…..What? Could this be a sign of an early spring just as Punxsutawney Phil has predicted?
Got a call from Tammy last night she said that her thin silver chain broke loose when she was carrying groceries into her house back when heavy snow fell down upon s/e Michigan a couple weeks ago. It wasn’t until bedtime she noticed it missing. Searching the next day in the heavy snow revealed nothing and the parking area had been plowed. Upon arrival today most of the snow had melted leaving the parking area clear of snow. I noticed a mound of plowed snow so I used my garrett at gold metal detector to start scanning the around the mound. Nothing signaled on the first scan so we shoveled a bit deeper into the mound. Scanning again I got a faint signal. Scraping away into the snow revealed this really pretty sterling silver Lotus flower pendant and chain shining back at me! Tammy was beyond belief but super happy that it was in the snow mound. So even tho the groundhog saw his shadow, the Lotus petals in the snow are proof enough for me that spring is on the way!
Got a call from newlywed Aaron this afternoon said his ring came off in the deep snow that fell upon the Detroit area recently. It happened when he ran outside with the dog to grab a few logs for the fireplace and after a few snowballs and fetch he noticed the ring missing when he got back indoors. Using a loaner detector brought no luck. When I arrived I noticed the area him and the dog were and began to set up my MXT. Slicing thru the 8 inch snow and deeper drifts with my bigfoot coil revealed nothing. So I began a wider search pattern and back by the log pile next to the garage the detector gave a sweet signal. Brushing the snow aside revealed this beautiful white/yellow gold ring glistening in the snow! I waved him over and he could not believe it was that far off from where he was with the dog.
Perfect timing as he had a meeting to get to for work. He thanked me and I said I was glad to help keep their flame burning and wished them the best in their new life together.
Nicki and John hurried to the local sporting goods store to purchase a metal detector. Little did they know, moving the trash and recycling bins one winter night would lead to hours of hands-and-knees searching, in the snow, for a lost wedding band. John grabbed the city bin handle and started pulling. The ice and snow from the winter storm had these containers wedged in place. One was breaking loose when John’s cold hands slipped off the handle. He heard something strike the wooden garage door and realized it was his gold wedding band. They spent three hours searching for the ring, including the use of a recently purchased metal detector and rake. Eventually, the couple decided they needed help in their search. Nicki contacted me, and we discussed the details of the lost ring. We knew the ring was there, but it could have bounced in any direction. There was a snow mound next to the garage where the bins were stored. The wedding band could have landed anywhere. There was even the possibility the ring could have flown over the chain-linked fence into the next yard. Nicki could see the only options, either book the search with a professional or wait for the snow to melt and hope the wedding band was not picked up by someone else.
Nicki booked the search and sent clear photos of the area. I arrived, and we walked the driveway recapping that night’s events. We decided to move the trash and recycling containers to open up some detecting areas. John headed indoors for a moment, and I got started with the search. Only minutes after turning on the metal detector, I heard two signals. Both came from where the trash and recycling containers were typically stored. I marked the areas and started recording for the live dig. The display numbers were in the 60s and 70s on my XP Deus metal detector. Gold falls in this number range, so I was hoping one of the signals was the lost wedding band. Uncovering the first target, as you can see in the video, I found a nickel. I brushed the snow away from the second item, and only an inch or two under the top layer of snow, I saw gold. The wedding band was barely covered and must have been protected by the recycling container. Once Nicki and John returned the bins after pick-up, the wedding band must have been preserved underneath, in the top layer of snow, until today.
I coordinated with Nikki for the surprise reveal of the ring. Once John came back out, I asked a couple of questions, and in the middle of his response, I revealed the ring to him and asked, “Is that it?” He was trying to focus on the item I was holding. When he realized I was holding his wedding band, the excitement set in, and I could hear the shudder in his voice. His reply was, “Yes, it is. How did you do that?” We laughed and joked about the difficulty of learning a new metal detector in the middle of an emergency ring search. I handed over the cherished wedding band to the happy couple and headed to my next adventure in New York.
How to Find a Lost Ring
Lost ring in the snow? It happens all the time – brushing and scraping ice, throwing snowballs, sleigh riding, taking off gloves, taking out the trash. Suddenly your ring goes flying. Don’t waste your time renting or borrowing a metal detector. Stop and mark the area where you believe the ring was lost. If plowing or shoveling occurs, block off the site to preserve the ring’s location. My jewelry finding service covers Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and other surrounding states.
If you have a lost ring or something of value, contact Keith Wille now.
Back in October I received a message from a distraught lady that had just lost her wedding ring set on a recent outing. She had found my offer of recovery services on TheRingFinder.com website. As the story developed it turned out to be our local KIRO morning news anchor Colleen O’Brien. She had just lost her wedding ring set on a recent outing to the park with her family. After working with her over the phone she had high hopes that the rings were most likely lost in the park. As they had taken some family photos within the grass amongst the fallen leaves. I also learned that they had made a stop at the local Walgreens where she hopped out for a quick visit before reaching the park. With that in mind I encouraged her to revisit the parking lot of the Walgreens for a second look as they were closer to the location than I.
Being a high traffic public area this made it critical to respond as soon as possible. Our concerns in public parking lots is to scan the area before someone else finds your lost items of value. Even though many people will try to find you not everyone will return expensive wedding rings or even understand the best ways to reach out to the public. I was still on schedule to search the retail parking lot and the park as necessary when the good news came in. Her husband was able to swing by the parking lot soon after our conversation and recovered both of the lost wedding rings for his wife, Colleen.
