After the unfortunate passing of the owner of J & R Coins on Westnedge, Russel Barr, in mid-April at the age of 83, the store has officially closed for good, according to on customer who went to the store. In a post on the Vanished Kalamazoo page, people commented to pay respects to the husband and wife who ran this shop. You'd think that a simple coin shop wouldn't have made such a huge impact, but this the kind of community that Kalamazoo is, and the people who make it up are an integral part of it's culture:

I was driving down Westnedge today and thought to stop in and look at some Morgan Silver Dollars. J & R coins is officially closed. I was told at the door that the owner passed away just recently and they are closed for good. Fair prices and good conversation. We've lost another good one.

107.7 WRKR-FM logo
Get our free mobile app

One person was talking about how her neighbor had a close connection with his wife Julianne before her passing:

Our neighbor took care of his wife Julie in her last years. Upon her passing she worked in their store, in the last year she brought Russ to live in her home so she could care for him.

Russ was an Upjohn retiree and opened the shop as a hobby in the 90's. Russ actually had a very good eye for valuable coins, as one commenter mentioned:

I was selling him a lot of pennies years back. A lot.
We're going through them fairly quickly cause there's a ton of them.
Buck or two most of them... when suddenly he plucks one out and gives it a second look. Says there's a $600 penny. That was good of him.

11 Famous and Notable People from Kalamazoo, Michigan

Check out just 11 famous and notable people from Kalamazoo, Michigan.

 

More From 107.7 WRKR-FM