Dan in Sharpsburg, GA contacted me about a hearing aid he recently lost while doing yard work. Fortunately, he had a good idea of where it came off which greatly helped reduce the search area. It took a few hours, but I finally got my metal detector over it and was able to recover it and return it to him in one piece this morning.
Two Rings Reunited
As I parked my car outside of a lakeside bar in Como, WI, I knew the task ahead would be like none I had encountered before. Could I locate two lost wedding rings from the same couple? It was 2:00 pm on July 20th, 2026 and I would soon meet Shauna and Chris to hear their story in person. Like many of my searches, their story began like so many. Paraphrasing… « I knew my ring fit loosely and it came off in the water. I can’t believe I didn’t think to take it off! »
Shauna was playing with her
three young daughters, sitting in the shallow water, probably keeping her sharp, motherly eyes on each of them. Pushing off the rocky bottom of the lake to stand up, she felt the ring slip, release, and disappear. Carefully padding the lake bottom with a flat hand, only gritty sand and small rocks pushed back. Her ring was gone.
And then the twist…
When I called her back to arrange for the search, she interrupted with… there’s a bit more to the story and she proceeded to tell me that I would be looking for two rings. In the moment of losing a precious ring, an overwhelming mixture of emotions are released. Loss, regret, sadness, anger, hopelessness. I don’t know what Shauna was feeling, but her husband, Chris, stepped in to help bear the burden. He said something like… « these rings belong together… » and took off his ring and threw it into the lake. I listened to their story, paused, and asked, “This is going to sound like a strange question, but are you two fans of [the television show] The Office? » « Yes! » they replied, wondering where I was going with the question, but clearly energetic fans of the series. I pointed to Chris and said, “First, you are the Jim Halpert in this story.”
In season 6 of The Office, Jim and Pam get married.
As with most weddings, something inevitably goes wrong and for Pam she accidentally tears her veil. In the moment, to console her, Jim grabs a pair of scissors and cuts his necktie in half, refocusing Pam that their love is steadfast despite what breaks down around them. Chris reacted in love, and in my book, that gets the Jim Halpert award. Shauna later commented it did help her to get through the moment after losing her ring.
In the end, both rings were found. Shauna’s in shallow water, while Chris’s required some diving to recover it. Both searches were accomplished in an hour and a half because Chris and Shauna put me in the perfect locations. Their sharp memories gave me the best chance to use the tools and knowledge of metal detecting to reunite the rings.
I found this class ring and did the research to try and return it… On 7/15/2026
UPDATE FOUND OWNER OF THE 1973 CLASS RING ON: 7/17/2026
I was able to find the owner of this ring. Turns out the daughter lost it when she was 15 while at a church event. She is 41 now, so it’s been lost for 26 years! We are planning on meeting up next week!!
This was a hard one. There are so many Northeast schools and only two with a Viking mascot. One in FL and one in PA. I had to go to the class of 1973 class page and checked out their class roster and found the only person it could have been. Searched the name on FB. I found a post that had the mom and daughter and I messaged the daughter, after we talked over the phone we confirmed it was the ring she had lost 26 years ago!!!
So glad I was able find it and even more excited that I will be able to return this ring to the family!
UPDATE RETURNED ON: 7/19/2026
I successfully returned the 1973 class ring back to the daughter that lost it 26 years earlier! She is going to surprise her mom with the ring soon.
I loved the research challenge and even more when I found the rightful owner and was able to return it to the family.
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Total ring recoveries since joining “The Ring Finders” 117 total!
Ring count for 2026: 82 (22 – recoveries/1 – return)
GOLD – 23 (18 – recoveries/1 – return)
GOLD/STAINLESS – 1
PLATNIUM – 4 (4-recoveries)
SILVER – 18
TUNGSTEN – 2
JUNK – 34
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“DIG IT ALL, SAVE SOME RINGS, BURY THE DRAMA!”
Received a text today from a gentleman saying his wife lost her engagement ring in the back yard and if I could help. I replied, “of course I can help, just send me the address and I’ll be on my way.
