History of the
Challenge Coin
According to one story, challenge
coins originated during World War I. A pilot placed a medallion he
had received from a fellow pilot in a small leather pouch that he
wore about his neck. Shortly after acquiring the medallion, the
pilots' aircraft was severely damaged by ground fire. He was forced
to land behind enemy lines and was immediately captured by a German
patrol. In order to discourage his escape, the Germans took all of
his personal identification except for the small leather pouch
around his neck. In the meantime, he was taken to a small French
town near the front. Taking advantage of a bombardment that night,
he escaped. However, he was without personal identification. He
succeeded in avoiding German patrols by donning civilian attire and
reached the front lines. With great difficulty, he crossed no-man's
land. Eventually, he stumbled onto a French outpost. Unfortunately,
saboteurs had plagued the French in the sector. They sometimes
masqueraded as civilians and wore civilian clothes. Not recognizing
the young pilot's American accent, the French thought him to be a
saboteur and made ready to execute him. He had no identification to
prove his allegiance, but he did have his leather pouch containing
the medallion. He showed the medallion to his would-be executioners
and one of his French captors recognized the squadron insignia on
the medallion. They delayed his execution long enough for him to
confirm his identity. Instead of shooting him they gave him a
bottle of wine. Back at his squadron, it became tradition to ensure
that all members carried their medallion or coin at all times. This
was accomplished through challenge in the following manner - a
challenger would ask to see the medallion. If the challenged could
not produce a medallion, they were required to buy a drink of
choice for the member who challenged them. If the challenged member
produced a medallion, then the challenging member was required to
pay for the drink. This tradition continued on throughout the war
and for many years after the war while surviving members of the
squadron were still alive. We proudly continue this tradition today
with the challenge coin.
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The Challenge Coin has a nice
story, and I have some so "What do I do with
them?
Treasure it, remember how you came
by the coin. In 30 years of active duty service I was fortunate to
receive 100s of coins and every one of them had a positive memory
associated with it. I remember those I served with, the good times
and the tough times. I remember the units I visited and the peers
who helped me succeed. Today many coins are given by seniors to
acknowledge outstanding performance. Display your coins with pride,
they are part of your legacy. If you find yourself in a drinking
establishment, the standard challenge coin rules apply: Your coin
represents your affiliation, support or patronage to the unit or
organization that minted the coin. If you find yourself in a
drinking establishment and you don't remember how you got there,
call a cab, go home. You may "challenge" any individual who you
know has a coin. A challenge is made by withdrawing your coin,
raising it in the air or by tapping it on a bar or table. When you
challenge someone, they are required to produce their coin within
60 seconds. If the 'challenged' individual produces a coin, you are
obligated to buy them a beverage of choice. If the individual fails
to produce a coin, they are obligated to buy you a drink! The same
rules apply if someone challenges you! If alcohol is your beverage
of choice, please be responsible and use your designated driver. We
want you home safe!
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What are the steps for placing
an order?
Fill out a coin request at this link: I think I want a coin!
- Email the form to us along with your ideas for a coin. We will
assign you a customer ID number. Using your new customer ID # in
the subject block of any future e-mails will help us keep track of
your order!
- We will create your design and email it back to you for your
approval.
- You approve the design.
- The design is sent to the factory to make a die and the first
coin.
- A digital sample is usually ready in about 10 - 14 work days.
The pictures are e-mailed to us and we will send them on to
you.
- If you want an actual sample we will provide that to you before
your final production request.
- Once you approve the sample your order is minted.
- Your order is usually completed in 14 to 20 workdays.
- We ship via UPS or USPS depending on where it is going!
- We can do a RUSH but ya gonna pay! Click
here!
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What if color matching is
important to me?
OK, some of us want everything to
be just right, others are a little flexible. We can work with all
types of customers. If you tell me you want the outer ring of you
coin to be blue I say "sky blue?' and you say "Sure, why not?" then
I'll figure out a nice sky blue and we go from there. On the other
hand you may say "I want the outer ring to look the blue sky in
Hawaii in Oct 2001. Hey I'm going to send you the table below and
tell you to go crazy. That color is there! Next, I tell the factory
you want color # XXXX. You will have that Hawaiian sky! PANTONE Color Charts
to match colors (click here)
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What's the first
step?
Your coin design can be e-mailed to
us in Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, .Tif, .JPG or .pdf format. The
better your original images are, the better your coin will look. We
would rather you sent the images you want on the coin rather than
trying to put the design together in Power Point or Word. Power
Point is fine if you want to send it to give us an idea of what
you're looking for but we will need the full size images to design
your coin. We use professional programs like Corel, Illustrator and
Photoshop when designing your coin. We will look over your design
and let you know if there are any areas that need fixed. You can
e-mail your design by clicking here and attaching your image files.
