Paul Humphreys, Author at The Ring Finders

Frigid ring search ends on warm note! Deerfield, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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My car showed the outside temperature at minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit. A stiff 15 mile an hour wind put the wind-chill factor at minus 25. It reminded me of the extreme winters my wife and I experienced when we lived in Alberta, Canada. I opened a package of hand warmers and slipped them into my large leather mittens. I knew I would need them.

A text message from Deerfield, Wisconsin resident, Alisa O’Neil asked for help in recovering her platinum wedding rings. The rings slipped off her hand and vanished into the winter landscape as she was running back from the mailbox in front of her home. She and her husband, Trevor, scoured the area, even used a metal detector, but they could not locate the missing rings.

Alisa’s father discovered my metal-detecting services on TheRingFinders.com, an international directory of metal-detecting specialists. Upon arrival, Alisa showed me where the rings had flown off her hand. Under such circumstances they could be anywhere, on the snow-covered roof or caught in the thick bows of a nearby pine tree. And so began an ever-widening sweep of the ground in the bitter cold. After 4 hours of searching however, the rings remained lost.

We took a short break, enjoying a scrumptious cup of freshly brewed coffee and homemade cookies. The warmth felt ever so good! And the coffee, I must add, was outstanding; Alisa knows coffee! The short break helped to spur us on.

I wanted to double check an area by the sidewalk. Reinforcing steel in the concreate made it difficult to hear any non-ferrous signals in the snow next to it. For this challenging area I swapped coils on my detector for one that uses a higher-frequency. It is particularly sensitive to gold and platinum in what detectorists call, “trashy” locations. Finally, five hours into the frigid search, a promising signal invited further investigation. The reinforcing iron close by was doing its best to overwhelm the detector, camouflaging the ring’s hiding place. But as it turned out, the signal was indeed that of Alisa’s wedding rings, complete with their gorgeous 2-carat diamond centerpiece! To say Alisa was ecstatic, is an understatement! I should have taken a video of her happy dance, squeals and all! Suddenly, nobody was aware of the cold!

If you or someone you know has lost a ring in the snow, don’t let the ring’s story end. It’s more than a ring. Give us a call. We’d love to warm up your day!

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One-of-a-kind wedding ring lost in snow & found! Cudahy, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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Cudahy, Wisconsin resident, Chris Roberts was closing a metal gate behind his home when his one-of-a-kind wedding ring got caught on it. Married four years, he was horrified to feel the white and black diamond ring leave his finger and disappear into the cold, snowy night. Despite careful search efforts with a leaf rake in the snow, the ring’s hiding place remained a secret. The next morning Chris reached out to me with a text message asking if I might help. We arranged to meet on location late that afternoon.

It was dark when I arrived. I donned a headlamp and followed Chris to the back of his house. I could see the telltale signs of raking in the snow, evidence of Chris’s valiant search efforts. The thermometer was falling fast, hovering in the mid-teens Fahrenheit (-9.4 Celsius). And a brisk wind made it feel much colder.

Sweeping the area with a mid-sized coil revealed the presence of many metallic objects in the ground beneath the snow. Most of them were ferrous (iron) signals that could be ignored. Also, a heavy wire-mesh fence screamed its presence in my headset whenever I was close to it. I quickly eliminated the more obvious signals and zeroed in on a non-ferrous target near the metal gate. As I probed the area with my pin pointer, a small lump of ice invited investigation. Breaking it apart in my gloved hand, Chris’ precious ring appeared among the icy crystals! And the smile on his face tells the rest of the story.

Chris’ ring was the 9th one I’ve extracted from the snow this winter season. In the process, I’ve observed a strange phenomenon. All but one was encrusted in an icy lump, the result of a warm ring melting the snow on first contact, then cooling and finally freezing the ice and snow around it, forming an icy tomb. Encrusted in this way can make the ring invisible to the naked eye. Little wonder Chris and others have been unable to find their rings! Apart from using a metal detector, the ring’s hiding place would have to wait until warmer days when the snow and ice have melted away. But by then, the ring may have been shoveled off or plowed away to another location. This is why time is of the essence when a ring becomes lost in snowy conditions.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, don’t let its story end. Whether recent or long ago, in the snow, leaves, grass, sand, lake or river, call a member of The Ring Finders in your area. Chances are, like Chris, we can put a smile on your face again.

