Paul Humphreys, Author at The Ring Finders

Found! 111-Year-Old Heirloom Ring Lost in Snow – Kenosha, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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On December 8th, I was driving home to Waukesha, Wisconsin, from a successful ring search in McHenry, Illinois when my cellphone rang. The call was from Kenosha, Wisconsin, resident, Cheyene Hoppe. Cheyene and friends were enjoying a visit outside a downtown building two nights previous. That’s when a family heirloom ring went missing in the snow. The gold wedding ring was inscribed with the initials of Cheyene’s great grandfather along with the date of his wedding in 1914. He was married in Lithuania and later immigrated to the United States. Cheyene lovingly wore the ring in his memory. Now it was gone. She was heartbroken.

In the European way, Cheyene uses her hands a lot as she talks. But a flip of her hand resulted in the heirloom piece coming off. She had the sense that the ring ejected from her hand in an upward motion. But there was snow all around, including thick bushes, steps and landscaping. The ring could be anywhere.

Using my XP Deus II metal detector and hand probe, I carefully sifted through the snow on both sides of the walkway, probing in and around the snow-laden juniper bushes. The ring was nowhere to be found. Only three search locations remained, two planter boxes and a larger, 5’ tall box with several inches of snow covering them. The box was behind Cheyene at the time her ring came off. It had a sheet-metal top, which made using a metal detector out of the question. Instead, I used a small hand-held probe which allowed closer contact with the metal. Moving through the snow a few inches at a time, I cleared nearly two thirds of it from the box when a distinct beep noise announced the presence of a target. To everyone’s surprise, it was Cheyene’s heirloom ring! It was sitting in the snow on top of the box behind where she had been standing two nights before.

The smile on Cheyene’s face certainly tells the rest of the story! And I am so thrilled that the ring’s amazing 111-year-old story continues.

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Found Lost Wedding Ring in Snow! – McHenry, Illinois.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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Austin Gebert, was installing Christmas decorations in the front lawn of his McHenry, Illinois home when he lost his gold wedding ring. Nearly a foot of snow covered the ground. At one point, as Austin flipped snow off his cold bare hand, he felt the ring fly off. He told me on the phone, “It left my hand like a bullet.” The ring just vanished into the whiteness.

Austin reached out to me by phone on Sunday evening, December 7th. I arranged the hour-long drive the next morning and was greeted by Gabriela, Austin’s wife. She gave me a tour of the suspected lawn area. I noted several metallic Christmas decorations in the vicinity. These needed to be removed so as not to interfere with a metal-detection search.

An initial search failed to turn up Austin’s ring. I moved to a larger snow pile alongside the Gebert’s driveway where it had been shoveled. About 14 inches into the pile, I heard a faint signal in my headset. My trusty pin-pointer helped locate the target. Reaching in with my bare fingers I felt an unmistakable ring-like object and pulled it up and out into the light of day. Sure enough, it was Austin’s ring!

Since Austin was at work, I presented the ring to Gabriela whose face lit up like Christmas lights. Her smile tells the rest of the story.

Thank you, Austin, for the privilege of searching for and finding your missing wedding ring!

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Found wedding ring lost in snow! – Glendale, Wisconsin.

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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A late November snowstorm gave Glendale, Wisconsin resident, Bob Goding, the opportunity to enjoy quality time with his grandchildren. The snow was just the right consistency for building a snowman. But in the process, Bob’s gold wedding ring went missing, most likely when he shook snow out of his glove. He contacted me a couple days later and we arranged to conduct a metal-detecting search for his ring on December 2nd.

On arrival, all that remained of poor Mr. Snowman, was a scattering of lumps. Bob and his wife had discretely dissected him (after the grandchildren had gone home), this in case the ring had become encased inside the jolly figure. Sadly, Bob’s ring remained at large. And Mr. Snowman’s lumpy remains only added insult to injury.

I embarked on a grid search in the front lawn where the snowman had been created. Boot prints of all sizes bore evidence happier times. As I expanded the search area, a signal in my headset invited attention. The conductivity numbers were in the range of a man’s gold ring. Indeed, the target turned out to be Bob’s missing, but now found, wedding ring! And the smile on Bob’s face tells the rest of the story.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring in the snow, grass, leaves, sand, underwater, or elsewhere, chances are it’s still there. Don’t let its story end. Call today! We’d love to add your smile to our growing list of happy clients.

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Lost Claddagh Wedding Ring Found! – Juneau, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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I received a text message from Elmhurst, Illinois resident, Jim Weppner, asking if I might help to locate his gold Claddagh wedding ring.

