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Mike Cunningham, of Austin, has always been a big sports card collector and now he’s opening up his collection to the public in the form of Rail Yard Sports Cards, a shop that allows customers to buy, sell or trade sports cards and sports memorabilia.

RYSC opened in July of 2024 and it will be hosting a trading event from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Aug. 30.

“This is pretty much in its infancy,” Cunningham said. “We’re just trying to get the word out and we’re trying to let people know about it online.”

The shop is located at 2205 11th St. NE, by the railroad near Todd Park. The site was owned by Cunningham’s father, who worked on the railroad for nearly four decades. Before that, the property used to be a saloon.

“This was my dad’s man-cave and he passed away two years ago,” Cunningham said. “When I got it in my inheritance, I thought I better do something with it.”

Cunningham has built a cozy set-up with brightly lit display cases at the forefront. Along the wall are signed jerseys of players Deion Sanders and Justin Jefferson and on the shelves are other sports memorabilia from days gone buy.

The set-up is more than Cunningham could’ve ever dreamed of when he was a young boy tracking down cards and purchasing them while growing up in Austin.

“I built up a good collection,” Cunningham said. “All of the cards here are mine and we buy, sell and trade cards.”

It’s been a long time since Austin has had a sports card shop and Cunningham has been excited to fill the void.

Cunningham graduated from Austin High School in 2000 after an illustrious wrestling career where he was a two-time all-state wrestler with second and third place finishes at the state meet.

He also played football for the Packers and he went on to wrestle at Augustana and RCTC, where he was an All-American.

Cunningham has always been involved in sports and he now works as a trainer for HUSH, where he works with kids, teens and Bruins players. He’s been able to obtain cards of some of the Bruins players who have gone pro and he is now highly interested in the career of former Bruin Sutter Muzzatti, who was drafted by the Nashville Predators in 2023.

“I’ve collected some of the cards of the Bruins in the past, and I’m really looking forward to getting one of Sutter soon,” Cunningham said. “That would be super cool, since I worked with him personally.”

Cunningham said he’s trying to build as much of an online influence of the story as possible, but the shop will be open on Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. He will also look to continue hosting shows in the future.

For more information on the shop, you can visit its Facebook page.