Dustin Reynolds, 15, an Atlanta area high school freshman, is the 2008 winner of the Professional Numismatists Guild?s Young Numismatist Scholarship, PNG announced May 19.
The scholarship covers tuition for a one-week session at the American Numismatic Association annual Summer Seminar, airfare, meals and six nights of dormitory accommodations on the campus of Colorado College, site of the ANA headquarters, in Colorado Springs, Colo.
?I was pretty excited,? said Reynolds, when he was informed of the scholarship.
Reynolds began collecting coins at the age of 13. At that time he was intrigued by Morgan dollars.
?The dollars had belonged to my grandfather and I always enjoyed looking at them. I bought a ?Red Book? [A Guide Book of United States Coins] at Barnes & Noble,? Reynolds said. ?My father [Ed Reynolds] and I would visit local flea markets to buy coins. In July of 2006 my mom and I attended a coin show in Dalton [Georgia]. The show exposed me to coins at a whole new level, and I was very intrigued with the dealers that I met at the show. Now I?m also selling coins, and I really like it.?
He had a bourse table at the April Georgia Numismatic Association show in Dalton.
?I?m balancing between being a collector and a dealer. I want to be a professional numismatist [for my career].?
Reynolds enjoys collecting varieties of early date large cents, such as the 1806/7 overdate, and says his favorite area of numismatics is ?everything Seated.? He would like to enroll in the counterfeit detection class at this year?s ANA Summer Seminar.
His mother, Judie Reynolds, said she was ?ecstatic? when her son was selected for the scholarship. ?I knew how important it was to him to have the opportunity to attend the Summer Seminar.?
?When he was 13 he began reading everything that he possibly could about coins,? she said. ?Now he spends the majority of his weekends attending coin shows. I like what he is doing because not only is it fun, it is also educational. Due to his obsession with coins and their value, Dustin has gained an understanding of the global economy including how the U.S. dollar relates to other currencies, and how the gold markets affect the economy.?
This is the fourth annual PNG YN Scholarship.
?The funds for this important program are administered from the PNG?s Gerald Bauman Memorial Fund,? said Gary Adkins, PNG president. ?Bauman, who passed away in 2001, served for many years as a prominent coin dealer with Manfra, Tordella & Brookes in New York City.?
For more information, visit www.PNGdealers.com.
