Dennis Boothby, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 4 of 7

Key Fob Lost On Old Orchard Beach Maine, Found With A Metal Detector And Returned To The Owner

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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Recovery and Return #40
On Thursday morning, June 20, 2024, I arrived at the beach, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. I was searching for a lost necklace, but didn’t have a lot of time, to complete the search. I had a previous commitment, in Norway, Maine and I needed to leave the beach, no later than 7:00am, in order to make my appointment. It was now 5:00am and I got straight, to the search. It was a fairly large area to search and I knew, I would not be able to finish, until the next day.
As I searched the area, I was performing a vertical grid search,to the beach. That is, I would start my search, near the dune/seagrass and search towards the water, turn around and start the search, back up to the seagrass area. As I was searching, I found the usual suspects of trash, coins and to my surprise, a Key Fob. The Key Fob had no name of ownership on it, but it did have a # on it. Perhaps an apartment, condo or hotel room number. The search continued, until I had to leave and unfortunately, no necklace was found. I will return to continue the search, in the area I wasn’t able to complete.

I now had to find the owner, of the Key Fob. I called the Old Orchard Beach Police Department and they had no record, of someone making a report, for a lost Key Fob. The OOBPD, took my information and said if anyone calls, they would give them my contact information.
I decided to post the missing fob, on my Facebook Page, The Ring Finders of Maine, along with 5-6 other local Facebook pages. I did not show the number, on the fob, and asked for the number to be revealed and if correct, I would personally guarantee the return of the fob. Almost immediately, I started getting tips that it looked like a Key Fob, that belongs to Grand Victorian Hotel Condominium. The Grand Victorian is an oceanfront beach property, that is at the base, of the OOB PIER.

One of the messages was from Ryan and said “Hello, I am the Manager, of The Grand Victorian. Unit # *** recently lost keys, so I’m hoping, these are the ones”.

I replied, “Ryan, This is fantastic! The # is ***”. Ryan gave me the correct 3 digit number and I knew we had found the owner.

I told Ryan that I would swing by The Grand Victorian, once I returned, from Norway, around 4:00pm to 5:00pm and return the key fob. Ryan told me that if he wasn’t there, there would be staff available and I could return the fob to them. I arrived at The Grand Victorian and Ryan was not there. I was able to talk to and return the key fob, to Bill. Although I was not able to meet the owner of the key fob, Bill told me that they would be ecstatic to have the fob back in their possession.

So, what started out as a search for a necklace, turned into a very hectic day, with me being able to return someone’s key fob. A hectic but very satisfying day and another smile on my face.

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14K Gold Pendants, Gifted By Great Grandmother Lost In Tall Grass, in Westbrook, Maine, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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Recovery and Return’s #38 & 39

On Friday Night, June 14th, I received a text at approximately 7:40pm. It said

“My daughter was playing outside and lost her gold cross and a small gold basketball off her necklace I’m located in Westbrook, Maine what do you charge thanks Jon”

I replied,

“Hi Jon, sorry to hear this.

“I do not charge for my time or for my service. I do require a $25.00 Transportation Fee, to cover my gas, tolls, wear and tear, etc.

Where did she lose it? Your property? Private property? Public property?”

Jon then proceeded to tell me

“Yes my property we have a picture of her with it on 5 mins before she went inside changed her shirt and the pendants are gone. She said-early in the day chain got caught on her bike and didn’t think anything of it. The chain and cross were given to her when her great grandmother died.”

With it now being almost 8:00pm and raining slightly, I told Jon I could be there 1st thing in the morning, after charging my detectors, overnight. Jon and I agreed to meet in the morning and start searching.

I arrived at Jon’s home, in Westbrook, Maine at 7:15am and was promptly met by Jon and his daughter, Jaelyn. Jaelyn told me that she was next to the house, next door and ran home and went in the front door. A total distance of approximately 75+- feet. Jon and Jaelyn had performed a visual search but it was useless. The grass was fairly tall and something as small as the pendants would easily fall out of sight, into the tall grass. I asked Jaelyn where the picture of her, with the pendants, still on the necklace was taken. Jaelyn took me to the spot and told me that as soon as the picture was taken, she ran home. I decided to start the search there and asked Jaelyn to walk the same path, as she had run the previous night and I would follow her, very slowly, with my Minelab CTX-3030, with a very small 6 inch sniper coil.
About 10 minutes into the search, I received a very, very, very, low sounding chirping noise. I looked into the deep grass, but couldn’t see anything. I removed my handheld pinpointer and stuck it into the deep grass and received a nice loud signal. Pushing the grass aside, I saw the top of the 14K Gold Cross, Thank God! Jon and Jaelyn couldn’t believe it and Jon said that the cross, is the more important pendant. The cross had been given to her, after her Great Grandmother had passed away.

