Staff Bios

William Sustachek – Owner/CEO

As a young boy, Bill collected and categorized an extensive rock collection. As a college student he received 100% in all of his chemical labs where he had to identify “unknowns”. As a young married man he gave up a sales career to go to school in California to become a Graduate Gemologist. Combining his childhood pleasures with his abilities in the sciences Bill embarked on a new road with new dreams.

Bill’s dream was to own the finest jewelry store in Southeast Wisconsin. To achieve this dream he prepared himself by becoming completely educated. He graduated from the Gemological Institute of America and joined the prestigious American Gem Society. As a member of the American Gem Society he continued in classes to become a Registered Jeweler, and a Certified Gemologist. Bill also became a Certified Gemologist Appraiser; a title that is very difficult to achieve and is only shared by approximately 400 jewelers world wide.

In 1977 Bill’s father Calvin, a Certified Master Watchmaker, was approached by Frank Rasmussen to buy his store. Calvin and his wife, Marilyn, purchased the store and Bill became the Manager. In 1988 Bill and his wife Kathy bought the store from his parents.

A lifelong passion and dream had come true. Bill continues in his passion of this industry and has served in a variety of ways for this industry and for the city of Racine.

Some of the ways he has helped is as follows:

Wisconsin Jewelers Association – Board of Directors – Past President
Chairman of the Conclave Committee – American Gem Society
Chairman of the Education Committee – American Gem Society
Board of Governors – Jewelers Education Foundation of the American Gem Society
Member and speaker for the Jewelers Education Foundation
Member of the Racine Founders Rotary Club – Past President

Bill also makes sure that he and Rasmussen Diamonds gives back to the community it serves. Rasmussen Diamonds has donated merchandise or gift certificates that value in excess of 1 million dollars since 1977.

Kathy Sustachek –Owner/CFO

Kathy’s heart is anchored in family and harmony. As co-owner of Rasmussen Diamonds, she works a fine balance to be an employer to sons, daughters and in-laws in a family business that also employs non-family members.

Kathy began in this business in the background, assisting in part time bookkeeping and secretarial work while raising 5 children. When she became more involved, she found she loved the customers and enjoyed helping them to celebrate special moments with gifts of jewelry. In order to gain a better knowledge of the jewelry industry and to properly serve the customer, she became a Registered Jeweler with the American Gem Society.

Kathy’s passion still is in marriage and family and she enjoys sharing those special moments not only with her own family but with the Rasmussen Diamonds family as well.

Notable information:

Co-owner of Rasmussen Diamonds
Business and married partner to Bill Sustachek
Mother of 5
Registered Jeweler of the American Gem Society
Member and speaker for the Jewelers Education Foundation

Past Boards served on:

“Every Member” Campaign co-chair: American Gem Society
Racine Chapter American Heart Association, Board of Directors, Past President
Able Toastmaster - Bronze, President – Toastmasters, Racine Sunburst Club, Past President
Family Service of Racine, Board of Directors, Past Vice-President

Fund raiser for various charities including:

Heart Association
American Cancer Association
Family Service of Racine
Cops and Kids
Racine Zoo
Rotary

Joel Hassler –President / Chief Operating Officer

Joel joined the Rasmussen Diamonds family in August of 2000. After some time in managed services and the automotive industry, Joel finally found his calling in gemology. In just 2 short years, Joel attained the title of Graduate Gemologist from the Gemological Institute of America and the prestigious Certified Gemologist Appraiser title from the American Gem Society. At this time, there are approximately 400 CGAs worldwide. Currently Joel oversees the day to day operations of the store while supporting and carrying out Bill and Kathy’s vision of Rasmussen Diamonds.

Outside of the store, Joel has a love and passion for all things culinary and enjoys preparing anything from an intimate dinner for 2 to a Holiday feast for 40. He is active in Rotary and the hunger awareness charity, “Share our Strength”. Joel loves to travel and keeps close tabs on the world of soccer. Joel is married to Kori and they have 2 daughters, Indiana and Keira.

Cal Sustachek – Watchmaker

April 1, 1977 was a day that changed the lives of the Calvin and Marilyn Sustachek Family. That was the day they purchased the Rasmussen Jewelry store founded in 1900 from the current owner, Frank Rasmussen.

