Jim Wren, Author at The Ring Finders | Page 12 of 32

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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Sentimental Sterling Silver Necklace Lost in the Ocean, Found and Returned North Myrtle Beach SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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Just about 3:30 p.m. on Friday, July 28th, I got a text saying “Is this the guy who finds rings and stuff at the beach? I don’t know how to word it better.” I responded saying, “Yes, what you got?” He responded, “So I just lost a chain maybe 1 hour ago and I’m at a place named crescent sands. I was out body-surfing and it fell off and I’m not sure if it’s been washed up or not. I’ve had the chain for over 10 years and was wondering if you possibly could give me any advice on finding it?” At this point, it’d be easier to talk to him than text, so I called him. We introduced ourselves and I learned his name was Anson. I got a few more details, including confirming the time and how deep he was in the water. A quick check of the tide tables, and he was waist deep a little over an hour before high tide. This was good, in that, the closer I could get out there near low tide, the necklace should be in the wet sand. I told Anson I’d be there at 9 p.m. which was about an hour before low tide. Meanwhile I’m watching the weather and it looks more and more like a thunderstorm is brewing.

About 8 p.m. the skies were clouding up and the light rain started. I decided to get there early and try and beat the storm. I arrived at the condo and text Anson saying, “I’m here early to beat the storm.” As I’m walking out on the beach I see lightening way off in the distance and over the ocean. It’s time to get started.  Anson and his younger brother came out of the condo as I’m working a perpendicular grid line to the surf line. We verified the search boarder lines on the condo and I continued the grid search, high tide line to about thigh deep in the ocean. After about an hour and almost at the end of the south end of the boarder, I got a great signal with a VDI of 15. With Sterling Silver I expected a higher VDI number, but at this point I’ll take any signal I could get. I dug a big scoop of sand, checked the hole which was clear, and spread the sand out on the beach. It was pitch black out there by now, so I turned on my headlamp. I started spreading out the sand with my hand, hoping to feel the target. All of a sudden I saw a section of Anson’s necklace appear out of the sand. Boom! I gently pulled the necklace out of the sand. I was able to get a half descent picture of it and sent it to Anson with a text saying “This it????” He immediately responded “yes that’s it, Oh my gosh.” The next thing I knew Anson and his brother came running up to me from down the beach. This is when I got the rest of the necklace story. Anson told me he had received the necklace from his father roughly 10 years ago and he’s been wearing it ever since. He then told me his dad had passed away one year ago. So the importance of this necklace was much more than priceless to him. I was truly honored to be able to help get this necklace back where it belonged. Another thing that touched me deeply is his last text to me – “And I wanna just say god bless you. You have made my life better.”

Anson – thank you young man!

Jim

   

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

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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I got a text message at 10 p.m. Thursday, July 27th saying, “Hi Jim! I found your info on the Ring finder’s website. I lost my husband’s wedding ring at Sunset Beach this evening. Are you available to help search?” I called the number on the text and spoke with Ashley. She explained she had put her husband, Jonathan’s ring in her phone case for safe keeping. At some point she took the phone out of the case and was pretty sure the ring fell out into the ocean. I asked what time and she said about 3 hours ago. The timing was good because the tide had just reached low tide so now was the time to try. She asked if it’d be better to search in the morning. I told her that there’d be a good chance the ring wouldn’t be there because of all the early morning detectionist out hitting the beach.  I also told her I didn’t need light, per se because I had a head lamp and the machine beeps when I hit a target. I told her I’d be there in about 30-35 minutes and she agreed to meet me. It just happened that my youngest daughter, Lisa, her husband and my grandson were in town visiting, so I asked my daughter if she wanted to go. She quickly said yes so we were on our way.

When we arrived, Ashley and Jonathan were on the beach with flashlights hoping for the best. Ashley showed me a big hole that her brother had dug to give us an idea of the line the ring was lost on. Ashley moved me over a few steps east of the hole and I started a perpendicular grid line to the surf. I made my way down to the low tide line, which had now shifted and was coming back in. I made the turn to come back up the slope and got to about the mid tide line. All of a sudden I got a solid signal that rang up a 15 on the Equinox 800 VDI (visual display indicator).  It was a little higher number that I expected but it was within the range of a white gold man’s wedding band. I dug 2 big scoops of sand before I got the target out of the hole. I spread the sand out with my foot and started feeling around in the sand. Bang! I felt the ring and the big hole in the middle. I walked down to the water line and washed the ring off and walked over to where Ashley, Jonathan, and Lisa were standing and asked Ashley, “Is this it?” She handed the ring to Jonathan who checked the engraving and said, “It’s it!” Think they were all a little shocked that it was found, in the dark, and probably within 5 minutes. Ashley and Jonathan were so grateful and happy.

Ashley and Jonathan – thank you for allowing me to help find your lost treasure.

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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Family Heirloom Yellow Gold Horseshoe Ring Lost in the Sand, Found and Returned Cherry Grove NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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I got a call from Bill inquiring about finding a lost ring. I explained how I operate and asked when and where the ring was lost. He stated that his granddaughter had almost worn it in the ocean. She remembered not to and walked back up and put the ring in a chair. At some point the ring went from the chair into the dry sand. It amazes me sometimes; how very good intentions go south so easily. I got the condo address and told him I’d be there in about 15 minutes.

