All Dogs Go to Heaven – Especially Sonny Goe 

By Maya Roberts

In the lives of a business owner, your whole life seems to revolve around the workday. You pay the bills, you run the errands, and you coordinate your entire home life right from your work desk. The struggle of making everything fall into place seems to become a way of life, and you do the best you can to separate your private life from public face. In all the mess, you try to create your own workable environment.

As Southgate employees, we understand this constant balance between home and work, and we strive to make life for the Goes as easy as possible. Sometimes our small efforts at protecting them just can’t seem to go far enough.

Today (October 1, 2009), Rusty and Marie Goe were shaken when the life of their beloved Yorkshire terrier, Sonny, was brutally stripped from them.

I (Marie) was out of the office when Nicole came in for her first interview at Southgate Coins, but both Rusty and Maya told me how impressed they were with her. It became evident to me on Nicole’s first day at work that she was serious about the job and was giving an all-out effort to learn her basic responsibilities. I could see that she was smart and that she tried to catch on quickly to everything we taught her.

After weeks of planning and scheming, the date of the Southgate Coins company Christmas gift exchange and dinner finally arrived. The long-term staff girls, Maya, Crystal, Cara and me (Nicole) all decided to do a “Secret Santa” gift exchange for each other. Unfortunately, with only four of us, the other three girls figured out who picked who very quickly, and I was the only one who ended up not knowing who picked me! Eventually, I was informed that I was the odd-duck out, and was told who the now NOT-“top-secret” Santas were. Luckily, I was fully informed about all the other Southgate Christmas activities, and was very excited to participate.

As my (Nicole’s) first Christmas at Southgate Coins approaches, this past Wednesday (November 25th) I was able to experience the excitement and fun of decorating the store with many holiday-themed decorations. However, this experience was a little more special to me than it would’ve normally been to any other first-time Christmas participant. Read on to learn more about how the other Southgate girls and I prepared for the upcoming holiday season.

As some of you may already know—and others of you might be finding out for the first time—Maya is expecting a little bundle of joy in January 2010. So, being the girls that we are here at Southgate Coins, we decided that we wanted to surprise Maya with a celebration for the coming birth of her daughter. Read on to see how we schemed and planned for the event and to hear how fun the party was.

Every year at the end of October, there is a tradition that is celebrated in many cultures. At Southgate Coins, our culture is no different when it comes to the celebration of All Hallows Eve—otherwise known as Halloween. Keep reading to learn more about our diversity of costumes and how we celebrated the day...

Each year in October, the Southgate crew gets the opportunity to honor one of their wonderful boss’s birthdays: Marie Goe. This year, all four of us crew members got to celebrate this event with Marie; one of us for the third time, two for the second time, and one for the first time. All of us were committed to making it a memorable event for the First Lady of Southgate Coins.

If you didn't know, today is National Bosses Day. Traditionally, the Southgate crew honors their two bosses, Rusty and Marie Goe, with anything from a real Free Lunch Friday (our treat), to a nice card and warm wishes. We always try to make that extra little effort to let them know that even though work can be tough, we know that we’re appreciated here. And we want to reciprocate that appreciation on any occasion (and for any reason) we can.

It’s hard for me (Marie) to believe that it’s been a year since Cara started working at Southgate Coins. Last September Cara joined our team just one week after another girl got hired. She was one of three new girls at our store.

Friday, August 21, 2009, was the first day of the annual Carson City Coin Show held this past weekend at the Nevada State Museum. This year, the event also served as a host for a regional meeting of the Carson City Coin Collectors of America. We were surrounded by many good friends and C4OA members—what an exhilarating weekend!

During the nearly ten months that Cara has been at Southgate Coins, she’s had the privilege of participating in everyone’s birthday, except her own. Finally, on July 1, 2009, her turn arrived as she got to celebrate a milestone birthday—her 21st—complete with surprise visitors and all! Read on to learn more...

very year around the beginning of summer, Reno has a special event called the Reno Rodeo. It’s been a long-standing tradition (this year was its 90th) in this area, where many Reno citizens and tons of out-of-towners come out to enjoy a week-long event filled with ropers, bull riders, barrel racing, and much more. With the city of Reno going all out for this event, how could the Southgate Coins crew not be a part of it and join in on the celebration? Read on to see how the we celebrated the Reno Rodeo.

Last June (in 2008), when Crystal interviewed for a position at Southgate Coins as a summer intern, Rusty and I (Marie) had no idea how much was “packed” into our new, little frontline assistant. Now one year later, Crystal has blossomed into one of our finest workers, who’s always there to lend a helping hand.

Being at Southgate Coins for almost a half year, I (Nicole) have been able to experience quite a few birthdays! First, there was Crystal’s 25th, then Maya’s 21st, and soon after, came Rusty’s “born-long-ago” bash as well! So driving up to Southgate Coins last Saturday morning, I thought I knew what to expect. But little did I know how the gang at Southgate would only continue to surprise me as the day progressed! Read on to see how my 19th birthday at Southgate Coins was celebrated.

On the morning of the much-anticipated golf tournament, the Southgate crew (including C4OA treasurer Paul Sudmeier) met in front of Southgate Coins. After a few pictures and some ice chest-space coordination, we all piled into Marie’s and Rusty’s cars and headed up to Montreux, for what was sure to be an exciting day.

Every year around this time, we host a slew of events, and this year was no exception. This past Friday (May 22) started off a wave of excitement at Southgate Coins. After all, it was Rusty’s big birthday celebration. Read on to see how the celebration went.

This Tuesday, I (Maya) was elated to walk in the store and see the telltale signs of celebration: balloons, banners, and birthday wishes from my bosses and coworkers. I could already tell it was going to be an eventful day filled with pictures, presents, and of course, birthday cake. After all, I finally turned 21, and who better to celebrate my special day with than Southgate Coins!

This past Saturday, May 16, 2009, Otto Klay and his wife Christine, invited me (Cara) out for a practice round at the Montreux Golf and Country Club, where Southgate Coins’ First Annual Invitational Golf Tournament will be played on May 23, 2009. It was a gorgeous day that was full of golf tips, some good and some bad shots, and lots of laughter.

Every year around this time, we tear down boxes, organize our plethora of proof and mint sets, update our web inventory, and make the backend of our store a little more user-friendly for the months to come. It always seems like a daunting task to begin with, and this year we added a little twist to the action as we did some “spring assembly” as well.

The 135th running of the Kentucky Derby was held this past Saturday, May 2nd. That means that here at Southgate Coins it was Kentucky Derby Day. The day was filled with a variety of hats, cute outfits, good food, and many laughs. This Kentucky Derby Day was by far one of the best when it came to outfits and hats. We all would’ve looked right at home walking around Churchill Downs. Sadly though, when it came to betting on the horses, none of us did so hot, but we’ll get back to that later. Read on to learn more…