Reports of gold coins showing up in the Salvation Army red kettles aren’t a new phenomenon, but until this year it’s been a rare sight in Vancouver.
This year, though, Salvation Army of Vancouver has received not one, but two gold coins.
On Friday, officials at the local Salvation Army office found a 1-ounce gold coin while looking through the donations from one of the 52 kettles stationed around Clark County.
“It was a nice find,” said Dewey Weber, business manager for the Salvation Army of Vancouver.
A couple of weeks ago, a 1/4 -ounce gold coin had showed up, he said. With gold trading at more than $1,268.60 an ounce, the coins are worth a total of $1,586.10 in donations. Officials said it’s the first time in three years they had seen a gold coin show up in the kettles.
While that’s a drop in the bucket, so to speak, for the entire Salvation Army’s general fund, Weber said he and others are thrilled.
“We’re happy with anything we get in the kettles,” he said.
The generous gift is especially appreciated right now as Salvation Army officials say they’re falling short this year of their fundraising goal. As of Wednesday, the Vancouver office was $19,300 off from last year’s fundraising efforts. As of Friday, that number had grown to $24,500 off last year’s mark.
The bell ringers collecting donations at the red kettles are a 100-year-old fundraising tradition. Locally, the kettles can be found at area businesses such as Albertsons, Fred Meyer, J.C. Penney, Macy’s and Wal-Mart. The 1-ounce coin was donated at the Fred Meyer in Orchards and the 1/4 -ounce one at Fred Meyer in Hazel Dell. Both were anonymous.
Gold coins have recently shown up at other kettles around the country, including one in Louisville, Ky., on Thursday.
The fundraising shortfall has officials baffled, especially in light of the local economy, with its hot housing market and healthy jobs picture.
“It’s quite the mystery,” Weber said.
