No Ordinary Customer
He walked into the bank while pushing a dolly behind him. It whined and squawked as the wheels spun in chase. Everyone stared at him.She glanced at him with incredulity. “How many are there?” she inquired. He had been saving pennies from the street for 45 years. He had no idea, but obviously, this would result in a fortune.
No Ordinary Customer
Otha Anders
Otha Anders, 73, worked as a supervisor for the Jackson School Board. He adored his work, which involved supervising suspended students in school. And the youngsters seemed to adore him.Anders was a family man, with a devoted wife and children who supported his every decision. Even though one of his hobbies raised some eyebrows.
Otha Anders
Obsession
What started off as a fun activity quickly became a full-fledged obsession and all-consuming hobby.”I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful,” Anders recalled. “There have been days where I failed to pray and more often than not, a lost or dropped penny would show up to remind me.”
Obsession
Praying On A Penny
Whereas most people think of wishing on a penny, Otha Anders thinks of praying on one! He had always been a pious man, and his religion became stronger over the years.His faith sparked his penny obsession. He saw the lost old coins on the floor as his own particular gift from God. He had no idea how many gifts he’d be receiving.
Praying On A Penny
Quirky Habits
When Anders picked up his first penny, he had no idea he’d be doing so for 45 years. However, as his penny pile grew, he became increasingly fixated. His belief that pennies were a God-given gift was so overwhelming that he eventually chose to cease spending them himself. He kept every last dime he had. But this isn’t everything.
Quirky Habits
A New Normal
He also made certain that everytime he made a cash purchase, his change comprised at least three to four pennies. To him, it was a little and quirky behavior, but it grew on him with time. His friends and family had grown accustomed to his behaving this way around pennies that they no longer thought it weird. But the sum he was eventually able to collect was astonishing.
A New Normal
Principles
“I would never spend a penny,” Anders replied. “I would break a dollar before giving up a penny” . He was a guy on a mission, and when his students at school discovered his peculiar passion, they wanted to help.They’d frequently come to his class with a handful of coins to gift him, but Anders had standards. “I never allowed anyone, not even my wife nor children, to give me pennies without being compensated,” he told me. So he compensated them in pennies?
Principles
Stealing Vs Taking
Anders continued to gather pennies for 45 years, eventually filling fifteen five-gallon plastic water jugs.There were simply too many to count, so Anders could only speculate that his collection held hundreds of thousands of pennies, but he had no idea. But now he was going to find out.
Stealing Vs Taking
Seventy Five Gallons
Anders continued to collect pennies over the years, eventually filling fifteen five-gallon plastic water jugs with them.He would have kept them and collected more if he hadn’t run into a difficulty when renewing his home affairs. It was a problem that saddened him.
Seventy Five Gallons
Unexpected Problem
If Anders had his way, he would have kept his collection and continued to pick up pennies for many years, but life had other plans.Because Anders could have made a modest fortune, he made it a point to have his collection covered by his home insurance, but when he renewed it, they refused him. They were hardly the only establishment to do so.
Unexpected Problem
No Cover
Anders’ new home insurance did not cover his penny collection, so he regretfully decided it was time to go to the bank and cash out his most valuable property.Anders had no notion what his collection might be worth. But, while he speculated, he remembered reading about a coin collection that yielded a fortune for its owner.
No Cover
Value Of Time
Although Anders’ collection consists largely of recent pennies, it’s amazing to imagine that if he kept those coins long enough, they’d soon earn him a windfall of up to a million dollars! That is what occurred to the holder of a 1943-S Lincoln Wheat penny. An error in the currency rendered it incredibly valuable, and its value could only increase over time. But why?
Value Of Time
Expensive Coins
It has long been believed that time is the most valuable commodity. That’s especially true when it comes to coins but only certain kinds of coins.Coins made of precious metals such as gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and even copper vary in value over time but gradually gain value. The same goes for coins that include a mistake. However, this is not true for every coin…
Expensive Coins
Declining Worth
Coins composed of basic metals, such as aluminum, have minimal value. Their value is reduced even further if the government that issued the coins no longer exists.But what about Ander’s coins? Which side of the value spectrum did they fall on? Anders lacked time but made up for it with loudness. With hundreds of thousands of coins, one could have made a valuable error.
Declining Worth
Calling For Help
Anders required assistance in getting the pennies to the Ruston Origina Bank in Ruston, Louisiana.He ended up enlisting the help of a couple of his pals to transport the five-gallon jugs full of pennies into his truck and then to the bank. They were more heavier than you would expect, and there were fifteen of them!
Calling For Help
Disapproving Looks
The bank employees were perplexed as they watched Anders roll his containers in on dollys. Their eyes widened as they took in the enormous volume of pennies. Anders was terrified that they would turn him away. He approached the desk with a suspicious expression and requested that they cash his pennies in. “How many?” the woman inquired.
Disapproving Looks
Half A Million Pennies
Bank Vice President Jennie Cole told reporters that Anders’ arrival with his collection of pennies on a dolly was unusual.Anders responded, “I am not sure exactly.” “I would guesstimate about half a million pennies?” . The woman looked at him with incredulity. “And you think we have the time to count half a million pennies for you?” she said with a giggle.
Half A Million Pennies
Calling The Manager
Anders shared a bashful laugh with her before pleading again. “I know it’s a huge amount, but this is a valuable collection of mine that I need to pay out. Believe me, if I had my way, I would keep these pennies forever.”The woman gave Anders a long look before contacting her manager.
Calling The Manager
Familiar Face
How will they be able to count all of these pennies? But when they finally did, the total sum Anders had saved throughout the years was amazing!When the manager stepped out to check who was generating the commotion, his face brightened up when he saw Anders. As it turned out, he was well aware that Anders had quit…
Familiar Face
Endless Counting
Anders was a long-term, loyal customer who never caused them any problems, so he knew the management wanted to help him.”We value his business, as we do all of our customers,” he told me. “But if we can help Anders with his endeavors, we are happy to do so.”
Endless Counting
Building Excitement
Anders and his friends brought the containers in one by one. Employees gathered to witness the first five-gallon container being counted. It was by far the most exciting thing that had occurred at the bank in a while!The plastic jugs were chopped open with an ax and hammer. It took at least 5 hours to run his pennies through a coin-counting machine, and the total was disclosed.
Building Excitement
Total Savings
Anders saved an astonishing $5,136.14 by collecting pennies for 45 years.Anders was able to collect $114.14 every year by picking up dirty old pennies dropped on the side of the street. But what would he do with his saved money?
Total Savings
Dental Bill
Anders was able to put his money to good use by paying off a dental bill he had recently received.It was a pleasant coincidence that he found himself with more money right when a costly bill arrived in his lap. But he still had some money left over, which he used for a family trip and church donations.
Dental Bill
Keeping The Faith
Anders collected pennies not out of avarice, but out of confidence that he was being cared for by the man upstairs, the cosmos, the penny gods, or whatever you believe in! His unusual hobby proved to be an excellent reminder of how important the small things are. Who would have imagined that a penny a day could ultimately earn you $5,000!
Keeping The Faith
Serendipity
Anders’ patience and good wishes appear to have paid off. The extra revenue came just in time for him to cover a medical bill. It is claimed that the world works in mysterious ways, and for Otha Anders and his penny collection, that slogan surely holds true!
Serendipity