Five gold coins dropped in Salvation Army kettle in Round Lake

Someone dropped five gold coins into the Salvation Army kettle outside the Round Lake Walmart, donating more than $2,000 to the organization's food and emergency assistance programs.

One of the coins was a 1-ounce American Gold Eagle coin worth an estimated $1,800, and the other four were one-tenth-ounce gold Mercury Dime coins valued at approximately $775 in total, according to a news brief from the Salvation Army Metropolitan Division. Both were dropped in the kettle outside the Walmart at 2680 N. Route 83.

"We're so grateful to our donor," said Capt. Daniel Paredes, corps officer for the Salvation Army of Lake County. "This person has a huge heart. They are able to help so many families with just a few coins."

Another gold coin - a 1919 20-franc Swiss coin worth an estimated $350 - was found in a red kettle outside a Jewel-Osco in Chicago.

The Salvation Army started its yearly tradition of collecting donations in red kettles outside retail stores about two months early this year due to a significant increase in need caused by the pandemic. Some Salvation Army locations have seen as much as a fivefold increase in requests for assistance since the start of the pandemic, a news release said.

All of the money donated to the red kettles, including the gold coins, stays local and goes toward funding programming year-round, the news release said.