Now, to find the very small 14K Gold Basketball Pendant. I finished searching the path that Jaelyn had taken and no basketball pendant. We all talked about the possibility of the pendant, flying off her, as she ran and into the hedges, in the front of the house. I was also thinking the basketball pendant was smaller than the cross and decided to search the path again. This time, I would search with only the hand held pinpointer, by bending over for the length of the search. Still no basketball pendant. Did it bounce, into the hedges? Out towards the street? Don’t know, so I decided to grid search the entire lawn. I started at the lawn, near the front door she had gone in. No luck. I then moved to the lawn in front of the house and started searching there. As I came up to the light post, I received a nice strong signal, about 2-4 inches, from the light post. Could I be picking up some metal associated, with the post and wires below? I looked closely, into the grass but still didn’t see anything. As I put my pinpointer, into the grass, it received a signal and as I moved the grass with the pinpointer, I could barely make out something, gold in color. As I reached down and grabbed the item, I could see a very small Gold Basketball. I finally found it, after just under 2 hours of searching. The pendant was just a few feet, off of the path that Jaelyn had run , the previous night.

I then texted Jon and told him I had found the pendant. A few minutes later, Jon and Jaelyn came outside and I asked them if they could see the pendant, in the grass. They could not see it and I passed my coil over the pendant and showed them where it was. The pendant would never have been found, with a visual search.

Jaelyn and Jon told me they didn’t think I would find either pendant , but now they were both smiling ear to ear. Jon had told me that the previous night, Jaelyn was inconsolable and just crying and crying, because she had lost her Great Grandmother’s Gold Cross. Jaelyn is now feeling much better, knowing she has both pendants again. I am so grateful that I am able to reunite people with their extremely sentimental items.

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Lost Gold Ring Found And Returned, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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I was searching for a Gold Ring, in Ocean Park, Maine, on Saturday, June 8th. The ring had been lost, a full week earlier, but my client wasn’t aware of my services, until she read about a recovery and return, the night before, in Old Orchard Beach Maine, by me, The Ring Finders of Maine. A gold ring, lost for a week, on the beach, is not impossible to recover, just very difficult. Anything could have happened, including, she was mistaken about where the ring was lost, tides have come and gone or even another detectorist, could have found it.

Anyways, As I was searching, I felt my phone vibrate, in my pocket. I saw I had a voicemail, from an out of state phone number. I read the transcript and it said

“Hey Dennis , how do you do. My name is Tom. We are here for a few days and the wifey thinks she lost her ring where she is sitting, on the beach. Could you please give me a call at your convenience. I appreciate it. Call 4 1 3-***-****, Thank you “

I immediately called Tom back and he explained to me that his wife were staying at The Royal Anchor Beach Resort, an ocean front resort , near the Town of Scarborough, Maine and Pine Point Beach, Maine. The Royal Anchor’s front desk, gave Tom my business card and encouraged him to call me. Tom told me that his wife had taken her ring off, to apply lotion. A little bit later, she realized she didn’t have her ring anymore and since, she hadn’t left the area, the ring should be fairly close to their beach chairs.

I told Tom I would be happy to help but would be approximately 1 1/2 hours, before I finished my search in Ocean Park. Tom replied, no problem, we are just sitting on the beach, for the afternoon and aren’t going anywhere. I told him I would call him, as I was leaving Ocean Park and would only take me a few minutes to get there, as I was only 3-4 miles from The Royal Anchor.

1 1/2 hours later, I finished up my 1st search, unsuccessfully and called Tom to let him know I would be there, in 5-10 minutes. Tom told me they were still sitting on the beach and they had the only 2 red beach chairs, there.

When I arrived, at The Royal Anchor, I saw Tom and his wife and the two red beach chairs. I introduced myself to Tom and his wife, Nancy. Nancy explained what had happened and it was exactly as what Tom had told me. Nancy hadn’t gone anywhere, since the ring had gone missing and was sure, it would be in an area around the chairs. Tom and Nancy had searched the sand themselves but could not locate the ring. Nancy also told me that the ring was Yellow Gold, with 3 Blue stones, set in it. Nancy then told my wife and I that the ring was a 50th Birthday present, from her father and that yesterday, June 7th, was her Birthday. Yikes, no pressure on me now. I just had to find her very sentimental ring.

I had Tom and Nancy, move the metal chairs back a little bit, so they wouldn’t interfere, with my detector. Once the chairs were out of the way, I started passing my detector’s coil, over the area. Within 10-15 seconds, I received the unmistakable sound of gold. I was so confident of this that I told Nancy and Tom that this would be their last lost ring. I plunged my pinpointer, into the soft dry sand and found the target. Put my hand, into the sand and nothing. Put my hand in a little deeper, and I could feel the round ring, pulled it out, saw the Yellow Gold and 3 Blue Stones and Told Nancy, “I got your ring “. She and Tom were elated and Tom even said something to the effect of “what took you so long. It took you like 10 seconds “ and we all laughed. Tom also stated that he couldn’t believe how deep the ring had already become and that they would never have found it that deep. The ring had worked its way down to the 5 inch area, in just a few hours. This most likely happened because the ring was heavy, the sand was very dry and while searching for the ring, Tom and Nancy, may have pushed it a little deeper. So thankful that a ring given to Nancy, by her father, as a 50th Birthday present, is now back on her finger, the day after her birthday. I just absolutely love do this.

