Great Sand Dunes Quarter Ceremony, Coin Exchange and Coin Forum

Great Sand Dunes National Park Quarters launched into circulation, and in U.S. Mint rolls and bags, on Aug. 25. Next week, on Thursday, Sept. 4, representatives from the National Park Service and United States Mint will introduce the quarter for Colorado in an official release ceremony.

Surrounding the ceremony is a coin forum and a coin exchange. These events are free and open to the public. School groups are encouraged to attend the ceremony since students will receive a free quarter. The Friends of the Dunes will offer complimentary refreshments, and Great Sand Dunes will waive fees for the day in hopes of enticing visitors to enjoy the park before or after the event.

This latest national park quarter, the 4th for this year and the 24th overall in the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program, features Don Everhart’s design of a father and son playing in the sand next to a creek bed with the park’s distinctive mountains and sand dunes in the background.

Great Sand Dunes National Park Quarter Ceremony – Time and Location

Lasting around 30 to 40 minutes, quarter ceremonies are unique events for children and enthusiasts who like to get a first glance at new coins. Official dignitaries will include:

• David Croft, United States Mint Associate Director of Manufacturing
• Laura Joss, National Park Service Deputy Regional Director, Intermountain Region
• Lisa Carrico, Great Sand Dunes National Park Superintendent
• Fred Bunch, Great Sand Dunes National Park Chief of Resource Management

Each is expected to give a short speech. Here are the ceremony’s time and location details:

Date: September 4, 2014
Time: 10:00 a.m. MDT
Location:
Great Sand Dunes National Park
Dunes Parking Lot
Mosca, CO 81146

Parking

Parking will be limited, so visitors are encouraged to arrive early, according to Katherine Faz, Chief of Visitor Services and Interpretation. Visitors can also use a temporary shuttle system within Great Sand Dunes to assist with the expected high volume of traffic during the ceremony and coin exchange.

The ceremony will take place in the Dunes Parking Lot. To get to the main park area, including the Dunes Parking Lot, Visitor Center, and Pinyon Flats Campground, take Highway 150 from the south or County Road 6 from the west. The following map shows the location of the park:

Coin Exchange

A favorite of collectors, the coin exchange happens right after the quarter ceremony. It offers a venue to swap cash for $10 rolls of the new quarters.

First Southwest Bank will provide stations where anyone can exchange bills for rolls of the coins. There is a one-roll ($10) minimum and a 10-roll ($100) maximum.

Coin Forum Prior to Arches National Park Quarter Ceremony

A U.S. Mint-hosted coin forum will take place next Wednesday, on the evening prior to the quarter ceremony. Coin forums offer opportunities to express views and ask questions about existing, new and upcoming U.S. Mint products. They tend to last about an hour, with the actual time dependent on the amount and type of questions.

Here are the coin forum time and location details:

Date: September 3, 2014
Time: 7:00 p.m. MDT
Location:
Alamosa Recreation Center
2222 Old Sanford Road
Alamosa, CO 81101

The following map shows the location of Alamosa Recreation Center:

2014 Quarters

Introduced in 2010, the America the Beautiful Quarter® Program consists of five quarter designs each year and will last at least until 2021. Launching first this year was the Tennessee quarter honoring Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Second was the Virginia quarter for Shenandoah National Park. Third was the Utah quarter for Arches National Park. The last 2014 quarter, due out in November, commemorates Everglades National Park in Florida. (See images of all 2014 quarters.)