Richard Browne, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 14 of 26

Ring lost, found and returned in Newton, MA

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

My wife and I were just home from a mini getaway. When I received a call from Leighton, another Ring Finder asking me if I could help in a ring search as he was unable to do a search the next day. Definitely I can. Besides, it would be another day away from home with my wife, going places we had never been before.

I called Neil and was told the specifics and that he had also contacted Kent, another Ring Finder and friend of mine. A time for the search was set for the next morning. As a courtesy I called Kent, who also had work commitments on Saturday and would not be able to meet up for the morning search. It was on me with moral support from my wife on this search.

After a walk over the area and explanation that Neil also did some lake weed cutting to clear a launch area for his kayaks. By this time my wife had made friends with Ruby, Neil’s race track rescue Dalmatian. I put on my water gear, did a quick scan over the track between the house and dock area, Nothing, it was then into the water and just a few minutes later I heard a perfect signal, took a shallow scoop and there it was. Neil’s ring was in my scoop. I walked a few steps back to Neil so he could remove the ring from the scoop and put it back on his finger while repeatedly expressing his gratitude. Picture time followed.

I always try to put interest into the “ring shot” and this time was no different. Ruby showed interest in my gear and held still while posing with the ring on her forehead for a perfect photo.

Neil insisted in buying breakfast for my wife and me. We had watched the Phantom Gourmet the day before and had planned to stop at the pick of the show, which was Ronnie Waffles, on our way home. That was a sweet, happy ending to an anguishing day Neil had experienced. A perfect ending to an outstanding week.

Lost Again, The Ever Returning Bracelet. Dennis, MA

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

While doing some yard cleanup Ted’s gold cuff bracelet slipped from his wrist off into the area of loosely blown leaves. This, a “lost” bracelet” was a happening that Ted was well aware of. Just after purchasing matching Figaro necklace and bracelet while on a trip to Italy was the first time his bracelet fell from his wrist. After a panic rush back to his rental car for a search not finding the bracelet Ted headed back to the airport. On the ride up the escalator he noticed the bracelet in the fold of a piece of luggage. Yes Ted did make the flight with his bracelet.

A visit to a jeweler supposedly fixed the clasp so the bracelet would never be lost again. It work for a few years until a Cape Cod beach tried its best to keep the bracelet that once again had slipped from Ted’s wrist. This time a friend was the savior, who found and returned the bracelet to Ted. On another trip to the same beach the bracelet again became unhooked and left Ted’s wrist. Ted noticed it missing as he was loading his car. This time Ted found the bracelet hanging form a beach chair he had been sitting on.

This was to be the last time the bracelet would ever have a chance to become unhooked and having to be found. Ted was sure that having the Figaro melted down and made into a cuff bracelet would end the frequent hunts for the wayward bracelet. Well, so Ted thought. This time Ted had to call in some help in finding the beautiful piece of gold jewelry.

My telephone began ringing as I was about out of the house for a quick trip to the store. I missed the call, but For some reason I went back into the house and called the missed message number. About an hour later I had finished my errand and was searching for the bracelet. Within 15 minutes I heard a solid signal, one that I was sure had been in response the coil of my detector passing over the gold bracelet. Yes, there it was. Again the bracelet returned to Ted’s wrist. I don’t know how many times a bracelet has gone missing from one’s wrist, been found and returned. How many ever it is, Ted must own one that is close to having the record.


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Yarmouth, MA. A man’s ring lost, shattered, pieces found and returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

A not so happy ring return to end a year of many quagmires. Bryant had known his wedding band did not fit his finger as it should. It is a downfall of Tungsten Carbide as a ring material is that it can not be resized. As so it remained on his finger until this years fallen leaf removal had to been accomplished. A friend offered to show off his new leaf vacuum and “pick up” the pile of leaves and take them to a dump.

Unfortunately, Bryant did not realize his band had slipped off his finger before the leaves had been removed form his yard. A visual search of the yard did not help. Bryant knew his access to a utility pipe locator might find the ring in the pile of leaves. No it did not. It was a non-ferrous metal detector for locating iron. Next a purchase and use of a low end metal detector did not locate the ring either. It was time to ask for help from J&E Enterprises, a local metal detector dealer. The owner, Eleanor, gave Bryant my phone number.

