As some of you know I am going through my late husbands coins. My question is this I have two grandsons, age 3 and 7 months that my husband never got to see. I would like to keep some of the coins to pass down to them to remember their Grandfather. I would like a consensus on full sets or starter sets. I am thinking that if they receive the coins when they are older it may peek their collectors bug. What does everyone think? Thanks, Sandy
This may be a dumb question but is there a reason you would want to get rid of anything? Do you need the money? My grandmonther had a coin collection but my aunt got it. My mom took the jewelry. I have to brothers and we're all collectors. We wish the collection had stayed on our side of the family. If it were me I would hold onto it. I have a son who is 3. He likes to "help" me stack junk silver coins for sale. I plan to get him a few whitman books once he learns to read and see if takes to filling them from pocket change. It's tough to see if kids will take to coins. I only recently came back to the hobby within the last few years.
I have to agree with Fifty, unless you need the money keep all of it. It's very sad they never met their grand dad. It is a very nice way for the kids to have something that he really cared about. As they get older and understand why you kept the coins they would cherish every coin in the collection. I wish someone would have done the same for me.
Sandy the way children react to coins is widely varied and it varies even more with what age they are at the time. I know this from my own experience when I was a child, as well as from my experience with my son. I knew from the time I was a baby that my grandfather collected coins, but the bug never bit me until I was 7. With my son, it never bit him until he was 10. And then you have to go through the life stages after that. What I mean by that is that there will come a time in the child's life when other things become more important than anything else. With most one of those stages occurs in the early teens, say 13 to 15. That's when school, sports, music, the opposite sex - something else becomes the most important thing in their lives and coins take a backseat. After that it may be a few years or it may be decades before the coin bug again resurfaces in their lives - if it ever does. I guess what I'm trying to say is that how you do things depends on the child. And that can only be judged by exposing the child to the coins and judging their reaction at any given time. This means that the solution to your issue is one that can easily encompass many, many years. And you may, or may not be around to do that yourself when the time comes. So what I would do is this. Enroll your children, the children's parents in your plan. Explain your desires about how you want the collection distributed to the kids, at the appropriate time in their lives. Do it yourself while you can, but makes sure they understand your wishes so that they may carry them out if the situation calls for it. That's really about the best you can do. Otherwise, if distributed at the wrong time, the coins will be discarded or sold off and forgotten with little or no thought to their meaning, their heritage.
I agree that you should hold onto them if you don't need the money. What you might want to try is give the oldest grandchild a "birthdate proof set" as a birthday present when the child is old enough to understand and appreciate the gift. If the child shows no interest, then you can eliminate that concern. Do the same with the youngest grandchild. If one or both children show an interest, then your late husband's collection can be passed down in the family. Chris
It's a great idea to hold onto all of some of them to pass down. My grandparents were the ones who got me started when I was probably between like 5-10 years old. They would give me $2 notes, SBAs, Kennedys, Ikes, and other small stuff like that plus some random sets now and then. It's a great idea for your grandkids.
I would not have any mental expectations for them in receiving these coins. You will be disappointed . Very few children are remotely interested in these things, we cherish and had a lifetime of enjoyment with . The way this economy is going, you might want to convert this collection into precious metals and leave that to them . 3 & 7 .............13-20 years from now will bring many drastic economic turns, I think P/M's are the best way to hedge against that economic uncertainty . That really is the best thing you could give them , a fighting chance . BTW, It's nice that you have someone you want to help out, down the road so to speak. Your a lucky person.
I am getting rid of most of it because I have five large storage bins full of rolls of coins and I am downsizing. I am keeping the sets, older coins, gold, and the valuable coins, but most is just junk silver and I feel would be a better investment sold for silver value. I am going through each coin for evaluation. So far I have a complete set of Franklins and am working on Mercury now. Coinman this may stupid question but what are P/M's. Now remember I am new so don't laugh. Thanks for all your help. It has made this job much easier. Sandy
Sandy, sorry for the abbreviation but it stands for Precious Metals ( P/M's ) That is an enormous undertaking. Fortunately, it seems that you shared your late husbands interest in coin collecting and have a better than average knowledge of some things. Best of wishes for you and happy holidays.
I'd have to agree there....even if they are disinterested in collecting, part of the gamble is the idea that by giving them the coins you will be able to tell them about their grandfather thus peeking their interest. Even if they are disinterested...it would be the hope that they would keep them because they belong to him.
My grandfather started me with three Whitman folders for pennies over 40 years ago. I still have those folders and I'm giving them to my 10yr. daugther for Christmas. She loves to go to shows with me and does not want any help from the old man when she is picking out her coins. So I think that it is a great idea to give them to your grandkids some day.
My opinion, keep the good stuff, and cash in the junk. If you are so inclined, put part of the proceeds in an ESA (Educational Savings Account) for each of them. If they develop an interest in coins, great! If not, then they have benefitted from their grandfather's legacy through a college education. [Or you could always bury 1000 oz bars of silver in your yard. ]
