how to find a lost ring in the ocean Tag | Page 3 of 7 | The Ring Finders

Man’s Palladium Wedding Band Lost in the Ocean for 3 Days, Found and Returned Sunset Beach NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On Saturday, July 29th at 9 a.m. I got the following text, “Hi Jim, My name is Jude, and I found your number on the Ring finders website. I lost my wedding ring a couple of days ago on Sunset Beach. We’ve been staying near the 17th St boardwalk. I lost the ring in the ocean near where the boardwalk meets the beach, maybe about 20 yards to the east. It was close to high tide when I lost it, maybe about 30 feet into the water. I don’t know if you’re able to look for it for me? Unfortunately, we leave this morning for Raleigh. We have to check out by 10. Let me know if you can help. I’ll need to call from my in-laws phone since I’m on a U.K. number, visiting from London.” About the same time, I got a call from Jude’s wife Katelyn who gave me additional details as well as a pin drop. Within minutes I got another lost ring call for two rings lost in the dry sand on a different beach. Unfortunately, I was tied up for the next hour or so, so I put the rings on hold for the time being.

When I was free, I devised a plan that I’d get the 2 rings first, since they were in the dry sand. Then I’d look for Jude’s ring since I still had a few hours before it’d be high tide on this day. After recovering the 2 rings I headed for Sunset Beach to look for Jude’s ring. When I got to the beach, it was pretty empty except for a family that was sitting in the exact spot I needed to hunt. I searched for a couple of hours working my way around the family as much as I could, basically trying to wait them out. I also searched both east and west of the suspected loss. I sent Katelyn a picture of the family and told her that they were exactly where I needed to be and that I’d be back between 9-10 p.m. I felt pretty confident that Jude’s ring was still where he dropped it three days earlier. Although Sunset Beach gets hit very hard by other detectionist, this area was kind of out of the way for beach goers.

I always get antsy waiting for the tides to get where I’d like them. So, I got to the beach about 8:30 p.m. It was late enough that it was pitch dark. As instructed by Jude and Katelyn, I walked straight out from the beach access boardwalk. It was a couple of hours before low tide so I had plenty of time. If the ring was there, it should be out from under the ocean and stuck in the wet sand. I turned on my equinox 800 and went to work. It’s been a long time since I’ve found a Palladium ring and couldn’t remember what the VDI (visual display indication or numbers) would be. I was thinking it’d be in the high teens. I started a north/south grid line, perpendicular to the surf line. My fourth line I got a solid loud 19 VDI just out of the surf in the wet sand. I took a big scoop of sand and laid it out on the beach and checked the hole. I had the target out. I turned my headlamp on, got down on all fours and started spreading the sand out. There it was, just laying there. I’m not sure if it was the ring or me that let out a big sigh of relief, as if saying, “FOUND!” Not really, but I know I was sure happy. I didn’t have my glasses to read the engraving, so I asked a couple out walking the beach if they could. The young lady read enough that I knew I had the right ring. I text Jude and Katelyn at 9:06 p.m. with a picture and said, “Bang!!!! The engraving all matches.” Luckily, they’re staying with in-laws another week before they head home to London, UK. I got the ring in the mail and got it back to them on Aug. 2nd. It just so happens, their 10 year wedding anniversary was Aug 3rd. So Happy Anniversary you two!!!!

Jude/Katelyn – Thank you for trusting me to help find your lost treasure. Have a safe trip home. The 3rd picture is your ring perched on roughly a million year old Megalodon Tooth.

Jim

        Found Sunset Beach NC

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Platinum Wedding and Engagement Rings Lost in the Sand, Found and Returned Holden Beach NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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Saturday, July 29th around 1030 a.m. I got a text saying “Hey Jim, my wife lost her rings on Holden beach this morning. Are you able to help us find them?” Instead of texting back and forth, I called the number. I talked to Preston, who explained, either on the phone or after I got there that his wife, Ashley had taken her 2 rings off and set them in the seat of her chair. After doing so, she applied sun screen to their two year old daughter. Ashley had forgotten about her rings until her daughter told her she had thrown them into the sand. That started the family searching for the rings in the sand. Unable to find either ring, Preston took to Google to find a metal detector that he could rent. I don’t remember how, but he eventually found me through The Ring Finders. I told him I’d be there in an hour.