Bryant’s call gave me the necessary information for a search which was set for that afternoon. A two hour search in rain and fading light, even with one of my best detectors, I did not find the ring. A few pull tabs, aluminum and pieces of wire, but no ring. It got too dark to see targets in the leaf pile. I went home with no good news for Bryant.

Arrangements were made to search Bryant’s yard in two days. The next day I could not get it out of my mind that I could not find a few targets the night before. Now the sun was out, but the temperature was below freezing and I had to go and give the leaf pile another search. And I did search the ice encrusted leaves. In doing so I found two of the targets I could not locate in the dark the night before. Bitter sweetness came over me as I knew I had found two pieces of Bryant’s ring. The ring had been shattered by the impeller blade of the leaf vacuum.

I could not detect any more, my fingers too cold to hold my detecting gear, let alone pick up another small piece of the ring.

Bryant met me after work to offer his thanks for putting an end to the search. A closure of a sort. I offered to return for another search after the ice and the next day’s forecast of a foot of snow had melted away. On the light side the return of the parts was a better ending to our searching than if I had searched Bryant’s yard, finding nothing and leaving Bryant with no closure.

We parted with hopes of 2021 being a much better year for everyone.

Jetties Beach Nantucket, Massachusetts – Ring Lost, Found, returned by TheRingFinders

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

Holly and her husband were on a quick get-away anniversary vacation to Nantucket for a bit of fun and sun. All started well then slight rain dampened the day but not the spirit for some beach fun. John was in the water in a flash with Holly following a more slowly. That would not be as much fun as was having which gave him the idea of a quick attack, on his wife and launching her into the air with a water landing, his idea of FUN! Yes he thought, but not so much as he felt for the ring on his left hand that had been there for 8 year, it was gone.

After a long search, a local person with a metal detector was asked to search for the ring, Many targets, but not ring were found. Gone forever John and Holly returned home. Holly just could not give up on a very sentimental item. After a bit of Googling TheRingFinders, my name came up. She thought it would not hurt to reach out without telling John. During the call I had to assure her the ring was still where it was lost and if anyone could find it I was a good choice. I also said to double the chances I should have another Ring Finder, Leighton Harrington, go on the search with me. Holly agreed. That set the wheels in motion. Timing of tides and ferry schedules and weather forecasts narrowed the date down to the25th. It turned out that was John’s birthday.

After a 5am meeting with Leighton for the 6am ferry ride, a walk to the ferry, the ride to the island another walk to the beach, a cup of coffee and snack on the way, we were on the beach. We put our gear together and headed for the water, marking the sand with lines to show the most likely area the missing ring would be in. As I put my feet into the water OOPS I forgot to take off my shorts. I took care of that shortcoming and back in the water Leighton had his first signal, an earring he wanted to show me. I took three steps toward Leighton and had a signal of my own. Bingo! The birthday boy’s ring was in my scoop, Happy Birthday John.

We has planned for up to 6 hours to search for the ring. We now had almost all that time to just enjoy the rest of the day, our main reason was in the pouch. Our return ferry ticket were for the 4pm sailing.
We made good use of the time detecting three beaches we had never been to before.

Back home arrangements for the ring’s return via the USPS was set. Another great day enjoying a wonderful hobby and making others smile was coming to a close. A peaceful night’s sleep without worries of a missing ring will be had by all, except John who will not know of the find until the surprise reuniting is completed by Holly. I only wish I could be there, I know it will be emotional and a day to remember.

Falmouth, Cape Cod, Massachusetts – Lost, found & returned earring from a sandy beach

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

This Covid19 pandemic has caused more than physical pain. The pain that one feels as an item is ripped from an ear as a mask is removed is unbearable. I have been called to find two hearing aids and Madelan’s 3 piece diamond stud earring is the second diamond stud I have answer the request to help. I have been successful in each search. The problem of these items is the amount of metal that the detector must recognize a very small amount to say the least. In the case of the hearing aids only the battery is recognized. There is even less metal in most stud earrings.