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Heirloom ring recovered from the snow! – Watertown, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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When Watertown, Wisconsin resident, Mariah Kruschke was twelve years of age, her grandmother passed away from cancer. Before she died, she gave Mariah an 18k ring to remember her by, a ring she wore every day since. Then, the unthinkable happened! The ring slipped off Mariah’s hand into the snow in a field in front of their country home. She felt the ring leave her hand but despite two and half hours searching and raking through the snow, it could not be found.

Mariah’s brother, Justice, even obtained a metal detector, but the presence of underground wiring and other metallic debris resulted in a cacophony of signals, making the endeavor futile. That’s when they located my listing on theringfinders.com directory of metal detecting specialists. I have over 40 years forensic metal detecting experience.

I received a text from Justice and arranged to meet on location that same evening. The half hour drive was extended another half hour due to a mapping error on the cellphone I used. But at last, we connected at the Kruschke’s home. It was dark by this time. It was also a bitterly cold night, one made colder by an angry wind. I donned a headlamp and followed Mariah and Justice to the area where the ring had gone missing. Evidence of their search efforts was clear from the large area of grass where the snow had been raked away and melted down in hopes of revealing the ring.

A quick search of the cleared area confirmed it was not there. Expanding the search grid resulted in hearing the signal I was listening for in my headset, the unmistakable sound and conductivity numbers consistent with a recently lost gold ring. Upon investigation and using a special metal-detecting probe, the ring’s hiding place was at last disclosed deep in the snow where it had fallen. I retrieved the precious ring and walked back to where Mariah stood shivering in the dark frigid night. “Maybe this will help to warm you up, Mariah,” I said as I slipped the ring into her hand.

Tears, relief, a hug and smiles followed.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, recent or long ago, on land, in water or in the snow, don’t let the ring’s story end. Call a member of The Ring Finders near you. It’s what we do! We’d love to put a smile on someone else’s face. After all, it’s more than a ring!

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Wedding ring lost in snow and found! Delafield, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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The day after New Year’s, Ian Clark was clearing snow off the driveway in Delafield, Wisconsin when his heavy yellow-gold wedding ring flew off his hand and disappeared into the snow. He was throwing ice-melt crystals when it happened. Despite his frantic search efforts, the ring seemed destined to remain hidden forever. Ian even tried using a metal detector but a large metal culvert in the area overwhelmed his machine as did the buried electrical cables and metallic objects in the ground, the kind that accumulates over a half-century of human occupation.

Ian reached out to me by text late that evening and we arranged to meet on location first thing the next morning. It was minus 9 degrees Fahrenheit (-22 Celsius) when I left my house in Waukesha. Upon arrival, a white-tailed deer walked across the road, creating a classic Hallmark winter scene in the gorgeous country subdivision. I also saw evidence of Ian’s search efforts in the snow alongside the driveway.

While I searched, Ian hovered close by; his hopes raised every time I knelt in the snow to probe a target. But a thorough grid search in front of the house failed to reveal the ring. Since a throwing action can fling a heavy ring quite a distance, I also checked along the road in front of the house. Again, no ring. I began to wonder if a neighbor had picked up the ring while out walking. Then I moved to the opposite side of the driveway. I was completing a third pass when a signal near the road invited investigation. It didn’t take long for my probe to isolate the signal’s source—Ian’s wedding ring! I left it in place and called Ian over to personally recover the love token from its frozen resting place. The emotions of that moment are hard to describe. Ian was on the verge of tears, clear evidence that the ring was, as I have so often observed, more than a ring!

Ian preferred not to have his photo published. Instead, he took one of yours truly inside his home where we both savored the warmth and success.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, whether recent or long ago, call me. Lost in the snow, in a lake (underwater), or on land, chances are, the ring may yet be found. I would be delighted to add your smile to the list of very happy clients who are glad they called.

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Marital spat results in thrown wedding ring on New Year’s Day! Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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New Year’s Eve ended on a disappointing note for Washington State resident, Brandon. He and his wife were visiting family in Milwaukee for the holidays. They were staying at a Motel when a few celebratory drinks combined with a marital spat did not end well. Brandon threw his wife’s wedding ring off the top-floor balcony into the cold wintry night. It was not a good way to start the New Year! Given the unfortunate circumstances, I am protecting Brandon’s identity in this story.