When I got there, Preston was waiting for me in the driveway and we walked across the street to the beach. Once in the area of the loss, I got to meet Ashley and their little culprit. I started a grid search and cleared one possible area and moved on to the more probable spot. A couple of steps, and I got the VDI (visual display indicator) I was expecting. Took a scoop of sand and dumped it out on the beach. I had one target out of the hole, which turned out to be the wedding ring that I handed to Preston. Next scoop out of the hole held the engagement ring. Both Rings recovered and back where they belong.

Preston and Ashley – thank you for allowing me to help find your treasures. Have a great rest of your vacation.

Jim

   

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Man’s Gold Wedding Band Lost in the Ocean, Found and Returned Kure Beach, NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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At noon on Sunday, July 23rd, I received the following text message, “Hello Jim, my name is Robin and was given your name and number in the Kure Beach Locals group. My Husband, Jason, wedding ring came off in the ocean, he was sitting and a wave knocked him over and it came off and we were unable to find it. I didn’t know if this is something you would be interested in helping us with?  I appreciate your time and any guidance! Thank you!” I called her for some additional details. Thinking it was probably lost in the last day or two I asked what day and approximate time it was when it came off. I was a little stunned when she said it happened the previous Monday. With all the locals and tourist hitting the beaches daily with detectors, it’s unusual that a ring wouldn’t be found in a 6 day period. She also said it happened around 7 p.m. which was good because high tide that day was at 8 p.m. I told Robin I’d give it a shot and see what I could do. She sent some pictures and gave me a great indication of where the ring would be behind the condo they had rented. I grabbed my gear and started the hour and 35-minute drive to Kure beach.

When I arrived, there were quite a few people having fun in the sun. There wasn’t much beach between the high tide line and the outgoing tide with a pretty steep slope. My plan was to start on the south side of the 6-8 unite condo and work my way north. Although the tide was going out, the waves were crashing on the beach and the current was rough. I got about half way across the beach, when a family decided to move closer to the water and was directly in my grid pattern. It must have been a sign from God. I moved to the north end of the condo to work south. About my 5th grid line I got a solid 19 on my Equinox 800 VDI. This ring, being a Tiffany and Co yellow gold wedding band, I expected a VDI in the high teens. It took me a couple of scoops to dig the target out of the sand. When I had the target out of the hole, I spread the sand out with my foot. As I was checking out the sand, I saw the glistening of gold staring up at me. I cleaned the ring off, took a picture of it and sent it to Robin with a text that read “BA BOOM!!!” A few minutes later I tried calling with no answer. I loaded up the car and headed back home. About 5 minutes into the trip, Robin called. She was so excited and overcome with emotions she could hardly talk. These types of reactions are what make this all worthwhile.

Robin and Jason – Thank you for trusting me to help find your lost treasure. Wish you two all the best!

Jim

   

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Husband’s Wedding Band Lost in the Front Yard, Found and Returned Conway SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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Saturday evening, July 1st, I got a text from Renee saying, “I need help finding my husband’s ring. We know the area of the yard just can’t find it.” I text back asking her to call me and gave her my number. When she called I asked for details and she said the ring got lost in the front yard. They had tried looking for it but were unable to find it. I told her I’d be there in the morning at 9:30 and she agreed.

When I showed up, Renee was waiting outside. She showed me the small area. Unfortunately, the path led directly into an area that included the power and cable boxes, as well as the water meter and line. With all the interference, the detector was pretty much useless. Hoping against hope; I detected the short grass up to and around the power area. I lowered the sensitivity way down on the Equinox and ran the coil over the rock area and the Saw grass plants to no avail. So time to pull out the pinpointer and check the Saw grass plants. I started probing the first plant and got a hit. I carefully separated the Saw grass blades so I wouldn’t make the target fall deeper into the plant. Renee had told me the ring was black tungsten with blue around the center. As I’m eyeballing the inside of the plant I saw the blue band. Boom, I reached in and pulled the ring out of its resting place. I was sitting on the ground with my back to Renee. I twisted around with the ring in my fingers and held it up for Renee to see. I stretched out and handed Renee the ring. I could see the relief in her face. So happy to get the ring back where it belongs.

Renee – Thank you for allowing me to help find the lost ring.

Jim

     

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Platinum Engagement Ring Lost in LuLu’s Restaurant’s Big Sand Box, Found and Returned North Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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I got a frantic call from Amanda saying that I had been referred by Joe Denton of Denton’s Detectors in Little River, SC to help find a lost Platinum Engagement Ring. She said she had placed both her wedding band and Engagement ring on top of her phone that was on the arm of her beach chair. Later she told me that her husband had picked up the rings for safe keeping and had dropped them in the soft sand. They had found the wedding ring but the elusive engagement ring was still buried in the sand. I told her I’d be there in 20 minutes and to please excuse my appearance when I showed up because I was a mess from doing yard work. She replied that if I find it I’d get the biggest hug no matter how sweaty I was. So, I grabbed my Equinox and headed out.