When I arrived, Bill was waiting in front of the condo, and we walked out to the beach. I met Kinsley and her mother January. I could see where the family had tried to find the ring to no avail. I asked Kinsley a few questions, one being what kind of ring it was. She stated a yellow gold horseshoe shape with diamonds, or something to that affect. I looked at her and said, “how about we get the ring back on your finger in less than 2 minutes.” She looked at me like I was nuts. January told me that the ring belonged to Kinsley’s grandmother and the ring had been passed down to Kinsley. Now there’s a new twist to this ring find, a family heirloom that has got to be found. I turned my Equinox 800 on and started a very tight grid line. The first target was a pull tab which rang up as a 13 on the machine. A small gold ring could also ring up at 13. I took a few more steps and hit a solid 10. I knew I had her ring then. I reached down in the sand and instantly felt it. I pulled it up out of the sand and showed Kinsley who put her hands over her face. She was very surprised and happy to get her ring back.

Bill – Thank you for calling and trusting me to help find Kinsley’s ring. Hope you and your family enjoy the rest of your vacation.

Jim

 

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Man’s White Gold Wedding Band Goes Swimming in the Ocean, Found and Returned Sunset Beach NC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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This adventure started on Monday, June26th when I got the following text message at 7:19am. “Good Morning, I got your info from your website. My son is visiting from Dallas and lost his wedding ring at sunset beach 2 nights ago. We were at the beach access between 13th and 14th, straight ahead at the water’s edge. It’s a white gold band engraved “Cris 4.29.22.” I’m hoping and praying you can help us. My name is Jill.” I didn’t see the text until almost 11am and when I did, I called her to get additional details. I found out her son, Tom had been in the water around 7pm, which was about an hour and a half after low tide. Jill also said she had a picture with a time stamp at 7:12pm of Tom showing the ring, and another one around 7:28pm of him without the ring. We discussed a few other factors and I told her I’d be there around 6 pm to work the outgoing tide. She said they’d be there around 7 pm to watch the sunset.

I showed up a little after six and stated a north/south gridline from the shore out to about waste deep water. I was chugging along when a young man approached me and asked if I was looking for a wedding ring. When I said yes, he informed me that I went one access to far. Well, I got a little more exercise if nothing else. When I met Jill, her husband, Steve, Tom and his wife Cris, they showed me about where they had been sitting while Tom was swimming in the ocean when he lost the ring. I started my north/south gridlines again, going out as far as the sand bar. I worked the area until just before sunset. I told Jill I’d be back at about 730am in the morning and called it a night.

I had called a buddy to see if wanted to tag along and I met him shortly after I arrived on the beach. My plan was to start west of where Jill and the family had been sitting on Saturday night and make my way east. There were very few targets, a few bottle caps and pull tabs and one penny. After about an hour and a half the tide turned and was now coming in. I kept the grid going and I was about 40 yards down the beach from where they had been sitting. I made the turn to come back towards shore when I got a signal. Being a white gold man’s wedding band I was expecting to see between 9 and 11 on the VDI (visual display indicator) depending on the width of the ring. This signal was bouncing around like there may be two targets close together. Or it could be caused by the way the target was sitting on the ocean floor, or the wave action off the sand bar, but a 9 kept popping up. I dug a big scoop of sand and checked the hole – I had the target in the scoop. I was going to walk back to shore to dump the scoop so I wouldn’t take the chance of losing the target back in the ocean. As I looked down on the scoop, I saw a shiny object and what looked like a half a ring. Again, not wanting to take any chances, I carefully reached down and pulled out a ring. I tried my best to read the inscription, but without my glasses I was lucky to see the ring! I walked over to my buddy and he couldn’t read it either. As we’re packing up to go, a nice lady was walking down the beach. I asked her if she could read the inscription and she read Cris 4 29 22. Bingo!! I had Tom’s ring. I took a picture and sent it and a text to Jill saying  “Ba Booooom!!!!” She instantly responded with “Whaatt??!!! We are soooooo excited!!!!” I called her and told her I’ll just run it by their house, if she’d give me the address since it’s on my way home. It was important to get the ring back to Tom because he and Cris were heading back to Dallas at 5pm. When I pulled into the driveway, everybody was waiting in the front yard. I handed Cris the ring so she could put it back on Tom’s finger. Returning someone’s treasure never gets old and their smiles tell it all.

Jill – Thank you for contacting me to help find Tom and Cris’ lost treasure.

Tom and Cris – I wish you two only the best. Take care of each other!!!

Jim

   

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IPhone Lost in the Dry Sand, Found and Returned Cherry Grove, SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On Sunday, Jun 25th, I was just about to start a search for a lost engagement ring when Chris walked up and asked if my detector could find a cell phone. I told him it could and he said his wife had lost her cell phone somewhere up in the dry sand. I told him as soon as I’m finished with the ring search, I’d be glad to help him.