Now that you know what a detectorist is up against on with the story.

Madelan is a frequent visitor to the beach and on one day she was involved in a ring search which I was later call in on. She was present when I found the ring and said she would never forget the event. Good thing she did not forget how to contact me. She now needed my help in finding one of her custom made 3 piece diamond stud earrings. The parts of the earring are: the back was a butterfly, the circle was an invisible jacket for the solitaire stud. Of course when called to help I was on my way. Again I called on Leighton another Ring Finder to help as I knew it would be difficult to find the 3 small pieces.

Frank, Madelan’s son had made and “X” in the sand and bet his mother a pizza that is where her earring is. The initial search did not reveal the earring. Tweaking my detector for maximum sensitivity at a specific frequency ensured the best response when the coil was directly over any one of the parts. And Yes, Frank was owed a pizza for dinner. With the finely tweaked detector the part could not hide anymore. The three pieces were found, cleaned and returned to Madelan.

Everyone on the beach enjoyed watching and later talking to Leighton and myself. Photos taken, stories exchanged and many Thank You passed before Frank and his mother were off to their favorite pizza house for an enjoyable dinner. Leighton and myself returned home for a good nights sleep as we had scheduled a 6 hour hunt for a lost wedding band the next day. How much more enjoyment can one person endure?

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Beachcomber, Cahoon Hollow, Wellfleet, Massachusetts – Armenian gold cross lost, found and returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

The day before Kyle’s graduation he was playing volleyball and sporting his graduation gift of a white gold necklace and an Armenian cross. A quick jump, a spiked ball and on the way down to the sand the net caught the cross which then was in a free-fall into the sand. Kyle found the necklace and he and several others were not so fortunate in finding the cross. He left the beach in the dark and did not sleep well as his wish was to wear the cross on the virtual graduation. That was not to happen.

Just before the ceremony Kyle’s found a link to TheRingFinders.com and called Luke. Luke was in heavy traffic leaving the Cape for the day and would not be able to search until the next day. As TheRingFinders often do, he called me to take on the search. I did.

I would wait until the pay to park was lifted and there were less people on the beach. My plan partially worked. I did not have to pay to park, but I did wait on the volleyball game reach a point were the players would take a 10 minute break. They knew of the loss and some had some were part of the previous day’s search. I thanked the players and started my search. It only took about 6 minutes before I had the cross and left to meet Kyle for the return. As I left everyone said how amazed they were and to pass congratulations on to Kyle.

A drive that should take 10 minutes took almost an hour due to the Cape Visitors trying to find a meal or to leave the Cape. Just bad timing. We made the meeting, passed the co-dos, took photos, told a few stories, and parted or ways with smiles on everyone’s face. Kyle’s smile was the biggest of all.

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Harwich, Cape Cod, Massachusetts – Wedding Band lost, found and returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

Matt took one dive too many. On the second dive his grandfather’s wedding band which is now worn as Matt’s wedding band slipped from his finger into the depths of Nantucket Sound. It was about 3pm and I was getting ready for Leighton’s arrival for an afternoon of detecting fun. It was then when Matt called and relayed the information of his lost ring. What luck, Leighton was on his way, not need to call him. Two searchers are definitely better to have searching than one.

We met Matt on the beach, got the run down on how and were his ring was lost. Leighton asked Matt to go to the spot where he thought he lost the ring. I was following when I heard a signal that was from a pull tab. Continuing on, my second signal proved to be the object of search. I call all to come to the beach where the ring was verified as the missing ring.

Matt removed the ring from my scoop, smiled and was very thankful as you can see from the picture below. All this in less than 2 hours from the time the ring slipped from Matt’s finger. This return was made only 75 feet from a ring return the previous week. Just loving this hobby.

