Lost rings Orange beach Tag | The Ring Finders

Lost Rings in the Gulf, Orange Beach- FOUND!!!

  • from Orange Beach (Alabama, United States)

I owe Matt and Elise an apology for taking so long to post their story but I wanted to make sure that I did them in the right order because Elise’s rings ended up being the 99th and 100th official return since I started doing this. I love thinking back on all of the people I have been able to help. Matt and Elise are the perfect ones for lucky #100 because not only do they have a great story but they are wonderful people!  They have been married for 15 years and were down in Orange Beach with some friends and their family for some well deserved vacation. Elise had gone out in the Gulf with her youngest son William to throw the football when all of a sudden both of Elise’s rings came flying off with the ball. This was the first day of their vacation and it had taken an immediate turn for the worse. Elise noted where she was and came up to the beach and she and Matt immediately began looking online for someone who could help. Luckily, Matt called me and I was eager to help. I made the hour drive and brought my wife Jeannie. She has been my lucky charm and I thought it only right that she be there for the potential 100th return. When we got there Matt and Elise pointed out where they were and I quickly realized that the knee deep water was out where the sand bar drops back off into the Gulf. Nevertheless, I set a bearing on a distant condo and began my grid search. Meanwhile Jeannie talked to Matt and Elise and tried to calm their fears. She learned that they had a true love story. Matt is a farmer and back years ago he saved his money and went and bought these rings for Elise and got down on one knee. Now it had been so long that Matt didn’t even remember what the rings were made out of. I think that is a perfect example of the kind of irreplaceable things I get to find. It doesn’t matter what they are made out of or the monetary value. It’s the memories and the sentiment that make them absolutely invaluable. Meanwhile, back in the Gulf, I had my machine turned wide open so I could hear everything and I was on a mission. An hour later though, I only had one dime to show for it and everyone was getting worried. A man waded out to talk to me and explained that he was going to try and find it with his feet. I tried to be nice and explain that he was kind of hurting the situation and not helping but he was not to be deterred so I went around him. After expanding the area a bit I had Elise go over again where she thought it might be. I told her that there was no way it had rolled up the bar but if she had flung it far enough it might be a little shallower. The man had finally left after a fruitless search so I started there and proceeded to work shallower. Finally, out of nowhere, I hear the screaming sound of gold in my ears. In a millisecond, I knew that not only were these the rings, but they were together, right on top and they were almost certainly gold. I very gently scooped down deep to make sure I didn’t scratch one and pulled out both rings in one scoop, together like they were meant to be. Y’all, I can’t even explain the excitement and the disbelief and happiness that proceeded to radiate from that beach when I walked out. I hope the next 100 are every bit as meaningful!  By the way, the rings are 18k and diamonds, just as awesome as the people they belong to. Congratulations Matt and Elise and thank you for trusting me with your memories.

Saving Mother’s Day – 2 rings FOUND!!!

  • from Orange Beach (Alabama, United States)

I got a call from Alan this past Sunday that started out with “we need you to save Mother’s Day.”  Needless to say he had my attention. It turns out that Alan and his family had taken his Mother to the beach to celebrate the day and had a wonderful time until it was time to go. Alan’s mom had wisely taken off both of her rings and put them in the small zippered compartment on her beach chair. When it came time to put them back on, something had happened. These are beautiful rings. One was a present for a previous Mother’s Day and the other had been an anniversary present. These rings were honoring her as a Mom and it just wouldn’t be right to lose them on that day. Alan and his Mom called and explained what happened and where they thought the rings were and I asked my wife if it was ok to go. She has a soft spot for anything to do with rings for marriage and family so not only did she say yes but she joined me on the trip. I always say that Jeannie is my lucky charm on these hunts. She has a great track record. When we got to Orange Beach and met Alan the first thing you notice is that he is really tall. He is a basketball player and makes me feel short. 😃. The second thing that you quickly find out is that Alan has to be one of the nicest people I have ever met while doing this. He showed me where they were and we made our way over. I was just about to introduce myself to the family next to us and apologize for being so close when she said “I recognize you from Facebook and the Ringfinders.”  That made me smile and I took it as a good sign. I started gridding out the area and Alan stayed right with me. He wanted to know all about the machine and how it worked, he asked about the coolest things I’d found while diving and we talked about what it looked like for him to go to Europe to continue his basketball career. He also uses his degree to help people write books and gave me the nicest compliment when he suggested that I should take my stories and write one myself. Meanwhile my wife had an idea and asked Alan if he had any pictures from earlier. He handed her his phone and it wasn’t long until Jeannie found a selfie and triangulated where she thought the chair was. Being a wise man and always listening to my wife, I walked over to the spot she was standing and immediately heard a gold tone. I scooped it up and held it out to Alan and as he started to freak out on the first ring, I could already hear the second one in the sand. When I got it out, Alan was already FaceTiming his Momma. When she saw them she was absolutely beside herself and I came over to wave hello. She was crying happy tears and Alan was ecstatic. Jeannie came over to wave hi and Alan said sorry, she ran off for just a second. When Jeannie looked puzzled, Alan said that she was so happy that she had to run around the house and take a victory lap. Haha, now that is the reaction I want every time!  Alan, it was an absolute pleasure to spend some time with you and I am so glad we got to “Save Mother’s Day!”  ❤️😃 God Bless!

P.S.- my favorite picture is the one he is FaceTimeing his Mom in. 😃

Ring Found Pensacola Beach!

  • from Orange Beach (Alabama, United States)

it was a beautiful day at Pensacola Beach but the Shorebreak was really pounding. Chris was on the edge of the water putting on his fins and mask to do some diving. The Shorebreak hit him, he tumbled a bit and lost his ring. His wife called me to see if I could help and I said I would try. They showed me about where the ring was lost and I was able to find it in an hour hour and a half. We got to talking, he was from Pensacola and so am I. It turned out that we’re distant cousins! They departed all smiles. I was glad I could help and now have another family link. I guess it’s truly a small world!