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Roadshow can turn everyday items into treasure
Gold and silver, antiques, toys among items field buyers appraising, buying at show in Hinesville
Welsh with silver coin
Rachel Welsh, show manager for the Treasure Hunters Roadshow sponsored by Ohio Valley Gold & Silver Refinery, shows a silver dollar, a sample of the items she and field buyer Sofia Buchatskiy are looking to buy. Gold, silver, jewelry, comic books anything of value will be considered, Welsh said. - photo by Randy C.Murray

Items lying around the house could be worth a lot of money, and an opportunity to sell these items now is open to Hinesville residents.

Ohio Valley Gold & Silver Refinery is hosting a Treasure Hunter’s Roadshow at the Country Inn & Suites through Sunday.

"Obviously, silver and gold are selling at an all-time high right now," said show manager Rachel Welsh as she listed some items they are looking for. "Silver coins that predate 1965, paper money of all denominations that predate 1934, silver candlesticks, antique guns, toys, dolls, trains – whatever. If it’s in good shape, bring it down and we’ll take a look at it."

A display table welcomes guests as they enter the motel’s meeting room. With a box guitar on one end and a classic electric guitar on the other, the table holds a variety of treasures, including old coins, costume jewelry, a Nazi helmet, bayonets, an old radio and a cast-iron statue of a Boston terrier. Welsh showed off some the items, including a silver dollar and silverware.

Welsh and field buyer Sofia Buchatskiy both live in Florida but specifically asked to work in Georgia. Welsh said their parent company, THR & Associates, put them through a thorough training program at the company’s headquarters in Springfield, Ill. She has worked with the company since 2010, while Buchatskiy said she’s been a field buyer for six months.

"Last week, we were in Albany, Ga.," Welsh said. "I think we saw about 150 to 160 customers during that week. Usually, the first day is a little slow, but it picks up after people realize we’re here and where we are. Next week, we’ll be in Waycross."

Welsh said THR & Associates has 170 teams nationwide and in Canada. Customers who bring in an item of value are paid for that item on the spot, Buchatskiy said. She said the offer they make is based on the rarity of the item, its collectability, condition and market value.

The Treasure Hunter’s Roadshow will be at the Country Inn & Suites from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. today and Saturday, and from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. For more info, call 717-992-1618.

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GPA grows trade, market share
Intermodal volume up 20 percent
port photo
Rubber tired gantry cranes handle cargo at the Chatham Intermodal Container Transfer Facility at the Port of Savannah. The Georgia Ports Authority's Mason Mega Rail project will double rail lift capacity to 1 million containers per year by 2020 - photo by Provided

The Georgia Ports Authority achieved 14 percent growth in March container volumes, moving 355,208 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containers.

From July 2017 to March, TEU container trade grew by 9 percent, or 255,786 additional units for a total of 3.08 million, a new record for Savannah.

"Savannah's continued strength is a reflection of our customers' commitment, Georgia's leadership, and the many dedicated service providers, GPA employees and ILA members who come together every day to achieve great things," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "March marked our 17th consecutive month of business expansion thanks, in part, to a strong economy and growing market share."

Intermodal rail volumes jumped by 20 percent in March and 15.4 percent for the fiscal year to date, for a total of 318,454 containers handled over nine months – another record for the GPA.

"As the numbers show, our rail cargo is growing at a faster pace than our overall trade," GPA Chairman Jimmy Allgood said. "This is important because rail is playing a key role in our responsible growth strategy. We anticipate our rail infrastructure investments to take 250,000 trucks off the road each year by 2020."

The GPA recently broke ground on its Mason Mega Rail Terminal, on which the Port of Savannah will build 10,000-foot unit trains within its own footprint. From the expanded rail infrastructure at Garden City Terminal, Class I rail providers CSX and Norfolk Southern will provide direct rail service to major Southeast and Midwestern markets from Memphis to St. Louis, Chicago to Cincinnati.

An added benefit is that the Mason Mega Rail project will move all rail switching on terminal – improving vehicle traffic flow around the port.

In August, the GPA will open its Appalachian Regional Port in Murray County. Located in an industrial belt, including the production and export of carpet and flooring, automobiles and tires, the ARP will provide an alternative to all-truck transit to Northwest Georgia.

Each round-trip container moved via the Appalachian Regional Port will offset 710 truck miles on Georgia highways.

March was also a strong month for roll-on/roll-off auto and machinery units at the Port of Brunswick and Ocean Terminal in Savannah. Colonel's Island Terminal in Brunswick handled 66,144 cars, trucks and tractors, while Ocean Terminal added 4,050, for a total 70,194, a 17.2 percent increase.

"The global economy is thriving and our volumes are following suit," Lynch said. "As existing accounts grow their footprint in the expanding auto facility in Brunswick, Georgia's competitive logistical advantages are drawing additional business across all of our docks."

Lynch noted that for the fiscal year to date, Mayor's Point breakbulk terminal in Brunswick grew by 44 percent (34,515 tons) to reach 112,728 tons of forest products. At East River Terminal, bulk cargo expanded by 34 percent July-March (189,918 tons) for a total of 750,384 tons.

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