Ring that bell

American capitalism goes nowhere Monday until Steven Koehler says so.

The Shawano native is joining colleagues from his company, Gold Standard Ventures Corp., in ringing the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange at 8:30 a.m. Monday.

The bell, which marks the start of trading each day, is a Wall Street tradition that spotlights companies whose stock is traded on the largest stock exchange in the world.

Gold Standard Ventures, traded under the symbol GSV, is coming off a particularly strong run of successes with its gold mining operation in Nevada.

The company’s chief executive officer, Jon Awde, will ring the bell ceremoniously Monday accompanied by Koehler and other company leaders in a balcony high atop the trading floor.

Koehler, who graduated from Shawano Community High School in 1985, has been with Gold Standard Ventures more than five years. As senior geologist and project manager, he has helped guide the company to discoveries that have yielded mining operations worth millions of dollars.

“I’ve been very fortunate,” he said. “I’ve worked with some great teams of people.”

At a previous employer, Koehler had a similar experience ringing the opening bell of the Toronto Stock Exchange.

Koehler is the son of Jinny Koehler and the late Roger Koehler. His mother is a retired school teacher, and his father was a home builder who died four years ago.

Koehler discovered a love of rocks and geology as a young child in Shawano. After high school, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls before embarking on his career out west.

Standing at the helm of the New York Stock Exchange, he said, symbolizes the American dream that hard work leads to personal success. He also is happy to share the moment with his colleagues at Gold Standard Ventures.

“It’s a true culmination of a team effort,” he said.