7/30/2022
Sachinthana Saranasooriya is a beginner stamp collector and APS member who loves finding different stories through postal stamps. Her collection is mainly focused on stamps from her home country of Sri Lanka (called Ceylon in older stamps). Click here to watch a video about tea stamps from the country. You may also know her from the YouTube channel and twitter called Stamps with Sara. APS did a short interview with Sachinthana to learn more about her background and plans for the future in the hobby. You can watch a video of the interview below.
Interview Video
How did you learn about APS?
I first found out about the American Philatelic society from twitter, then I watched some of the videos on their YouTube channel. After seeing more updates from the society I was influenced to become a member.
What inspired you to collect stamps?
I started collecting stamps around grade five. My mom really inspired me because she was already a stamp collector, one day she gave me some beautiful stamps and said that I can collect them too. That was the start of my stamp collecting journey. I remember I pasted the stamps in books since at the time I did not have any stamp albums.
What stamps do you collect?
I collected every stamp, especially local stamps. At the time my main interest was flora and fauna. I wanted to learn more about them, so now my collection had a special focus on flora and fauna.
What inspired you to start a YouTube channel?
I studied agriculture and I did hiking as a hobby, so I wanted to share my experiences about flora with other collectors. Eventually that idea inspired me to make a YouTube channel. I should also mention Graham from Exploring Stamps. From the beginning he inspired me to make more videos, which was really great.
What membership services do you use the most?
The newsletters have a lot of videos and I'm enjoying reading them. As a beginner and a new collector, I'm learning a lot from the society. It's really interesting how they approach collectors and give them opportunities to share their stories. I wanted to thank the APS for giving me this opportunity to share my experiences as well.
Taisia Osipova
Taisia Osipova is a Digital Content Writer at the American Philatelic Society. Taisia assists with:
View More by Taisia Osipova
My Stamp Story - Manish Mohan (The Amateur Philatelist)
My Stamp Story - Phil Bansner
My Stamp Story - Nilda Chong
Worldwide in a Nutshell: Marshall Islands
Worldwide in a Nutshell: Niue
My Stamp Story - Darrin Lettinga (Definitively Stamps)
My Stamp Story - Lisa Berthin (StampCat)
For Collectors, By Collectors: How to Use Zoom for Stamp Clubs
Virtual Stamp Show Site Tutorial
Meet the Director of "Freaks and Errors"
Ted talks stamps: Unboxing
My Stamp Story - Nicolas Changea
Collecting Coast to Coast: Brushes With Celebrity
Worldwide in a Nutshell: Saudi Arabia
Worldwide in a Nutshell: Tanzania
Membership Matters - Updates and Recruitment Tips
APS Clubs use virtual meetings to connect with fellow members - UPDATED
U.S. Postal Service Reveals Even More Stamps for 2022
Postal Service To Honor Mighty Mississippi on Forever Stamps
Scott English, Executive Director
Susanna Mills, Editor in Chief
X