The staff of The Royal Anchor cheered for me, after the ring was found and thanked me for coming and helping their guests. I also left more of my cards with them and they assured me, they would definitely call me when my service is needed, in the future.

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Tungsten Ring Lost In The Old Orchard Beach, Maine Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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I was upstairs, putting my PJ’s on, after getting out of the shower. As I was getting dressed, I could hear my phone, ringing downstairs. When I retrieved my phone from the charger, I saw a voicemail had been left, a few minutes earlier, at 7:04pm. The voicemail message said,

“Hi there, I was told to call you. I lost my ring and I’m hoping you can help me. Eric said to call you. I’m right on Old Orchard Beach. If you get this message through just call me or my fiancé at 9 7 8- ***-**** please thank you…”

Now, Eric is the owner of The Waverly Store, a beachfront store, at The Waverly Condo Rentals and right next to The Brunswick Bar – The Largest Patio On The Beach, beachfront bar and nightclub and very close to Palace Playland Amusement Park and The Pier at Old Orchard Beach Maine. Eric is a big booster and a Facebook follower, of The Ring Finders of Maine and he personally has referred me 3-4 times, in the last year, with three recoveries made, because of his support and referral. A great guy and if you are in OOB, stop in his store and get some nice cold drinks, sunblock, umbrella or any of your day at the beach needs.

I immediately called Eric back and he told me there was a gentleman that had just lost his ring on the beach and had come in, looking to see if The Waverly Store, had a metal detector. Eric told him he didn’t but to call me instead. As Eric and I were talking, the gentleman that lost the ring, came back in the store and Eric hand him the phone. The gentleman’s name is Kaymel and he told me he knew the area the ring was in and had placed his large cooler, next to where he thought the ring had come off. A very, very, smart move by Kaymel. I told Kaymel, I could be there in 20 minutes at the most. I told my wife that I had just received a callout and would get changed, get my equipment, in the vehicle and be off. Since a steady rain was coming down, I decided to take my Minelab Excalibur II, a totally waterproof, diving detector, good for 200 feet under the water. Not knowing how long that I would be in the rain, this was my best bet and is a great beach detector.

My wife and I arrived at The Waverly Store at about 7:25pm and I saw someone, on the beach, watching the street, next to Eric’s, Waverly Store. I yell up, “Are you the one that lost a ring”. He replied yes and came down to meet me. Kaymel walked with me, to where he had placed his cooler. I asked him where he thought he lost the ring and he told me in “this area”, as he waved his finger in a circular motion. I turned on the Excalibur and started walking on the right edge of the area and about 5-6 feet, from the cooler. Not even 30 seconds into the search, I received a great, loud, low tone signal. I grabbed my pinpointer, placed it in the sand, found the target, put my hand, into the sand and pulled out Kaymel’s beautiful Tungsten Ring. Doesn’t get much easier than that and all because Kaymel had the foresight, to place his cooler, where he thought the ring had come off. I cannot tell you how important little things like this, help in recovering lost items. The smiles, on our faces, were ear to ear.
Kaymel told me that he and his girlfriend were packing up, when it started raining. As he was taking the tent down his ring flew off his finger , due to the rain, making his hands all wet and cold. As I was giving Kaymel, a ride to his vehicle, with his cooler and tent, he thanked me over and over. It’s so great, to be able to help people, like Kaymel, when, they feel helpless, not knowing if they will ever get their lost ring back. Kaymel not only has his ring back but will also be in my “Book of Smiles”.

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Gifted 14K Gold Wedding Ring, Lost In The Ocean, in Crescent Beach State Park, Cape Elizabeth, Maine, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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Recovery and return #35, in the past year. Should you ever lose a ring, keys, phone, jewelry or anything metallic, contact The Ring Finders of Maine, for a chance to get your item back, that you thought was lost forever.

On Wednesday, May 29th, 2024, I found a Men’s Wedding Ring and posted it to Facebook, in the hopes, the owner would recognize it and I would be able to return it. One of the comments, on my post was from Samantha. She commented, “My son lost a Gold Wedding Ring, at Crescent Beach, last weekend, if you ever find anything there”.
I replied that I was sorry to hear this and could she send me a Facebook private message, which she did. I replied with an aerial view of Crescent Beach State Park, Cape Elizabeth, ME, in Cape Elizabeth, Maine. I marked off 5 sections of the large beach area and asked Samantha if her son had lost the ring in one of the 5 sections. She sent back my photo, with an area, circled in yellow and told me it was lost in that area. She then sent another PM and stated

“ He lost it in the water, a little bit, but the tides were in between. He’s only 9 and it was my Dad’s ring, that he gave to him. He was super sad, when it fell off”.

