When Otha Anders wheeled a dolly stacked with jugs into a Louisiana bank, the soft clinking of coins caught everyone’s attention. For 45 years,
the longtime Jackson School Board supervisor had been known as the “coin master,” a man who turned an ordinary habit into a spiritual practice.
Anders began collecting pennies not for wealth, but for faith and gratitude. He believed every coin he found was
a gentle reminder from God to pause and give thanks. “Spotting a lost penny was an additional God-given
incentive reminding me to be thankful,” he told USA Today. What others ignored, he saw as divine encouragement.
Over the decades, Anders filled dozens of five-gallon jugs with his treasure. When he finally decided to cash them in, bank staff used hammers,
axes, and coin counters to tally the collection—a process that took five hours. The total stunned everyone: $5,136.14 in pennies.
True to his spirit, Anders used the money to pay off a dental bill, treat his family, and donate to his church. His story became a testament
to how gratitude and patience can transform life’s smallest reminders—like a single penny—into something extraordinary and enduring.