That led to a huge collection, stored in 15 five-gallon, plastic water jugs, adding up to about half a million pennies, which ultimately converted to $5,136.14. The plastic jugs had to be opened with an ax and hammer, and the bank was not prepared for such a large collection even though Anders had called a week prior to inform them that he would be coming with a colossal amount of pennies. It may inspire them to start a collection of their own. Their worth is even less still if the government issuing the coins no longer exists. This meant that he soon had more pennies than he knew what to do with. Anders is a beautiful example of how all of us can learn to be thankful for the small things. Copyright 2021 Obsev.com All Rights Reserved, Man Who Saved Pennies For 45 Years Cashes Out. "Jack saved nickels as I saved pennies and every nickel that passed through my hands I would save for him," he said. "I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful," said Anders. And after acquiring over a half million of these coins, he finally cashed them in on Tuesday at Origin Bank. The bank manager was rather surprised to see this old man carting in the water jugs filled with money. The final amount was certainly not small. Jul 2, 2018. For over 45 years, Anders had been collecting pennies, storing them in 5-gallon water jugs. The two men could only redeem their preferred coins with an exchange; Anders got a penny for a nickel and vice versa. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. It took at least 5 hours to process his pennies through a coin-counting machine until the sum was revealed. It reportedly took five hours for machines to count all the change. He took . Believe me, if I had it my way, Id keep these pennies forever.The woman gave Anders a long look before calling her manager. In total, then, Anders had collected 513,614 pennies in 45 years, or 16,425 days. An error in the coin made it extremely valuable, and its value could only keep growing over time. After over 5 hours of counting and processing pennies in a machine at the bank, Anders had a total of$5,136.14 worth of pennies. Cool, isnt it? He started collecting pennies in the early 1970's. He would just find them and save them. Believe me, if I had it my way, Id keep these pennies forever. The extra bonus of income came just in time for him to pay a medical bill.It is said that the world works in mysterious ways, and for Otha Anders and the result of his penny collection, that motto is certainly true! Total Savings. Otha Anders, a 73-year-old from Ruston, Louisiana, has been collecting pennies for more than 45 years, ABC News reported. Louisiana man cashes in penny collection to the tune of $5,000. To get the pennies to the Ruston Origina Bank in Ruston, LA, Anders needed help.He ended up getting a couple of his friends to help move the five-gallon jugs full of pennies into his truck and then into the bank. Anders was hesitant to finally hand in his collection, which he refused to do back in the 1970s, when the government was offering a $25 bonus for every $100 worth of pennies turned in, the News-Star notes. It eventually became so much of a hobby that he would deliberately avoid ever spending pennies. What if you collected pennies as a hobby? "I became convinced that. I would guesstimate about 400-500,000 pennies?. Since then, Anders had been piling up the pennies, refusing to spend them and always making sure that whenever he bought something, his change had three or four pennies in it. And they werent the only establishment to do so. Otha Ander was a supervisor on the Jackson School Board and was passionate about his job. Although Anders didnt have time on his side, he did have volume. With the help of friends and family, Otha Anders wheeled in 15 water jugs full of pennies to the bank in Ruston. For anyone who's trying to work it out, that's $114.14 a year, Anders was able to collect by picking up dirty old pennies left forgotten on the side of a street. But if we can help Anders with his endeavors, we are happy to do so.. "Jack saved nickels as I saved pennies and every nickel that passed through my hands I would save for him," he said. Anders was able to put his money to good use and spend it on a dental bill that had just been issued to him.It was a happy coincidence that he found himself with more money just as an expensive bill landed in his lap. And after acquiring over a half million of these coins, he finally cashed them in on Tuesday at Origin Bank. "After collecting the copper for decades, Anders deposited his haul on Tuesday to pay for some recent dental work. He explained to the outlet the coins hold meaning for him. In all, Anders had collected enough pennies to earn him over $5,000! Five of Anders' closest friends and family helped him and bank employees load the coins from the back of a pickup truck into the company's coin room. But collecting pennies was more than a hobby for Anders. It has long been said that time is the most valuable commodity. Anders didnt know that after he picked up his first penny, more would keep appearing through his love. Anders, 73, reportedly supervises in-school suspended children for the Jackson School Board. As the report tells it, Otha Anders started more than 45 years ago when he found a penny on the ground and decided to save it. Subscribe to our channel: http://bit.ly/FactsVerse Image Credits :Like this content? Their eyes popped as they took in the sight of the sheer amount of pennies. Having collected pennies since the late 1960s, the 73-year-old from Louisiana finally deposited the savings in his bank to pay for a dental bill. Otha Anders, a 73-year-old from Ruston, Louisiana, has been collecting pennies for more than 45 years, ABC News reported. Cole said a machine counted the coins that saves much time, and Origin Bank's part is to help get the pennies counted, so Anders can get to his destination. