SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Keep an extra close eye on your change this week. Roughly 1,000 pieces of old coins and currency are being recirculated in Sacramento as part of a nationwide coin hunt — and you could be the one to find them.
It's all part of the Sacramento Valley Coin Club's Sacramento Coin Hunt.
"We're dropping coins that haven't been in circulation for many, many years. Coins from the late 1800's...coins that are worth a lot more than face value," Bob Shanks of the Sacramento Valley Coin Club said Tuesday night.
Through Thursday, club members are using old currency in places throughout the city in the hopes that people find them.
"We're dropping them in the drive-up to McDonald's, Starbucks" Shanks said, "We're leaving them on the ground where people live."
According to their website, drops have also already been made at Denny's, Save Mart, Dollar Tree, Walgreens and Taco Bell, as well as along the river walk.
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"The big purpose is to see if we can pique interest in currency collecting," Shanks explained, "Pique interest in our local club. We've been around since 1957."
Sacramento is one of several cities across the country participating in a coin hunt, which combined is being called the "Great American Coin Hunt." According to Shanks, throughout the nation, coin collectors are dropping more than a million coins.
Here in Sacramento, 1,000 coins and currency will be distributed by the end of the week, with a value of roughly $3,000. Additionally, the club has also put into circulation 12 coins with a code on them. People who find those can redeem them for a prize by contacting the club.
"Some of the younger folks who have no idea about this stuff will say, 'What the heck is this? It's fake money,'" Shanks quipped. "No, it's not. It's real."
The Sacramento Coin Hunt all leads up to the Sacramento Valley Coin Club's coin show this coming weekend -- April 26th and 27th -- at the Four Points by Sheraton in Natomas. Ticket information is available here.
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