Meet Your Officers

Introducing you to the Officers of the 2010-2012 Federation of Historical Bottle Collectors.

Gene Bradberry Gene Bradberry, FOHBC Board President, is a retired Memphis Policeman, and has a BS degree in Police Administration from Memphis State University. Gene was one of the founding members of the Memphis Bottle Collectors Club. He Joined the ABCA in 1968 and was past president. He has run many bottle shows including being FOHBC Expo Chairman in 2004 in Memphis and has been collecting bottles since 1966 He is also Life Member #212 of the FOHBC. Gene has been married for 51 years to his high school sweetheart, has two sons and five grandchildren. He has also been involved in Scouting for 64 years.
Bob Ferraro Bob Ferraro, FOHBC First Vice President, is a life time member of the FOHBC and has collected figural bitters and whiskeys and Nevada memorabilia for more than 45 years. He and his wife Connie have amassed the most complete collection of embossed and paper labeled bottles that has been assembled from Nevada. Bob is serving his second year as the first Vice President of the Federation. He was President of FOHBC from 1977 to 1979 and has been actively involved in many shows and activities relating to the Federation for the past forty years.
Ferdinand Meyer V Ferdinand Meyer V, FOHBC Second Vice President, is a native of Baltimore, MD and has a BFA in Fine Art and Graphic Design from the Kansas City Art Institute and School of Design. Ferdinand is also a principal of FMG Design (nationally recognized design firm). Ferdinand is a passionate collector of American Historical Glass specializing in Bitters bottles, color runs and related classic figural bottles. Ferdinand is married to Elizabeth Jane Meyer and lives in Houston, TX with their daughter and three wonderful grandchildren. The Meyer’s are also very involved in Quarter Horses, Antiques and early United States Postage Stamps.
Jim Berry, FOHBC Secretary, is a collector of colored inks, historical flasks, mineral waters and local history. Jim was born and raised in upstate New York. Jim has been married to Valeri for 38 years and have five children, three of which are in the Air Force and ten grandchildren.
Gary Beatty, FOHBC Treasurer, is a former FOHBC Treasurer under Dick Stockton and past FOHBC 2nd Vice President under Carl Sturm, He is a past Midwest Regional Directory and three time Ohio Bottle Club President. Gary has been collecting since 1966. He collects Beers, Gins and square Bitters.
Dick Watson Richard Watson, FOHBC Historian for the past 20 years, is a Federation Life Member and was elected to the FOHBC Hall Of Fame in 1968. Dick has been collecting since 1959 was was fortunate to know a number of the early collectors. He collects bottles of many types plus three mould decanters, patent models, fruit jars etc. He is also a longtime board member of Wheaton Arts, formerly Wheaton Village and he is a Board rep for the Museum Of American Glass where he is the Museum coordinator for annual FOHBC displays. He is the author of Bitters Bottles, 1965 and Bitters Bottle Supplement, 1968.
Martin Van Zant Martin Van Zant, FOHBC Editor, has been collecting bottles since he was 17, when his stepfather took him on a dig. Martin collects historical Masonic flasks, Indiana blob beers, Indiana Pontiled Medicines, Indiana Bitters, Indiana Sodas and also Lightning Rod Balls on the side. Martin is the editor for two bottles clubs, Wabash Valley Antique Bottle and Pottery Club out of Terre Haute and the Circle City Antique Bottle Club out of Indianapolis. Martin states that his door is always open to talk bottles, and to take your stories, so give him a call or send him a message!
FOHBC Merchandising Director,
Jim Bender Jim Bender, FOHBC Membership Director, started collecting and digging bottles back in 1972 as a kid in school. Over the years he has collected groups of bitters, inks and Saratoga type mineral waters, which he has sold off. The past 15 years he has been collecting Union Clasping Hands Flasks as his main grouping along with many miscellaneous other bottles. He hope’s to be the first person to complete a set of Group XII bottles and is only a few bottles away! Best memory to date is the Gardner Sale. ‘’Even as a kid I knew GOOD when I saw it”.
Tom Phillips Tom Phillips, FOHBC Conventions Director, is a collector of all categories of antique bottles, antique advertising, pottery, and general store items. Tom and his wife Lisa live in Memphis, Tennessee and have two children; Barbara and Kendall. Tom enjoys local area history as well. He has been an active collector and digger for nearly 40 years.
Alan DeMaison Alan DeMaison, FOHBC Business Manager, is a retired Math teacher and currently working as a Math consultant. He is a collector of Historical Flasks, violin bottles and Meadville Rye Whiskey Items. He is a member of the Ohio Bottle Club serving as past President and past Show chairman.
Carl Sturm Junior Carl Sturm, FOHBC Director-at-Large, started collecting bottles in 1957 in Hawaii. He retired after 28 Years with the US Navy in 1973 as Lieutenant Commander O-4. Carl wrote the FOHBC Newsletter from 1989-2004 and is a Life Member. He has been President of the FOHBC for 3 Terms, placed on the FOHBC Hall of Fame in 2008. He has also been a FOHBC Board of Directors Member from 1989 to 2011. Carl collects Half Pint Flasks (Historical and Pictoral) and German Porcelain Perfumes with Crown Tops.
Sheldon Baugh Sheldon Baugh, FOHBC Director-at-Large, has collected bottles since 1968. Like a lot of collectors, he loves all categories of bottles but his collection is primarily focused on Bitters and Shaker bottles. He has been married to his wife Brenda for 48 years and has 2 children and 2 granddaughters. Sheldon had an insurance agency that he owned and operated for 43 years and also served for 14 years as state representative and retired at the end of 2008. He is a life member of the federation and has also served as midwest director, vice president and president for two terms.
John Pastor John R. Pastor, FOHBC Director-at-Large, has been a collector, dealer, auctioneer and appraiser of antique bottles, flasks, and related glass for more than 35 years and is a widely recognized authority of antique bottles, historical flasks and related glass. This experience has brought a broad knowledge of the field and the valued trust of his colleagues and customers alike.
  Randee Kaiser, FOHBC Midwest Region Director, is a retired healthcare professional and along with his wife Susan, is a long-time collector of applied color-label sodas. Other areas of interest include art deco embossed sodas, army medical chinaware and civil war history. Randee and his wife attend six to eight bottle shows a year throughout the midwest region and always enjoy meeting collectors, talking bottles and promoting the bottle collecting hobby.

