My tribute to Claude Poli
It is with great sadness that I must pass on the news that my dear friend Claude Poli passed away on February 15, 2024. Claude lived in New Jersey and was a long-time collector of Franklin/Sterling Hill minerals. I think the first time I met Claude was at the Franklin Mill Site in the early 1980s. We became very good friends shortly thereafter. Not only did we share our love for fluorescent minerals, but we shared our love for classic rock and roll and our favorite band, The Who. We would spend hours on the telephone, first talking about any new fluorescent minerals I had for sale, and then always finishing up the conversation about The Who and rock and roll in general. Whenever I found a new book or video on The Who I would always send him a copy, which he greatly appreciated. The last time I saw Claude was in 2019. I had traveled east with three of my dear friends from Arizona. We were attending the September Franklin mineral show. When we arrived in New Jersey our first stop was to visit Claude. My friends enjoyed meeting Claude and had a wonderful visit. Claude not only had many stories to tell but had great minerals to see and to purchase. We all appreciated his hospitality and kindness. It was a visit I don’t think my friends will forget and I am glad they all got to meet him.
I greatly admired Claude’s ability to field collect. He was incredibly aggressive with both his field collecting and his purchasing of fluorescent mineral specimens. His love for the hobby was unmatched as he put together amazing collections. Over the years he would provide me with large quantities of self-collected specimens for my business. I still have lots of these specimens in my inventory today. My personal collection is also filled with specimens I have purchased from Claude over the many years I have known him. I’m sure there are many people in the hobby that can say the same thing. To me he was an icon in the Franklin community and will be missed by many. I know I will miss him and his bandana and suspenders! I will also miss the hour-long telephone conversations I have had with him.
Rest in peace my good friend, may God bless. Till we meet again.
George V. Polman