Southern Oregon’s Gateway to International Collectors Market

Mark and Andrea Hutto are owners of J. Austin Coin & Jewelry (1642 Ashland St. in the Ashland Shopping Center). Mark's father was a owner of shop dealing with coins and bullion in Texas back in the 1980s, giving Mark early exposure to the world of coins. His grandfather on his mother's side was J. Austin, after whom the company is named. When Mark was twelve, his Grandpa Jack told him he "would one day be in this type of business," and because of his drive and ability to communicate "he would do well." Grandpa Jack was right.
"I was a college exchange student in Hungary when Andrea and I met in 1996," Mark said. "We were married the following year."
It was a match made in heaven not just on a personal level, but also in the business world. They quickly found a way to merge their interests in history, their knowledge in business and their love for all things rare and unusual.
"I had been living in the Rogue Valley since 1994 and started buying and selling coins, Mark said. "Andrea grew up as a minority under a very oppressive Communist regime in Romania and escaped to Hungary on a train with her family when she was thirteen. When she came to the U.S., she saw the opportunities available to her in a free market and hit the ground running.
"We moved back to Ashland and opened our business in 1997. We began trading ancient coins and artifacts on the Internet and eventually created an online auction venue. In 2011 we explored the possibility of offering our brokering services to the public and decided Ashland was the perfect place. We buy and sell coins, bank notes, gold and silver bullion, and jewelry. We also buy scrap gold and silver, diamonds, and better watches such as Rolex and Patek Philippe."
J. Austin & Company sets itself apart by excelling in diamonds.
"Andrea is the driving force behind that, and she has a decade of diamond expertise under her belt," Mark said. "We are told by international brokers that we are the largest diamond buyer between San Francisco and Portland. Part of that is due to the network we have built up, combined with the lower overhead. We sell most of our diamonds in areas with expanding economies so that we can take advantage of that growth. Rolex watches are also big in those economies."
What does that mean for the local seller? "We don't just put your item in the showcase and hope for a sale," Mark said. "We use our international contacts to sell it in the expanding economies. We're basically brokering it for you. Whether it's diamonds (.50 carat and larger), watches, rare coins or other items, we can get you more money and a faster turnaround. Most people think they have to go to the Bay Area to get that kind of service, and they don't."
For more information their phone number is 541-482-3715. You can also visit them on the web at jaustinbrokeers.com.

Integrative Holistic Medicine w/ Mona Tara

Mona Tara of Blue Star Healing Arts is not your average holistic health practitioner. As an MD, she was lead Pulmonologist and Director of the Critical Care Unit at Portland Adventist Medical Center for ten years. In 2001, when she and her husband moved to the Rogue Valley, she was already moving in another direction.
"Parts of traditional medicine I loved, but they never teach you about energy or spirit in medical school," Mona said. "It's all about science and the double blind drug study. None of it was real in any sense of actually caring for hearts, minds, souls, or even the physical. I started to realize there was something horribly wrong with the system."
Her husband, who had started acupuncture training in Portland, suggested she take Qigong.
"I believe it literally saved my life," Mona said. "Anyone on a journey of exploration understands the vast opportunities open to us. I have been extremely blessed with a host of teachers and experiences. I also completed Andrew Weil's Integrative Medicine Fellowship in Tucson and through all of this was determined to practice medicine differently."
Mona worked hospital medicine at RVMC for nine years, and in 2011 opened a private practice, working with a healing clinic in Grants Pass. When an opportunity arose to work with Jenn Collins at Ashland Holistic Health (325 A Street, #1), she jumped on it. Her official title is a Holistic Integrative Functional Consultant.
"I am a guide, coach, cheerleader, listener, teacher and student," she said. "I have one foot in the more esoteric non-Western healing modalities, but I understand the Western model and can negotiate it with ease and expertise. I do, however, feel that the system is flawed and is more of a disease model. I want people to take back their power. I want them off pharmaceuticals. Sure, there's a place for meds, but I believe they are way over-used and dangerous."
The first appointment with Mona is 90 minutes. "The holistic approach is about bearing witness to whatever the clients wants to share and discover," Mona said. "This involves some extensive history taking—psychosocial-spiritual-dietary-sleep-meds-supplements; pretty much the gamut. And fun; we laugh a lot. Many people who don't feel well never have fun."
Mona is board-certified in both Internal Medicine and Integrative Holistic Medicine. For more information, call 541-482-1650.