Antique appraisal show to stop in Allentown UPPER FREEHOLD - Find out the truth about your family heirlooms and yard sale finds. As seen locally on "Ask Dr. Lori" on television's Comcast Network Channel 8, Lori Verdame - art historian, certified art and antiques appraiser, and television personality - will present "What's It Worth?" at 1 p.m. on June 2. Verdame, known as Dr. Lori in the art and antiques world, will visit the Horse Park of New Jersey, Upper Freehold, to help locals appraise the value of their collectibles, according to a press release from the Horse Park. "You'll have fun even if your treasure is trash," Verdame said in a press release. "You'll laugh out loud while learning about your antique, your friends, family, neighbors, and even your spouse at my event." During the event, Verdame will give accurate values and historical information for heirlooms and found items, according to the release. A certified appraiser with the American Society of Appraisers, Verdame is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Wesleyan University in Connecticut, and earned her doctorate in art history from Penn State University in Pennsylvania. She taught art history at the State University of New York, Connecticut State University, and Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania. Verdame serves on the faculty at Penn State University and has held museum positions at the Yale University Art Gallery in Connecticut, Allentown Art Museum in Pennsylvania, and Palmer Museum of Art at Penn State, according to the press release. Verdame is not an antiques dealer, and she doesn't buy anything. "I'm not an antiques dealer, reseller, or affiliated with any auction house, and my appraisals are accurate and honest," she said. "Everyone is invited to attend, with or without an antique, and I'll even tell you how appraisers on the Antiques Roadshow fail to meet professional museum standards." Verdame said she began "What's It Worth?" to teach and empower people. "Everyone has valuable stuff in their house," Verdame said. "I just want people to know what they have and what they should get for it. "Nobody thinks that they or Grandma have valuable items in their house, but after reviewing more than 20,000 objects every year at events and in people's homes, I know you have the stuff," she said. Verdame said a 75-year-old woman inspired her to start "What's It Worth?" During a curators clinic in Allentown, Pa., in 2001, the woman approached her with a photograph of a newspaper from 1799 that had George Washington's obituary in it. She had just sold the paper for $50. When the woman asked Verdame if $50 was a fair price, Verdame had trouble telling her that the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., just purchased the paper for $50,000. "It was then that I decided I had to take this show on the road," she said. The cost of the event at the Horse Park is $5 to enter and $10 per item. Proceeds will benefit the Horse Park. For more information visit www.DrLoriV.com or call (888) 431-1010 for more information and directions.