2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Otha Anders started collecting pennies in the late 1960s. Im not sure exactly, Anders said. Man cashes in pennies he's been saving for 45 years. 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. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. "I would never spend a penny,"he said. Photo credit: United News International / YouTube. Its shocking, for sure, he told ABC News. But what was he going to do with his saved money? Man Cashes in Pennies He Collected for 45 Years, Gets Over $5,000 from Bank, Woman Opens Emergency Exit, Walks on Planes, Girls Facebook Brag Ends Up Costing Her, Pedicab Driver Shot While Trying to Surrender, 91-Year-Old Professor Goes Viral in Online Class. We could only imagine how many weeks they would have spent on Othas collection if there was no machine to help them count. Anders' new home insurance didnt cover his penny collection, so he reluctantly decided it was time to visit the bank and cash in his most prized possession.Anders had no idea how much money his collection would amount to. Anders and his friends hauled in the containers one by one. But when they finally did, the actual amount Anders had saved all these years was incredible!When the manager walked out to see who was causing all the ruckus, his face lit up at the sight of Anders. "I would break a dollar before giving up a penny. "Jack saved nickels as I saved pennies and every nickel that passed through my hands I would save for him," he said. "I would break a dollar before I would spend a penny," he said. Cole said the bank will then send the pennies off to the FDIC, and the bank will receive their credit for them. You have to find 100 of them to get a dollar - it is a lot of work. The same with coins that hold an error. But after collecting the one cent pieces for 45 years, you could have amassed a fortune! A Louisiana man who collected pennies for almost half a century finally cashed in Tuesday. He started collecting pennies in the early 1970's. He would just find them and save them. Asian-American Affairs Reporter, HuffPost. But as he speculated, he remembered reading about a coin collection that resulted in a fortune for the owner. The woman behind the counter looked at him in disbelief. Otha Anders was a 73-year-old who worked with the Jackson School Board. Otha Anders, 73, does. His quirky hobby turned out to be a brilliant reminder of how much little things matter. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. His quirky hobby turned out to be a brilliant reminder of how much little things matter. Studies have shown that gratitude is a sure-fire way to a path of greater happiness in life. And they werent the only establishment to do so. "But if we can help Anders with his endeavors, we are happy to do so.". "I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me always to be thankful," Anders told the Star.From that moment on, Anders picked up every penny he spotted. The woman gave Anders a long look before calling her manager. It has long been said that time is the most valuable commodity. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. He would have continued to keep them and collect more if it wasnt for one problem that he encountered when he renewed his home affairs. 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! The News Star reports that thehabit was first ignited when he found a penny lying on the ground. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Otha Anders from Ruston, Louisiana, knows that by being patient and collecting over a long period of time, pennies can amount to a significant paydaythat is sure to surprise anyone. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. Subscribe here:https://www.youtube.com/factsverse?sub_confirmation=1. The 73-year-old had a family of his own. So, he paid them for pennies? 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. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Then, one day, he decided to turn in the loose change. It reportedly took five hours for machines to count all the change. The half million pennies Anders collected amounted to $5,136.14 in cash.The bank where Anders cashed in his change told the Star they were more than happy to help the longtime customer, though it took more than 5 hours for a machine to count through the change.Anders maintains he will continue to collect pennies, but likely turn them in at the bank more often since his collection is not covered under his homeowner's insurance. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Wow. 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. into his account to go toward a recent dental bill. I would say hes done a lot of collecting over the years.. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, But if we can help Anders with his endeavors, we are happy to do so.. And they werent the only establishment to do so. "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." It seems like Anders' steady patience and consistent well-wishing has paid off for him. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. He started collecting pennies in the early 1970s. By clicking Accept All, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Legal Statement. The final count: 513,614 pennies, which comes to a little over $5,136, Fox 14 reports. Their worth is even less still if the government issuing the coins no longer exists. Jul 2, 2018. -- 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. That was the goal, but I couldnt stop. It eventually became so much of a hobby that he would deliberately avoid ever spending pennies. Anders wasa supervisor for in-school suspended children for the Jackson School Board in Louisiana, and when his students found out about his habit of collecting pennies, they would save up their money to sell to him. Even opening the jugs wasn't a simple task -- they were hacked open with an axe. 