The Brigham Young University-Idaho Geology Museum now has a great deal more to offer students and visitors, thanks to a generous gift of over 400 minerals from donors and collectors Keith and Mauna Proctor.  The new specimens are in addition to several hundred minerals the Proctors donated to BYU-Idaho two years ago.

Students will now be able to study minerals on campus that previously could only be viewed by traveling long distances.

"These are specimens that we can bring Geology and Science Education majors into our museum to study," said Mark Lovell, Geology Department chair.  "The Keith and Mauna Proctor Collection will greatly enhance the experience students have."

Keith Proctor, a retired jeweler and now a Church service missionary in Colorado, has been collecting minerals since he was 10 years old. "People marvel over the composition, color, form and perfection of the specimens," said Proctor.  "These are the beauty of the physical world.  Each one is a natural creation."

The Proctors decided to donate a portion of their collection to the Geology Museum after student curator Levi Sim discussed the museum's need for additional minerals. "He came to us and became the catalyst that brought our donation to BYU-Idaho," Proctor said.

The Keith and Mauna Proctor Collection is on display in the Geology Museum located in the George S. Romney Sciences Building.