Fast Five

A BRIEF Q&A WITH

WHAT IS YOUR TITLE AND WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU DO AT COLLECTORS?

I’m the Show & Events Manager for PSA and WATA, overseeing all the planning and execution for trade shows and events at which we’re exhibiting. I make sure we’re set up properly to service our customers, whether we’re just receiving submissions or offering on-site authentication and grading, or doing both.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT WORKING AT COLLECTORS?

It’s the people I’ve met through the years. I do enjoy my job and all the responsibilities that come with it, but you really need good teammates around you to make things work. That makes everything click.

WHAT'S YOUR BACKGROUND AS A COLLECTOR?

Honestly, I really haven’t been a collector for most of my life. I did collect Pokémon cards as a kid and got rid of them just like everyone else did, which is still one of my biggest regrets. I only recently got the collecting itch again after visiting a yard sale in 2020. A neighbor was giving away her recently deceased husband’s items for free and amongst his things, I found a binder full of trading cards. After sorting through them at home, I saw a few cards were worth serious money. I went back to tell her, of course. She said she didn’t care, that she just wanted to get rid of everything. And she wanted me to have them. Long story short, I found two special, coveted Michael Jordan cards in his binder: a 1997 SkyBox Z-Force Rave #190, which I submitted and got a grade of PSA 10, and a 1996 SkyBox Premium Net Set #8, which earned a grade of PSA 9.

WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE ITEM IN YOUR ENTIRE PERSONAL COLLECTION?

At this point, it’s got to be the 1996 SkyBox Premium Net Set Michael Jordan #8. It’s the only one I have left from the yard sale score since I sold the Z-Force. I have other cards — mostly UFC — but the Jordan is something I want to hold onto.

WHAT WOULD BE THE "GRAIL" COLLECTIBLE THAT YOU HOPE TO OWN ONE DAY?

Without a doubt, it would be the 2006 ArtBox Harry Potter Memorable Moments [factory sealed] hobby box. I’m a huge Harry Potter fan and wasn’t even aware, back in the day, of the cards being released. There are a few different Harry Potter-focused sets but this one seems to be the biggest, most important release of them all. All my co-workers would tell me to keep it sealed. But I’d rip!