It happeed like this. I received a text from Brandon asking if I might be able to help. He was understandably embarrassed by his actions but, as a man should, he owned up to the situation taking full responsibility. In a few hours I met Brandon on location and began searching in an alleyway below the balcony where they had stayed. It was very cold; my equipment was struggling in the extreme temperatures. A light snowfall during the night made the search even more challenging as did the presence of a dozen brass 9mm pistol shell casings. Being in a residential area, the bullet casings begged answers to all kinds of sinister questions, answers that are probably best left unknown. Hopefully, their presence was a benign remnant of someone’s earlier New Year celebrations in lieu of fireworks.

The ring could have landed in any number places including a roof of a nearby garage or in any of several open garbage bins waiting collection. As it turned out, the beautiful love token was hiding in the snow behind one such bin! A few inches further, the ring could have ended up buried forever in a local landfill. I can attest to Brandon’s relief when his ring was found. Hopefully his marriage will be stronger for having weathered the storm.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, even under embarrassing circumstances, give me a call. Life happens. Maybe I can help put the not-so-pleasant memory behind you—without judgment.

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Found! 111-Year-Old Heirloom Ring Lost in Snow – Kenosha, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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On December 8th, I was driving home to Waukesha, Wisconsin, from a successful ring search in McHenry, Illinois when my cellphone rang. The call was from Kenosha, Wisconsin, resident, Cheyene Hoppe. Cheyene and friends were enjoying a visit outside a downtown building two nights previous. That’s when a family heirloom ring went missing in the snow. The gold wedding ring was inscribed with the initials of Cheyene’s great grandfather along with the date of his wedding in 1914. He was married in Lithuania and later immigrated to the United States. Cheyene lovingly wore the ring in his memory. Now it was gone. She was heartbroken.

In the European way, Cheyene uses her hands a lot as she talks. But a flip of her hand resulted in the heirloom piece coming off. She had the sense that the ring ejected from her hand in an upward motion. But there was snow all around, including thick bushes, steps and landscaping. The ring could be anywhere.

Using my XP Deus II metal detector and hand probe, I carefully sifted through the snow on both sides of the walkway, probing in and around the snow-laden juniper bushes. The ring was nowhere to be found. Only three search locations remained, two planter boxes and a larger, 5’ tall box with several inches of snow covering them. The box was behind Cheyene at the time her ring came off. It had a sheet-metal top, which made using a metal detector out of the question. Instead, I used a small hand-held probe which allowed closer contact with the metal. Moving through the snow a few inches at a time, I cleared nearly two thirds of it from the box when a distinct beep noise announced the presence of a target. To everyone’s surprise, it was Cheyene’s heirloom ring! It was sitting in the snow on top of the box behind where she had been standing two nights before.

The smile on Cheyene’s face certainly tells the rest of the story! And I am so thrilled that the ring’s amazing 111-year-old story continues.

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Found Lost Wedding Ring in Snow! – McHenry, Illinois.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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Austin Gebert, was installing Christmas decorations in the front lawn of his McHenry, Illinois home when he lost his gold wedding ring. Nearly a foot of snow covered the ground. At one point, as Austin flipped snow off his cold bare hand, he felt the ring fly off. He told me on the phone, “It left my hand like a bullet.” The ring just vanished into the whiteness.

Austin reached out to me by phone on Sunday evening, December 7th. I arranged the hour-long drive the next morning and was greeted by Gabriela, Austin’s wife. She gave me a tour of the suspected lawn area. I noted several metallic Christmas decorations in the vicinity. These needed to be removed so as not to interfere with a metal-detection search.

An initial search failed to turn up Austin’s ring. I moved to a larger snow pile alongside the Gebert’s driveway where it had been shoveled. About 14 inches into the pile, I heard a faint signal in my headset. My trusty pin-pointer helped locate the target. Reaching in with my bare fingers I felt an unmistakable ring-like object and pulled it up and out into the light of day. Sure enough, it was Austin’s ring!

Since Austin was at work, I presented the ring to Gabriela whose face lit up like Christmas lights. Her smile tells the rest of the story.

Thank you, Austin, for the privilege of searching for and finding your missing wedding ring!

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Found wedding ring lost in snow! – Glendale, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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A late November snowstorm gave Glendale, Wisconsin resident, Bob Goding, the opportunity to enjoy quality time with his grandchildren. The snow was just the right consistency for building a snowman. But in the process, Bob’s gold wedding ring went missing, most likely when he shook snow out of his glove. He contacted me a couple days later and we arranged to conduct a metal-detecting search for his ring on December 2nd.

