Recently, I purchased a Johns Hopkins Alumna medal which I had never seen. The Alumnus medals are pretty common, but the Alumna was new to me.I called the Johns Hopkins University Alumni Association and asked about the medal. They were not able to tell me very much about it but referred me to their vendor for more information.

I called Mark Wenderoth at J. Jenkins Sons Co. Inc. and found out that the Alumna medal was made to be given to woman graduates, fifty years after graduation. It has been in use for about 15 years. Of course I was interested in what medal maker produces the medals. I assumed they were the middle man.

Mark told me that they make the medal here in Woodlawn, Baltimore County, Maryland. Having been a Baltimore medal collector for almost 30 years, I was surprised that we have a medal maker in Baltimore.Mark agreed to give me and some friends a tour of his plant which is primarily in the business of making school rings, but makes numerous other items.

On August 17, we visited the plant with Mark as our guide. He did a great job of showing us their operations and explaining the steps in manufacturing. We not only saw the medal making process but also the school ring manufacturing which uses the lost wax cast process which goes back to the Egyptians.

To view a slide show of all images, see:J. Jenkins Sons Co. Inc.(www.flickr.com/photos/coinbooks/sets/72157624763945420/show/)