The American First Day Cover Society will honor Barbara A. Montgomery of Hampton Bays, New York as the 31st member of the Court of Honor. Barbara’s artwork for the 2011 Court of Honor cachet is pictured to the right.

The AFDCS Court of Honor was created to honor cachet artists who have, over the years, contributed so much to the hobby through the beauty of their art. A different artist is selected each year.

The series uses the Christmas theme, for which stamps are issued every year, so that the cachets can be completed in advance. The artists are given complete freedom to develop their designs. The AFDCS then reproduces the art on a high-quality envelope.

Barbara’s official first cachet was for the Red Rose stamp of 1993. In the AFDCS Cachet Contest Barbara was the winner in the Hand Painted/Printed From Original Art category in 2001 and 2002 and achieved Honorable Mention in 2008. She was also the winner in both the Esoteric Covers and Miscellaneous Media categories in 2007.

Unserviced envelopes will be available for purchase in late September, for those who wish to service their own covers. Serviced covers will be available shortly after the first day of issue.

Ordering details will be announced at a later date.