Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Gold coins worth $3,600 found in local Salvation Army kettle
The Salvation Army will spread holiday cheer. And Mexican gold will help pay for it.
An anonymous donor left three solid gold Mexican pesos, worth a total of $3,600, in a Salvation Army kettle Friday outside the Walmart Neighborhood Market in Lighthouse Point
The coins were found wrapped in one-dollar bills, as volunteers spent Saturday counting up donations.
It wasn’t the first time the secret Santa made such a generous donation to the non-profit, said Alyse Gossman, director of development for the Salvation Army of Broward. Still, it came as a little bit of a surprise.
Over the last five years, the donor has left similar coins at red kettles in northern Broward, Gossman said. Last year there were three. The year before that, there were five.
They came one at a time, but Gossman said it was always clear that the donations were coming from the same person because each coin was wrapped neatly in a dollar bill.
“In prior years, the coins came earlier in the month,” said Gossman. “This time around, when they didn't come in, we just thought maybe something happened to the donor.”
Then came Saturday morning.
“We’d like to thank the anonymous donor or donors who are keeping this new charitable tradition close to their heart,” Gossman said.
The cash raised through red kettle donations is used to fund food, shelter and social service programs.