A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...Do I Hear Two Thousand?

Heidi Strauss started working for Wayne in 2006. He needed some help both in the office and clerking that day. After working part time in the office for about a year, Wayne asked her to become one of his first full time employees. Since then, Heidi has helped Wayne to use computers for the basic clerking and checking in and out of customers. That first move to computers has helped the auction company immensely in becoming more efficient. Instead of the customers having to wait for the clerk to get the recorded lots of sale back to the office, it is instantly transferred wirelessly. The computer correctly adds up the customer's bill and figures in the tax and buyer's fee.

Heidi photographing toys for auction.  The set-up is minimal, but the results are awesome!!

Since then, Heidi helped Wayne with the idea of not to hold up the lots of sale. With so many people handling the lots, there was a great risk of it being dropped and broken before and during sale. So instead of holding up each lot, Heidi took pictures of each lot so that it could be put up on video screen. While doing that, they made a catalog as well. Now bidders can hold a catalog with a description of each lot, sell them in order of the catalog, view the picture, and also view the lot when it is handed to them by one of the workers. Heidi takes several pictures of each lot from different angles and uploads them onto our internet catalog so that viewers at home can view each and every lot as if they are at the auction holding it in their hands. Viewers can also now bid on the lots live with the auction from the comfort of their own homes.

In addition to taking pictures, Heidi is also the cashier on auction day and the office manager during the week. When asked what her favorite part of the job is, she will tell you it is taking the pictures.

Heidi is happily married to her husband Mike and the mother of 4 girls, 2 of which work at the auction center ( more about them later).  In her spare time, she likes to travel and of course take pictures.  She has won numerous awards for her photography and was recently featured in the book "Capture Wisconsin: Wisconsin through the eyes of Wisconsin Photographers."   While her life may seem hectic to the outside world, she still enjoys some free time.  Her labrador, Deah, makes sure that she stops and smells the roses along life's path.