Loony over toonies after all these years

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/02/2016 (3739 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The toonie quietly turned 20 last week.

The Royal Canadian Mint commemorated the special milestone Feb. 19 with a social-media campaign. Canadians logged onto Facebook to share their memories of the unmistakable coin.

Anna Harper commented, “Hard to believe the toonie is 20. I remember when they had to switch the coin holders at Timmies! Time flies.”

Facebook user Maryanne Sis Fraser reminisced about the obsolete $2 bank note, which was removed from circulation after the coin was introduced in 1996. “I still have a two dollar bill folded up in my wallet. Wouldn’t be of any worth today, though just a memory to look at from time to time.”

Thomas Stephen said it reminded him of his childhood. “I remember my dad picking me up from middle school and giving me a toonie the day they were released.”

Many other comments remarked at how quickly the years had gone by.

“The anniversary meant a lot to Canadians,” said Christine Aquino, director of communications and public affairs at the Royal Canadian Mint. “Everyone remembers the first thing they bought with the toonie,” she said.

The federal government introduced the toonie — or is it twonie? — in 1996 as a cost-saving measure, said Aquino. “The lifespan of the $2 bill was between six months to a year — but the coin has a lifespan of 20 to 30 years,” she said.

Local numismatic — or coin and paper currency collector — Sheldon Sturrey, has been collecting coins and bank notes for more than 50 years. “When I was about nine or 10 years old, I got into collecting coins,” he said. “A neighbour of mine had a coin store, so I’d get excited about the different coins he’d show me.”

An interest in the past is what originally drew Sturrey to coin collecting. “I always enjoyed history, whether it was Canadian or American,” he said. “You have to be a bit of a historian to really appreciate it.”

Sturrey is also a member of the Manitoba Coin Club and has a varied collection of commemorative toonies and $2 bills, ranging from 1937 to the last series released in 1986.

Even though the toonie is 20 years old, it’s still a relatively new coin to collect, said Henry Neinhuis, president of the Royal Canadian Numismatic Association. “There are less people that collect toonies, even though it started in 1996,” he said. “There are a rich number of different varieties of coins. In some cases there are commemorative coins, which are quite interesting for the younger generation to collect.”

alexandra.depape@freepress.mb.ca