Otha Anders saved his first penny more than 45 years ago when he found it on the ground.

The coin reminded him to pray and give thanks.

"I became convinced that spotting a lost or dropped penny was an additional God-given incentive reminding me to always be thankful," said Anders, 73. "There have been days where I failed to pray and more often than not, a lost or dropped penny would show up to remind me."

Fifteen five-gallon plastic water jugs and half a million pennies later, Anders on Tuesday deposited $5,136.14 into his account to go toward a recent dental bill.

He cashed in the coins to the Ruston Origin Bank, in Ruston, La.

After that first coin, Anders said his penny pile began to grow and he ultimately stopped spending pennies and always made sure whenever he made a purchase, his change contained at least three to four pennies.

Bank Vice President Jennie Cole said it was not a typical day at the bank when Anders had his collection of pennies rolled in on a dolly, but Anders is a longtime customer who they wanted to help.

"We value his business, as we do all of our customers," she said. "But if we can help Anders with his endeavors, we are happy to do so."

Cole said a machine counted the coins that saves much time, and Origin Bank's part is to help get the pennies counted, so Anders can get to his destination.

"Anders will inform us on where he wants the cashed-in money to be placed," she said.

Cole said the bank will then send the pennies off to the FDIC, and the bank will receive their credit for them.

"I would never spend a penny," he said. "I would break a dollar before giving up a penny."

As a supervisor for in-school suspended children for the Jackson School Board, Anders said his students learned about his penny fascination and would save them up to sell to him.

"But I never allowed anyone, not even my wife nor children, to give me pennies without being compensated," he said. "I wanted the inner satisfaction that God and I acquired this collection."