The traditional Irish ring was a gift from Cathy, Jim’s wife of nearly 60 years. He received it on the occasion of their 25th anniversary while visiting in Claddagh, Ireland.

According to Wikipedia, Claddagh rings typically have “three primary features: a heart to represent love, a crown to represent loyalty, and two clasped hands which symbolize friendship.” They were first produced in Claddagh in the 17th century.

As our communications progressed, I quickly got a sense of just how special was Jim’s ring. I received a photo of Jim with the love of his life, Cathy, on their happy wedding day in 1964. Sadly, Cathy passed away from A.L.S. a little over a year ago. Clearly, it was more than a ring.

Over a week had passed since the ring went missing. Jim had lost some weight resulting in his ring fitting loosely. He had been cleaning up fallen branches from the lawn behind his lakefront home near Juneau, Wisconsin when it was lost. Had the ring slipped off then?

Jim’s story, together with the deep sadness in his voice, fueled my determination to do all I could to find his precious love token. I offered up a prayer for wisdom and drove up to Juneau the following day. Jim’s sister-in-law, Geri and her husband met me. After surveying the property, I began searching in locations where Jim had been working. A boat dock had since been pulled ashore in anticipation of the winter freeze up. Had the ring been spotted by one of the workers and pocketed, I wondered. The thought was troubling.

A little over an hour into the search, I was scanning the grass underneath the aluminum dock when a signal caught my attention. Crawling beneath, I pinpointed the target and carefully parted the blades of grass. That’s when I caught sight of a gold rim—Jim’s Claddagh wedding band!

I took some photos and texted them to Jim. A few moments later my phone rang. The emotions in that moment made it difficult for him to speak. As for me, I thanked my heavenly Father for the overwhelming comfort extended to Jim through the successful recovery of his priceless ring.

I left the ring with Geri for safekeeping. A few days later Jim sent me a photo with the ring back on his hand.

At time of writing, Jim and I have not yet met in person. But we hope to connect one day soon. And when we do, I’ll be sure to add his smile to this, his heartwarming story.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, even long ago, don’t let its story end. Contact me. Who knows, we might be able to add another smile to my list of over 138 happy clients who thought their rings were lost forever.

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Lost Wedding Ring Found! – Franksville, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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A memorable bird hunt with his father and Dutton, a gorgeous Golden Retriever, ended on a sad note when Franksville, Wisconsin resident, Joe Rampulla lost his wedding ring.

It happened later in the day while removing burs that had become entangled in Dutton’s thick coat. As he flicked the burs from his hand the yellow-gold and tantalum wedding band flew off, vanishing somewhere behind his parent’s home. Despite searching for hours and even using a metal detector, the ring could not be found.

Joe located me on theringfinders.com directory of metal detecting specialists. I made arrangements to meet him the following day.

Spreading junipers, garden foliage and landscape stones in the area made the search challenging. Additionally, my detector came alive with signals and with spurious electromagnetic interference. Buried electrical wiring and an invisible dog fence close by were the cause.

After changing frequencies and making other adjustments on my detector, the ‘noise’ settled down in my headset. I carefully probed the bushes and flowers using a pin-pointing instrument, but Joe’s ring was nowhere in the area. It was when I expanded the search location that I heard a promising signal further away in the lawn. Parting the blades of grass revealed an unmistakable rim of gold. And the smile on Joe’s face tells the rest of the story!

Joe, I’m so glad we were able to get your ring back on your hand!

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Lost Wedding Ring Found – Sand Volleyball – Wind Lake, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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A game of sand volleyball in the rain resulted in the loss of a platinum wedding ring. It happened on Sunday, September 21 when Sussex, Wisconsin resident, Mike Malzahn, was playing with friends at Kelly’s Bleachers sports bar in Wind Lake, half way between Muskego and Waterford. It’s a popular gathering spot with just all the right amenities for a good time, including three sand volleyball courts.

Mike’s ring fit well. In 19 years of marriage to Sarah, he rarely took it off his hand. This added to the shock he experienced when, after he got home, he realized the ring was missing. He immediately thought back to the volleyball court at Kelly’s Bleachers. A computer software developer by trade, Mike went into problem-solving mode. He was surprised to discover The Ring Finder’s database of metal-detecting specialists. Who knew it was a thing?

I received a text message from Mike that same evening and we arranged to meet at Kelly’s Bleachers the next morning. After viewing the area, I began searching the court where he had played, using a systematic grid search. It was obvious by the presence of coins and other metallic bits the court had not been searched by anyone else. This was an encouraging sign. But after thoroughly searching the entire area and beyond, Mike’s ring was nowhere to be found. Had someone already spotted and picked it up? The thought was troubling.

