Liberty Coin Service
300 Frandor Ave.
Lansing, MI 48912
(800) 933-4720
- founded in 1971
- Member of numerous local, state, and national coin associations and authorized dealers for PCGS, NGC, ICG and ANACS.
- LCS serves as a consultant and appraiser for the Michigan Historical Museum, banks, CPAs, law firms, auctioneers, police departments and insurance companies.
- We buy and sell a variety of items including coins of all kinds from the last 2,500 years, paper money, tokens, military items, autographs, jewelry, and sterling silver flatware.
Meet the Staff...
Patrick A Heller, CPA,
LCS Owner, General Manager, and editor of Liberty's Outlook
I began collecting coins in 1964, as did almost
everyone in my family. My father worked in the foreign aid program, so we
had access to interesting coins from many countries. After getting my BBA
with Distinction from the University of Michigan in 1974, I worked for seven
years as a Certified Public Accountant. I set the office record for a high
score as I passed the CPA exam in my first attempt.
In 1975, I visited Liberty Coins for the first time. In 1981, after realizing sizeable profits on my coin investments, I became part owner of LCS, Michigan's largest rare coin and precious metals dealership. I have been sole owner since 1995.
Besides helping customers and writing the monthly newsletter, I do much of the accounting and public relations work. I am a frequent speaker to community groups and schools. My current collecting interests include gold coins from Liberia, and tokens and paper money from Lapeer, Michigan and Menomonie, Wisconsin.
My professional writings have appeared in the Journal of Accountancy (January 1980), The Wall Street Journal (December 1987), Numismatic News (various), and Michigan Banker (October 1999). Many pieces I have written in Liberty's Outlook have been reprinted in dozens of publications. I have also written a number of short stories and four books of poetry, with some publishing success.
I
have life memberships in the American Numismatic Association (ANA), Central States
Numismatic Society (CSNS), Michigan State Numismatic Society (MSNS), and Society for
Paper Money Collectors (SPMC). I am also a member of numerous other numismatic
organizations as well as the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants.
I currently serve on the Board of Directors and as Treasurer of the Industry
Council for Tangible Assets, the national trade association for the rare coin
and precious metals industry. From 2003 to 2005, I served as a member of the ANA's
Committee on the Future of the Hobby. For MSNS, I am the chair of the Elections
Committee.
Allan Beegle and I were
two of the main three people that worked on the project that succeeded in
enactment of a law to eliminate sales and use taxes on the sale of rare coins
and precious metals in Michigan (effective July 7, 1999).
I was Chair of the MSNS Committee for the Design of the 2004 Michigan Quarter
. Former Michigan Governor John Engler appointed me to serve on the
Michigan Quarter Commission. In my work on the commision, I was the primary
author of the written descriptions of all five potential Michigan Quarter designs
that were sent to the U.S. Mint. It is a genuine thrill to participate in the meeting
when Governor Jennifer Granholm selected the design for the Michigan Quarter, to
personally strike one of the first Michigan Quarters struck at the U.S. Mint, and
to be part of the public launch ceremony of the Michigan Quarter.
I have been frequently interviewed by television, radio, and newspaper media
in Michigan. Over the years, I have received multiple awards for my efforts at
introducing young collectors into the hobby and other public service.
I was honored with the 2003 George Hatie Memorial Award, MSNS's
highest award, as only the second recipient so recognized in MSNS's then 49-year history.
I was also presented with the 2004 Socially Responsible Entrepreneurial
Award of Greater Lansing.
Other activities include serving as Treasurer and a Director of Cryonics Institute of Clinton Township, Michigan
My wife Pamela and I are busy with seven grandchildren, three grown daughters--Alina, Mary, and Ashley, and two at home--Daniel (10) and Amy (9), the last two who we adopted from the Marshall Islands. Daniel received a lot of publicity in 2004 when he attended the Michigan Quarter Ceremonial Strike Ceremony at the Denver Mint, becoming one of the youngest people to ever strike a U.S. coin. We travel a lot; I have been to all 50 states and 29 countries on four continents.
Allan Beegle, Chief Numismatist
I have always been fascinated with coins, and when a coin shop opened up
near my high school, I'd often stop by and look at coins. In 1972 I became the
first LCS employee, sorting coins and waiting on customers after school. I've worked
mostly for LCS since then, with breaks for college and a two year stint working for
coin wholesalers in California.
The extensive network of dealer contacts I've built through the years are put to use everyday. Sometimes it seems I'm on the telephone so much with retail and wholesale customers that our staff often jokes that the phone is attached to my ear.
I'm a life member of the American Numismatic Association, Central States Numismatic Society, and Michigan State Numismatic Society as well as a member of many other collector organizations.
I collect Bust Half Dollars,$2 1/2 and $5 classic gold coins, Buffalo nickels "with full pointy horns", and nice early type coins.
I enjoy my work, and love working with customers, but the focus of my life revolves around my wife and children.
Paul Manderscheid, Inventory Manager and Senior Numismatist
Paul became a professional coin dealer at the age of 14
when he set up his own booth at a coin show. Paul first started working at LCS
in 1972, the company's second employee, while attending high school. He is the author of
several articles on coin errors and tokens and exonumia. He also wrote the
book "Lansing's Money." Paul is listed as a contributing
researcher in several token and paper money catalogs. His ever changing variety of
numismatic interests have led to his encyclopedic knowledge on almost any
monetary subject. Paul earned the Roethke Memorial Award for the Best
Mich-Matist Article of 2002. This research article, titled Michigan Lumber
Tokens, was 30 pages long.