When I arrived and met Amanda, she showed me a 5 foot by 5 foot area where the ring should be. I turned on the Equinox and started swinging. There was a lot of interference but when I hit a solid 11 on the VDI (visual display indicator) I knew I had her ring. When I shook the sand out of the scoop and saw the ring, I looked at her with a surprised look on my face and she knew. When I handed her the ring, she couldn’t hold back the tears, and yes, I did get my big hug! She then told me that she had sent her husband to Walmart to get a metal detector and had just text him her ring was found. I’m sure he was happy. She also told me they had a flight to catch in an hour, hope they made it!

Amanda – Thank you for trusting me to help find your lost treasure.

Jim

       

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Wedding Band Lost in the Driveway, Found and Returned Holden Beach NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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About 9:30 p.m. on Friday night I got a text saying “Hi Jim. I found your number online at the Ring Finders. I lost my wedding band today somewhere on the driveway which is covered with gravel. I spent all day trying to find it and I couldn’t. Sadly, today is our last day. We only have until tomorrow before 11 a.m. to find it. We are staying on Holden Beach. I wonder if you would have time to help us find it.” I called the number attached to the text and talked with Angelica and asked for the details. She was right to the point, there was a little spat and she walked out on the balcony and heaved her Wedding and Engagement rings. She said she got sunburned from searching all day and found her engagement ring but couldn’t find the wedding band. I told her I could be there in 45 minutes. She sounded a little hesitate, but I told her with tomorrow being Saturday almost all the tourists are going to be leaving and traffic would be a mess. She agreed, so I grabbed my Equinox 800 and headed out.

I arrived at 10:15 and parked in the driveway of the house next to theirs, which luckily, was vacant. She met me in her driveway and showed me where she found the engagement ring. I tested her wedding band with the Equinox, so I knew what I was looking for. She showed me where she was standing on the balcony, and I started searching the driveway around where she found her engagement ring. After about 20 minutes of searching the driveway, the adjacent strip of grass and part of the next driveway, I wasn’t finding her ring. Then I thought maybe the ring hit either a railroad tie along the driveway or the sidewalk, so I expanded the search. I asked Angelica if she had checked the roadway during her search and she had. I started searching the small stretch of grass between the sidewalk and road and got the signal I was looking for. Angelica was using the flashlight on her cell phone and we both got down on the ground and saw her ring at the same time. BA-Boom!!! There it was, hiding under a clump of grass. Angelica snatched it up and was so happy it was found. Things were patched up with the spat, her rings were back on her fingers, and all was good!

Angelica – Thank you for trusting me and the ring finders to help find your lost treasure! Have a safe trip back home.

Jim

 

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Father’s Yellow Gold Free Mason’s Ring Lost in the Ocean – Found and Returned North Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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Every call for help in finding a lost ring is just as important as the ones before it or the many coming after it. Each ring has its own story, whether it was passed down from a family member, something someone worked hard for to achieve, or the love of their life slipped it on their finger. Although, all of the rings are very important, once in a while you get the call for something very special that grabs at your heart strings. This was exactly the case for me on this call. Ron called me close to 11 pm on Thursday, June 30th clearly devastated that he had lost his father’s custom-made yellow gold Free Mason’s ring. He told me the ring was specially designed and made for his father by another Free Mason, who was both a friend and a jeweler. Ron’s father has since passed away and this special ring now belongs to Ron. I found out from Ron that he was wearing the ring while throwing a football in the ocean. My first question was if he was right or left-handed, he responded right-handed. My second question was which hand was the ring on. Again, his response was on his right hand. My next questions were what day, time, and how deep was he in the water. His response was that he lost it on Tuesday, around lunch time, and he was about thigh deep. During our text messages he changed the day to Monday. We exchanged other information and I could tell Ron was having a difficult time talking about losing the ring. I found out that he and his family was leaving the next morning. I closed our conversation by asking him to take pictures of the area and send them to me the next morning. After thinking about it, I texted him back and asked him if he could meet me on the beach the next morning at 9 am, he agreed. By meeting him, I could get a firsthand view without having to decipher some pictures.