Calvin has been a Certified Master Watchmaker since 1951 and had been sub contracting watch repair work for Frank Rasmussen as well as numerous other jewelers in Southeast Wisconsin. Frank knew of Calvin’s integrity and his penchant for perfection in his craft. It was time for Frank to retire and with no heir apparent, Frank approached Calvin to buy his store. Frank did not want the fine reputation of Rasmussen Jewelry to be cast to any buyer and decided Calvin would be a wonderful choice for his store.

Frank also knew Calvin’s son, William was managing a jewelry store in the Milwaukee area and felt the combination of the father and son team would be the right combination to continue this turn of the century carriage trade jewelry store.

Calvin purchased the store on April 1, 1977 and hired William to manage it. Calvin’s reputation as a watchmaker was wide spread and well respected. Calvin left Rasmussen Jewelry in the care of his son while he traveled the Western United States as a Field Trainer for the Bulova Watch Company. He was teaching other watchmakers how to repair the “new” Bulova Accutron watch.

Calvin’s titles and education include:

Elgin Watch College 1950 – 1951
Licensed Wisconsin Watchmaker 1954
Certified Master Watchmaker with American Watchmaker Institute (SWI)
AWI quartz watch instructor
Certified Bulova Watch (Quartz) instructor 1978-1985

Dave Rupp – Accountant/Support Associate

Dave started with Rasmussen Diamonds in 1999. He handles all the accounting and financial aspects of the store and helps support the sales associates. Outside of the store Dave enjoys bowling and helping out with Special Olympics.

Susan Boles – Sales Associate

Susan began her jewelry career in 1998 when Bill and Kathy recruited her from a local travel agency. Her background as the agency’s international concierge brings her work a unique perspective as diamonds and colored gemstones originate in many of the exotic destinations she has visited.

Susan's favorite gemstone is the pearl. They come in so many varieties, so many shapes and colors that she finds them simply irresistible. Thanks to her courses in gemology, she has come to appreciate their rightful place as one of the best loved gems of all time.

Susan believes that jewelry is a gift that speaks straight from the heart. A thoughtfully selected piece of jewelry can convey feelings that are hard to put into words.

Lisa Exterovich – Sales Associate

Lisa began her jewelry career in Racine 8 years ago and has recently returned to the area after working and living in Milwaukee. She is actively pursuing her education and is months from obtaining her Graduate Gemologist title from the Gemological Institute of American and Certified Gemologist title from the American Gem Society. Helping men find the perfect engagement ring is her favorite part of the job. She also has a passion for designing custom one-of-a-kind creations. One of her favorite brands to work with is Pandora because each bracelet is truly unique and can look different from day to day.

Change is constant in Lisa’s life…her hair color changes every couple of months and she’s not afraid to experiment with trends in fashion. Her interests outside of work include: Indie rock music, fashion, yoga, dancing, road trips, singing, cooking, home decorating, reading, and spending time with her fur baby, Ruby.

Kristin Widmar – Sales Associate

Kristin is part of the Sustachek Family and has grown up in the jewelry business. She has worked at Rasmussen Diamonds since 1990 and has been involved in almost every aspect of the business. From 1999 to 2004, Kristin worked for Molina Fine Jewelers in Phoenix, AZ. She was the administrative manager of the Molina Design Studio that has created multi-million dollar diamond and colored stone jewelry. Her greatest accomplishments in the business include assisting in the creation of the Fiesta Bowl Championship trophy, and cataloging and assisting with the appraisal of the jewelry items found on the Titanic. Kristin is married to Daniel Widmar, a Racine Firefighter, and they have 3 children: Mara, Logan, and Jillian.

Kevin Sustachek – Inventory Production Associate

After trying a few different careers, Kevin has really found his home at Rasmussen Diamonds. Kevin graduated from UW-Parkside with a degree in Theatre Arts. He decided on focusing his energies on spending time with his wife, Samantha, and his family, rather than pursue an acting career. You can find him volunteering at the Racine Theatre Guild in his spare time. Kevin is a hopeless romantic and he thinks that “just because” is the perfect reason for spoiling that special someone.

Debbie Smith – Administrative Assistant

After 22 years as a Senior Legal Secretary, Debbie made her new home with longtime friends and owners of Rasmussen Diamonds as an Administrative Assistant. She is in charge of all incoming and outgoing merchandise and is the general heart and core of the store records. Debbie's undisputed cheerful personality is a positive contagious asset to the store. After hours, Debbie spends her time creating homemade cards for family, friends, and the general public, including 3 local stores. Her yearly vacation is spent on working cattle ranches where saddle sores are common and well earned.