Don’t Take Wooden Nickles

Mama Said

Philippians 4:8 ESV

While wooden Nickels were not intended for real tender, they have an interesting history. They were

created during the depression because coins were scarce. In some areas of the USA they were accepted

as a reminder a temporary trade was made. While they were not coins they were taken as tender. There

was an understanding the coins were still due.

Over time the phrase came to mean don’t accept anything false.

In Philippians 4:8, Paul wrote, “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is

pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy

of praise, think about these things.”

During the Great Depression days in the 1930’s it was not unusual for some neighborhood stores to have

a system of credit for customers who fell on hard times and couldn’t feed their families.

My grandparents owned a corner store in Kansas City during the depression and they had regular

customers in their neighborhood. When a customer lost their job and couldn’t feed their family, they took

the loss of income seriously. There was no public assistance available.

So, my grandparents set up a wooden nickel system for payment. While I would love to be able to ask if

they accepted any tokens for temporary payments, but I do remember boxes and boxes of I.O.U’s. The

I.O.U. system made sure every person in their neighborhood did not go hungry.

I seem to remember she did have some wooden tokens in her things so she might have temporarily accepted those as tender.

What I remember mosy is the attitude and sentiment of their neighbors when they retired. By the 1960’s

neighborhood stores were giving way to chain stores who could offer more variety.

Grandma and Grandpa knew moving forward their store could not compete and it was time for them to

retire. I am grateful that grandpa had a few years to rest before he passed way.

I remember as a young child that my grandparents did not work on Sunday. While they were

alive they sought to do what is true and honorable for everyone in their neighborhood and in the family.

They did have a few years to spend doing what they wanted to do before Grandpa unexpectedly passed

away at the age of 60.

I do know they were believers and they were people of faith. Jesus was their anchor and was

a real and genuine part of their dealings with their customers.

Deborah

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