When I completed the successful ring search, I found Chris and asked for the details on the phone. He told me that his wife had lost it somewhere between the pier and the beach access. That area was approximately 50 yards or so, so I asked him where they had been sitting and we’d start from there. He led me to an area underneath the pier and I swung the detector about 3 times and hit a good target. I dug a scoop of sand and he said there’s my wife’s phone as he reached in the hole and pulled it out. I love a quick recovery.

Chris – Thank you for letting me help find your wife’s phone!!

Jim

   

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White Gold Engagement Ring Lost in the Outgoing Tide, Found and Returned Cherry Grove, SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On Sunday, June 25th, I was sitting at home waiting to return on a search where the beach was packed with tourist when I received a text from Haley. Her text said “Hi my best friend lost her ring about 5 minutes ago at the north side of Cherry grove pier right by the water line. If anybody turns it in or finds it, could you please let me know!! It’s her engagement ring.” I immediately responded asking “You want me to come look for it?” She responded with a picture of the ring and said “Yes please!” I asked her to call me and gave her my number. Almost instantly she called and I got a few more details, told her I’d be there in 10 minutes, grabbed my Equinox 800 and hit the road. This is Sunday, so parking is almost non-existent for the beach. I’ve got a few hidden spots but even those were taken. I did find a spot that I’m not sure I parked legally, but I didn’t have a ticket when I returned to the car.

As I’m walking out on the beach I called Haley saying I was there. As I’m walking towards the pier, Claire came running up to me and told me she was the one who lost the ring. I asked what happened and she told me she was looking for shells. She continued saying that when she reached for a shell, her ring slipped off her finger and disappeared. She also said her ring was a little loose on her finger. I asked what her ring was and she responded that it was White Gold. We continued walking to the water line and she showed me, almost exactly where she had lost it. I noticed the waves were pretty rough breaking on the shoreline, so I wanted to see what I was up against. I walked straight out in the water, across a bed of broken shells, barefooted no less. After about 10 feet I dropped from ankle deep to about chest deep which explained the breaking waves. After I fought the current and made my way back up to a workable surface; I started a grid line back to where Claire, Haley and another young lady, whose name I didn’t get, were standing. I made my turn and walked back to about ankle deep and hit a great signal, showing an 8 VDI (visual display indicator) which was in the ball park for a white gold ring. I dug a big scoop of sand and shells, checked the hole, which was quickly filled back in, and knew I had the target in the scoop. I walked up to where the young ladies were standing and dumped the scoop. I checked the pile of sand with the detector and found the target. I think I told Claire that we might have it. I spread the sand out with my foot and we all were checking out the sand. Suddenly one of the ladies saw it barely sticking out of the sand and said something like “there it is.” Claire saw it and scooped it up. Bingo! She was now holding her precious treasure and holding back some tears. She was very excited.

Ladies – this was truly a team effort!

Claire, so happy you got your lost treasure back where it belongs.

Jim

   

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Gold Chain with 2 Gold Crosses lost in the dry sand, Found and Returned North Myrtle Beach, SC

  • from North Myrtle Beach (South Carolina, United States)
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On Sunday, June 25th, I woke up to an early morning text from Aly saying “Hi There, I lost my daughters necklace with 2 crosses on it yesterday in the sand by my Condo. How much do you charge to look for it?! It was a present from her grandmother and she has since passed away.”I responded asking her to call me. I explained the details of me looking for lost items and she agreed to have me come and see what I could do. I told her there might be a parking issue, since this was Sunday and all the tourist are in town. She told me I could use an extra parking pass she had for the condo so I was on my way.

When I got to the condo, and Aly and I walked out on the beach, it was packed with tourist. She showed me the likely area of the loss and there was no way I could do a complete search at that time. Weaving in and around people, I was able to do maybe 10% of what needed to be done. I did what I could and told her that more than likely, somebody was sitting on the chain and crosses and I’d be back between 4 and 4:30. So I went back home to wait. In the meantime, I received 2 other calls which turned out to be 2 more stories. But back to Aly’s chain and crosses. I was back on the beach at Aly’s Condo about 4 and there were still 3 groups of tourist sitting exactly where I needed to search. I was able to eliminate a few more areas but not what I knew I needed to do. Aly had shared a couple of selfies she had taken with her daughter, Alexa. In the pictures, it gave me a pretty good angle of where they were sitting in relation to the life guard stand, which proved to be perfect. I texted Aly and told her the people were still sitting in the area and I’d be back in about an hour. When I got back about 6, the area was clear. I text Aly saying “I’m back” and started my grid search. Patience paid off, although I’m not a patient person. Within about 30 minutes, I got a solid signal and an 8 on the VDI (visual display indicator), which indicates Gold! I dug a scoop of sand, shook it out of the scoop and saw the first cross, then saw the chain hanging out of the bottom of the scoop. I gently pulled the entire chain and both crosses out of the scoop. I took a quick picture, wrote “BA Bam!”, and sent her a text. She responded almost immediately with “Omg!!” She showed up a short time later with Alexa, who took possession of her special treasure.

Aly – Thank you for allowing me to help find Alexa’s lost treasure.

Jim

   

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