$20 Gold Coin Donated to Salvation Army Kettle in Salem

Salvation Army workers on Monday were tallying donations from their annual holiday fundraiser when they noticed the unusual piece of metal.

A genuine 1927 $20 double eagle gold coin was dropped in a Salvation Army red kettle at the Monmouth Bi-Mart during Thanksgiving weekend.

The coin, which is made of 90% gold and 10% copper, is worth around $2,600.

It was discovered by Salvation Army workers on Monday as they were tallying donations from their annual holiday fundraiser.

The coin’s donor remains anonymous.

Captain Jeff Walters, who has coordinated kettle donations for The Salvation Army in different places since 2008, said he’s never seen a donation like it. He’s been working in the Salem area for about six years.

“I’ve heard about it throughout the country. Sometimes you hear stories of folks who drop a gold coin or a diamond ring or something, but you never think that it’s going to happen in your hometown,” he said. “And sure enough, it happened.”

Each holiday season, bell-ringers for the Salvation Army of Marion & Polk Counties stand outside Salem-area businesses to collect donations. The money, often spare change, goes to shelter and support vulnerable people in Marion and Polk counties.

The Salvation Army’s director of marketing for Marion and Polk counties, Rick Marazzani, took the coin to get appraised at Accurate Precious Metals in Salem on Monday.

“When you get these things, you’re cautiously optimistic that it’s real. It felt real, it looked real, but we needed an expert to authenticate it for us,” Marazanni said.

Staff at the jewelry store were able to confirm the coin’s authenticity. Trent Westfall, a supervisor at the store, said that it’s from the era when the U.S. dollar was backed by gold and silver. The nearly century-old coin is 90% gold and 10% copper.

“That’s just how they made them back then. That used to be $20 back then,” he said. Today, he said it retails for around $2,600.

The coin is a Saint-Gaudens, named after its sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens, whose design was used by the U.S. mint from 1907 to 1933, according to Westfall. He said its gold has value, and it’s a collectors item on top of that.

“It’s a great piece of history,” he said. He said they see rare coins, including Saint-Gaudens, in the Salem store on about a weekly basis.

Westfall said he shared the news with the store’s owner, who was “ecstatic” that their store was able to help the Salvation Army with the special gift.

The donation will go toward the organization’s work to shelter people experiencing homelessness, assist families with groceries, utilities and housing and to serve hot meals. The organization has run the Lighthouse Shelter in Salem since