When Otha Anders walked into the bank with a dolly full of heavy water jugs, everyone stopped to look. The sound of thousands of pennies rattling inside was impossible to ignore.

Anders, a longtime school board supervisor in Jackson, was well-known in his community. Students who had been suspended often spent time with him, and many grew fond of his steady guidance. But outside of work and family life, Anders had a very unusual hobby—collecting pennies.

What began as a small habit eventually became a lifelong passion. For Anders, each penny wasn’t just spare change; it was a reminder of gratitude. He believed that every time he found one, it was a sign to stop and be thankful. “I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful,” he explained in an interview. Over the years, he even noticed that on days he forgot to pray, he often stumbled upon a penny, which he took as a gentle reminder.

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