You can help us by including your customer ID in the subject block.
There is no cost for us to evaluate your design or make suggestions
to produce a better coin. There are certain special processes
needed to re-create portraits or 3D type facial features on a coin.
If your coin requires a special process we will tell you up front.
We will be honest with you and tell you the total price before you
place your order. There are no hidden charges. When your design is
finished and ready for your review, we will email it to you.
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What is a 'fair' cost for my
coins?
We use several factories that have
been creating military challenge coins for over 20 years now. They
offer us a good price because of the volume of business we do with
them. We pass that savings on to you. The craftsmanship and
attention to detail is very nice. In most situations I do not
charge a die fee. This can save you money. If you check my prices
they are reasonable. Compare them with other companies. My prices
are not the lowest. I cannot be the lowest price and not charge a
die fee. My prices are fair, take a little time and look around. I
have said it before, there are some very good coin companies out
there, I'd like to think I'm just one of them.
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What if I need a coin
designed?
If you don't have a design I can
help create your coin for you. We do NOT charge for our design
service as long as you are buying your coins from us. I will take
the high quality artwork that you e-mailed us and arranging it on
the coin layout to your original specifications. We have an
extensive collection of military clipart already on file that can
be used for your design. Once we have the design done and approved
and you decide to change the design there may be additional charges
associated with your order. I will try to minimize this. If this
does happen the design fee is based on $50.00 an hour. If you want
me to design a coin for you and you choose to have it made
somewhere else the design fee is $150.00. If we work on a design
for you, and you decide to cancel the order, I will charge the
$150.00 design rate for your coin. Your design will NOT go into
production until you give your final approval and proof the coin
for layout and spelling.
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Can I re-order my
coins?
When you're ready to re-order your
coins, just send us an e-mail! We will place your re-order and
charge you. Minimum re-order is 25 coins and there is a
surcharge for the smaller number. For re-orders of 100 coins or
more, I will give you a 10% discount.
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When do I pay for my
coins?
When your order is finalized (after
you approve production artwork), we will send you an invoice and
instructions on payment. We recommend that payment occur at this
time. That said, we are a small enough company that if you cannot
pay up front -- we will work with you. Our goal is for you to have
coins that you are proud to hand out. We trust everyone, until
you give us reason not to. We expect you to live up to
your part of this contract when we live up to ours.
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Do you guarantee your coins and
what is your return policy?
We make every effort to give you a
quality coin at a fair price. I want you to be satisfied with your
coins. If the coins are what you ordered then I expect payment. All
moving parts and the battery is guaranteed for life! (Gotcha!) Your
coins are unique to you and your organization. We make every effort
to insure that the coin you ordered is the coin you got. If that is
the case there is no return policy. If you did not review the
design carefully and now you notice a problem, I'm sorry but that
is the coin you approved. There is no return policy. On the other
hand if the coin you received from Kidder Corp is not correct we
will fix it at no cost to you.
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I'm a procrastinator yada
yada…I need Rush Service.
If you have an order that you need
to rush, we can produce your coins and get them in the mail
(normally) within 30-35 days. We do this by moving your order to
the front of the job que for production. During high production
periods this may be slightly longer. March - October is the busiest
time of the year for most coin companies so plan ahead and allow
yourself enough time to complete the job before you run out of
time. (Normal turn around is 45 days from start to finish if you
are doing a regular order.) When doing a rush, a sample coin is not
minted so your deadline can be met. You as the customer, agree to
allow the die maker artistic license to use his professional
experience when minting your coin. Every effort will be made to
match your design intent and the colors if your coin is painted,
but we will not be held responsible for interpretation or color
errors since a sample coin is not proofed. (The purpose of the
sample is to proof the first coin minted, ensure the overall design
is correct, all colors are placed properly and the right colors are
used.) We use PANTONE Color Matching numbers when we send your
design to the factory so the chance for error is very low! Customer
assumes all responsibility of the final order with the exception of
an error caused by us during the die process. If we make a mistake
on the die, we will re-do the coins and mail them out at our
expense. Customer is responsible for proof-reading the design and
giving final approval, via e-mail, before the design goes to the
die maker. By giving your approval, you are stating that the design
is correct in the placement of all graphic images, spelling and
grammar. You also agree to accept the colors as painted in your
full order, when your coins arrive. We can provide this Rush
Services at a small additional cost, to meet your time critical
deadline. When doing a rush, full payment is due prior to beginning
your order.
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