Following the inventory in 2022 of the DAS’s property and equipment at the Kline-Dodge Dark Site and Chamberlin Observatory, members of the Quartermaster Committee gathered at the club’s storage unit on March 12 to tackle the final and most challenging segment of the inventory project.

Due to an overwhelming volume of donations that came in rapidly during 2022 with little time to evaluate them, the storage unit was filled with items that needed to be assessed, sorted, cataloged, tagged with inventory stickers, photographed, and put back in better order.

In addition to the new chairperson of the Quartermaster Committee, Kevin Woolbright, past Chairperson Ed Scholes, Digby Kirby, Judy Dunlop and Dena McClung worked through the day to go through the entire contents of the unit. Some items that were determined to not be worth retaining were dismantled for metal recycling or disposal, while others were set aside for donation to secondhand stores. Another set of items were set aside for the next auction, the proceeds of which will go to the Van Nattan-Hansen Scholarship Fund.

Kevin anticipates that he will have a larger number of Dobsonian telescopes available for DAS members to borrow through the club’s Loaner Telescope program when he completes the inventory. Each telescope will come to the borrower as a complete kit, with eyepieces and a finder scope at a minimum. Members will also receive a brief tutorial on the use of the telescope.

Some items of interest will be made available to members for a small donation at the upcoming hybrid General Meetings, as their value will be too low to sell at auction.