I just celebrated a birthday. (Which one? That’s private.) I have talked with many about the fact that I collect coins. A lady in the church that I pastor gifts me every year on my birthday. And she buys unusual things.

This year it was a small box which included three separate containers inside. The first package contained a multipurpose knife and tool. The second was an 1885 silver dollar; she told me she had gone to a local coin dealer, wanting to find something I wouldn’t have. She did. I don’t really collect silver dollars, but that one is special and I will keep it. I have a few others, but none that old. It was quite a surprise.

The third package was a very small box with a plastic sandwich bag in it. The bag contained about seventeen wheat ear cents. The wheat ear pennies are not any that I am missing in my collection. But I keep all wheat ears. They became part of my “extras.”

Where did she get the pennies? My friend’s son works at an auto parts store. He purchased them out of the change given by customers. I am not sure of the time frame over which he collected them. He is not a coin collector. He simply kept them because they are rarely seen.

The pennies range between the early 1940s through the early 1950s. Most are in the ‘40s. Why do I tell this? It is still possible to find wheat ear cents in circulation. A person that wants to begin a penny collection can do so. It is especially possible if the person is in some type of sales business. Watch the change that passes through your hands. If a person does not work with money, he or she can make friends with people who do. And maybe you will get an unexpected birthday gift.

I received another unexpected coin recently, also. I do collect quarters, dimes and nickels along with the pennies. Along with pastoring, I teach high school math. I have told my students that I collect coins. Some have brought me pennies, like the 2009 Lincoln series. One student has shown me several old coins so I can help him evaluate them. None are some I have really wanted. But another student brought me one I did want—a 1948-plain Washington quarter. The collection in which I need the most is the silver editions of the Washington quarter. And that was one I was missing. He found it in his stash of quarters at home. I purchased the coin from him, paying him a fair price for it. If I am fair with him and other students they will be more likely to bring other coins. Let people know of your interest in coins and many will help you.