United States Mint Launches 25th America the Beautiful Quarters® Program Coin

HOMESTEAD, Fla., Dec. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The United States Mint joined National Park Service officials today to launch the Everglades National Park quarter, the 25th coin in the bureau's America the Beautiful Quarters® Program.  

The quarter's reverse (tails) design, inspired by the bird population in the Everglades, features an anhinga with outstretched wings on a willow tree with a roseate spoonbill visible in the mid-ground.  Both birds are found throughout the Everglades National Park.  Inscriptions are "EVERGLADES," "FLORIDA," "2014," and "E PLURIBUS UNUM."

In her remarks, United States Mint Chief Administrative Officer Beverly Ortega Babers said, "A vast mosaic of habitats that protects a thousand plant and bird species, Everglades National Park is the perfect choice to represent Florida in the America the Beautiful Quarters Program."

Special guests joining Ms. Babers for the launch ceremony included Everglades National Park Acting Superintendent Bob Krumenaker; Homestead Mayor Jeff Porter and Vice-Mayor Stephen R. Shelley; and Inside Homestead host Josh Padgett.  More than 700 schoolchildren from the surrounding area attended the launch.  Following the ceremony, attendees traded their currency for collectible rolls of the new quarter. 

The Federal Reserve initially released millions of Everglades National Park quarters into circulation in November, with a special release in Florida to coincide with the official quarter launch in December.  In addition, the United States Mint is offering collectible bags and rolls with Everglades National Park quarters from the bureau's facilities at Denver, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.  To purchase these products, please visit http://catalog.usmint.gov or call 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468).  Hearing- and speech-impaired customers with TTY equipment may order by calling 1-888-321-MINT (6468). 

The United States Mint is administering the America the Beautiful Quarters Program in accordance with Public Law 110-456, the America's Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008.  Each year until 2020, the bureau will release five new quarters with reverse designs representing select national sites.  The quarters are being issued based on the order in which the sites were established.  The final coin in the program will be released in 2021. 

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.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

• Free lesson plans based on the America Beautiful Quarters Program are available at http://www.usmint.gov/kids/teachers/.
• A digital image of the Everglades National Park quarter is available at http://www.usmint.gov/pressroom/?action=photo#AmericaTheBeautiful.
• Information about Everglades National Park is available at http://www.nps.gov/ever/index.htm.     
• Additional information about the America the Beautiful Quarters® Program is available at http://www.usmint.gov/mint_programs/atb/.
• Information about the United States Mint is available at http://www.usmint.gov/about_the_mint/.  

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SOURCE United States Mint