One example of Paul's expertise happened when he took the American Numismatic Association course on "Advanced Detection of Counterfeit and Altered Coins" in 1983 and found two mistakes in the teaching materials!
Paul is regularly consulted by other dealers on questions of authenticity and quality of coins, paper money, tokens, and medals.
Paul's current collecting interests include U.S. Territorial Gold Coins, Indian and Post Trader tokens, Michigan-related tokens and paper money, Hellenistic (Greek) kingdoms and Roman coins issued from Julius Caesar to Commodus, and Civilian Conservation Corp tokens.
Paul is a life member of the American Numismatic Association and Michigan State Numismatic Society as well as being a member of a number of other numismatic organizations. He is the past president of the Michigan Token and Medal Society (MICH-TAMS) and is currently the editor of the MICH-TAMS newsletter.
Thomas Coulson, CPA, Senior Numismatist
I started shopping at Liberty Coins in 1976 and joined
the staff in 1983. I remained at
the store during high school and college and left in 1996 to take a position
with a regional accounting firm in Grand Rapids.
After becoming a CPA, I realized that the people at Liberty Coins and numismatics were
important to me so I returned to LCS in 1999.
Currently, I take mail order
transactions, fill want lists, process and trade coins wholesale. Throughout the years I
have had a wide range of collecting interests including US large cents, Bust
type and Liberty Seated half dollars, Liberty Seated dollars, Roman Imperial
coinage, Byzantine Gold, Medieval and Early Modern British coinage, 18th
century World crowns, and Michigan Department of Transportation Road maps. I am a
lifetime member of the Michigan State Numismatic Society, Florida United
Numismatists, and also a member of the Central States Numismatic Society,
as well as a member of other numismatic organizations.
Barbara Robinson,
Administrative Assistant,
Office Manager and Customer Service
At Liberty, my primary task is to keep the office running smoothly.
I process all mail order transactions, translate old documents, in addition to
buying and selling jewelry and coins in our retail store.
Previous experience includes 8 years as a buyer and seller for a local jewelry
store.
Coins, currency, or old documents relating to family genealogy are my favorite
collectibles. With family research and documentation recently obtained, I
became qualified to be a member of the National Society of the Daughters of the
American Revolution. I am active in my church on the Parish Life
Commission as a Funeral Dinner Worker, helping make food for parish member funeral
dinners. I also take pleasure in being a part-time member of the church choir and serving
as a member of my church's Usher Club.
I especially enjoy my children, grandchildren, and family and friends in general.
My spare time activities include community involvement with Habitat for Humanity,
and Ecumenical People Praying for Peace.
I have been at Liberty Coin Service since 1994.
Since that time, I have represented our company at the monthly meetings of the
Frandor Merchants Association. In March 2005, the members of that association honored
me by electing me president.
Charles Tassinare, Customer Service
In the late 1950's I developed an interest in collecting
wheat pennies and buffalo head nickels. I have always liked antiques, which I began
collecting and selling in the 1970's. I now have decades of experience buying and
selling pottery in particular, and antiques in general. On a personal
level, I am interested in social issues and am politically active in support of my
views. Since joining LCS in 1997, I continue to find interesting things to learn about. I like
working with our LCS staff, and also enjoy my daily contact with our customers.
Coins caught my imagination in the late 1970's, as I was doing laundry at Michigan
State University's married housing complex. One day, old coins came out of the change
machine. Needless to say, the laundry was done late that day, after I went through
most of the coins in that machine. Years later, when I knew more about coins,
I actually fine-combed this pile of coins and found my VF 3-legged, 1937-D
Buffalo nickel. For the past several years, I have been serving on the Board of Directors of the
Michigan State Numismatic Society (MSNS), of which I am a life member. I am also a
member of numerous other coin clubs. I like to exhibit my coins and numismatic
material in shows. I've been doing this for more than a decade, and have won
numerous awards for my exhibits. I recently re-did the Hebrew dating page in
the Israel section for the 2005 Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901 - present,
and am credited as a contributor. I enjoy working at Liberty Coins because of the great staff, and the opportunity it
gives me to interact with people who have similar interests to my own.
Dany Rothfeld, Customer Service
I first did business with Liberty Coins in the early 1980's.
In 2003, I joined LCS staff, where I do most of the shipping, as well as working with our customers at the counter.
Janet Gates, Customer Service & Internet
Sales
Since beginning my job here in October of 2003, I
am enjoying learning more about coins and jewelry. The historical
significance of the symbols in coinage is particularly interesting to me.
And jewelry...I'm addicted. It's a pleasure to work with our jewelry
and envision appealing displays. Also rewarding is when someone selects one
of the fine pieces of jewelry that caught my eye, too. And since we also deal in other collectibles,
interesting things can happen. Once, we had a customer selling some
vintage postcards who also had a business card that had belonged to
my great grandfather, which he kindly gave to me. What a treasure!
In my 'other' life outside of Liberty Coins, I enjoy my family and
friends, especially my grandchildren, pet cats and The Lake.
Robert Sweet, Retail Store Manager
David Hartung, Customer Service
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