Yes, Fort Collins, there is a Santa Claus (or two or more), and we have two decades of solid gold evidence.

In year 19 of a tradition dating back to 1998, three gold coins were left this month with Salvation Army bell ringers manning red kettles in Fort Collins: two South African Krugerrands and one U.S. gold coin.

This year the gold coins were dropped in buckets at the King Soopers on Timberline Road on Dec. 5, the King Soopers on John F. Kennedy Parkway on Dec. 17 and the north Fort Collins Walmart on Dec. 19.

Named for Paul Kruger, a 19th-century president of the South African Republic, the coins have appeared throughout Salvation Army kettles across the United States since 1982. The coins this year are valued around $1,500.

But exactly who is behind the donations in Fort Collins — or how many people might be involved — remains a mystery.

When asked how long the tradition has lasted, Capt. Isaias Braga, who has worked for the Salvation Army in Fort Collins for three years, said Friday that gold coins have been donated every year of his service and his predecessor's, dating back six years. But a review of Coloradoan archives show it has happened every year except one since 1998.

It's unclear just how many different people have donated these rare gold coins over the years.

Whoever these Santas are, they've done it consistently — through the Great Recession — and with style. Occasionally, notes and poems have been attached to the coins.

In 1999, the second year of the donations, the donor included a note that said: "Hi again, Merry Christmas. Please use locally."

A coin left in 2000 came with this cryptic message: "Down but not out. Merry Christmas."

That led some to speculate the gold coins were about to run out or that the donor may have been in poor health.

"Either way, it was exciting to get it again. It's definitely the same person," said Jonathan Harvey of the Salvation Army said that year. "The handwriting on the note is the same (as last year's)."

Days later, the Salvation Army was surprised with another gold coin, and it raised the prospect of there being a second donor.

This one came with a poem: "'Twas the night before Christmas / of last year / Through Fort Collins we scurried / To bring `gold' Christmas cheer. / Red kettles were gone / Bells were not ringing / It had taken too long / For the choir, carols singing / This year a change / On Santa's long route / Your charity is special / And won't be left out / So before New York / Maine or Rhode Island / Two coins we will bring / For '99 and 2000 / We'd like to remain / The `Anonymous One' / And invite others / To join in on this holiday fun. / Merry Christmas!"

That time, the bell ringer saw the vehicle of the donors: a late-model, silver Chevrolet pickup with out-of-state license plates.

"It's different people, I'm sure," the Coloradoan quoted Harvey as saying in 2000.

2001 was the year there was no donation, according to Coloradoan archives. The next year, the giving resumed, and a note accompanying a coin indicated a past donor had died but his or her family was continuing the tradition:

"A golden coin is dropped in this can / In the memory of a special man / He believed in giving in anonymous ways / And for several years his secret stayed / He is no longer here to enjoy this tradition / But his family will continue to carry out his ambition / To all Merry Christmas and a New Year that's bright / That began with a man that had others in sight!"

Over the years, sometimes the coins have come with no hints about their source, simply wrapped in a plastic sleeve, paper or dollar bill.

In 2006, it seemed like the streak would be broken. By the last day of the red kettle drive, there had been no sign of a single gold coin.

"I don't know if the person has moved on," said Michael Halverson with the Salvation Army. "Hopefully he is healthy. Maybe he just didn't have the opportunity this year."

But when staff returned to the office Dec. 26, they found two Krugerrands in a collection kettle that had been placed in the vault before Christmas.

Hints about the donor and his or her methods came to light when the Salvation Army reported that in some years, a man who wished to remain anonymous had been purchasing the Krugerrands from the Salvation Army for more than their market value. The Salvation Army thought it likely was the same man who dropped the coins in the buckets.

In the past, the coins also have been auctioned off publicly, bringing in even more than their face value for the Salvation Army.

"From the research I've done, it's part of a rare collection," Capt. Robert Covert said in 2012. "We don't know who gave it to us, but thank you."

And if you're reading this, Santa: Hint, hint: We're fans of your poems.

Gold coin donations over the years

1998: 1 coin

1999: 1

2000: 3

2001: None

2002: 1

2003: 4. One came with this poem: "Christmas cheer is all around / A golden coin has already been found / The more the merrier is what we say / For this one is dropped in memory today / For giving is a glorious thing / Because what goes around comes back again! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!"

2004: 1

2005: 2. One came with a poem: "Early in December / With Christmas in full swing / We give a golden coin / And thank God for many things / This year has been a giving one / In which we all should share / For many have lost homes and lives / With nothing left to spare / Keep this timeless tradition / In hopes of Christmas cheer / That all will come together / In celebration of a new year"

2006: 2

2007: 1

2008: 1

2009: 2

2010: 1

2011: 1

2012: 2

2013: 1

2014: 1

2015:1

2016: 2

2017: 3

Source: Coloradoan archives

How to donate

Capt. Isaias Braga said Salvation Army kettle donations this year a little bit behind last year's and they hope to rally between now and 5 p.m. Sunday, the final day of the drive. Bell ringers are set up at local King Soopers, Walmart, Sam's Club, J.C. Penney, Macy's, Big Lots and Hobby Lobby stores.

The red kettle donations aren't just for the holidays, Braga said, but keep the Salvation Army working all year long. The Fort Collins site serves about 3,500 people each month, offering breakfast, sack lunches, food bags for low-income residents, clothing, rent assistance and utility help.

Donors can also send money to 3901 S. Mason St., Fort Collins, CO 80525.