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. It took at least 5 hours to process his pennies through a coin-counting machine until the sum was revealed. Seventy Five Gallons This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. For over 45 years, Anders had been collecting pennies, storing them in 5-gallon water jugs. The bank employees looked at Anders rolling his containers in on dollys and stared at him in utter confusion. "I would never spend a penny," Anders said. "We value his business, as we do all of our customers," she said. (Fox 14) A Louisiana man who collected pennies for almost half a . All rights reserved. How would they be able to count all these pennies? Otha Anders of Louisiana had spent the past 45 years picking up pennies he found in the streets and putting these inside his giant piggy banks made of water jugs. RUSTON, La. So he decided it was time to cash in. RUSTON, La. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. How many?, the woman asked. ", | Special to The (Monroe, La.) Author: Frededreia Willis. He explained to the outlet the coins hold meaning for him. NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Benjamin Franklin once said a penny saved is a penny earned, but he probably didn't think of saving over a million of them. Senior vice president of the Origin Bank in Ruston, Louisiana, Ryan Kilpatrick said that they were not prepared for such a huge amount to come rolling through their bank. It escalated from there. Coins made of base metals, such as aluminum, have very little worth. Then all day long, you'll have good luck." And his "luck" came in the shape of a cool five grand. How long has Otha Anders been saving his pennies? The Louisiana teacher loved looking at his massive collection so much that in the 70s, when the U.S. government began to offer a $25 bonus for every $100 worth of pennies turned in, he wasn't even a little tempted to take the extra cash. Who would have thought a penny a day could someday bring you $5k! But after collecting the one cent pieces for 45 years, you could have amassed a . One man, Otha Anders, is one of the rare exceptions in this regard because he's picked up every penny that he has ever come across for the last 45 years! The process of counting took so much time because the coin bag had to be changed every 20 minutes after it would reach$50. "I became convinced that. And the kids seemed to love him too.Anders was a family man with a loving wife and children who supported his every move. 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. He says he finally cashed in because his insurance policy won't cover the collection, according to the News-Star. Anders and his friends hauled in the containers one by one. "I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful," said Anders, 73. I never failed to do that. It was actually his religion that started the penny collecting. 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., Black News and Black Views with a Whole Lotta Attitude. He had saved pennies for most of his life a whole 45 years. And with hundreds of thousands of coins, perhaps one had a valuable error. Its shocking, for sure, he said. Otha Anders has collected over half a million pennies during the last 45 years. 73-year-old Otha Anders worked as a supervisor on the Jackson School Board. When the 77 year old man from Louisiana was asked what motivated him, he said that finding a penny on the ground was akin to a sign from God, reminding him that he should always be thankful. All of his friends and family got so used to him behaving this way around pennys that they didn't even see it as odd anymore. Uh-oh, overstock: Wayfair put their surplus on sale for up to 50% off. By clicking Sign Up, I confirmthat I have read and agreeto the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. He said Brown could only redeem his nickels with pennies and he could redeem his pennies only with nickels. 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. 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! They remind him to stay thankful, he says. Not many people think too much of a penny it is just one cent. "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.". "But if we can help Anders with his endeavors, we are happy to do so.". But what was he going to do with his saved money? The coin reminded him to pray and give thanks. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Market data provided by Factset. But Anders says that he would never accept a penny from anyone, even his family, without giving them something in return. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. However, with the help of friends and family,Anders made it to the bank with his tremendous collection. To him, it was a small and simple quirky habit but over time, it didn't look so small anymore. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. October 28, 2015 at 10:29 pm EDT. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". As it was, the $5,136 worth of pennies took five hours for Origin Bank in Ruston, Louisiana, to count and process. 