Got the address and headed out! When I arrived he showed me the area she thought it was lost and it turned out to be about 10 feet to the right of that area. It only took me about 10 mins to find it!
Another return and another happy customer!
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Total ring recoveries since joining “The Ring Finders” 116 total!
Ring count for 2026: 82 (21 – recoveries)
GOLD – 23 (17 – recoveries)
GOLD/STAINLESS – 1
PLATNIUM – 4 (4-recoveries)
SILVER – 18
TUNGSTEN – 2
JUNK – 34
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“DIG IT ALL, SAVE SOME RINGS, BURY THE DRAMA!”
A couple of weeks ago Stephen contacted me about his wife’s lost ring. He said that it was most likely in their back yard, with very specific spots where it could be. However he mentioned that the only other place it could be was inside their house. So we agreed that I would search the yard at least to hopefully find the lost ring, or at least eliminate the possibility if we were unsuccessful.
I arrived at Stephen’s house the next day and he outlined the most likely locations of where his wife’s ring was lost. I got started and after spending about 30 minutes in those locations we decided to expand the search to some less likely spots where his wife remembered being the night she lost her ring. But further expanding the search area proved fruitless as well.
After checking a couple of very unlikely but possible spots and also double checking the entire perimeter that I had searched, Stephen, his wife, and I discussed the situation again and decided to have them search the inside of their house again. In talking about their prior search of the house his wife described a rattling sound in the couch when they were searching around in the cushions. So I said, « You better search that couch again! » I told them I would be glad to come back if they had any other ideas or wanted more help searching inside their house as well, but that I had a strong suspicion that the ring was in the couch.
Sure enough, 15 minutes later, Stephen texted me that they had found the ring in the couch! I’m glad the process of elimination resulted in honing down their search area to the next most likely location which turned out to be the exact location that it was lost.
Sentimental value cannot be measured. This unfortunate incident was filled with meaning: Ron had been golfing when he put on his father’s ring — a ring given to him by his mother a few years earlier. His father died young and the ring had been tucked away and nearly forgotten until his mother found it and offered it to Ron. He accepted immediately and asked his wife to have their wedding date, along with his parents’ wedding date, engraved inside.
While on the course he slipped the ring into his pocket, later reached for money, and didn’t notice his pocket had turned inside out. Realizing it was missing, Ron retraced his steps, rented a metal detector, and searched the area but found nothing. He called me, and we went to the most likely spot and searched until the ring was recovered.
I feel privileged to have been part of this deeply sentimental recovery. Ron, you are a kind soul — your gratitude meant everything. Thank you for choosing me to find your ring.
Last night I received a text from Vickey that said, “Do you still look for rings?”
Well… yes ma’am. I certainly do.
Earlier that day, she had lost her engagement ring of more than 50 years while enjoying a family beach day on Dauphin Island. Thinking it would be safer tucked away in the beach bag than on her finger, she had placed it inside. At some point, her daughter hurriedly dug through the bag looking for a towel, and somewhere in the process the treasured ring disappeared.
We arranged to meet at the beach this afternoon. When I arrived, Vickey had marked the area near a large stick stuck in the sand where she believed they had been sitting. I carefully gridded the entire area—nothing. She thought maybe they had been further back, so we expanded the search farther back from the water. Still nothing.
After nearly an hour, Vickey and her family had to leave for home. I told her I’d stay a little longer and keep trying.
Before continuing, I looked one more time at a photo she had texted me from their beach day. The sand near the water looked flatter than where we had been looking. She also had mentioned they were using a beach wagon, and standing there on the beach, I also noticed faint wagon tracks—but they were on the opposite side of the marker stick from where we’d been searching.
On a hunch, I shifted my search grid about 15 feet.
Within minutes, I found a few freshly dropped coins—two nickels and a dime. That’s often a good sign that I’m finally in the right area. Then came a beautiful, solid tone. Before I even scooped the sand, I caught a glimpse of gold peeking through.
There it was.
Vickey’s engagement ring.
I immediately called her and asked, “How far away are you?” Thankfully, they hadn’t made it very far and turned around right away. About ten minutes later, I had the privilege of slipping her treasured ring back onto her finger where it belongs.
