At a ceremony at the American Numismatic Association (ANA) World’s Fair of Money in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 16, Liberty Coin Service Communications Officer Patrick A. Heller was one of five people honored with this year’s ANA Glenn Smedley Memorial Service Award. The award recognizes ANA members for their efforts to better the ANA and exhibit a positive attitude, strong communication skills, cooperation, and dependability.
Said LCS CEO and owner Tom Coulson, “Pat is the second person who has worked at Liberty to be honored with this award. It is also the fourth time he has been honored by the ANA to go along with nine other national awards bestowed by the Industry Council for Tangible Assets (ICTA), Numismatic Literary Guild (NLG), and Professional Numismatists Guild. He has also received multiple state and local honors from numismatic and business organizations.”
Beyond his ownership of Liberty Coin Service from 1981 to 2014, Heller has supported numismatics in a variety of ways. He has written Liberty’s monthly newsletter,Liberty’s Outlook, since 1995, written a weekly column for NumismaticNews.net since 2007, served on the ANA’s Future of the Hobby committee early this century, written for multiple other numismatic publications and websites, led the effort to gain a Michigan sales tax exemption in 1999 on the retail sales of rare coins and precious metals, then documented that the Michigan Treasury increased overall sales and other tax collections because of this exemption, and used this research to help gain or expand similar exemptions in twelve other states (including Alabama this year). On subjects of precious metals and rare coins he has written for, been interviewed by, or quoted in The Wall Street Journal, ABC.com, Fox Business News, Forbes.com, Michigan Banker, The Journal of Accountancy, several major US newspapers, and multiple Michigan television and radio stations and newspapers. He has also delivered twice-weekly commentaries on Lansing’s 1320-AM WILS under the title of “Things You ‘Know’ That Just Aren’t So, And Important News You Need To Know” since 2010, for which the NLG has honored his occasional programs on precious metals and numismatics several times.
Heller has served as treasurer and on the board of directors of ICTA since 2002, on the ANA’s Finance and Budget committee since 2007 (mostly as chair), and as chair of the Michigan State Numismatic Society’s Elections committee for at least a decade. In recent years, he has served the ANA and other numismatic organizations as a certified exhibit judge. He accepted invitations to participate in the US Mint’s first two Numismatic Forums in 2016 and 2017 and is one of a handful of people invited to the next one coming up in mid-October. He has given speeches to numismatic organizations across the country and to hundreds of local school classrooms, scouting, 4-H, and service organizations.
Perhaps his most memorable service was his involvement with the creation of the US Mint’s 2004 Statehood Quarter for Michigan. He was appointed by then-governor John Engler to the Michigan Quarter Commission. For this project, he created a template to submit design suggestions used by schools and periodicals to encourage public participation. He was the primary author of the written descriptions of all five finalist design concepts sent to the US Mint’s engravers (for which call calls himself the “unofficial artist” of the 2004 Michigan Statehood Quarter). He was one of three people who met with then-governor Jennifer Granholm on September 30, 2003 to select the design that appears on the 2004 Michigan quarter.
Frequently-honored Liberty Coin Service, founded in 1971, is Michigan’s largest rare coin and precious metals dealership. It has been located in Lansing’s Frandor Shopping Center since 1975.
The American Numismatic Association is a congressionally chartered, nonprofit educational organization dedicated to encouraging the study and collection of coins and related items. The ANA helps its 25,000 members and the public discover and explore the world of money through its vast array of educational and outreach programs as well as its museum, library, publications, and conventions.
Four of this year’s five Glenn Smedley Memorial Service Award winners were able to attend the ANA award ceremony in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 14, 2018. From left to right they are Steven J. D’Ippolito of Peyton, Colorado, Pat McBride of Pennsylvania, Roger Urce of St. James, New York, and Patrick A. Heller of Lansing, Michigan. The other award winner who was not present is Gerald Tebben of Columbus, Ohio.