I replied with,
“So not to deep. I am not familiar with this beach but I can certainly give it a try. I do have waterproof detectors. You say the tides were in between, so he wasn’t way out there”.

Samatha replied, “He wasn’t way out! Dry sand was a very short distance behind me. The beach that day was pretty clear as well, so we could see the bottom. Just couldn’t find the ring”.

I then told her that I had a previous commitment, the next morning, Thursday, was going to be out of state, on Friday and if Crescent Beach State Park, would grant me permission, I would search on Saturday, when the tide was advantageous. I told her if I could make it Thursday, I would, but it would be tight, with the tide coming in. With the ring, already lost for 5 days, in the water m I really didn’t want to wait until Saturday.
Samantha replied, “Aww ok! No pressure at all! Thank you”!
I knew there was pressure because when something is lost in the water or, the tides and waves could potentially make it lost forever. I had to get there asap.

The next morning, I finished up with my commitment and it was 10:30am. Low tide was at 11:09am. If I left right then and drive the approximate 25 30 minutes, to the State Park, I could get 2-3 hours of searching completed, before the incoming tide would overtake the search area.

I arrived at Crescent Beach State Park and started searching at 11:10am, low tide. The tide was now coming in. I started searching about a 1/3 of the way down, to the water and performed a grid search, horizontally to the beach and the ocean. Back and forth, searching approximately 100 to 125 feet and then turning around heading back to the starting point. I had made 4 such passes, digging the occasional non-ferrous target. At approximately 35 – 40 minutes, into the search, I received a mixed signal, on my VDI screen, that would not repeat. I would sometimes get a ferrous signal and sometimes a nonferrous signal. It could be two different metals, next to each other, throwing the detector off. I had enough of a good nonferrous signal, that I couldn’t, not dig it. The detector was telling me it was 3 inches under the sand and I slid the scoop, into the hard packed sand. Ran my coil, over the pile of sand and the target, was in the pile of sand that I had just dug out of the beach. I pulled my pin pointer out and stuck it in the pile, I had just dug. The pin pointer located the target and as I removed the sand, around the target, I saw the unmistakable color of GOLD. I removed a little more sand and saw the complete ring. I had found the ring.

I then sent a photo of the ring, on my scoops handle, to Samantha and she replied, “OMG, That’s right in the area we were in. You are so amazing. I’m sending the photo, to my Dad, real quick, to confirm. I believe it is”. A couple of minutes later, “Yes it is!!!”

I then told Samantha to give me a call at 1:00pm, when I arrived home, so we could make plans to return the ring.
Samantha the sent another PM, “My son is going to be so happy. He cried and cried and said he would give anything, to have the ring back. You are quite possibly, the best person on earth.” Well, her son will be getting the ring back soon.

When she called, Samantha told me she lived in Gorham, Maine and was getting out of work at 3:30pm. We would meet at the Hannaford Supermarkets, on Rt 1, in Saco Maine, at 4:00pm.

We met at 4:00pm and Samantha brought her son Jacob, with her. It is Jacob’s ring and it fell off, of his finger, in the cold North Atlantic waters, 5 days earlier. Jacob was extremely happy to have his ring back. His ring, is actually his grandfather’s ring, that was gifted to Jacob and his mother told me that Jacob had to tell his grandfather that he had lost the ring, which was very hard for Jacob to do. Now Jacob gets to tell his grandfather, that he now has it back. Jacob also will NEVER EVER wear his ring to the beach again. I just love seeing people happy and smiling, like Jacob is now.

 


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Key Fob Lost In Standish, Maine Found Visually, While Searching With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Saturday morning , May 25th, 2024, I received the following voicemail
“Yeah, my name is Stephanie. I called you yesterday but I’m not sure that I actually got the right number because the number that comes up on my phone is a six. Six number. I’ve lost a Key fob in Standish, probably about a half an hour from Saco. I know it’s a holiday weekend, so maybe this isn’t possible but if you could Let me know if it’s a possibility for us to get together I’d appreciate it you can text me, at your convenience. My number is 2 0 7- ***-**** .
Thanks bye-bye…”

I was driving back from Portland, but immediately called Stephanie back. I told Stephanie that I did not receive her voicemail, from the previous day, but that I would certainly be able to help her. It was now approximately 9:30am and I told Stephanie I would be there at approximately 11:00am, just needing to get to my home, in Saco, Maine and pick up my Metal Detecting equipment and drive to Standish, a suburb of Portland, Maine and Windham, Maine.
I arrived at the location, where the Key Fob had been lost, at 11:20am. Stephanie and her husband Tom, arrived 5 minutes later. Stephanie explained that 4 days earlier she had driven to this location and parked next to the walking and ATV trail. Shen then proceeded to walk down the road, stopping at certain locations, on both sides, of the road, to view and smell the many flowers. When she finished her walk, she noticed the Key Fob was no longer, in her pocket. She retraced her steps, on both sides of the road, including down in the ditch, along rock walls, in areas she had traversed, to see the flowers. She could not find the key fob. She then walked 3 miles home and then back to the car, with the spare key fob. Over the next few days, Stephanie returned and searched the area again, this time, getting down into the ditch and searching through the many leaves and brush. Still not successful, Stephanie was telling a friend what had happened and the friend told her to contact me, The Ring Finders of Maine.