Ed Kuskie Ed Kuskie, FOHBC Northeast Region Director,
Jack Hewitt Jack A. Hewitt, FOHBC Southern Region Director, is a second generation antique bottle collector and dealer. Jack has been collecting bottles and early American glass for over 40 years. He has been show chairman for the Atlanta Antique Bottle Show for over twenty years. He is also a dealer in general antiques and a USPAP (Uniform Standard for Professional Appraisal Practice) qualified personal property appraiser specializing in bottles, glass, and other antiques. Jack and his wife Kim live in the Atlanta area.
Dave Maryo Dave Maryo, FOHBC Western Region Director, has a passion for Early Historic Glass. Dave specializes in American free blown glass from the colonial period to the mid 19th century. Dave started collecting bottles as a child in the 1960’s. Dave is married to Cynthia Joan Maryo, both are originally from Cleveland Ohio. The Maryo’s live in Victorville California and also enjoy antiques, works of art, and fine wines.
Pam Selenak, FOHBC Public Relations Director, is a native of Bartlett, Illinois and lives in Orange, California. Pam is married to Randy Selenak and is a registered nurse for 28 years specializing in surgery. She has been the President and Vice President of the Los Angelas Historical Bottle Club, Show Chairman for the 2009 FOHBC National in Pomona. She is interested in quack medicines, civil war medical memorabilia, western glass. Her other interests are traveling, scuba diving, camping in the desert, hiking, and mostly enjoying the company of close friends. She loves meeting new people and hearing their stories.