THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 19, 1994 TAG: 9408170088
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 01B EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Pam Starr
LENGTH: Long : 118 lines
Hoarding pennies can be hazardous to your wallet. Just ask my younger sister, a bank manager in Cleveland.
Jan told me about one of their customers, a miserly man who kept saving his pennies in a 50-gallon drum in his living room. Within a few years he had nearly filled the drum with pennies. He and his wife planned on taking a trip with all the money. That was admirable, we agreed.
Well, the man had no idea how much those pennies weighed. One day the full drum of pennies crashed through the living room floor and landed in the basement. And the man had just enough money from his pennies to fix the gaping hole. Fifty dollars worth of pennies (100 rolls) weighs 28 pounds, so that drum must have been pushing close to a ton.
The moral of the story? Don't keep all of your pennies in the same container.
Better yet, don't hoard your pennies. We all do, of course. And we all mean to count those copper coins, roll them and cash them in one of these days. But, more than likely, we won't. Those pennies will just keep accumulating throughout our homes like coat hangers.
And now, the Federal Reserve Board wants our pennies. There is a penny shortage, the feds say, so bring them your pennies. The folks at Westminster-Canterbury are doing just that, but they're taking it one step further.
All the pennies collected will be cashed in and the money donated to the SPCA. It's part of the new, month-long ``Pennies for Pets'' project and the folks there hope other retirement centers and nursing homes will follow suit. According to Westminster-Canterbury public relations director Judy Baker, they picked the SPCA as the recipient because of its Pet Therapy program.
``The SPCA brings pets here twice a month,'' said Baker. ``I hope that other retirement communities will do this, too. The residents in this building love pets - they are just thrilled to hold an animal. We wanted to give something back to the SPCA.''
The day after residents decided to hold a ``Pennies for Pets'' project, Baker went into full gear. A kick off ceremony for the following day was quickly organized, complete with refreshments. Baker asked the SPCA to come to the ceremony with some pets and sent invitations to the residents. Then came the hard part - finding a container big enough to hold a lot of pennies.
She finally found a 30-gallon drum and decorated it with pink paper, a pink feather boa and a cardboard cutout of a smiling pig (``our Miss Piggy,'' she said). When I arrived last Friday at 3 p.m. the lobby was abuzz with excitement. Residents milled about with jars, plastic bags and shoe boxes full of pennies. Dick Wheelock was the one who came up with the idea of donating pennies for a fund-raiser and he was ready to unload a mason jar full of them.
``I read in the newspaper that the government couldn't make pennies fast enough,'' said Wheelock. ``Everyone has pennies that they're holding onto, that they won't do anything with. I figured why not donate them for a good cause.''
He was standing next to B Lovitt, who lovingly held a gray cat in her arms. Lovitt founded the SPCA 28 years ago with Liz Sills. At Wheelock's right, SPCA executive director Sharon Adams stood by with a frisky terrier at her feet. She said she was ``stunned, excited and pleased'' with this project.
``What a lovely idea,'' she exclaimed. ``We are so excited that they thought of us - we make 12,000 Pet Therapy visits a year. It would be absolutely wonderful if the other retirement homes or nursing homes picked up on this.''
At the allotted time, Baker shouted ``one, two, three, toss!'' and everyone came up to the drum to fling in their pennies. Their goal is to fill the drum in a month's time. Central Fidelity Bank nearby on Shore Drive has agreed to weigh the pennies for them and give a check for the amount, said Baker.
``I don't know how we're going to do it,'' she said. ``The drum is only 3 inches full now and we can't budge it. We'll probably have to get those canvas bags and fill them with pennies.''
Let's just hope that the lobby has a really strong foundation, or those pennies may end up floating in Chesapeake Bay.
NEWS IS ALWAYS HAPPENING at the Virginia Beach Task Force on Aging, a group of professionals that meets every month to address the concerns of the elderly in Hampton Roads.
After a presentation on home safety tips by Ron Thompson of HomeCare, USA, members stood up, one at a time, and told everyone what they and their companies were doing. Here are some of the highlights:
Ken Gimbert of the American Association of Retired Persons said that the AARP, with others, is sponsoring an intergenerational health care forum on Oct. 29 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Central Library. The forum will cover legal topics for plans and actions, economics of health care and caregiving. The cost is $3 per person and includes lunch.
A new caregiver support group will begin meeting in October, thanks to Tidewater Health Care, according to Gordon and Margaret Morton.
Laurmel Buergey reported that Marian Manor's newsletter won first place in a state competition. Buergey took over as chairperson of the task force in July, after former chair Norma Zunich moved out of town. This ought to make senior athletes want to dance a jig - Virginia Beach will hold its own Senior Olympics next April at Great Neck Recreation Center. The city has been hosting a Golden Olympics for many years, but it was never on the same level as Norfolk's Senior Olympics, said Buergey. The Task Force on Aging will sponsor it and Tidewater Health Care will support it.
Buergey also said that the resource guides are selling well and are still available for $1 at SEVAMP Senior Services. The task force is planning to update and revamp the guide this fall.
The next meeting will be Thursday, Sept. 8 at 9 a.m. at Russell House. Buergey said they would love to hear from some of the citizens.
P.S. Charles ``Bud'' and Christine O'Donnell are celebrating their 55th wedding anniversary Sept. 2 with a hot air balloon ride over the mountains in Charlottesville. They can't wait, said Christine O'Donnell of AARP/Vote.
``We've never done that before,'' she said, smiling. ``It's definitely a unique way to celebrate an anniversary.''
The balloon ride includes a complimentary bottle of champagne to drink in the air, added Bud O'Donnell, a volunteer at the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP).
``But I'll probably need a stiff one before I get in,'' he joked. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by PETER D. SUNDBERG
Beach SPCA director Sharon Adams, left, founder B Lovitt and pets
watch Dick Wheelock pour a pint of pennies into the piggy bank.
by CNB