Stephanie and Tom took me a few steps up the road, to where Stephanie thought the key fob, may be. It was down, in the ditch and covered with leaves and twigs. As I was searching, I was finding the usual road side trash, of bottle caps, vape pens and cans, but no key fob. As I came out of the ditch, I was walking at the top of the ditch and searching along the path, Stephanie had walked, days earlier. Stephanie was visually searching near me and her husband, Tom was visually searching, about 75 feet ahead of us. I was still only finding road side trash, when we heard Tom yell out to Stephanie to come meet him, up ahead. I continued my search and saw Stephanie and Tom, walking back to me. When they reached me, they showed me the key fob. TOM HAD FOUND THE KEY FOB, while visually searching, about 75 feet, up the road. Nothing like dual optical scanners (Eyes 👀) to successfully find the key fob. Tom had left the road side and saw them, laying next to a rock wall, approximately 10-15 feet from the road. Outstanding job Tom and he was then rewarded with a big kiss.
Another team effort, in locating Stephanie’s key fob. It may not have been found by a Metal Detector but Stephanie doesn’t care. She has it back and didn’t need to replace her Key Fob , at a cost of $325.00. We all left, very happy. And great day and story for my “Book of Smiles”

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Championship Ring Lost In The Old Orchard Beach, Maine Water Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Saturday May, 11th, I started receiving multiple notifications, from Facebook, for my The Ring Finders of Maine page, an Emergency Metal Detecting Service. People had seen a Facebook post about a lost ring, on the beach, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. Four or five people had commented on the post, to contact me, to search for the ring.

I then saw a message, from Nicole, stating,

“Hello! My daughter just informed me that she lost her Championship Ring, in OOB, today. She didn’t want to tell me sooner, because she was embarrassed, by it. I was told to reach out to you.”

The message came in at 5:49pm. I immediately replied with

“Hi, glad to help. It’s a very large beach, does she know which area?”

Nicole then sent me a photo of the Cheerleading Championship Ring and a photo of the area, her daughter had been in, earlier, in the day, with some of her friends. Nicole also told me that her daughter, Alyssa,  said she was on the right side of the pier, when facing the water. I could tell, from the photo that she had been in front of Palace Playland, an amusement park. She then sent me a video of two boys, running down and jumping into the water, for greater clarity and direction , on where her daughter and friends, had been, on the beach.

Alyssa lives in Sanford, Maine, about 25 miles from Old Orchard Beach. She and her friends had stopped in OOB, on their way to a cheerleading competition, in South Portland, where her team was competing, in another Championship competition, this very night. Alyssa is a member of Port City Athletics and competes in their All Star Cheerleading group. Alyssa would not be able to perform, this night, due to an injury to her knee, which will require surgery. Alyssa was very upset about losing the ring, thinking it would bring bad luck to her teammates, that night.

I then asked Nicole if her daughter, had also gone in the water. Yes she had. I then sent a photo to Nicole, showing the beach and asked, which section of the beach she was in? I had broken the beach up into 4 different colored quadrants and Nichole’s daughter said section #3, was where they were laying on the beach. From the photo and video sent to me, I’m thinking it was quadrant #4, not section #3. I then asked if someone could meet me there and pinpoint the area, her daughter had frequented the most. Nicole and her daughter agreed to meet me there and I told her that I would load my equipment up and be there in approximately 30 minutes, at 6:30pm.

I arrived at 6:30pm and Nicole hadn’t arrived yet. I decided to start a horizontal grid search, of the dry sand, in quadrant #4. I had been searching, with my metal detector, for maybe 15 minutes, when everyone arrived. I asked Alyssa, if I was in the general area. Yes and she showed me some of the holes that she had dug, just about 15 feet from where I was.

