There’s been much discussion about the discontinuation of the venerable copper coin, as it now makes its way into retirement and will eventually only be seen in coin collections.
There will be some things to miss. The old adage, ‘Find a penny, pick it up, all day long you’ll have good luck’ just doesn’t have the same ring with a nickel.
And we always appreciated the inherent friendliness of the ‘take a penny, leave a penny’ coin dish at cash registers, where customers didn’t have to be worried about being a penny short.
Most of us will not mourn the decision to axe the penny for long. Its time has passed, especially considering the cost to produce the coins. Most of us have jars secreted somewhere in our homes filled with the copper coins.
But let us give you our two cents on what you should do with all your weighty coppers.
Find a cause dear to your heart and give them your cents. There’s a number of charities actively seeking pennies, including the Tim Horton Children’s Foundation, which helps send kids to camp and Canadian Tire Jumpstart, which makes sports available to disadvantaged kids. Many school children are also seeking pennies for various charity projects.
The penny might be on the outs, but they can add up to big dollars to do good works.