Stephanie Effken

    "Enjoy Coca-Cola" is a former slogan for, quite possibly, America's best-known and best-loved carbonated beverage. Simply enjoying Coca-Cola has given Harold Wheeler of Tamora a never-ending hobby and a house full of keepsakes.
     Wheeler's family had an old Coca-Cola cooler when he was a child from the 1940's. He considers this the first piece of his Coca-Cola collection.
     "I've always drank Coke and enjoyed Coke," Wheeler said. "As the years went on, collecting just grew on me."
     Wheeler said he became serious about his collection 30 years ago.
     With a rough estimate of approximately 15,000 pieces, the Wheelers have a room designated for Coke products and use many of them for decoration around their home.
     "15,000 might be on the high end but when you count all the little things like magnets, it adds up," Wheeler said.
     Also, included in Wheeler's collection are hundreds of glass Coke bottles. Though these bottles seem identical, each is unique, as most have been bottled in a different city and state.
     Beyond the familiar glass bottles, Wheeler has almost all of the NASCAR glass bottle collection and a variety of bottles with university and landmark labels. He also has every Coke Christmas can going back to the 1980's.
     "In retrospect I'd like to limit it to glasses and bottles," Wheeler said about his collection.
     He takes meticulous care of his collection by cleaning out his glass bottles, attempting to protect bottles and other items from scratches and safeguarding stuffed animals in plastic containers.
     Recently, Wheeler had approximately one-sixth of his collection on display at the Seward Senior Center. It included samples of his bottle collection and toys, glasses, puzzles, hats, dolls, trays, bags, coolers and towels.
     "No collection is worth anything with out a bobble-head doll," Wheeler said as he played with his toys.
     Dancing cans and jute boxes programmed with each past Coke jingle are important additions to his Coke toy collection.
     Attached with many of Wheeler's collectables is a story of its addition to his Coca-Cola medley. The items have been accumulated through garage sales, stores, some eBay purchases and gifts.
     "No one even has to think about what to get me any more," Wheeler said. "They just get me something with Coke on it."
     Though Wheeler said he has no way of knowing how much his collection is worth financially, the memories that accompany his keepsakes can't be bought with his credit card.