The next morning, we met as scheduled and he pointed out the area. I don’t remember if it was during our texting the night before or he told me when we met that he actually lost it on Sunday, which was 5 days ago. As we’re talking about additional details, I asked him whether he was facing north or south when he was throwing the football and he responded he was facing east, meaning he was facing seaward. In my mind, I’m thinking this is going to be a tough, if not an impossible search. If he was facing seaward, throwing the ball with the same hand the ring was on and it was 5 days ago, it’s difficult to imagine where his ring ended up. But I love a good challenge, so I told him I’d be back around 2 pm to work the outgoing tide with low tide being at 3:48 pm.

As I’m loading up the car with my detector, the sky opened up and it started pouring rain. No problem, I’m going to get wet anyway, as long as there’s no lightening – I’m good. By the time I got to the beach and the search area, the rain had stopped. No rainbows, but I did get a report of a waterspout less than 5 miles up the beach. I swear, the Big Man upstairs was testing me that day! I started on the line Ron had given me earlier that morning. I started my grid line from the mid tide line and walked out to waist/chest deep water working my way to the south. I’m not sure how far south I went but I was sure I was outside of Ron’s area. I went back to my starting point and started working the grid search north. I did about 10 lines and got a solid hit on my White’s PI. The PI is a great machine, but it has no discrimination, nor does it show any target depth, it just signals there’s some sort of metal underneath the coil. I had already picked up a couple of pull tabs, a few bottle caps and 4 fishing weights, so I figured this was one more piece of junk. A couple of scoop and I had the target out of the hole. I took my foot and spread the sand out, I looked down and saw the Free Mason diamond symbol staring at me. Boom! I just stood there and stared; I couldn’t believe it. What a beautiful ring! I picked it up and walked back to the car to get my phone and take a couple of pictures. I sent a picture of me holding the ring and the ring sitting in the sand to Ron saying, “look familiar?” As I’m driving home, I called him and left a message when he didn’t answer saying “check your text messages and call me.” I figured he was still on the highway driving home. Within a few minutes he called me back and he was so excited he couldn’t talk. I wish I would have been able to hand his ring to him and see his expression, but I’m sure it was one of pure elation and surprise. I’ll get his ring in the mail Tuesday and wait for his picture to post this.

Ron – Thank you so much for trusting me to help find your lost treasure, I was so excited to find it for you. Best Wishes!!!

Jim

 

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Yellow Gold Wedding and Engagement Set Lost in the Ocean, Found and Returned North Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This ring search started with a 10:53 pm text from Monica on Tuesday, June 28th. Her text read “Hello Jim, my mom lost her wedding and engagement ring in the ocean yesterday evening and we cannot find it. Can you help?” My son and daughter-in-law were in town, so, I responded back to her that I was on vacation. I also told her that I had a couple of guys filling in for me, and ask what beach. She gave me all the details I needed to pass along to Mike G., the guy handling North Myrtle Beach for me. I forwarded the info to him, knowing he was probably in bed, but I’d talk to him in the morning. Shortly after getting all the texting done, I found out the kids had plans and I could go ahead and do the search. I sent another text to Mike letting him know I could do the search and to let me know.

This morning, I woke up to a text from Mike saying that he would prefer me take the hunt. He had helped a neighbor look for a lost ring the day before and was hobbling around. I also had a text from Monica asking if Mike had replied. I told her, that instead of Mike, I was going to be doing the hunt. I’d be there at noon to work the outgoing tide. Everything was working itself out.

I showed up a little before noon and met Monica, Norman and Tina in the resort parking lot. Tina was the one who lost her precious treasure. What happened was, Tina had gotten into the incoming tide about 5:30 pm Monday evening and was hit and knocked down by a pretty rough wave. When the wave hit her, she fell forward and watched her ring set fly off her finger. The last two days have been horrible for her not having her rings. We walked out on the beach and Tina showed me the area she lost her rings. Knowing she lost her ring about an hour and a half before high tide and I was there a couple of hours before low tide, I figured the ring set would be accessible in the wet sand. I started a perpendicular grid search going out to about thigh deep and heading north. I knew I was going deeper than I needed to but I didn’t want to miss the low tide, just in case I miscalculated. I did about 10 grid lines and hadn’t had one target. I went back to my start line and started working the grid south. I glanced up to see Norman and Tina and their expressions looked like they were losing hope. I also noticed that some tourists were starting to move their chairs down closer to the surf, so I was losing search area. On my 5th or 6th line I got the loud and clear 15/16 on the Equinox 800 VDI (visual display indicator). This was in the range I was looking for. One scoop and I had the target out of the hole. I spread the sand out with my foot and saw the yellow gold shining in the sunlight. I picked the ring up and it was exactly as Norman had described it – BINGO! I looked up at Norman and Tina and Norman was watching so I did my little “found it shuffle.” He popped up out of his chair, said something to Tina who then joined him in a very fast pace in my direction. When Norman got close, I held out my fist holding the ring and dropped it in his hand. Tina was overwhelmed when she saw it but she was so happy.

