "security." Security volunteers are not be responsible for making arrests; we have police officers for that. This is a necessary function that dealers have asked us to provide. You will pay attention to suspicious behavior. Volunteers check in 30 minutes before the start of their shift for a brief orientation.
Youth Area: Coordinate playing educational games about rock ID for K-12 and Scouts. Dino Dig: Indoor children's activity, oversee them sifting sand for treasures, help them identify what they find by matching images on posters, and sweep up spilled sand.
This is the perfect volunteer opportunity for earth science students, geoscience professionals, or HGS and HMNS members! You'll be promoting STEM to the public and assisting with Kids Day and Scout Geology Merit Badge program participants in learning the answers to their assigned questions (answers to the questionnaires and worksheets are provided to you).
Another ideal opportunity for earth science students, geoscience professionals, and HMNS and HGS members to promote STEM to the public and assist with Kids Day and Scout Geology Merit Badge program participants in learning the answers to their assigned questions and for the younger children, completing a coloring craft (answers to the questionnaires and worksheets are provided to you).
Check-in tasks are to count out and distribute printed questionnaires and maps and direct school groups and homeschooler families to scavenger hunt activities. Check out counts and distributes souvenir rocks for the children and reserved rock sets to the requesting adults. Also collects teacher surveys.
Check in is staffing a table and handing out forms, also involves optional sale of a souvenir pencil. Between hourly session check-ins, assemble rock sample sets. The Scout Geology Merit Badge teaching station volunteer should be knowledgeable in Geology.
Staffing a HGMS section booth involves standing and sitting. People with interest in the Earth Sciences are encouraged to support our section booths. On Kids Day (Friday) and Scout Merit Badge Program (Saturday), extra help is needed to fulfill the education experiences of the attending children and adults. A knowledgeable HGMS member will guide your activities and you will have answers provided for the children's questionnaires and Scouts'worksheets.
Our Hospitality Room provides seating for volunteers and dealers to take breaks and refresh with free hot coffee and cold drinks. Staffing involves sitting, standing, walking, and light lifting to maintain service in the room. We also deliver drinks in a rolling cooler to volunteers and dealers who cannot leave their booths or stations.
Before the show, the Volunteer Coordination Team communicates with volunteers to assign positions, print badges for volunteers and dealers, and set up the volunteer check-in entrance. During the show, the team greets volunteers, directs them to sign in, put their names in the door prize bowl, and guide them to their locations. This team is the lifeblood of the Show effort. You get the opportunity to meet and get to know a variety of people within the Society. We'd love to have you join this team!
Any and all available help is requested for the set-up on Thursday. The work generally is done in the AM and we are finished by midday. For tear-down on Sunday evening we need a few able-bodied people to help unload supplies from the moving truck to the attic at the clubhouse. A chicken dinner is provided for those hardy souls.
The fluorescent booth entails assembling a 10-ft × 10-ft popup canopy and arranging UV light cabinets and installing the UV lights to display rock and mineral specimens. Tear-down is the opposite: disassemble and pack up. These activities are under the expert direction of a member of the HGMS Mineral Section.
This question is for volunteers who sign up for multiple shifts. We want to know if you want us to pick one shift or if you will work all the shifts you've selected.
Please indicate if you'd like to attend the Volunteer Appreciation Party on the weekend after the show. All adult volunteers for the Annual Show are welcome and encouraged to come. ***Must be 21 to attend as alcohol is served.*** Further details will be available at the Show.

What does the H in our name stand for?