About one more week until the new program is released. I may delay next week's issue by a day or two so I can contain some commentary on the stamps. Additionally, there will be no issue of this newsletter in two weeks, as I will be in Seattle for the weekend.

Scheduled for release on August 9^th: Andy Warhol. This will be a pane of 20 stamps, all the same design on each stamp. Most post offices will not have this available on the first day of issue, but they will hopefully have this stamp available for sale next week. I haven't been very impressed with the last few 37¢ issues (commemoratives) but this one looks nice. I am holding out for the Hawaiian Missionary reprints to be issued in October.

WASHINGTON (AP) - A special fund-raising postage stamp for breast cancer ( news - web sites) research has brought in $27.2 million, and a second special stamp to raise money for the families of Sept. 11 victims is also selling well.

The stamps, called a semipostals, sell for more than the normal cost of a first-class stamp, with the extra money used for designated charities.

On sale since July 1998, the breast cancer stamp — now 45 cents — has raised $27.2 million through the sale of 392.4 million stamps, the post office said Tuesday.

The 45-cent Heroes of 2001 stamp went on sale in June and 23.2 million have been sold so far. The stamps have brought in $10.4 million in revenue, but the amount available for charity will be determined at the end of the current accounting period in September.

Perhaps people saw my complaint about not receiving this stamp? I don't think so, but I received several letters this week with this stamp on cover. I'm glad I have more than one for my collection. According to the report above, the stamp is selling well, so hopefully we will be seeing it used more.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - The dramatic rescue of nine men trapped in the Quecreek Mine has increased interest in efforts to have a postage stamp issued in honor of coal miners.

For 16 years, John Vengien has been writing letters and gathering hundreds of signatures in support of the stamp. But for years, he was told that coal miners lack a key requirement.

"They keep telling me it's not 'of national interest,'" Vengien said. "Well, when I saw those nine guys come out of the (Quecreek) mine, I had tears rolling out of my eyes, and I know I wasn't the only one."

Vengien, 84, a former coal miner, was recently notified along with other supporters that the coal miner stamp is under consideration for possible issuance in 2005.

A Postal Service spokesman said Friday that decision was made before the mine accident, but he said the publicity surrounding the rescue could only help chances for approval by the service's Citizen Stamp Advisory Committee.

A subcommittee will decide whether the stamp would help create a "balanced and diverse program" of stamps being designed for 2005. The proposal would then be voted on by the entire panel and the selection announced in fall 2004.

"I think this is a turning point," Vengien said. "I don't see how the government can say no to a coal miner stamp now, because that mine rescue had the whole country interested. This was history being made, and people were interested all over the United States and around the world," Vengien said.

U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell ( news, bio, voting record), R-Ky., has asked a congressional committee to take action on a resolution expressing support for the stamp.

Thanks for reading, see you next week.

Alan Cohen