In the interest of being thorough, I decided to search the entire area again, this time sweeping my detector coil in the opposite direction. This is known among detectorists as cross-hatching. It helps to ensure no targets have been missed. Other than one deeper coin, my secondary search failed to located the ring, that is until I was almost finished covering the area.

As I approached a corner boundary marker, I noted the large stainless-steel ring used for securing the straps in place. These sounded off as non-ferrous. I dismissed the signal at once. But on this final search, I became aware of a smaller non-ferrous signal just a few inches away and underneath the strap. Imagine my surprise when, with a quick search with my pin-pointer (a handheld probe), Mike’s platinum wedding band showed itself!

I covered the ring in its place and called out to Mike under the pretense of demonstrating the handheld probe. After showing it to him it I invited Mike to personally experience its vibration and audio signal on the large ferrous ring that secured the boundary straps. I then told Mike about another target just a few inches away beneath the strap. It didn’t take long for Mike to discover his wedding ring! And the smile on his face tells the rest of the story.

Just how Mike’s ring ended up in the sand beneath the boundary strap will forever remain a mystery. Perhaps it was pushed under the strap by someone’s foot. Or, maybe it landed there on its trajectory after leaving Mike’s hand. Regardless how the ring ended up where it did, the ring’s hiding place was no match for technology and perseverance.

Thanks, Mike, for the opportunity to search for and locate your missing wedding ring. It’s more than a ring! May you and Sarah enjoy many, many more years together as the story of your ring continues.

This search demonstrates the importance of paying attention to details. I could have dismissed a secondary search. But in Mike’s case, it paid off.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, on land or in water, recently or long ago, give me a call. I don’t find them all, but I do find most. And I’d love to add your smile to my growing list of over 135 very happy clients.

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Lost Sentimental Ring Found – Pond Search – Richfield, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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Long-time Richfield, Wisconsin resident, Kathryn Schowalter was enjoying a swim in her family’s country pond when a highly sentimental turquoise and silver ring went missing. Despite searching for a number of days, the ring evaded discovery.

Kathryn reached out to me by phone a few days later and we arranged an afternoon search on Thursday, September 18th. On arrival, I was greeted by Seamus and immediately fell in love with the larger-than-life and affectionate Irish Wolfhound. He was a constant shadow.

After Kathryn pointed out the areas where she had entered and exited the pond, I assembled my XP Deus 2 detector and prepared to search the pond’s bottom with scoop in hand. I fully expected to be there awhile; it was a large area.

Approaching the pond with Kathryn and Seamus at my side, I placed the detector’s coil into the water along the shore and made an initial test sweep. To my surprise I heard a distinct silver-tone just a few inches from the shore. Scooping out the target I shook out the sand and pebbles and then offered the scoop to Kathryn to retrieve whatever metallic object had created the signal. As her hand darted into the scoop, she exclaimed, “My ring!” And sure enough, the smile on Kathryn’s face tells the rest of the story.

It never ceases to amaze me how a missing ring can be found. It’s more than a ring. Just when you thought it was lost forever, technology, experience and kindness come along to give you hope. If you or someone you know has lost a ring, on land or in water, long ago or recent, give me a call. I don’t find them all, but I do find most. And I’d love to add your smile to my growing list of grateful clients.

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Wedding Ring Lost Playing Beach Volleyball! – Bradford Beach, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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It was an exceptionally warm and humid evening, July 23rd. Having recently moved to Milwaukee, Kevin and Sarah Nguyen were enjoying beach volleyball with friends at Bradford Beach Park on the shores of Lake Michigan. But while reaching for a low ball, Kevin felt his gold wedding ring fly off his hand. The ring vanished in the loose sand.

Despite their best search efforts and those of fellow ball players, the ring’s hiding place eluded everyone. Someone suggested renting or purchasing a metal detector. Unfortunately, it was getting late; the stores were closing. While looking on the internet, Sarah stumbled on Dan Roekle, a seasoned metal-detecting colleague in Madison, Wisconsin. Dan referred Sarah to me since I lived closer to Milwaukee. Subsequently, Dan alerted me to Nguyen’s situation.

I was contemplating heading to bed when my phone rang. It was Kevin. From experience I knew the Bradford Beach volleyball courts were searched regularly by detectorists in the area. Since time was of the essence, I arranged to meet on location that same night.

When I stepped out of my airconditioned car, my glasses immediately fogged up from the warm, 70-degree-plus relative humidity. The conditions reminded me of the year I spent living on the tropical island of Kalimantan in Indonesia. Gathering my equipment, I made my way to the volleyball area and soon spotted the beam of Kevin’s flashlight in the darkness.

