- May 1, 2024
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Joseph Buccini transports soldiers to safety. He’s also an active member of the Flagler County Stamp and Coin Club.
Staff Sgt. Joseph Buccini is a door gunner on a CH-47 Chinook. He was on one of the last helicopters flying in Iraq, before U.S. soldiers were removed; now, he’s stationed in Camp Buerhing, Kuwait.
But in his spare time, Buccini does something unusual for a soldier: He collects coins.
Buccini, who worked for the city of Palm Coast for four years before being deployed, is also a member of the Flagler County Stamp and Coin Club.
“I’ve talked to a few coin collectors in my unit, but none that I know of are into it as much as I am,” he wrote via email, from Kuwait. Some soldiers have asked his opinion on the value of coins, he said.
He also carries a keepsake from the club around with him at all times. He describes it as his “little Italian horn guy.”
“It’s a keychain figure that was given to me by a wonderful friend, Francine (Fatuzzo),” he said. “She told me to keep it with me as a sign of good luck. I have since added a St. Michael medal to it, and he is with me every flight I go on while in theater.”
Buccini said his favorite pieces in his personal collection are Morgan silver dollars. He said he has acquired small coins overseas, including Saudi coins, Kuwaiti dinar and rubles, but had to pass on a five-ounce, silver coin — with a $450 price tag — commemorating the first liberation of Kuwait.
He has also kept in touch with the coin club. He said: “It’s nice to know that they are there for me and support me in what I’m doing here. There are a lot of military veterans in the club, so they have a sense of realization when it comes to what I do. They listen to my stories and share their own with me; they are just an all-around good group of patriots and citizens whom I’m lucky to call friends and brothers.”
When he returns, Buccini said, he hopes to educate young people about coins and the history behind them. He also wants to pass the tradition on to his sons, eventually.
But in the meantime, he has a job to do.
“The most rewarding part of this whole thing is the feeling of self gratitude I have when we pick up 30-plus soldiers and bring them back to Kuwait so they can go home,” he said. “They always thank us for flying them out of Iraq, and most of them have never been on a helicopter before, let alone a Chinook.”