I continued the search and was finding nothing, but a vape pen, bottle cap and a few rusty nails. While I was searching, Nicole, Alyssa, her father and her friend, were performing a visual search, mostly down in the wet sand, near the water. Nothing was found by them. After I had been searching for approximately 1 1/2 hours. Nicole and the rest of them had to leave. I told Nicole, I would search for another 1/2 hour or so, as it was getting dark and I was getting closer to the water. I continued grid searching, the wet slope of the beach, down to the water area. If I didn’t find it, I would be back, in the morning, for low tide and search the wet sand, that was now underwater. As I was making my way down the slope, I was finding nothing at all. I was approximately 1/2 to 3/4 of the way, down the slope, when I received my 1st and only Non-Ferrous target. It was ringing up a 12-04, on my CTX-3030 and the screen was telling me about 4 inches deep. I dug a couple times and the target was still in the hole. I dug a 3rd time, and as the saying goes, 3rd times a charm. I pushed some sand aside and I saw Alyssa’s Cheerleading Championship Ring. A big smile, broke out, on my face. Now getting dark and approximately 2 hours of searching, has resulted in more smiles, for my “Book of Smiles”. A good day.

I then messaged Nicole and told her I had just found Alyssa’s ring, along with a photo. Nicole replied,

“OMG, Thank you so much. That’s insane. I will message you tomorrow and we can grab it! Thank you sooo much.”

Sunday, Mother’s Day became to hectic and I received the following message from Nicole

“Thank you Dennis!  Mother’s Day was a bit crazy and I ended up with a sick bunny and cheerleading watching!

Finding the ring ended up being good luck as her team WON another ring yesterday!!!  ( she’s superstitious and though losing it would hurt them) She has an injury that wouldn’t let her compete but she’s excited for them!

We can pick it up on Wednesday evening if possible???

Thank you again!!!”

We all met up on Wednesday , May 15 and I returned the ring to Alyssa. Just a few days earlier. Alyssa was upset and crying, about losing her Championship Ring. She also thought she would bring her team bad luck, because she had lost last year’s Championship Ring and her team was competing for another Championship,on Saturday night, the same day she lost her ring. Well, no bad omens here! Her team WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP AGAIN, incredible. Congratulations to all the cheerleaders, once again. Well done!!!

Alyssa is having the surgery on her knee, tomorrow, Thursday, May 16th. Prayers and well wishes go out to Alyssa. 🙏🙏🙏

Every ring, truly has a story behind it and what a great story this ring has. I absolutely love helping people like Nicole and Alyssa.

 

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Gold Wedding Ring, Lost and Found, in Westbrook, Maine Field, With a Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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I received a text on Wednesday May 1st, that stated

“Hello. I have a lost wedding ring in Westbrook Maine. It was lost last fall doing some work in my field. I do think I know the areas it may have been lost. Is this something you could help with”?

I immediately called, the phone number, that the text came in on. Chuck told me he had lost his Wedding Ring, last September, while doing work, on his 20 acres of fields. WAIT, WHAT, 20 ACRES? WOW! This would be interesting.

Chuck told me he thought he had lost it when is tractor became stuck, in some mud. He had gotten off the tractor to get it unstuck and thinks, his wedding ring came off in that area, of the fields. If the ring wasn’t there, it may be where he roto tilled, after getting the tractor unstuck.

Chuck then told me he was also cutting some brushes, bushes, etc., with his Bush Hog. While cutting the bushes back, Chuck had to change the blades and he was also hit, in the face, by a branch. This caused a good sized cut on his forehead, with blood streaming down his face. Chuck’s wife was out of town, so Chuck went up to the house and was cleaning up the cut and blood. Chuck decided to take a photo, of the cut, in the bathroom mirror and send it to his wife, to show her what happened. Once Chuck was cleaned and bandaged up, he went back and finished his field work.

The next day, Chuck realized his ring was missing. He looked around the house and wasn’t able to find it. He looked at the photo, he had sent to his wife and he did not have the ring on his finger, the day before. He then realized that he must have lost it, out in one of the areas, he had been working.

We agreed to meet in 2 days, on Friday, May 3rd. Knowing this was going to take a miracle to find, over such a very large area, I asked Chuck, if he would be willing to search along side me, with my backup detector. I would set the detector up, for the search, and show him how to use it. I would also be close by, if he had any questions. I also told Chuck, if we didn’t find the ring, on Friday, I could leave the backup detector, with him so he could search, the next day, when I would be in Massachusetts. Chuck readily agreed and we ended the call. I then received the following text, from Chuck

“On a side note the 26th of this month will be my 40th wedding anniversary. If I had it back for that would be extra special”.

Ok, Now we had to find the ring and asap.

I arrived at Chuck’s house and he immediately took me down to the corner of the field, where the tractor had become stuck, in the muddy conditions and where he really thought he had lost the ring. I gridded the entire area, both up and down, the muddy incline. Nothing but trash.

We walked to the section of the field that Chuck had roto tilled, searching the path, he had driven the tractor on, as we were going to the roto tilled area. Still nothing.