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. 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Thats especially true when it comes to coins - but - only certain kinds of coins. As it was, the $5,136 worth of pennies took five hours for Origin Bank in Ruston, Louisiana, to count and process. They seem somewhat worthless, save for the moments when we find pennies on the ground that promise us a day filled with luck. I would never spend a penny, he told the News-Star. Thats what happened to the owner of a 1943-S Lincoln Wheat penny. A Louisiana man who collected pennies for more than 45 years has now cashed in 513,614 of them. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. "I have not spent a penny in 40-plus years. The counting and processing of the coins took a total of about five hours, according to the News-Star. Its shocking, for sure, he told ABC News. "But I never allowed anyone, not even my wife nor children, to give me pennies without being compensated,"he told the news outlet. They were much heavier than youd think, and not to mention, there were fifteen of them! Are you asamazed by this beautiful story as we were? In the end, Anders was always fair about how he came across his pretty pennies. Anders collected pennies for 45 years until he had filled up . The 73-year-old's homeowner's insurance didn't cover his collection, he told ABC News, that although he long ago surpassed his goal of filling five 5-gallon water jugs with coins, he found himself unable to stop collecting. As a supervisor for in-school suspended children for the Jackson School Board, Anders said his students learned about his penny fascination and would save them up to sell to him. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. I know its a crazy amount but this is a dear collection of mine that I need to cash out. If I was at someones house and I found a penny, I would pick it up and I would keep it, he said. And the kids seemed to love him too.Anders was a family man with a loving wife and children who supported his every move. The hobby turned into an obsession that would consume a lot more of his free time than what his wife like. At the end of the labor intensive counting, the bank informed Otha he had saved a total of $5,136.14 all those 45 years! In the early 70s, Ota Anders took up an unusual hobby: he began to collect coins in denominations of only 1 penny. It has long been said that time is the most valuable commodity. You have to find 100 of them to get a dollar it is a lot of work. Uh-oh, overstock: Wayfair put their surplus on sale for up to 50% off. To him, it was a small and simple quirky habit but over time, it didn't look so small anymore. A lot of us dont really mind the coins in our pocket, especially the ones with the smallest values but there are those who have proven that even the smallest coins can bring in a lot of cash; although youve got to spend decades to collect a lot to actually give you that much money! Anders saved up an incredible $5,136.14 through collecting pennies for 45 years. Could you have the discipline to collect coins for almost 50 years? I would guesstimate about half a million pennies?. Once the first penny was saved, there was no stopping Anders from growing his collection to become the record-breaker that it was in 2015. It is said that the world works in mysterious ways, and for Otha Anders and the result of his penny collection, that motto is certainly true ! But after collecting the one cent pieces for 45 years, you could have amassed a . He had saved pennies for most of his life a whole 45 years. RUSTON, La. The woman stared at him in shock. "I would never spend a penny,"he said. Which side of value did they fall under? He approached the questionable expression behind the desk and asked them to cash his pennies in. If Anders had it his way, he would have kept his collection and continued to pick up pennies for many years to come but life would throw him a curveball. He cashed in the coins to the Ruston Origin Bank, in Ruston, La. The woman stared at him in disbelief. Part of HuffPost News. A Louisiana man who collected pennies for almost half a century finally cashed in Tuesday. But when they finally did, the actual amount Anders had saved all these years was incredible! Hed been saving pennies he found on the street for 45 long years. He told USA Today, "I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful. How would they be able to count all these pennies? I would never spend a penny, he said. All rights reserved. When Anders picked up his very first penny, he had no idea that hed continue picking them up for 45 years. Employees gathered to see the first five-gallon container being counted. When he finally took his collection over to the bank, tellers were staggered by the amount he had saved. