Yesterday, as I stepped out of my car to pump gas, a shiny disk caught my eye. I bent down and plucked a penny from the ground. (Yes—I still do that!) I’ve heard spotting it heads up means good luck. This was tails up, but I still felt lucky. Pennies are on their way to extinction. 

In early 2026, the U.S. Mint will cease penny production. You can still spend them—they just won’t be replenished. It’s the end of the penny as we know it—or at least the bright, shiny ones.

April Fool’s Day shares a date with National One Cent Day. Maybe that cosmic joke nudged the penny into looking a little more foolish than frugal.

Logically, yes—it doesn’t make sense to continue minting them if the process costs more than their value. That would be penny wise but pound foolish. Canada, Australia and New Zealand have all done away with their lowest denomination coin.

But I’m nostalgic. As kids, we got a kick out of throwing pennies on railroad tracks, eagerly seeking the flattened metal pancake afterward. And who can forget the Beatles’ infectious hit, “Penny Lane”? Though you and I didn’t grow up in the penny candy era (its heyday was from 1890-1910), it’s a sweet reminder of days gone by. 

What can you buy for a penny? Precious little. I remember treating my little ones to horsey rides at the grocery store. Sadly, the Penny Ponies seem to have galloped off into the sunset in 2020, when King Soopers removed them due to COVID-19 concerns, depriving Colorado kiddos of a fun and accessible ask parents usually agreed to.

But at one time, the penny carried some shopping weight. In 1800, you could buy a loaf of bread, a newspaper, a bus ride or a cup of coffee. In 1840, it bought a stamp.

“E pluribus unum,” engraved on the back of the shield edition of the penny, means “out of many, one.” If you flip the sentiment, it could mean many one-centers, stuffed in change jars and piggy banks and jingling in pockets throughout the country.

What feels like a century ago, when I bravely dove into that character-building exercise known as waiting tables, one penny in addition to the tip meant good service. I got a few and gave a few myself when dining out.

Some girls even bear the name of this disappearing coin. My sister’s classmate was Penny Palmer, whose initials carried with them unfortunate teasing potential. (Parents-to-be should consider these things.)

“A penny saved is a penny earned” often applies to me. I’m more of a saver than a spender by nature, sometimes even approaching penny-pincher status. When things cost a pretty penny as they do now, it’s hard not to be! Every penny counts.

I always save wheat pennies, which were produced from 1909-1958. I prefer their design. Most aren’t worth much—just a few cents—though a few are worth thousands, if you know what to look for.

Will our future involve “leave a nickel, take a nickel” bowls by store registers? And come on—nickel loafers just don’t have the right ring to them, not to mention glaring silver peeking through the slit instead of the complementary burnished bronze. 

But don’t lose heart, even if you fear, um, change. (Pun intended.) These small copper disks are too ubiquitous to disappear anytime soon.

As are their mentions. If you had a penny for every time I said “penny” or its plural in this column, you’d have exactly 23 cents. 

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