As we were grid searching, the roto tilled area, Chuck went to start searching around the bushes, that he had been cutting back, the day he lost his ring. We had now been searching for about 1 1/2 hours, with nothing but trash. Approximately an hour later, as I was just finishing up the roto tilled area and 2 1/2 + hours, in the search, I heard Chuck yelling down to me from atop a small hill, in the field. I then heard what he was yelling, “I FOUND IT”,  holding the ring up. “WOW, THATS AWESOME”, I screamed back. As I made my way to Chuck, and he to me, I could see the big smile on his face. When we met up, I asked Chuck, how it felt to have his wedding ring back, after 8 months. “Good, really good”. As I was congratulating Chuck on getting his wedding ring back, I kept thinking that he, in fact, would be wearing his wedding ring again, for his upcoming 40th Wedding Anniversary. I couldn’t have been happier and I also was grinning ear to ear.

Chuck then took me to where he found the ring. It was near his trailer, not far from the house and it was exactly where he was, when he was changing the blades, on his Bush Hog. Just an incredible feeling, knowing Chuck had found his own wedding band, with my backup detector.

With a search area, this large, it was going to take teamwork, to find, Chuck’s ring. Without his help, I would have been there for another day or two. Thankfully Chuck was more than willing to help search and it couldn’t have had a better ending. What a great hobby to have, where I get to help people, get their very sentimental items back.

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Gold Ring, Lost In The Snow, in Bath, Maine Found 3 Months Later, With A Metal Detctor

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
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On Saturday, April 20th, I received a text, from Sandra. The text said,

“Hi! I saw that you do metal detecting. A few months ago I lost my mother’s ring. She passed away last month and I’d like to try to find it”.
I replied to Sandra, by asking a few questions,

“Sorry to hear this. A few questions.
1) Do you know where it was lost?
2) Is this private or public property and do you have the authority to let someone metal detect at the property?
3) What kind of ring is it and the metal it is made of?
4) Where are you located?
Thank you,
Dennis”
Sandra replied by telling me,
“Hamilton Audubon sanctuary in the parking lot. I don’t think it would be an issue to check there. I’m not 100% sure that’s where I lost it. But if it’s findable it’s there. Probably along the edge in the grass. It was winter. I am unsure what type of metal. It may have been sterling silver. I am in the Bangor area. Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary is near Bath. I don’t have any time to come down in the next few weeks. I also don’t have anyone in the area. I think I lost the ring out of the parking lot within 5-10 feet of the edge. So hopefully it didn’t get plowed. Also if it’s in the grass hopefully no one else found it”.

I then told Sandra that I would Contact the Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary, a division of Merrymeeting Audubon and Maine Audubon, to receive permission to metal detect, on their property. Metal detecting, on someone’s property, without permission, is illegal and you take the chance of being arrested and having your detector confiscated.
I called the Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary and sent an email, as well. With it being a Saturday, I told Sandra that it would most likely be Monday, before I heard anything back from them. She concurred.
I did hear back from Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary, on Monday, April 22nd, and they granted me permission, to search for the ring. Maine Audubon was also very helpful and supportive of my efforts, to try and recover the lost ring. They even told me the plow may have moved it, further back from the parking lot. I communicated with many people from The Maine Audubon Society, Merrymeeting Audubon and, of course, Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary. They were all, incredibly kind, in granting permission and were really hoping for a successful recovery, for Sandra.
I let Sandra know about the permission and told her that my wife and I would travel to Town of West Bath, about 60 miles, from our home, in Saco, Maine and search for the missing ring on Friday, April 26th. Sandra was happy and hopeful that her ring would be searched for and found.
On Friday, my wife and I traveled to Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary and pulled into the parking lot, at approximately 8:45am. Only one other car, was in the small parking lot and I parked on the far right side of the lot, and decided to start my search on the grass, near the right side entrance. Not certain of the metal, the ring was made of, I would be checking out lots of different targets.
I had searched for about 10 feet, when I received that sweet low tone of gold. Unfortunately, foil, pull tabs, and other low conductive metals can also give me that low tone. Another good sign, was the 12-13 reading, on my Minelab CTX-3030 detector. The 12 would represent a Non-Ferrous metal and the 13 would represent the conductivity, of the metal. Definitely in the gold range, but I really didn’t think I would find it, in under 2 minutes. After all, it was next to the parking lot and road, where lots of trash could have accumulated. As I brushed back the leaves and grass, with my hand. I came across a White Gold Ring, with a Blue Center Stone and 2 small diamonds, on each side of the blue stone. I couldn’t believe it. Not even 2 minutes, my 1st target, turned out to be Sandra’s Mothers Ring, or at least I thought. After all, Sandra was unsure of the metal, the ring was made of and she had never told me if the ring was a band or had any stones. I decided to text Sandra, to let her know I arrived at the location and would like a description of the ring, not telling her I had just found a ring. Sandra texted me right back and told me the following
“Silver with a blue center ring and 4 small diamonds”. Well the color is silver but the metal is definitely white gold and is stamped as such, on the inside of the band. I then texted her back saying, “Awesome. I found it”. I then sent her a photo of her ring. She replied, “Omg that makes me so happy! Thank you so much! It means so much that you found it. It’s been keeping me up after she died so thank you”. I just love being able to help people, like Sandra.
I was able to call and talk to Sandra, Friday night, after she got home, from work. She was extremely happy and thankful, about getting her ring back soon. Sandra detailed the events, leading up to her losing the ring. She had traveled to Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary, on that day, in January, from Portland, where she was visiting and staying, in a hotel. When she arrived at the Sanctuary, she was leading a group of birds watchers, through the Sanctuary. As the walk started and still in the parking lot area, she noticed her ring was no longer on her finger. The group was standing in snow, just outside the parking lot. She wasn’t sure if she lost it in the snow, or had lost it in Portland, that morning. She searched the snow, but it was useless, as she could not see anything, below the top of the snow. As the days, turned to weeks, which turned into months, Sandra was still thinking of her Mother’s lost ring and then,her mother passed away, in March. This really made Sandra, determined to find the ring. She then performed a Google search and found me. At this point, she contacted me and the rest, as they say, is history.
Although we won’t be meeting up, in person, to return the ring, I could just feel her excitement, on the phone. I will be mailing the ring back to her, on Monday. We live just over 3 hours from each other and neither one of us will be traveling near each other’s town, anytime soon.
I just love being able to help people out in their time of need.

