For nearly seven decades, Rodger Hicks has helped Clare-area residents select treasured gifts, repair family heirlooms and keep generations of clocks and watches ticking.
On Friday, Sept. 18, the community will recognize Hicks for 68 years of service at Hicks Jewelers, one of downtown Clare’s longest-standing businesses.
The jewelry store itself dates back even further. Established in 1945, Hicks Jewelers has been a fixture in Clare’s downtown business district for more than 80 years. Rodger’s remarkable career there has spanned most of that history.
An all-day celebration will be held from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the store, located at 513 N. McEwan St. Current and former employees are expected to attend, along with representatives from the city of Clare and the state of Michigan, who will present official recognitions honoring Hicks and his many years of service.
Sweet treats, refreshments and a special anniversary cake will be served throughout the day. Select merchandise will also be offered at sale prices.
Community members are encouraged to stop in, congratulate Hicks and share memories from his many years behind the counter.
For generations of customers, Hicks Jewelers has been the place to purchase engagement rings, wedding bands, anniversary gifts and other pieces marking life’s most important occasions. Many customers who first entered the store as young adults later returned for gifts, repairs and jewelry for their children and grandchildren.
Hicks, however, is known for much more than selling fine jewelry.
He is also an accomplished clocksmith, watch repairman and master tinkerer whose steady hands and mechanical curiosity have restored countless timepieces. Customers have brought him everything from wristwatches and pocket watches to antique wall, mantel and grandfather clocks.
Some of those pieces carried more sentimental value than monetary worth. They were clocks that once sat in a grandparent’s home, watches worn by parents or family keepsakes intended to be passed to another generation.
Repairing those items requires more than replacing a battery or polishing a case. Older clocks and watches may contain tiny gears, springs and other mechanisms that are no longer manufactured. Restoring them can require patience, ingenuity and the ability to fabricate or adapt a part when a replacement cannot be ordered.
Those challenges are well suited to Hicks, whose interests have always extended beyond conventional jewelry work.
Over the years, he has designed and constructed special clock creations of his own. Some of those unusual builds have been displayed inside the store, giving visitors a glimpse of the creativity and mechanical knowledge behind his work.
Hicks Jewelers has become known as a place where customers can bring nearly anything that can be examined under magnification and repaired with a steady hand.
In addition to jewelry, clock and watch sales and repairs, the store offers engraving and complimentary jewelry cleanings. Customers often visit seeking advice about damaged rings, missing stones, worn settings or aging watches that other retailers may no longer service.
That personal attention has helped Hicks Jewelers endure through enormous changes in the retail industry.
When Hicks began his career, nearly every downtown had an independent jeweler, and mechanical watches were a daily necessity. Since then, shopping malls, national chains, battery-powered watches and online retailers have transformed the business.
Many locally owned jewelry stores disappeared along the way. Hicks Jewelers remained, relying on personal service, skilled repair work and the trust Rodger developed with customers.
Jewelry purchases are rarely ordinary transactions. A customer may be selecting a ring for a marriage proposal, commemorating an anniversary or deciding what to do with an heirloom that has been in the family for decades.
In those moments, experience and trust matter.
Hicks’ mechanical interests also extend beyond watches and clocks. He is a longtime member of the Twenty Lakes Antique Engine and Tractor Club, an organization dedicated to preserving and promoting enthusiasm for vintage engines, tractors and machinery.
Hicks has been associated with the club since its second meeting, making him part of much of the organization’s history. His involvement reflects the same appreciation for craftsmanship and mechanical ingenuity that has defined his work as a jeweler and clocksmith.
A 68-year career represents thousands of days behind the counter, countless repairs and generations of relationships with customers. It also reflects a work ethic that has made Hicks one of Clare’s most dedicated and recognizable business owners.
For longtime residents, walking into Hicks Jewelers is about more than making a purchase. It is an opportunity to talk with someone who has witnessed decades of change in Clare and who has played a role in countless engagements, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and family traditions.
Friday’s celebration will offer the community an opportunity to thank Hicks for that service.
After 68 years, Rodger Hicks remains a familiar presence in downtown Clare — still examining jewelry, repairing timepieces, solving mechanical problems and visiting with the customers and friends who walk through his door.
Hicks Jewelers has indeed become a jewel in its own right, and Friday’s celebration will honor both the historic business and the man whose craftsmanship, curiosity and dedication have helped sustain it for nearly seven decades.
