Lost and found
When Paul and Joyce Werner celebrated their 45th wedding anniversary early this week, they had something that had been missing for 40 years—her wedding ring.
She had lost the ring 40 years ago and, as you might expect, was stunned with surprise when it turned up. “I just was speechless,” Mrs. Werner was quoted in an ABC News story as saying, adding: “I’m not really ever speechless.” The ring still fits and she was wearing it for their anniversary.
The ring turned up during a bathroom remodeling job in the house where the Werners lived in Greensburg, IN, when they were first married. The current owner of the house, Rita Hellmich, 63, said the ring popped out when one of the contractors took out the existing vanity. He gave it to Mrs. Hellmich, thinking it was hers. Noticing that the initials on the ring coincided with the initials of the original owners of the house, Mrs. Hellmich decided she would try to find them.
She knew the Werners were originally from the Batesville, IN, area. So, she obtained a Batesville phone directory and began calling all the Werners she could find. Eventually, she reached one of Paul Werner’s cousins, who notified Paul Werner. “When I came home, there was a message on my answering machine,” Mrs. Hellmich said. “It was Mr. Werner, and they were just ecstatic. He told me the story of the ring, about losing it 40 years ago and their anniversary was coming up.”
The Werners quickly hit the road to go retrieve the ring.
Mrs. Hellmich said she was married for 35 years before her husband died and she put his wedding band on a necklace. The necklace fell off one day and she thought the ring was lost for good. But she retraced her steps and found the ring. “I know how important that ring of mine was to find, and I knew it was probably important for the Werners to be reconnected with their ring, also.”
It was important to the Werners, and having the ring back made their 45th anniversary even more special.
Surely, you will agree that this is a story with a nice ring to it.
Harry Hix 