#howtofindaringonthebeach Tag | The Ring Finders

Key Fob Lost On Old Orchard Beach Maine, Found With A Metal Detector And Returned To The Owner

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

Recovery and Return #40
On Thursday morning, June 20, 2024, I arrived at the beach, in Old Orchard Beach, Maine. I was searching for a lost necklace, but didn’t have a lot of time, to complete the search. I had a previous commitment, in Norway, Maine and I needed to leave the beach, no later than 7:00am, in order to make my appointment. It was now 5:00am and I got straight, to the search. It was a fairly large area to search and I knew, I would not be able to finish, until the next day.
As I searched the area, I was performing a vertical grid search,to the beach. That is, I would start my search, near the dune/seagrass and search towards the water, turn around and start the search, back up to the seagrass area. As I was searching, I found the usual suspects of trash, coins and to my surprise, a Key Fob. The Key Fob had no name of ownership on it, but it did have a # on it. Perhaps an apartment, condo or hotel room number. The search continued, until I had to leave and unfortunately, no necklace was found. I will return to continue the search, in the area I wasn’t able to complete.

I now had to find the owner, of the Key Fob. I called the Old Orchard Beach Police Department and they had no record, of someone making a report, for a lost Key Fob. The OOBPD, took my information and said if anyone calls, they would give them my contact information.
I decided to post the missing fob, on my Facebook Page, The Ring Finders of Maine, along with 5-6 other local Facebook pages. I did not show the number, on the fob, and asked for the number to be revealed and if correct, I would personally guarantee the return of the fob. Almost immediately, I started getting tips that it looked like a Key Fob, that belongs to Grand Victorian Hotel Condominium. The Grand Victorian is an oceanfront beach property, that is at the base, of the OOB PIER.

One of the messages was from Ryan and said “Hello, I am the Manager, of The Grand Victorian. Unit # *** recently lost keys, so I’m hoping, these are the ones”.

I replied, “Ryan, This is fantastic! The # is ***”. Ryan gave me the correct 3 digit number and I knew we had found the owner.

I told Ryan that I would swing by The Grand Victorian, once I returned, from Norway, around 4:00pm to 5:00pm and return the key fob. Ryan told me that if he wasn’t there, there would be staff available and I could return the fob to them. I arrived at The Grand Victorian and Ryan was not there. I was able to talk to and return the key fob, to Bill. Although I was not able to meet the owner of the key fob, Bill told me that they would be ecstatic to have the fob back in their possession.

So, what started out as a search for a necklace, turned into a very hectic day, with me being able to return someone’s key fob. A hectic but very satisfying day and another smile on my face.

Tungsten Ring Lost In The Old Orchard Beach, Maine Sand, Found With A Metal Detector

  • from Old Orchard Beach (Maine, United States)

I was upstairs, putting my PJ’s on, after getting out of the shower. As I was getting dressed, I could hear my phone, ringing downstairs. When I retrieved my phone from the charger, I saw a voicemail had been left, a few minutes earlier, at 7:04pm. The voicemail message said,

“Hi there, I was told to call you. I lost my ring and I’m hoping you can help me. Eric said to call you. I’m right on Old Orchard Beach. If you get this message through just call me or my fiancé at 9 7 8- ***-**** please thank you…”

Now, Eric is the owner of The Waverly Store, a beachfront store, at The Waverly Condo Rentals and right next to The Brunswick Bar – The Largest Patio On The Beach, beachfront bar and nightclub and very close to Palace Playland Amusement Park and The Pier at Old Orchard Beach Maine. Eric is a big booster and a Facebook follower, of The Ring Finders of Maine and he personally has referred me 3-4 times, in the last year, with three recoveries made, because of his support and referral. A great guy and if you are in OOB, stop in his store and get some nice cold drinks, sunblock, umbrella or any of your day at the beach needs.

I immediately called Eric back and he told me there was a gentleman that had just lost his ring on the beach and had come in, looking to see if The Waverly Store, had a metal detector. Eric told him he didn’t but to call me instead. As Eric and I were talking, the gentleman that lost the ring, came back in the store and Eric hand him the phone. The gentleman’s name is Kaymel and he told me he knew the area the ring was in and had placed his large cooler, next to where he thought the ring had come off. A very, very, smart move by Kaymel. I told Kaymel, I could be there in 20 minutes at the most. I told my wife that I had just received a callout and would get changed, get my equipment, in the vehicle and be off. Since a steady rain was coming down, I decided to take my Minelab Excalibur II, a totally waterproof, diving detector, good for 200 feet under the water. Not knowing how long that I would be in the rain, this was my best bet and is a great beach detector.

My wife and I arrived at The Waverly Store at about 7:25pm and I saw someone, on the beach, watching the street, next to Eric’s, Waverly Store. I yell up, “Are you the one that lost a ring”. He replied yes and came down to meet me. Kaymel walked with me, to where he had placed his cooler. I asked him where he thought he lost the ring and he told me in “this area”, as he waved his finger in a circular motion. I turned on the Excalibur and started walking on the right edge of the area and about 5-6 feet, from the cooler. Not even 30 seconds into the search, I received a great, loud, low tone signal. I grabbed my pinpointer, placed it in the sand, found the target, put my hand, into the sand and pulled out Kaymel’s beautiful Tungsten Ring. Doesn’t get much easier than that and all because Kaymel had the foresight, to place his cooler, where he thought the ring had come off. I cannot tell you how important little things like this, help in recovering lost items. The smiles, on our faces, were ear to ear.
Kaymel told me that he and his girlfriend were packing up, when it started raining. As he was taking the tent down his ring flew off his finger , due to the rain, making his hands all wet and cold. As I was giving Kaymel, a ride to his vehicle, with his cooler and tent, he thanked me over and over. It’s so great, to be able to help people, like Kaymel, when, they feel helpless, not knowing if they will ever get their lost ring back. Kaymel not only has his ring back but will also be in my “Book of Smiles”.