It was not yet May. Lake Michigan waters were still too cold for a swim. However, that didn’t deter Beaver Dam, Wisconsin resident, Victor Nelson, from taking a refreshing plunge. Victor was spending a relaxing day with his girlfriend on the picturesque beach at Kohler-Andre State Park near Sheboygan. Before jumping into the frigid waves, Victor removed a meaningful silver necklace, giving it to his girlfriend for safekeeping.
Inspired by The Dresden Files the necklace and pendant were crafted after one described by the fiction author, Jim Butcher. Wikipedia explains how in Butcher’s book, the necklace had a pendant in the form of a pentacle with its encircled five-pointed star. The pentacle represented the five elements of air, fire, water, earth and spirit. It had “the power to repel certain creatures of the Nevernever and glows with a low blue light when infused with Harry’s will.” For Victor, the pentacle necklace had more than magical value. Complete with its lab-grown center ruby, the necklace was a special, thoughtful gift from his girlfriend.
To Victor’s horror, he realized the necklace was missing after the couple returned to their vehicle later in the afternoon. Victor’s girlfriend was likewise distressed, this as she had been entrusted with its safekeeping. It had somehow slipped away into the sand while moving beach furniture.
Replaying the afternoon’s activities, it seemed the necklace had slipped off its resting place and disappeared into the loose sand. Despite a half-hour of frantic searching the necklace could not be found. Victor considered renting or purchasing a metal detector but found my listing on theringfinders.com directory instead. A week later my wife and I met up with the hopeful couple at the beach.
Being a Wisconsin State Park, I completed the mandatory license application for a metal-detecting permit. Permit in hand, Victor led the way to the location where he and his girlfriend had spent the day a week prior. Using a nearby piece of partially-buried driftwood as ground zero, a systematic grid search commenced. After an hour the unmistakable signal of silver appeared on my detector’s control screen. The necklace’s hiding place was no match for a state-of-the-art XP Deus II metal detector. While the pentacle didn’t glow with a low blue light when it was found, the smile on Victor’s face was more than magical!
So glad we were able to find your special necklace, Victor.
On the last day of their vacation at Pensacola beach, Phil and his wife decided to visit a less travelled beach late in the afternoon. They were due back home in Fort Worth the next day and had to leave soon. I always try to provide service to accommodate and agreed to meet him in an hour to find his lost ring. I finished up what I was doing, jumped in the van (that fortunately had my detecting equipment already in it ready to go) and headed out. We met up a 6pm, got to the spot he lost the ring by 6:30 and started searching. I searched for about 30 minutes I got the signals that were unmistakeable a gold ring. Needless to say, they were relieved. The travel home plan was kept in tack and the lost ring worries were no more. Everyone was happy! The satisfaction I get helping people like Phil is why I do this! 
