Found in Red Kettle: Gold Coin Wrapped in $100 Bill

A gold coin worth $500 wrapped in a $100 bill has been found in a Salvation Army red kettle set up at an upstate New York shopping plaza. Officials with the Elmira Salvation Army tell the local Star-Gazette that the coin was donated anonymously Friday at the Village Plaza in the neighboring town of Horseheads. It was discovered when volunteers counted kettle donations Monday.

The American Eagle coin was wrapped in a C-note and a memo that read: "This coin is solid gold and worth around $500. God Bless." Salvation Army officials say about 400 gold coins have been found in red kettles over the past 30 years; they've recently been found in kettles in Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, North Carolina, and Florida. (More Salvation Army stories.)