J.T. Stanton, one-half of the creative team (along with coauthor Bill Fivaz) behind the Cherrypickers' Guide to Rare Die Varieties of United States Coins, diedOctober 19, 2018, following a brief illness, at the age of 66. He was surrounded by his family at the time of his passing.

If you asked J.T. what his initials stood for, he would reply, â€œJust Terrific!â€ (Actually, it's Jeffery Thomas.) He was born in Macon, in the heart of Georgia, about 85miles south of Atlanta. J.T.'s career was in retail management and printing, but the hobby community knew him best as a professional numismatist and educator who helpedpopularize â€œcherrypickingâ€â€"the art and science of closely examining what appear to be normal coins, looking for doubled dates and other die anomalies that reveal them to be rareand valuable varieties.

J.T. and Bill debuted the first edition of the Cherrypickers' Guide at the January 1990 Florida United Numismatists show in Tampa. They sold out the 500 copiesthey brought to the show and gathered a backlog of orders to be mailed. The first print run of 3,000 books sold out in less than 10 months. Word-of-mouth publicity and excitementin the numismatic press convinced the authors to create a second edition, with more listings, the addition of retail values, and other improvements. It took collectors about sixmonths to snap up the second edition's print run of 5,000 books.

The third edition featured about five times as many varieties as the first. It went into six printings totaling more than 28,000 copiesâ€"a best-seller in the antiques andcollectibles market.

By the fourth edition the Cherrypickers' Guide was so large it had to be divided into two volumes. Volume I covered half cents through nickels. Whitman Publishingacquired rights to the book and published volume II, with half dimes through silver dollars, gold, and commemoratives, in 2006.

I first met J.T. Stanton in December 2005, in Atlanta, after Whitman bought the Cherrypickers' Guide. He was 15 years into his journey as one of the most famouspopular names in the hobbyâ€"but he was as humble, down-to-earth, and good-natured as anyone I've met. He insisted that we put him up at â€œthe cheapest hotel you can find,â€ andnot make a fuss. We had breakfast at the local waffle place.

J.T. was always forward-thinking, upbeat, and optimistic. He cared deeply about the hobby and coin collectors. â€œAbove all,â€ he and Bill have written in theCherrypickers' Guide, â€œalways use courtesy and respect in all your dealings, be honest, and always act in a professional manner. You'll make some friends alongthe way, and we guarantee you'll come out ahead in the long run.â€

Over time I would learn some of Bill Fivaz's â€œJ.T. stories.â€ In the mid-1990s, the two of them flew out to Colorado Springs to teach a class at the American NumismaticAssociation's Summer Seminar. When they unpacked their suitcases, Bill realized he'd forgotten to pack his undershorts. J.T. kindly drove his friend to the localK-Mart to restock. Later in the week, Bill was auctioneer at the Young Numismatists benefit auction. He ballyhooed a â€œMystery Lotâ€ that saw spirited bidding and finally sold for$400. J.T. insisted that Bill open the Mystery Lot in front of the audience. Turns out it was a pair of his â€œtighty-whiteysâ€â€"J.T. had purloined them after they arrived at theirdorm, had everyone at the ANA Summer Seminar autograph them, and put them up for bid as a prank. â€œThat pair of underwear appeared in at least three more YN auctions over theyears,â€ Bill recalled, â€œand in the last one, they'd been â€˜slabbed' between two pieces of plastic. Thanks, J.T.!â€

The last time I talked with J.T. was a few months ago when we had several conversations about coins and life in general. He and his wife of 38 years, Susan, had recently movedfrom their longtime home city of Savannah to Townsend, Georgia, about an hour south and slightly inland. â€œI love it here,â€ he told me. â€œI feed the deer twice each day, and thefreshwater lake is 75 feet from my back door. Every day Susan and I are down here we enjoy it more and more.â€ He talked about having privacy but also the advantages of acommunity. â€œAnd I've always loved nature,â€ he said, â€œso this really is a slice of Heaven.â€

Our last acts of collaboration as publisher and author/researcher illustrate J.T.'s generosity to the hobby. When I told him Whitman needed some photographs of modernLincoln cents, Roosevelt dimes, and Washington quarters, he threw open his entire image library of coins. He said if there was anything he hadn't photographed yet, to justlet him know. And if one of the large groups of photos weren't in the style or format we needed, he could reshoot everything in three weeks.

When J.T. passed away, he had been happily selling coins on eBay (with more than 17,000 positive transactions), was still very active in discussion and analysis of dievarieties, and had pitched a new book idea in recent years. Just a few days before he passed, I was telling several others on the Whitman staff about J.T.'s generosity insharing his excellent high-quality photographs. His death took us all by surprise. Bill Fivaz attended his funeral, which was held at Radiant Life Christian Fellowship in Savannahon Monday, October 22, with his cousin, The Reverend David Stanton, presiding. Other numismatists at the service included Kyle Vick, Tony Mesaros, Bob O'Brien, and JimO'Bryant.

J.T. is survived by his wife, Susan; sons Jamie (Meredith) and Jeffery (Liz); grandchildren Henry, Thomas, and Katie; sister Barbara (Kirk); and â€œmany dear cousins and hisloyal dog Kobe.â€

â€œHe had a deep appreciation for the military and never passed up an opportunity to thank a member of the Armed Forces for their service,â€ his family noted. They suggest thatremembrances be made to the Wounded Warrior Project, PO Box 758517, Topeka Kansas 66675-8517.

To read the complete article, see:
A great educator and ambassador: The hobby community marksthe passing of J.T. Stanton (http://mintnewsblog.com/a-great-educator-and-ambassador-the-hobby-community-marks-the-passing-of-j-t-stanton/)

To read the earlier E-Sylum articles, see:
J.T. STANTON (1952-2018) (http://www.coinbooks.org/v21/esylum_v21n42a16.html)
NOTES ON THE DEARLY DEPARTED (http://www.coinbooks.org/v21/esylum_v21n43a06.html)