I am always happy to work with people over the phone and overwhelmed with joy any time someone gets a recovery no matter how it comes about. Just being able to share some insight, hope and encouragement was exactly what this story needed and I was honored to take the call.
Whit this experience Colleen was very appreciative and suggested we do a new story on TheRingFinders.com so more people are made aware of the amazing services that our finders all across the country offer in helping people find their lost items of value.
Please share the story on social media to get the word out making TheRingFinders.com a house hold name so we can recover more smiles!
This story aired on KIRO Radio News on Feb. 12th, 2021
Got a call from Kayla this morning she said hers keys fell out of her pocket while her and the children were playing in the snow at a park just before dark yesterday. While on her way to meet me her friends car got a flat tire at her house so I said I’ll start the search without her. I turned on my MXT metal detector and searched where she fell on a small hill masked by snow. Nothing there. I started to search their tracks and on one branch of their trail I got a good solid signal. Brushing the snow aside revealed her keys not too far from some playground equipment. Sending a quick pic of them we decided to meet at her house to drop off the keys. Happy that her luck had turned positive with the keys found, we chatted and enjoyed some hot chocolate, and as she lifted the remote start into the air we paused to listen to a smooth start up of the car.
It was late afternoon when I received a message from a very upset Allison. She had lost her grandmother’s ring while playing with her dog in the snow at a local tennis park. At some point, she removed her gloves, and the ring fell off into the snow. She didn’t know where the ring fell off. Allison and her wife tried to find the ring but didn’t have any luck. They even bought a metal detector and couldn’t find it. Allison then turned to the internet to see if someone could help her find her grandmother’s ring. That’s when she found TheRingFinders website and contacted me. I responded that I would help and was on my way. When I arrived at the park, it was dark. I started my search with Allison holding a flashlight. I walked about 20 feet, and the first target I hit was the ring. She was very happy to have this family heirloom back.
I received a text from Chyanee that she lost her engagement ring after slipping and falling in the snow. I immediately returned her call to gather more info. She told me that while exiting her car to go into a store in Easton, PA, she slipped and fell and felt the ring fly off her finger. They searched the streets and piles of snow for over 45 min. with no luck. I just happened to be off work the following day and was able to arrive first thing in the morning. Time was of the essence because a new snow storm was on it’s way and because it was on a city street, we didn’t want the wrong person to find it. Chyanee’s fiancée Nick was able to meet me and show me the area she fell. After about 10 min of searching, I found the ring in a large snow pile on the sidewalk. It was another great find this winter and one of my first in a downtown city.
Got a call from Mike last night who said his ring came off while grooming his dog.
They did a brief paw patrol but to no avail.
When I got on site today I learned that he had a grooming glove on and while removing it to flick the hair off, his ring flew off into the snow. I set up my MXT and started to grid search as he wasn’t quite sure which direction he thought it could be. Watching from behind the paw and wet nose smeared patio glass entrance was the dog with tail wagging excitedly wanting to join us. Scanning over the snow about 20′ from where he was I got a good, solid signal in a 4″ deep pile of snow over concrete. Using my pinpointer I probed into the pile and while scanning back and forth I felt the pinpointer make contact with an object. Brushing the snow aside revealed this very nice white gold ring shining back at me in the sunlight! I said hey Mike come take a look here and looking down on the snow, reaching down he scooped it up with excitement and was quite thrilled that it hadn’t flown further. Releasing the hound we watched as he excitedly zig zagged around us and the only way to calm him down was to pose for some puptacular pics!
I received an email from Rob on a Tuesday stating he lost his wedding band while taking down his Christmas decorations. He was devastated as the ring was his grandfathers who had passed away a couple months before Rob was born. Robs mother had given the ring to Rob when he proposed to his wife. The ring was the only item and memory he had of his grandfather. We had to wait until Saturday before I was available to search. I arrived on a very cold and windy Saturday morning and began searching the front yard as well as under the bushes in the flower beds. I searched for two hours without luck.
Rob came over to me as I was still searching and told me to give up as I had searched the entire yard twice. I told him, if it’s in this yard, I’ll find it. Just as I said that, I simultaneously began to move my detector and got a good hit as well as I saw something shiny in the grass. There was the ring sticking out from under a leaf. We could not believe we were standing over the ring and about to give up when I found it. His wife ran over to us and began to cry with excitement. I love being able to reunite lost jewelry to its owners.
Don’t wait or hesitate to call me at 610-207-8677, so I can find your lost treasure with my metal detecting service.
Jason Roberge, an experienced ring finder, received a call from Jamie who was in Minnesota for a work convention. She and some co-workers were outside participating in some team-building activities in a field near the meeting site. She had removed her precious rings before the event and placed them in a pocket. But, she later realized that the rings had slipped out of her pocket. Unfortunately, she had already flown back home and had no way of searching for herself.
Jamie contacted Jason, and he was happy to help look for the lost rings. Most of the snow had melted from the day before, and Jason was able to find both lost rings rather quickly. The rings were shipped back to Jamie, and she was overly relieved and happy to have them back!
If you lost a ring in Minnesota and need help finding it, call Jason Roberge at The Ring Finders.
