The nonprofit has made updates to the content in its beginner and advanced jewelry sales courses.
Longtime Maine Jeweler Stanley Pollack Dies at 82
A beloved and respected figure in the industry, he was a past JA president and member of National Jeweler’s Retailer Hall of Fame.

He was 82.
According to his online obituary in the Portland Press Herald, Pollack was born in Pittsburgh to Perle and Gerald Pollack but moved to Maine, the state that would become his longtime home, when he was 15.
He graduated from Deering High School and went on to attend, and graduate from, the University of Bridgeport.
It was during his freshman year at Bridgeport that he met the woman who would become his wife, Doris Carroll. He was 18 and she was 17, and their meeting sparked the beginning of a 59-year romance.
After college, Pollack served in the U.S. Army during the Berlin Crisis (1961) and received the National Emergency Medal from President John F. Kennedy for his service.
He was honorably discharged from the Army and began working alongside his father, Gerald, at G.M. Pollack & Sons, the jewelry store Gerald had opened in 1955.
Pollack led the expansion of G.M. Pollack & Sons from one store in Maine to more than a dozen across the state and in New Hampshire, including a corporate office.
He was a diamontologist and gemologist who not only sold jewelry but also designed it and brought happiness and love to his customers.
Pollack headed some of the most visible organizations in the jewelry industry.
He was treasurer, vice president, and president of Jewelers of America, served two terms as chairman of the Diamond Council of America, and founded the Maine Jewelers Association.
He also served on the first board of directors when the organization now known as Jewelers for Children transitioned from being the International Retail Jewelers Charity Fund to the Jewelers Charity Fund for Children.
According to current JFC Executive Director David Rocha, Pollack spearheaded JA’s effort to support JFC from the start.
It was his idea to create the JFC canister for retailers to put on their counters and he worked through JA to send one to every member at the time.
He was inducted into National Jeweler’s Retailer Hall of Fame in 1999 alongside Cartier’s Ralph Destino and New York jeweler Al Solomon.
His family’s jewelry store, G.M. Pollack & Sons, closed in 2015, struggling with the same troubles that have plagued many independent jewelers in recent years.
Outside of the jewelry industry, Pollack was involved in various charities in Maine, and had a deep-rooted love for the state’s Jewish community and for continuing the traditions of his religion.
He also liked to fish, travel, and spend time with his family, and was a fan of all New England sports teams, especially the Boston Red Sox.
Pollack was preceded in death by his sister, Betsi Messier.
He is survived by his wife, Doris; two sons, David and Sam; two daughters-in-law, Agnes and Stacey; two grandchildren, Sage and Boden; sister, Leiba Frankel (Marshall Frankel); brother-in-law, Raymond Messier; many nieces, nephews and cousins; and three special “furry friends,” Timmy, Willi, and Bella.
The family held a private funeral service.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Pollack’s memory to the Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital via this link or through the mail to the Maine Medical Center Philanthropy Department, 22 Bramhall St., Portland, ME 04102.
The Latest

BIJC President Malyia McNaughton will shift roles to lead the new foundation, and Elyssa Jenkins-Pérez will succeed her as president.

As a nod to the theme of JCK Las Vegas 2025, “Decades,” National Jeweler took a look back at the top 10 jewelry trends of the past 10 years.

Gain access to the most exclusive and coveted antique pieces from trusted dealers during Las Vegas Jewelry Week.

The company plans to halt all consumer-facing activity this summer, while Lightbox factory operations will cease by the end of the year.


Following weekend negotiations, the tax on Chinese goods imported into the United States will drop by 115 percent for the next 90 days.

“Artists’ Jewelry: From Cubism to Pop, the Diane Venet Collection” is on view at the Norton Museum of Art through October.

Supplier Spotlight Sponsored by GIA

The deadline to submit is June 16.

Lichtenberg partnered with luxury platform Mytheresa on two designs honoring the connection between mothers and daughters.

The miner announced plans to recommence open-pit mining at Kagem.

Michel Desalles allegedly murdered Omid Gholian inside World of Gold N Diamond using zip ties and then fled the country.

Associate Editor Lauren McLemore shares her favorite looks from a night of style inspired by Black dandyism.

Sponsored by Instappraise

CEO Beth Gerstein discussed the company’s bridal bestsellers, the potential impact of tariffs, and the rising price of gold.

The brand’s first independent location outside of Australia has opened in Beverly Hills, California.

Cathy Marsh will lead the jewelry company’s efforts in the upper Midwest and western United States.

The company has multiple strategies for dealing with tariffs, though its CEO said moving manufacturing to the U.S. is not one of them.

Connecting with your customers throughout the year is key to a successful holiday marketing push.

Its commercial-quality emerald sale held last month totaled more than $16 million, up from about $11 million in September 2024.

National Jeweler Editor-in-Chief Michelle Graff joined Michael Burpoe to talk tariffs, consumer confidence, and the sky-high price of gold.

Designer Lauren Harwell Godfrey made the piece as an homage to the 2025 gala’s theme, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”

Expanded this year to include suppliers, JA’s 2025 list honors 40 up-and-coming professionals in the jewelry industry.

Located in Fort Smith, it’s the Mid-South jeweler’s first store in Northwest Arkansas.

The episode about the family-owned jeweler will premiere May 17.

The Houston-based jeweler’s new 11,000-square-foot showroom will include a Rolex boutique.

The turquoise and diamond tiara hasn’t been on the market since it was purchased by Lord Astor in 1930.