LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Ronald Reagan Day in California was marked Saturday by a ceremony at the presidential library in Simi Valley that will include
the unveiling of the designs of the Ronald Reagan Presidential $1 Coin and
Nancy Reagan First Spouse Coin.
This update is from the PR Newswire:
The United States Mint unveiled designs for the Ronald Reagan Presidential $1 Coin and the Nancy Reagan First Spouse Gold Coin today at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Library annual birthday celebration for the former president.
“The release of the Ronald Reagan Presidential $1 Coin and the Nancy Reagan First Spouse Coin will mark the end of the coin programs that have honored the contributions of our nation’s presidents and the indelible work of our nation’s first ladies,” said Richard A. Peterson, United States Mint Deputy Director of Manufacturing and Quality.
Additional participants at the event in Simi Valley, Calif., included Marlin Fitzwater, former press secretary to President Ronald Reagan; John Heubusch, executive director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation; and Brig. Gen. Edward Banta, commanding general of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential $1 Coin obverse (heads side) features a forward facing portrait of the former president with the inscriptions “RONALD REAGAN,” “IN GOD WE TRUST,” “40th PRESIDENT,” and “1981–1989.” The coin’s reverse (tails side) features a rendition of the Statue of Liberty with the inscriptions “$1” and “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.” The year of minting or issuance, the mint mark, and “E PLURIBUS UNUM” are incused on the coin’s edge.
The obverse was designed by United States Mint Artistic Infusion Program (AIP) Richard Masters and sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Joseph Menna. The reverse was designed and sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart.
The obverse of the Nancy Reagan First Spouse Gold Coin features a portrait of the former first lady with the inscriptions “NANCY REAGAN,” “IN GOD WE TRUST,” “LIBERTY,” “40th,” and “1981–1989.” The coin’s reverse features Mrs. Reagan with her arms around two children during her “Just Say No” campaign with the inscriptions “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, ” “E PLURIBUS UNUM, ” “$10, ” “1/2 OZ., ” and “.9999 FINE GOLD.”
The obverse was designed by AIP artist Benjamin Sowards and sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Joseph Menna. The reverse was designed by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Joel Iskowitz and sculpted by United States Mint Sculptor-Engraver Don Everhart.
Several products featuring the Ronald and Nancy Reagan coins will be available for purchase via the United States Mint online catalog at https://catalog.usmint.gov/. Release dates for products featuring these coins will be published on the United States Mint product schedule at https://catalog.usmint.gov/product-schedule/.
In accordance with Public Law 109-145, the United States Mint has been minting and issuing $1 coins with obverse images bearing likenesses of each of the United States Presidents in the order that each served, beginning with Presidents Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and Madison in 2007. The United States Mint has issued four Presidential $1 Coins per year, each with a reverse design featuring a likeness of the Statue of Liberty. Additionally, the United States Mint has been minting and issuing uncirculated and proof 24-karat gold coins that are emblematic of the spouse of each President, with limited exceptions as described in the legislation, under the same release schedule as the Presidents, beginning in 2007. These 24-karat coins generally have featured an obverse image of the First Spouse and reverse images emblematic of the particular First Spouse’s life and work. Bronze medals that bear the likeness of the bullion coins were issued for each of the first spouse 24-karat coins. The release of the coins honoring Ronald and Nancy Reagan will mark the end of both programs.
About the United States Mint
The United States Mint was created by Congress in 1792 and became part of the Department of the Treasury in 1873. It is the Nation’s sole manufacturer of legal tender coinage and is responsible for producing circulating coinage for the Nation to conduct its trade and commerce. The United States Mint also produces numismatic products, including proof, uncirculated, and commemorative coins; Congressional Gold Medals; and silver and gold bullion coins. The United States Mint’s numismatic programs are self-sustaining and operate at no cost to taxpayers.
The Ronald Reagan Presidential $1 Coin and Nancy Reagan First Spouse
Coin will begin being sold by the U.S. Mint this year.
A bill signed into law by then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2010
designates each Feb. 6 as Ronald Reagan Day, a day of “special significance,”
when all public schools and educational institutions are encouraged to conduct
exercises remembering Reagan’s life recognizing his accomplishments and
familiarize students with the contributions he made to the state.
“It’s important for Californians to have an appreciation for some of
the leadership and heritage we have,” said State Board of Equalization member
George Runner, who as a state senator introduced the bill designating Feb. 6 as
Ronald Reagan Day. “Ronald Reagan, as a Hollywood figure, governor and
president is very important for folks to have an appreciation and knowledge
of.”
In his proclamation declaring today as Ronald Reagan Day, Gov. Jerry
Brown, who succeeded Reagan as governor in 1975, wrote, “From his humble
Midwestern origins, through a successful career in Hollywood, and on to the
highest offices in his state and country, Ronald Reagan lived the California
dream.
“On this 105th anniversary of his birth, we remember not only his most
celebrated achievements — his successful diplomacy with Mikhail Gorbachev and
the economic recovery that occurred under his presidency — we also remember
the turbulent years of his governorship, during which he proved his ability to
manage the affairs of the state, and earlier, the talent and the skill he
brought to his work in one of our state’s most renowned and beloved industries.
“Above all, we remember the man: his irresistible optimism, faith, and
good humor.”
Brown recommended that to honor Reagan, Californians should “give as
generously as they can to the Ronald and Nancy Reagan Research Institute.”
The institute was established by the Reagans in 1995 to “accelerate
information exchange among researchers.” The affiliate of the National
Alzheimer’s Association is credited with largely introducing the biological
segment of research into the disease.
Reagan revealed in 1994 that he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
Born Feb. 6, 1911, in Tampico, Illinois, and raised in nearby Dixon,
Reagan graduated from Eureka College in Illinois in 1932. He became a
sportscaster that year with the Davenport, Iowa radio station WOC, later
getting a similar position with the Des Moines, Iowa-based 50,000-watt clear
channel station WHO.
In the midst of a trip to Santa Catalina Island to broadcast the Chicago
Cubs spring training in 1937, Reagan got a screen test with Warner Bros. and
received a seven-year contract that began a career in which he would appear in
53 films through 1964. He was elected to the first of two terms as governor in
1966 and president in 1980. He died in 2004 at the age of 93.
“Ronald Reagan created a great deal of inspiration for America,”
Runner told City News Service.
“There was a hopefulness, a desire that America was indeed special and
had a place in leadership in the world. That’s the legacy we have from Ronald
Reagan as president and we as Californians need to appreciate that.”