Moments like these are exactly why I love doing lost ring recoveries. It’s never just about finding a piece of jewelry—it’s about returning decades of memories, love, and family history.
Another happy ending on Dauphin Island, and another reminder that sometimes persistence, a little detective work, and a lot of prayer are the perfect combination.
If you’ve lost a ring in the Mobile, Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, or Dauphin Island area, don’t give up. Many rings can be recovered—even when all hope seems lost.
July 5, 2026
The sky over Cape Cod was alight with sparkling showers and thundering reports from the barrage of sky rockets set off to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the United States and a 20th upcoming anniversary. Chandler had been enjoying it all until the moment he felt something hit his ankle while walking off the sandy beach. His wedding band had slipped off his finger while removing his cellphone from his pocket.
As is the case in so many such occurrences all the searching of a sandy area by hand proves fruitless. It is then time for professional help from a member of TheRingFinders.com. This is just what Chandler did. I received the call just as dinner was being served. I could have put off the search until the morning but it is always best to search as soon after a loss occurs. 7AM worked for me but not Chandler. OK, I have my dinner plate saved and I will reheat it when I get back from the beach, it would not have been a first for me and I could not let Chandler have a sleepless night, agonizing over the missing ring on his finger.
On my way to the beach I was delayed by a bad accident and a long detour as usually happens on Cape Cod. When I arrived at the beach Chandler was already there pacing the area where he felt the object hit his ankle the night before. A short conversation and the Best Guess area was marked off On my fourth pass I had my first signal which sounded very promising and it was. The ring I was searching for was in my scoop. A little shake to remove sand and I let Chandler remove the ring and place it back on his finger.
Two quick pictures, a short walk back to our cars and Chandler would make his evening engagement and I would be home in a half an hour and a reheated Chinese dinner.
Noah’s wife reached out to me saying her husband « had lost his ring at Emerald Isle and was very upset ». After getting a few details, I headed over as quickly as I could to the public access they were visiting. When I arrived at the beach, strong waves were driving a powerful current along the sloped shoreline, and high tides were breaking over the slope, making the search tough. After a few passes in the water with no luck, I spotted Noah farther west in the water. He waved for me to try where he was, and just after he moved to shore, BAM! My XP Deus II gave a loud, clear 76 signal. The current was so strong that when I pulled my scoop from the sandy bottom, all the sand washed away, leaving only Noah’s large gold wedding band.
Joseph found me in the Ring Finder directory. The week before he was having a wonderful time kayaking the Brandywine River in West Chester, PA when tragedy struck! He pulled to the side to assist his wife with her canoe and while doing so he heard something bang and bounce off his kayak. About 60 seconds later and 5 yards down river he suddenly realized his large platinum wedding band was missing. It was obvious that the sound he heard was his ring bouncing off the kayak and into the river. He sent his family ahead to continue down river and stayed back and searched for his ring in the 1-2 feet deep water but had no luck. He and his wife returned several times during the week with handheld pinpointer metal detectors to try to locate the lost ring. At some point Joseph’s wife suggested hiring a professional and they got in touch with me. I met Joseph on a Saturday morning (exactly 1 week after the ring was lost) and we marched upstream 10-15 minutes to the site where Joseph was positive the ring dropped. He re-enacted what occurred and gave me some accurate and detailed parameters of where he was standing when the ring fell off. I was using my Minelab Manticore metal detector with a large search coil. A large platinum wedding band has a unique booming signature on my machine…and i knew exactly what signal I was listening and hoping for. Well…its didn’t take long…10 minutes into search…BOOM…there was the signal I was hoping for. I yelled to Joseph and pointed down…I told him I like the signal. I got out my pin pointer and searched the 1 foot deep water….my pinpointer buzzed that it was hitting metal. I moved several small rocks….THERE IT WAS! I think Joseph saw it shimmering in the water before I did! We both let out a few whoops and hollers and celebrated with high fives! EPIC! So happy to come through for Joseph and get his ring back on hos finger where it belongs!!!
