Pass A Grille Tag | Page 3 of 3 | The Ring Finders

The weekend before my vow renewal, a few of my friends and I decided to go out.  We ended up at Jimmy B’s on St Pete Beach and after a few drinks and several hours of dancing; we decided a quick dip in the gulf would be wonderful.  We were only in for a few minutes but when we came out and posed for a photo, I noticed that my wedding rings were gone.  I cannot describe how surreal that moment was or how quickly the panic set in.  We searched for an hour before they finally convinced me to turn in for the night.  I lay in my hotel bed, unable to sleep, feeling absolutely naked without the ring that my husband had given me when he proposed.  That ring stood for so much.  He worked so hard, handpicked every stone, designed the setting, not like at Jared where you pick a pre-fabricated design, he drew it on paper and had someone make it.  That ring symbolized eight years of love and friendship, five years of marriage , two children, hard times and amazing happiness.  I couldn’t just lay there while it drifted in the ocean, so at 3:30 in the morning, I headed back out and spent the next several hours combing the beach with a flashlight (two days later my neck still hurts from looking down).  I finally called my husband to share the terrible news at 6:45.  Not only was he sweet to me and sad for me, he immediately took action.  He sent out a text to everyone he knew asking for a metal detector.  By 8:30 he had gotten into contact with someone who was going to meet us at the beach.  I was fairly exhausted from both the festivities and several hours of searching the night before but perked at the possibility of a happy ending.  I met Stan and my husband around 9:30 and Stan immediately set to work.  He was methodical and friendly.  He gave me hope.  I wasn’t able to pinpoint exactly where I was, I mean the beach is the beach right? Especially at 2 am.  Still, Stan was optimistic.  By 10:30 though, we were all feeling a little discouraged.  I had to go check out of the hotel and as I was heading away from the water, I noticed my friend’s leftover drink from the night before. I flagged Stan down to show him that this was where we went in.  I left the beach feeling terrible, so sure that ever finding my ring again was a lost cause.  What would I wear at our vow renewal?  I didn’t have a ring for my husband to place on my finger.  How would we ever replace the ring that my husband had put so much effort and love into making? I could barely keep from crying.  Twenty minutes later, while packing the last few things in my bag, I got a message from my husband. It was a photo of my rings! Stan had found them… both! I couldn’t believe my luck. I felt like a weight had been lifted (even though my neck still hurt).  I raced back to the beach and cried happy tears when my husband placed my ring on my finger all over again.  It was wonderful.  I hugged Stan.  I couldn’t be more thankful for his hard work and tireless effort to help a total stranger.  His focus and compassion have given me a happy ending against truly unbelievable odds.  Thank you Stan Flack!