$1,200 gold coin donated to Salvation Army in Lake County

A gold coin donated to The Salvation Army this past weekend makes 13 such coins netted this holiday season by the charity in Lake County.

The one-ounce fine gold coin, valued at approximately $1,200, was dropped into a Salvation Army red kettle at a Jewel-Osco store at 885 East Belvidere Road in Grayslake, said Whitney Lewis, media relations manager for The Salvation Army's metropolitan division.

The coin came with a handwritten note saying, “Christmas 2014 Salvation Army, Just a small token for everything you do for the less fortunate. This is the least I can do. Have a great Christmas and God Bless.”

Seven gold coins were deposited in a package last week in Libertyville; the total value of the 13 coins is $4,200, she said.

Gold coins were also deposited in kettles in Naperville and Bolingbrook, but nowhere else in the Chicago area, Lewis said.

The tradition of gold coins donations started 25 years ago in Lake County and has spread nationwide, Lewis said. More than 400 gold coins have been donated in the region over time, she said.

“It's just an ever-growing tradition that we get gold coins in that area,” she said. “I imagine the anonymous donor lives in Lake County. I can't see why they would travel specifically to that are unless they have some kind of connection.”

The Salvation Army has received a little more than $7 million in donations so far this season toward its Red Kettle Campaign, or about 47 percent of its $15 million goal. To contribute visit salarmychicago.org or call (800) SAL-ARMY (1-800-825-2769).