Anonymous Salvation Army gold coin donor revealed

Anonymous Salvation Army gold coin donor revealed

January 20, 2012 58 view(s)

The Christmas season is over and the country finally takes down the holly and evergreen weaves that serve as symbols of the most wonderful time of the year. Although this is sad in many ways, it is a great time of year for non-profit organizations to put all of those holiday donations to use and help the less fortunate.

The Salvation Army and their red collection buckets have become yet another symbol that Christmas has arrived. The young and the old enjoy dropping loose change into the kettle every time they hear that iconic jingle bell. However, one donor in particular has offered a special donation for over the last decade. Since 1996, a mysterious gold coin has been dropped into a Salvation Army red kettle in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. According to the Huffington Post, the donor has always remained anonymous, until this year.

Gettysburg Times has just reported that the people behind the South African gold coin donations were Dick and Ruth Unger. The couple explained that they finally decided to go public because so many people were interested in the mystery donor and the coin.

"Keeping their identity confidential these many years has been quite a chore. You wouldn't believe the number of times people have badgered us, suggested names and asked to know who the donor was," explained Kib Roulette a fundraising coordinator for the group to Penn Live.

Over the years, the Ungers have donated $10,000 in gold coins to the Salvation Army, according to Penn Live. The Huffington Post reports that the couple are lifelong residents of the Gettysburg area and they donate to the Salvation Army because it is one of their favorite charities.