Monica – Thank you for finding me on your Google search.

Tina/Norman – Thank you for trusting me and The Ring Finders to help find your lost treasure.  Now you can enjoy your last couple of days of vacation. Have a safe trip back home.

Jim

 

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Teardrops Lost in the Tides Ocean Isle Beach NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On Monday, May 30th I got an alert that I had been mentioned on the Ocean Isle NC FB page. When I looked at the site, I saw a posting that stated. “Hi everyone we lost my late husband’s wedding band in the surf 2 days ago between the ocean isle tower and the beach access, at water’s edge. If anyone has found it please let us know. We would greatly appreciate it.“ Knowing that this ring held a great deal of sentimental value, I immediately responded saying “Call me if I can help,” I also sent a link to my blog page on The Ring Finders.com page. As a follow up I sent her a private message with the same information. I got a text message back from her saying, “I will message you in the morning.” This morning she texted me with a little more information and added, “My son handed it to me. I was almost at water’s edge and it dropped and sank immediately, around 2 pm on Sunday.” A follow up text added “We are in town till Sat morning. My Husband passed away unexpectedly in March, meant a lot to my son so I appreciate you helping us.” We did some more texting back and forth and agreed that I’d be there at 12:45 p.m. to work the outgoing tide. Teresa also stated I could park in her driveway which alleviated me having to find a parking spot, which during this time of the year is almost impossible.

When I got there, I met Teresa, her father Richard, and her oldest son Derek. We all hopped in their golf cart and Derek drove us down to the beach. Once on the beach, Teresa led me over to the spot that was directly in line with where the ring was lost. Once there, Teresa explained that when her middle son, Daniel got married he didn’t have a wedding band to wear. His father’s wedding band no longer fit his father, so he passed it down to Daniel. When the ring was lost, Daniel was wearing it and was afraid of losing it while swimming in the ocean. So, in the process of handing the ring to Teresa for safekeeping, the ring hit her hand and quickly disappeared in the wet sand with the incoming tide. It was definitely one of those shear panic moments. Teresa said she looked for the ring for about 2 hours before giving up and then had a gentleman with a detector look the next day for quite a while with no luck.

It was time to find the ring, or at least give it all I had. From Teresa’s explanation of her husband’s 14K Gold Wedding Band, I knew that I was looking for a VDI (visual display indicator) on the Equinox 800 between 13-18, depending on the size of the ring. I started a little outside of the area Teresa showed me with a grid search parallel to the surf line. On my 5th line I got a loud and solid 16 VDI, I was 99% sure I had the ring. Two scoops and I had the target out of the sand and on the beach. I spread out the sand a couple of times with my foot before I saw the little shimmer of the gold ring. BINGO! I washed the ring off and saw that Teresa and Richard were praying to the Big Man upstairs as they were watching me from up near the dunes. As I’m walking their way, I did a little dance and I heard Teresa yell “Did you find it?” I held the ring up and she was literally overwhelmed with emotions, which made my eyes water a little bit. There’s no way to express what it means to find and return someone’s very special treasure. Teresa and I decided we’d surprise Daniel, so she called him saying that I needed to get some information from him. It took at least an hour for Daniel, his wife Ana, older brother Derek, younger brother Kyle and his girlfriend, Raina to show up. When they did, I showed Daniel the area I had searched and asked him if he thought I was in the right spot and anything else he might remember. Meanwhile, Teresa was standing behind us holding the ring up for the “aha” moment. It worked perfectly and was priceless!

Teresa/Daniel – Thank you for trusting me and The Ring Finders to find your very special treasure. It was truly my pleasure to get to meet all of you. Best wishes and enjoy the rest of your vacation.

