Challenge coins. Do you use them, collect them, or both?

When I was in Germany, we had a soldier E5 promotion board. Soldier came in after doing the proper reporting proceedure, he then had the balls to coin challenge the board president. The CSM kicked him out.. the soldier also earned the respect of the CSM and was awarded full board points and was made promotable for E5.

I live in fear because I lost my Lucky Puppy (131th TFS) coin. Ten years after leaving the squadron I got tagged at a NASCAR race.

I could and would kill the guy who stole my regimental CSM coin and a 2 star coin I received from FT Campbell. A few years ago a coin to meant more than an award. The coin, was personal. The award a COL or LT. COL sees come across his desk daily.

Being an older soldier, I remember the pride I got when I first received a coin. If caught without it was the way of getting us I learned after the first time in the shower without it. I still have that first coin, with a hole drilled for my dogtag chain. Over the years they slowly diminished in meaning when you could purchase them. They no longer were a thing rare and everyone had many. They passed inspection and got a coin. I wouldn't trade or sell none of mine. They all have memories even though tarnished a bit

I never received one while on active duty, but I did get a coin from R Lee Ermy, when we went to Sturgis one year, although it was a true "military" coin, still makes me happy

I lost a 3-star general coin once. I had it with me while traveling, fell asleep on the mwr couch in an airport and it fell out of my pocket into the couch. I didn't realize it until I was on the plane.

Some how even being in

Never used them in the Army but now in the Civil Air Patrol I do

I cared about coins for all of maybe 6 months. I EARNED my first coin for busting my ass and excelling. I was proud of that coin. Then a few months later I got a coin from General Defretes for nothing more than being in his presence. It was pointless. I did nothing. More trivial coins came after that. See a high ranking individual, shake hands, talk about my job, get a coin. I started discarding them as soon as I got out of sight of the person. My ex wife kept around a dozen I got from 2008 - 2010 but after that I just give them to the closest person to me that's into that sorta thing. Now I'm a SETA Contractor and I get coins from everyone for training Soldiers for deployment (my job) I just hand them straight to the hardest working Soldier I trained that the Command overlooks and never recognizes. Coins are pointless.

The coins have never meant much of anything to me. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the recognition value of the person giving it to me, but the coin itself has no value to me. I've lost most if not all of my coins, and don't even give them a second thought, until the topic is brought up.