Mike Lopergolo Talks About his Love of Antiquing

The first indication I had that antiquing was special to me was the first day I entered an antiques shop. You know how you enter a room and you feel the instant energy - good or bad? You can just feel it. Well, there was that same thick profound energy that I felt the very first time I entered an antiques shop. I could feel things talking to me - not verbally, just in some familiar way. I felt comfortable. I felt at home. I also felt intrigued and wanted to know more.

My sense from that day on was the smell that made the antique shop seem "real". Heck, it was also a great place to find treasures. To me, if the place has a musty, damp, “old’ smell, then my interest is piqued and I will look through every inch of the place to find whatever I’m looking for... or not looking for.

The antiques that interest me the most are items that have been “used” by someone up close and personal such as a phone, radio or TV. Something that the person touched 100 yrs ago is what interests me the most. I can hold it and almost feel what the original owner was feeling when they used the item. In some cases I will do research and try and find a definitive history on the item.

About Michael Lopergolo

I was born in 1955 in Vineland, NJ, a small town about 25 west of Atlantic City. I attended the local Catholic school and played little league baseball. I rode mini bikes and motorcycles while I was growing up and broke my arm in 1968 when I fell from a friend’s cycle while trying to impress my mom.

My first car was a 1956 Buick Special station wagon. I use to hang out on the street corner in Newfield, NJ with my friends and trade baseball cards. I’ve owned several dogs and cats and love all animals. At the age of 18, I became a dispatcher for the local police department. I soon realized that a small town couldn’t offer me what I was looking for in life (although I wasn’t really sure what that was) so I decided to go away to college and entered ROTC at the University of Georgia. I had a blast at UGA where I majored in Criminal Justice. I later went on to get a Masters degree in Business from Central Michigan University.

I was commissioned in 1980 and was assigned to a unit in Cakmakli Turkey. This started a career that took me all over the world and across the United States. I’ve been a platoon leader, a company commander (once in Germany and once in Turkey), and I’ve been a staff officer in the Army the rest of my career. I’ve served 1 tour in Bad Kreuznach Germany and 3 tours in the Republic of Turkey (2 in Cakmakli which is about 35 miles outside of Istanbul) and 1 tour in Ankara Turkey.

On weekends in Turkey I would meet with my friends and go sightseeing. Many a Turkish carpet I’ve purchased after hours of haggling and many cups of stiff Turkish coffee. I’ve been married, divorced, have 2 children, retired from the Army and have started a second career.

My hobbies include collecting antiques such as old telephones, old radios, and old record players. I am currently restoring an 80 year old house I purchased in my hometown of Vineland, NJ. I enjoy refinishing old furniture, talking to old people to get an idea as to how they lived and did things in the past.