Jim

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Lost College Ring on Crescent Beach in North Myrtle Beach, SC, Found and Returned

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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TESTIMONIAL:

It was 4pm on Wednesday, May 25, 2022, at Crescent Beach in North Myrtle Beach, SC. Our family had spent an overcast day on the beach together and had begun discussing dinner plans for the evening. The sun began to peek from the clouds, so my brother-in-law and his girlfriend decided to throw a football before we packed up for the day, so I joined.  They went out in the surf at least waist deep, and I stayed ankle-shin deep to throw back out to them. Never had an issue with my college ring coming off my hand, but after a few throws, using my right hand, the water had helped to loosen the ring. That’s when it happened, I threw the ball out, and as my arm came down from the throw, I felt the ring come off. I didn’t see or hear where it hit the water. That’s when instant panic set in. However, I stopped and looked at where I was in relation to stationary objects on the beach, anchored boats in front of us and storm water markers nearby. I yelled for help from my brother-in-law and then called my wife down from the umbrella. Four of us frantically searched in the shallow surf for at least 15 minutes, until I realized that the ring would have burrowed in the sand by now and it would be hopeless to keep searching. That is when my wife and I both felt “shell shocked” at the loss. Mainly because the ring was custom made, almost a decade after graduating college, and it was very pricey. I had only had it for a little over a month — hence the rookie mistake of forgetting to take it off in the first place.

By this time, it was 4:15pm, I stepped back up on the beach and thought to myself, check the tide chart. It was almost at peak high tide, and low tide would be after 11pm that night, in which I knew the area the ring was in, would be completely uncovered with water at that time. Do we come back then and dig around? That’s when I thought to search online for “professional metal detecting service, north myrtle beach”. The first result I clicked on took me to a “TheRingFinders” webpage with the first article showing a recovery of a woman’s wedding band set in North Myrtle Beach almost a year ago by a gentleman. I skimmed the article and realized that this was no novice just messing around, this guy must be a true professional given the circumstances of that recovery. That’s when I located his number and dialed it. On the third ring, I was greeted by Jim. Confirming he was in fact the “the ring finder man.” He proceeded to ask where I was, and I gave him details of what had just happened. It was 4:20pm, and he said stay put, I will be there in 20 minutes. He dropped his plans with his wife and immediately came to us to help.

Exactly 20 minutes later, Jim called me, and I watched as he walked out on the beach – “to the rescue.” He came up introduced himself and immediately my wife and I felt a sense of calm. He was super friendly, lighthearted about the situation so that we were able to laugh about it and at the same time. He obtained details and immediately set forth on his mission. Starting from a point we indicated, he worked in and out south. His grid patterning from the boundaries that we provided was evident that this was “not his first rodeo!” We anxiously watched and waited.

After close to a dozen in-and-out passes, from the beach to waist deep, out past where we told him I would have been standing. He came ashore, asked more questions from myself and my brother-in-law, and redirected his search north from where he started. On the second pass headed out, he stopped, right about where I would have been standing, now knee-deep. His waving motion of his detector had stopped. He was holding it still on something. Moving the detector aside, he took his scoop and made one dip into the water and up came a “scoop full of sand.”  He carefully washed away the sand from the scoop and reached inside it. Turning around to walk ashore, he looked at us and “did a little dance!” That’s when we knew, bingo!

Jim came ashore, walked up to me and held out his fisted hand, and dropped my ring in my hand. Mission accomplished recovery complete. Everyone seemed shocked that he found it, myself included – however, I really and truly had faith in Jim from the time I talked with him on the phone. I would have been more shocked if he wasn’t able to recover it, that’s how much I trusted his skill. I had not read his biography at this point, nothing other than the skimming of that one story online. Later, we learned that Jim served our wonderful country for many years in the United States Coast Guard and also working in the federal government.  He has continued his selfless service to people along the Grand Strand area for many years in his retirement – what a kind gesture to put his skills to work in such a way to help those in a panicked time of need.

“Thank you” was simply not enough to express my gratitude for his help. I went to shake his hand, and instead he leaned in and we exchanged a “bear hug!” A friendship was sparked. I gave Jim some cash that I hoped would be enough monetary compensation for his time, effort and ultimate success. He didn’t count it, but instead held it up and said “whatever this is, just know that ten percent of it will be donated to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in honor of you and your wife!” Such a kind gesture, once again.

In less than an hour and a half, a ring was “lost” by me and then recovered by a true professional and class act, Mr. Jim Wren. A one-of-a-kind college ring now really is a conversation piece, with a story to tell! Something that I will be able to pass down.

God Bless You Mr. Jim, you deserve all the best my friend!

Sincerely,

Travis

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