CHELTENHAM, England, Dec. 30 (UPI) -- A British couple have shown that small change can make big changes if you collect enough of it -- it can even pay for a cancer care center.

Peter and Bette Pickstock began collecting pennies and other coins two decades ago, handing out plastic containers to friends and strangers, the Daily Mail reported. Their total so far is 321,860.13 pounds -- or more than 32 million pennies -- the equivalent of close to $700,000.

The money has gone to the Cobalt Appeal Fund in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

The Pickstocks, who live in the village of Sturdivant near Cheltenham, were honored last week by an invitation to Buckingham Palace, where they met Queen Elizabeth, Prince Philip and their granddaughter, Zara Phillips.

"We chatted to the Duke of Edinburgh and he asked what our secret to raising so much money was and wished us a Merry Christmas," Mrs. Pickstock said. "It was a huge privilege and we had a wonderful time."

The couple plan to keep on collecting. Mrs. Pickstock said she saw how much good they had done when she was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago.