How an Old Blanket Changed My Life: Loren Kreitzer's Unbelievable Story

Up until just six years ago, Loren Kreitzer was living in poverty, residing in a cabin and scraping by on two hundred dollars a month from disability benefits he received after losing a leg in a 2007 car accident. But then, everything changed when he watched a TV show about antique trading. The program highlighted a rare Navajo tribal blanket sold for half a million dollars, shocking Kreitzer who realized he possessed a nearly identical blanket, never imagining it had any value beyond keeping him warm.

How did Kreitzer come to own this rare ethnic piece? He recounts that the blanket had been passed down in his family since his great-grandfather purchased it in 1880. After his grandmother's passing, his mother and sister sifted through her belongings, taking anything they thought had value. When Kreitzer finally arrived, all he found was this dirty, worn blanket as a keepsake from his grandmother.

Taking the blanket to various auction houses proved fruitless until Kreitzer reached John Morgan Auction House, where his luck transformed. Official appraisers there told him the blanket was worth at least one hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

Kreitzer agreed to auction the blanket with them, praying fervently for enough money to move out of the cabin and buy a proper home. His prayers were answered when several buyers bid on the blanket, ultimately selling for a record-breaking 1.5 million dollars. After deducting fees and taxes, Kreitzer received 1.3 million dollars.

"They had to bring me water to recover," Kreitzer recounted in a media interview. "I started breathing too fast, overwhelmed by disbelief at what I was hearing."

Kreitzer shared that he had worked hard all his life, and even before the accident, he could never afford to buy a house, making ends meet month-to-month.

What did he do with the money? He bought a house, invested in some stocks, and most importantly—got married. Who would have thought, he marvels, that an old, dirty blanket tucked away in his closet would turn his life around so dramatically?