On arrival, all that remained of poor Mr. Snowman, was a scattering of lumps. Bob and his wife had discretely dissected him (after the grandchildren had gone home), this in case the ring had become encased inside the jolly figure. Sadly, Bob’s ring remained at large. And Mr. Snowman’s lumpy remains only added insult to injury.

I embarked on a grid search in the front lawn where the snowman had been created. Boot prints of all sizes bore evidence happier times. As I expanded the search area, a signal in my headset invited attention. The conductivity numbers were in the range of a man’s gold ring. Indeed, the target turned out to be Bob’s missing, but now found, wedding ring! And the smile on Bob’s face tells the rest of the story.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring in the snow, grass, leaves, sand, underwater, or elsewhere, chances are it’s still there. Don’t let its story end. Call today! We’d love to add your smile to our growing list of happy clients.

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Lost Claddagh Wedding Ring Found! – Juneau, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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I received a text message from Elmhurst, Illinois resident, Jim Weppner, asking if I might help to locate his gold Claddagh wedding ring.

The traditional Irish ring was a gift from Cathy, Jim’s wife of nearly 60 years. He received it on the occasion of their 25th anniversary while visiting in Claddagh, Ireland.

According to Wikipedia, Claddagh rings typically have “three primary features: a heart to represent love, a crown to represent loyalty, and two clasped hands which symbolize friendship.” They were first produced in Claddagh in the 17th century.

As our communications progressed, I quickly got a sense of just how special was Jim’s ring. I received a photo of Jim with the love of his life, Cathy, on their happy wedding day in 1964. Sadly, Cathy passed away from A.L.S. a little over a year ago. Clearly, it was more than a ring.

Over a week had passed since the ring went missing. Jim had lost some weight resulting in his ring fitting loosely. He had been cleaning up fallen branches from the lawn behind his lakefront home near Juneau, Wisconsin when it was lost. Had the ring slipped off then?

Jim’s story, together with the deep sadness in his voice, fueled my determination to do all I could to find his precious love token. I offered up a prayer for wisdom and drove up to Juneau the following day. Jim’s sister-in-law, Geri and her husband met me. After surveying the property, I began searching in locations where Jim had been working. A boat dock had since been pulled ashore in anticipation of the winter freeze up. Had the ring been spotted by one of the workers and pocketed, I wondered. The thought was troubling.

A little over an hour into the search, I was scanning the grass underneath the aluminum dock when a signal caught my attention. Crawling beneath, I pinpointed the target and carefully parted the blades of grass. That’s when I caught sight of a gold rim—Jim’s Claddagh wedding band!

I took some photos and texted them to Jim. A few moments later my phone rang. The emotions in that moment made it difficult for him to speak. As for me, I thanked my heavenly Father for the overwhelming comfort extended to Jim through the successful recovery of his priceless ring.

I left the ring with Geri for safekeeping. A few days later Jim sent me a photo with the ring back on his hand.

At time of writing, Jim and I have not yet met in person. But we hope to connect one day soon. And when we do, I’ll be sure to add his smile to this, his heartwarming story.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, even long ago, don’t let its story end. Contact me. Who knows, we might be able to add another smile to my list of over 138 happy clients who thought their rings were lost forever.

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Lost Wedding Ring Found! – Franksville, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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A memorable bird hunt with his father and Dutton, a gorgeous Golden Retriever, ended on a sad note when Franksville, Wisconsin resident, Joe Rampulla lost his wedding ring.

It happened later in the day while removing burs that had become entangled in Dutton’s thick coat. As he flicked the burs from his hand the yellow-gold and tantalum wedding band flew off, vanishing somewhere behind his parent’s home. Despite searching for hours and even using a metal detector, the ring could not be found.

Joe located me on theringfinders.com directory of metal detecting specialists. I made arrangements to meet him the following day.

Spreading junipers, garden foliage and landscape stones in the area made the search challenging. Additionally, my detector came alive with signals and with spurious electromagnetic interference. Buried electrical wiring and an invisible dog fence close by were the cause.

After changing frequencies and making other adjustments on my detector, the ‘noise’ settled down in my headset. I carefully probed the bushes and flowers using a pin-pointing instrument, but Joe’s ring was nowhere in the area. It was when I expanded the search location that I heard a promising signal further away in the lawn. Parting the blades of grass revealed an unmistakable rim of gold. And the smile on Joe’s face tells the rest of the story!

Joe, I’m so glad we were able to get your ring back on your hand!

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