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Craigville, Hyannis, Massachusetts – Lost necklace, cross and ring found and returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

Three times was the number of detecting hunts it took to retrieve Oleg’s three pieces of jewelry. During the first try I thought my skill was lacking because I had a ring in my pouch but could not locate either of the other two pieces of jewelry. It was time to call it quits for the evening and give Oleg the ring and apologize that I had not found the other to pieces. I was feeling bad, but not as bad when Oleg told me the ring I found was not his. And to make things worse, it was his 12th anniversary.

I requested that he not replace the items for at least two weeks. I wanted more time to locate the jewelry. The second try was not much better except I found an Apple watch series 5 – see the related story. Then it happened, I got stung by a jelly fish. OUCH!!!!!!!!! But still no ring.

Two days later Leighton Harington (also a Ring Finder) and I were meeting for a get-together hunt. As so, this was the perfect chance to end the madness of looking for Oleg’s lost articles. About 30 minutes into the hunt I found Oleg’s ring and a minute later the cross. Leighton came to the area and because the detector he was using was more sensitive to small link chains he had a better chance at locating the chain and he did. The bad part of the hunt was yet to come. And it did with a painful outcome for both Leighton and myself. We both were stung by jelly fish.

So much for the found items. It is time to return them, but how? A friend could pick them up, I could hold onto the item until Oleg could return to the Cape, or the dreaded USPS. I convinced Oleg to trust the USPS service. And the pieces were posted with tracking number and expected delivery day as Friday. The package was delivered a day early, but to the neighbors mail box. The mix up was rectified and Oleg face was smiling once again and his heart filled with happiness.

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Craigville, Barnstable, Massachusetts Apple Watch found and returned

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

While I was in chest deep water searching for a lost wedding band I found an Apple Series 5 watch. Unbelievable but there were barnacles attached to it and it had been in the water for only 5 days. I cleaned off the sea creatures, took the watch home and charged it. It powered up without a password. Boy was I in luck. I could search for contacts and information that would lead me to the owner. I would not be the only lucky person, but Maluka would also be very lucky to have her watch with all of her information back.

The information I pulled up gave me the owner’s name, the last person she talked to, a sister (actually a cousin), a local address she met people at and were they met to eat. More than enough to get her to call me. Contact was made then if loosing the watch was not bad enough, Maluaka cold not get back to the Cape to pick up the watch as fast as I could get it to her via the USPS. So its return trip was made by the USPS.

This was just one of the more beneficial and rewarding aspects of being a Ring Finder. It is all part of my hobby of the hunt for the unknown, the searching, finding, researching to find the owner and the return to put a smile on a once frowning face.

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Lost Ring Found and Returned at Earl Beach Harwich, Massachusetts

  • from Cape Cod (Massachusetts, United States)

Chris was just enjoying the sun and sand in knee deep water right in front of his wife when his ring slipped off his finger into the Nantucket sound. The usual search by several people did not bring the ring out of the sandy bottom. A more drastic recovery would begin by a phone call for help. Unfortunately the call came five days later and after the loss and the Cape’s first tropical storm of this year covered the ring with more sand than my detectors could “see” through. I tried my two best detectors on the first two days of of searching without a positive result. My detectors just could not penetrate deep enough to locate the target.

Chris and Maggie had to return home, leaving vacation land and Chris’ ring on the shore. I told them I had not given up after 6 hours of searching and I would keep them apprised of my further attempts to find the missing ring. Another 5 days passed, tides would rise and lower taking some sand away from the beach cover as I waited for my next search.

Thanks to the parking attendant for giving me permission to park without paying the $30/day parking fee for the last half hour a parking sticker was required. I parked, dawned my gear, and headed to the area. I covered the area Chris had shown me that should be holding the ring with no luck. I moved a bit further down the loose sand area. Within 5 minute I heard the tone I wanted to hear. Yes, after two deep scoops into the sand the ring was glittering as it lay on the bottom of my scoop the sun shown on it. A beautiful sight!

At home a call was made to inform Chris and Maggie of my success. Arrangements were made for a meeting and return on Sunday. We met for a bit of story telling, smiles and photos as the wedding band was returned. Of course there were many “Thank Yous”.

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