Kevin showed me where he was when the ring left his hand. I could see evidence of digging in the sand where he and friends had been trying to find the ring. As it turned out the ring had flown farther than anyone thought.

Thankfully, it didn’t take long to locate Kevin’s ring, only a few minutes in fact. Its hiding place was no match for state-of-the-art metal detection equipment and 40-plus years’ experience. The smiles on Sarah and Kevin’s faces tell the rest of this happy story.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, even long ago, contact a member of The Ring Finders in your area. Don’t let its story end; it’s more than a ring! Who knows, we just might be able to put a smile on your face!

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50th Anniversary Ring Found! – Lake Butte des Morts, Oshkosh, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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Eight years ago, Oshkosh, Wisconsin residents Dick and Judy Berger, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. They marked the occasion by acquiring matching, white-gold wedding rings, paved with 5 diamonds, one for each decade together. But on July 16th, 2025, Dick’s ring slipped off his hand while swimming in Lake Butte des Morts, behind their picturesque lakefront home. He didn’t realize it was missing until he climbed out of the water.

Despite the search efforts of friends and family, the ring could not be found. That’s when the Berger’s daughter located me on The Ring Finder’s directory of metal-detecting specialists.

I received a call from Dick the following Monday and made arrangements to meet him on location that same afternoon. It was an hour and half drive from my home in Waukesha, Wisconsin.

Dick was keen to accompany me in the waist-deep water. He assisted by repositioning my specially-designed marker buoys as I searched. These served as vital reference points for an accurate grid search of the lake bottom.

The search was made even more challenging by the presence of aquatic plants. These wrapped themselves around the detector’s search coil, impeding my ability to sweep consistently. I had to stop often to remove the plants from my coil.

Almost immediately a non-ferrous (other than iron) signal invited further investigation. To my surprise, the target was another gentleman’s wedding ring, one made of rose gold. Clearly, it was not the ring we were searching for. Dick’s ring was white-gold. Someone else had recently lost their wedding ring just off the Berger’s boat dock. The ring’s owner remains a mystery. I left it with the Berger family in hopes they might locate the person who lost it.

About 45 minutes later, not far from a swimming raft anchored off shore, I heard another promising signal. The conductivity numbers on my XP Deus ll controller, along with the audible tone, made me believe the target had to be Dick’s ring. Indeed, Dick’s ring soon lay gleaming in my scoop! And the contented smiles on Dick and Judy’s faces tell the rest of the story.

Dick and Judy, may you enjoy many, many more years together there in your beautiful Oshkosh home!

If you or someone you know has lost a jewelry item in water or on land, even long ago, chances are it can still be found. Give me a call. I would love to add your smile to our book of smiles.

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Lost Tungsten Wedding Ring Found – Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin

  • from Menomonee Falls (Wisconsin, United States)
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Unbeknown to Fond du Lac, Wisconsin resident, Doug Krupp, his tungsten wedding ring was lost while enjoying a game of water football with friends at Elkhart Lake Fireman’s Park. Doug later discovered the loss and subsequently contacted me through The Ring Finder’s international directory of metal detecting specialists. I made the 72-mile journey from my home in Waukesha and arrived at the park late in the afternoon of what was a very hot, humid day. The beach was crowded with people cooling off in the pristine lake water.

Doug sent me a satellite image of the swimming area, marking the general area where he had been. A grid search was challenging. This was because of the many people enjoying the cool water in the hot afternoon. Children, as usual, were inquisitive about what I was doing. They gathered close around me and dove with their goggles to inspect my search coil with their little fingers, thus hampering my ability to sweep the lake bottom accurately. Finally, curiosity satisfied; the little ones eventually redirected their interests elsewhere and I was able to continue a straight course. Shoreline structures served as guides.

An assortment of signals announced the presence of the usual coins and pull tabs. Finally, about an hour and half into the search, the unmistakable conductivity values for tungsten invited further investigation. A few moments later, Doug’s wedding ring lay nestled amongst the sand and clay in my scoop.

I took a couple photos and texted them to Doug saying, “I’m thinking this is your ring.” He replied with an emphatic, “Yes!!!!!!!”

We later met up at a service station near Fond du Lac. Doug and his wife Amy were so thrilled to take possession of what they thought was possibly lost forever. The smiles on their faces tell the rest of the story.

If you or someone you know has lost a ring, don’t let its story end! Even if it was lost a long time ago, chances are the ring may yet be found. Contact a member of The Ring Finders near you.

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