The Ring Finders
Metal Detecting Service Inc.

On Sunday, August 8, I received a call from Melisa Mistler of Grass Valley, California. She explained that her new husband had lost his wedding ring in their front yard and inquired if I would drive to Grass Valley and attempt recovery. Melissa explained that she and her husband were newlyweds, but theirs was a very special situation. Melissa and her new husband, Michael Yates, had been childhood sweethearts. They did not date in high school but kept in touch while each was away at college. Sadly, after college they had lost track of one another. Melisa was the head of her high school reunion committee and it was her responsibility to locate and inform her classmates of each reunion, but Yates had been difficult to track down because he traveled the world before he eventually settled in Seattle, Washington. He never attended any of the high school reunions.

After college at Southwest Baptist in Missouri, Melisa returned to Nevada County and settled in Grass Valley where she opened her own business, M3Mall. Melisa recently collaborated with another high school classmate in a fundraiser for yet another classmate who is suffering from stage 4 colon cancer. Michael happened to see an article in the newspaper about the event which included a photo of Melisa. Michael decided to attend the fundraiser and on February 2, 2010, they were reunited . The old friends quickly rekindled their childhood romance, eloping on March 12, 2010!

They were distressed that Michael had lost his traditional Claddagh ring which had been ordered from Ireland. The elements of this symbolic ring are often said to correspond to the qualities of love (the heart), friendship (the hands), and loyalty (the crown). Melisa and Michael had thoroughly searched the yard, but had been unable to find the ring that symbolized the special love that had lasted all the years Michael and Melisa were apart. I told Melisa that I would be happy to come to Grass Valley and try to locate the ring for them. When I arrived at Melisa’s address, a lovely old Victorian home, I set up and began a grid search of the front yard area where she and Michael thought the ring might have been lost. Within an hour, I had recovered the ring, along with a full set of keys – which oddly did not belong to the couple. I was happy that I was able to locate the Claddagh for Michael and Melisa. It is a special ring for a special couple with a very special story.