I got a call from Mark and Rachel, owners of the All Star Value Inn in the Wisconsin Dells. Rachel said that her husband had been playing volleyball the night before with friends. The court was recently redone and was part of their property in the Wisconsin Dells. He did not remember it specifically flying off, but does remember having it on throughout the match. Rachel said that he even thought to himself, « I should probably take off my ring so that I don’t lose it ». Famous last words, right? Seconds later, while about to serve, Mark felt two of his fingers rug together and there was no ring on his finger.
The good news is that they were the owners of the court, but how would they find it? Mark had plans to rent a metal detector and find it himself. However, he would have found out that operating a metal detector isn’t as easy as it might seem. The average person wouldn’t believe how much junk is located in the ground, even in a freshly redone volleyball court. Rachel went on Google and searched for « Rent a Metal Detector ». One of the pages she found was www.TheRingFinders.com, and there just happen to be someone specifically located in the Wisconsin Dells area. She sent a quick email to me, and I immediately responded. I set up an appointment the next day to take a look.
When I arrived, Mark and Rachel were having a friends and family picnic right next to the volleyball court. My son and daughter were along for the hunt. I started the hobby of metal detecting and ring finding as a way to spend time outdoors with my kids. They love the hobby, and love helping others find what was lost. My daughter was first on the metal detector. We found 4-5 pieces of trash: a pop top, a Matchbox Car, some small metal objects, and a nail. The mosquitoes were pretty bad that night, but we kept on hunting.
All of a sudden we got a pretty strong signal from the metal detector, which is usually a good sign. My daughter reached down, grab a fist full of sand and pulled out Mark’s ring! We walked over to the picnic table and handed the lost ring back to Mark. Everyone was surprised that we had found the lost ring, and so quickly. Mark’s ring had a unique inscription on the inside, « P.S. I Love You », so there was no question it was his. My daughter was probably the most excited, as it was her first lost wedding ring recovery all by herself.
Mark and Rachel were generous with their reward for finding the lost ring. They then asked if we had eaten anything that night. I responded no, and that we had to head back home as my kids had started school already. She asked if we had ever eaten at the Top of the Rock on the strip in Wisconsin Dells, which was their favorite place to eat. We had never been there, so she called the restaurant and opened a tab with our name on it. She said, « Order whatever you guys want and put it on our tab ». What a cool reward. We felt like celebrities when we walked in. The manager of the restaurant practically greeted us at the door, « You must be the people who found that lost ring ». We responded yes, and he showed us to our seats. After a nice dinner, the kids and I headed back home.
So remember, don’t waste your time figuring out how to rent a metal detector, just rent a Ring Finder!