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(MyFoxBoston.com) -- Many people save spare change to cash in during rough financial times. The News-Star reports that employees at Ruston . He probably would have kept his obsession up if he hadnt figured out some when he had to renew his home affairs. Guess Who Her Dad Is. He had always been a religious man and his faith had grown stronger as the years passed.His faith was how his penny obsession all started. Soon his collection reached a full fifteen of them! Anders, 73, reportedly supervises in-school suspended children for the Jackson School Board. . It was by far the most exciting thing that had happened at the bank in a while!The plastic jugs were hacked open by an ax and hammer. Could you have the discipline to collect coins for almost 50 years? "I would never spend a penny," he told the Star. Everyone was staring at him.She looked at him in disbelief. How To Determine And Measure Your Ring Size Accurately, Teen Charged With Major Drug Trafficking Has Been Let Off. Anders took his haul to the Ruston Origin Bank. "I wanted the inner satisfaction that God and I acquired this collection.". But one Louisiana man gathered more than 500,000 pennies over the course of 45 years. "Our exchange became competitive by each trying to outdo the other and consequently our collections; his nickels, my pennies began to multiply," he added. It took five hours to count the pennies; the plastic jugs were hacked open and then the coins were poured into the coin machine bit by bit. "Jack saved nickels as I saved pennies and every nickel that passed through my hands I would save for him," he said. "We value his business, as we do all of our customers," he said. Which side of value did they fall under? This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. And as he got older his connection to god only felt stronger for it. It seems like Anders steady patience and consistent well-wishing has paid off for him. All eyes were on the man pulling the trolley behind him. Anders had no idea how much money his collection would amount to. To Anders, 73, the pennies represent more than a nice pay day. Otha Anders started collecting pennies because he became "convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an . "I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful," said Anders. With all the pennies this guy had, he must've been very, very lucky. What began as something fun turned into a full-blown obsession and an all-consuming hobby. I would never spend a penny, he told the News-Star. Believe me, if I had it my way, Id keep these pennies forever.The woman gave Anders a long look before calling her manager. Back in 2015, he had to finally cash them in because his homeowner's insurance policy no longer covered his pennies, and he needed some extra cash. It seems that this small habit was a touching way for Anders to strengthen his relationship with God. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. He took it as a sign to pray and give thanks. 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. A Louisiana man who collected pennies for more than 45 years has now cashed in 513,614 of them. But when they finally did, the amount Anders had saved all these years was incredible! By Laurie Hanna. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Every penny he had, he kept. Ruston resident Otha Anders started saving his first penny more than 45 years ago when he found it on the ground. This means that on an average day, he had collected around 31 pennies. or redistributed. Otha Anders had been collecting pennies for more than 4 decades and had always put his faith in them as he was a religious man. But now, he was about to find out. It took at least 5 hours to process his pennies through a coin-counting machine until the sum was revealed. Otha Anders had been collecting pennies for more than 4 decades and had always put his faith in them as he was a religious man. Otha Anders turned in a 45-year collection of pennies on Tuesday in 15 five-gallon water jugs. Although Anders didnt have time on his side, he did have volume. Our content is created to the best of our knowledge, yet it is of general nature and cannot in any way substitute an individual consultation by your doctor. For 45 years, up until Tuesday, he was the proud owner of a collection containing over half a million of them. Otha Anders cashed in his giant penny collection. Otha Anders watches as part of his 45-year-old penny collection is poured into Origin Bank's coin counting machine. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. We may earn a commission from links on this page. Photo credit: United News International / YouTube. When he finally took his collection over to the bank, tellers were staggered by the amount he had saved. Anders had put all the pennies he found into water jugs. He would just find them and save them. Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors. In total, then, Anders had collected 513,614 pennies in 45 years, or 16,425 days. Copyright 2021 Obsev.com All Rights Reserved, Man Who Saved Pennies For 45 Years Finally Cashes Out. His family, without giving them something in return them and save them he got older his connection to only... The man pulling the trolley behind him have volume Brown could only imagine how many weeks would... Convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an the government issuing the coins no exists... 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