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. After that first coin, Anders said his penny pile began to grow and he ultimately stopped spending pennies and always made sure whenever he made a purchase, his change contained at least three to four pennies. Anders worried they would turn him away. Ruston resident Otha Anders started saving his first penny more than 45 years ago when he found it on the ground. Man cashes in pennies he's been saving for 45 years. He always made sure that his change had pennies in it. But the amount he eventually managed to collect was staggering. Guy Who Saved Pennies For 45 Years Just Cashed Out. All of us have random coins lying around thatdon't amount to much and cannot always be used to pay for something when we are out shopping. Change for the better: Man cashes in 45-year penny collection worth $5,000. Who would have thought a penny a day could someday bring you $5k! This just goes to show that the special meaning he had created with his pennies served him through his life, andstrengthening his relationship with God through this collection was worth more than the money he'd make. "I would never spend a penny," Anders said. Bank Vice President Jennie Cole told reporters that it was not a typical day at the bank when Anders rolled in with his collection of pennies on a dolly.Im not sure exactly, Anders said. Otha Anders saved his first penny more than 45 years ago when he found it on the ground. A Maryland Dumping Site Was Actually A Black Cemetery. How To Determine And Measure Your Ring Size Accurately, Teen Charged With Major Drug Trafficking Has Been Let Off. There were simply too many to count so Anders could only guess that his collection contained hundreds of thousands of pennies but really, he had no idea. After 45 years of saving the coins and storing them in five-gallon jugs, he wheeled his collection in on a dolly to see how much he had. He felt that every penny he found was a gift from God, but he had no idea that he would find many more gifts throughout his life. Photo credit: United News International / YouTube. "He did likewise with pennies for me." Bank Vice President Jennie Cole told reporters that it was not a typical day at the bank when Anders rolled in with his collection of pennies on a dolly. How many were in there? -- A Louisiana man recently cashed in hundreds of thousands of saved pennies, rollingthem to the bank on a dolly after collecting them for more than four decades.According to the Louisiana News Star, Otha Anders, 73, started collecting pennies 45 years ago when he spotted one on the ground. But what was he going to do with his saved money? Disclaimer: All content is provided for fun and entertainment purposes only. Anders took his haul to the Ruston Origin Bank. Subscribe here:https://www.youtube.com/factsverse?sub_confirmation=1. After 45 years of saving, Anders was able to put the money to good use and spend it on a dental bill that had just been issued to him. "I would break a dollar before giving up a penny.". "Whenever I would see a penny, I would always say a prayer of thanks. This soon became an obsession until he started saving his own pennies for his hobby. Copyright 2012-2023 Social Sweethearts GmbH. It was actually his religion that started the penny collecting. . What began as something fun turned into a full-blown obsession and an all-consuming hobby. I would say hes done a lot of collecting over the years.. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? It seems like Anders' steady patience and consistent well-wishing has paid off for him. I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful, Anders said. Anders said he would be truly remiss if he did not acknowledge his friend, Jack 'Domino Kid' Brown, for helping him with his penny collection. He explained, I wanted the inner satisfaction that God and I acquired this collection., If I was at someones house and I found a penny, I would pick it up and I would keep it, I will always tell the person that if it was a quarter, I would give it back, but since it is a penny, Im keeping it. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. While he may not be able to amass another collection so large, we are sure that the happiness that comes from the act of collecting the coins will only continue to multiply. Its unclear how much his collection weighed, but using the U.S. Mints estimate of 2.5 grams a coin, it might have been around 2,800 pounds. Every penny he had, he kept. And as he got older his connection to god only felt stronger for it. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. "If I was at someones house and I found a penny, I would pick it up and I would keep it,"he said. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, source..., man who collected pennies for 45 years, Anders had saved all these years was incredible long! Growing over time the tune of $ man who collected pennies for 45 years god only felt stronger it! Certain kinds of coins in 15 water jugs count all the change was family... Took in the early 70s, Ota Anders took up an incredible $ 5,136.14 collecting... The copper for decades, Anders had been collecting pennies in the 70s. 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