FL restaurant diner finds couple’s lost wedding ring, returns it on Christmas
By Joe Roetz
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LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, Florida (WSVN) — A wedding band was lost, then found at a Lauderdale-by-the-Sea restaurant, and thanks to the power of social media, the piece of jewelry made its way back to its owner in time for Christmas.
An inscription on the ring helped guide it home to Bob and Katy Mann this weekend.
“It says, ‘Love, Katy.’ K-A-T-Y,” said Katy.
The couple said they were eating at one of their favorite restaurants, Aruba Beach Cafe in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, a few days ago, when Bob dropped his wedding ring without even realizing it.
It’s at this point where Michelle Heiser entered the picture.
“I’m walking, and all of a sudden, I looked down, and I see a gold ring, and I said to my husband, I go, ‘That looks like someone’s wedding band,’” she said.
Heiser, who was at the restaurant with her husband, said she immediately knew what she had to do.
“All I thought to myself when I saw the ring was, ‘Oh, my God, what if it was my ring or his ring,’” she said. “I would want someone to find a way to get it back to me.”
Heiser posted a photo of the ring on social media with the caption, “Just found this man’s wedding ring in the street. It is inscribed. If you’re Katy and can tell me what else the ring says, message me, and I will get it back to you.”
“Within hours, someone that knows them, that lives in New Jersey, got back to me and private messaged, and he said, ‘I think I know who it is,” said Heiser.
That person in New Jersey called the Manns and asked whether or not the band was theirs.
“I asked [Bob] if he had lost a ring, and he said, no, he said, ‘Oh, wait a minute. I don’t have my ring on,’” said Katy. “He thought it was in the bathroom, and he couldn’t find it.”
The couple got in touch with Heiser and told her the rest of the inscription: the wedding date.
She delivered it on Christmas.
“It could have been run over or stepped on or stolen,” said Katy. “Anything could have happened, so we were just really lucky. “
It was the best Christmas present for the Manns, who have been married for 56 years.
“It was just great that they would follow through like that,” said Katy.
“I think they were more enthused than we were,” said Bob.
Now Heiser has plans for her husband’s wedding band.
“We also realized, we better inscribe his ring, because it’s not inscribed, and if we lost it, we’re in trouble,” she said.
Big trouble, but not for the Manns.
“A happy ending, a very happy ending,” said Katy.
It’s a good thing they got that ring back in time. The couple will celebrate their wedding anniversary on Wednesday.
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