Honest Coin Dealer

Now that is how business should be conducted.

Hooray for this gentleman and his business.

A penny for your thoughts?

Better yet, how about $1,000 for your 1909 S-VDB penny?

Or better still, would you take $7.5 million for your 1933 Double Eagle $20 Gold Piece?

No wonder numismatics -- the collection and study of coins, paper money, tokens and medals -- is called "The Hobby of Kings." And the king in Greeley who reigns over the Land of Coinage is Ron Wittow, ruler of Ron's Coin Store in downtown Greeley.

To pay tribute to King Ron, simply go to Don's Hobbies at 815 10th St. and ascend to the second floor. While his place of business is modest, his 38 years of serving as the owner of Greeley's only coin store has produced a network of customers that stretches from northern Colorado to Wyoming and Nebraska.

Wittow believes his strong customer base is directly attributed to being a square shooter.

"A man came in awhile back and showed me a 1916-D Mercury Head Dime," Wittow said. "He asked if it was worth $3,000 and I said, 'No. It's worth $5,000'." Wittow eventually sold the 10-cent piece at a Long Beach, Calif., coin show for $11,000 and gave the seller $10,000.

"I usually charge a 10-percent commission, so if I get more, I pass along the extra to my customers and my commission goes up, too. That's just how I've always operated," Wittow added.

To help Wittow value coins and paper money, he uses "A Guide Book of United States coins" (better known as "The Official Red Book"), which is published annually. It's like the "Blue Book" used by car dealers.

Of course, the actual value of these items depends on their condition. One crease or fold in an otherwise valuable dollar bill, or a coin that was cleaned, will drastically alter the value. In fact, The American Numismatic Association has 11 grading standards to evaluate items.

The worth of coins and paper money also fluctuates much like the stock market, but Wittow has noticed the value is linked, curiously, with the price of crude oil.

Wittow's degree in business from the University of Northern Colorado has served him well during the years, deciphering these financial trends of the finicky nature of his chosen hobby.

As to how he got hooked on numismatics, it all started after he parlayed 100 $1 silver certificates into $129 by buying them at a bank and selling them to a coin store, based on the U.S. government's price at the time.

But while he enjoys being the broker between customers and buyers, he especially likes helping boys and girls get started in collecting, or seeing the smile of a customer when he is able to provide a coin, which will complete the buyer's collection.

Finding the right coin is usually not that difficult, Wittow says, but sorting through "hundreds of thousands" of his coins in safe deposit boxes at a local bank can be challenging. "I should have them better organized." Wittow said with a laugh.

So now that you know about Ron's Coin Shop, what are you going to do? Get a couple hundred dollars worth of change and find your fortune?

Not me. I'm journeying downstairs at my house and start searching through the belongings of my parents and grandparents who have passed way. I think I saw some coins and even a few dollars bills in my mother's jewelry box the last time I went through her keepsakes.

And who knows what else I'll find in the other boxes. Perhaps I'll stumble upon one of those 1933 Double Eagle coins. If I do, I'm going straight to King Ron for my $7.5 million, a move that just makes common sense.