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Wedding Ring Lost And Found, In A Gorham, Maine Potato Field, With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)
Contact:

I received a text from Jenn, on January 21, 2024, with the following message

“Curious as to what you charge? My son lost his ring in our potato field this fall “.

I explained to Jenn that I do not charge for my time or service. All I ask for is a Transportation Call Out Fee, to cover my gas, tolls, wear & tear, etc. I then told her for me to travel to Gorham, ME, my Transportation fee would be $25.00, and that’s it.

Jen replied with

“I know an approximate area. We were digging a row when he stopped by to help. I probably don’t know the exact row now but general area. I would say it covers maybe a half acre but probably less. I would think early spring when snow is gone and I can see where rows were would be best in narrowing things down. “I used a metal detector one day and found some very large nails, but did not find the ring. “That could be do to operator error”.

I replied,    “Absolutely willing to help”.

Jenn replied,

“Great, his ring is tungsten. I will reach back out when I can see the ground and narrow down the search area. How « deep » do the detectors go? The day we were working, we would run the old potato digger down thru the row. We would then pick up these large clumps of weeds and dirt and throw in the previous row, then run the potato digger back down the row to uncover more potatoes.  So there is the possibility it came off while throwing weeds and dirt and be buried that way or just buried from the digger”.

Jenn then told me she would reach out to me in the spring, after the snow melted and the ground wasn’t frozen. Jenn and I did communicate, in mid April. Because of our individual schedules. We booked Tuesday, April 23rd as the day I would go to her farm, and search for her son’s wedding ring.

I arrived at her farm, in Gorham, at approximately 8:30am. We made small talk and she told me the story of her farm. The name of her farm is Findview Farm and has been a generational working farm, since 1820.  WOW, a farm serving the local community for over 200 years. I love supporting these farms and local businesses. 

I then started searching for the wedding ring, after Jenn showed me the approximately 1/2 acre potato field. I decided to perform an East/West grid, across the width of the field. I searched for approximately 3 hours that day with my CTX-3030 detector, with a 17 inch coil, to cover as much of the field as possible. I ended up finding 4-5 spent shell casings, other small brass items, nails, pieces of old farmhouse equipment, etc.. Unfortunately, no wedding ring.

I told Jenn I would return, in the next week or so and this time, I would bring a smaller coil, to see if I could get better depth, in the deep troughs, of the potato rows. My 17 inch coil couldn’t get down into the actual rows, that had been plowed and would just glide over the top.

On Sunday April 28th, I returned to Findview Farm and resumed my search. While I was searching, Jenn’s son Tom, came over. It was Tom’s ring, that was lost. Tom explained that he felt the ring coming off, as he was throwing some of the potato plants, out of the rows, after harvesting the potatoes, themselves. A visual search was not successful. Tom also pointed out the area, of the field m he thought the ring would be in. Unfortunately the field had been plowed, last fall and the ring may have been moved or pushed down deeper, into the fertile farm soil.

I then went to the area that Tom pointed out. I would perform a North/South grid today. I wasn’t finding many targets at all. After approximately an hour and 45 minutes I received a nice, repeatable tone and a 12-32 on my detector screen, indicating a non-ferrous target, which I was hoping for. The target was in one of the deep troughs of the potato rows. I dug about 4-5 inches down and couldn’t see anything. I took my pinpointer and located the target, in the hole. I started to wipe away some of the dirt and I saw the ring, I had found it. I the called Jenn and She and Tom, came right over, from the corn field, out back that they were working in.

I showed them the hole the ring was located in and they were both extremely happy. After approximately 7 1/2 months, Tom was wearing his wedding ring again. I absolutely love reuniting people with their lost items.

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