Hi Alex,
Your post brings back fond memories of my early days of chip collecting in Atlantic City.
Bob Mera is the one that signed me up as a Member of the CCGTCC back in May of 1992 and it literally changed my life !! I have been deeply involved in the Chip Collecting Hobby for the last 26 years. Bob and I became really close friends and he is the one who gave me the name - "Mr. Roulette". Bob also signed up countless other members and was the Top Recruiter for the CCGTCC for 5 or 6 years in a row back in the 1990s.
Bruce Landau and I were about the same age but I always looked up to Bruce because he had been collecting for so long (I think he started back in the 1970s). When Bruce looked me in the eye and said "Jerry, you are the Best." - I really felt I was the best !! Bruce had such love for Chip Collecting and such a great personality - he was the Heart and Soul of the Hobby back in the day.
Unfortunately, both Bob and Bruce passed away way to soon. Bob died in 1999 after a long battle with Leukemia and Bruce died of a massive heart attack at a Christmas party dance in 2003.
Both men are members of the CCGTCC Hall of Fame and I will never forget them and how they impacted me and the Hobby as a whole.
Take care,
"Mr. Roulette"
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