Need a heartwarming story today?

[frazzled]

An engraved wedding ring, lost in the snow in 1973, found by a lady in her garden in 2006, and returned, after a long search for the owner, to the couple this year. Details and pictures at link.

Column: She lost her wedding ring nearly 50 years ago in Chicago. On Valentine’s Day, thanks to some history buffs, her husband will slip it back on her finger.

Karen Autenrieth vividly remembers the day she lost her wedding ring.
“It was very cold and the snow plows had plowed the snow up onto the curbs,” she said. “I had parked my car in front of my grandmother’s house and I was climbing over mounds of snow, helping each kid get into the car. My hands were cold — I didn’t have mittens on — and my ring just flew into the snow.”

She dug around for a bit — her three kids, ages 2, 3 and 4, waiting in the car — but to no avail. She went back after the snow melted and searched some more, but no luck.
That was 1973. ... Now, 48 years and the invention of Facebook later, the ring and Autenrieth have been reunited, thanks to a combination of serendipity and two local historians with a flair for solving mysteries.

... The ring’s journey back to the Autenrieths began, funnily enough, with another lost wedding ring.

At the beginning of February, as the city was digging out from its first big snow dump of the year, a Chicago resident posted on Facebook that he lost his wedding ring in the snow and wondered if anyone had a hand-held metal detector. One of his Facebook friends commented that, speaking of wedding rings, she found one around eight years ago while gardening at her house near Artesian Avenue and 117th Street. The ring had initials and a date, but she never had any luck finding the owner.

Chicagoan Clare Duggan saw the comment string and tagged Ridge Historical Society, hoping the researchers there could help locate the owner of the ring found while gardening.

... (They eventually found ) Karen Berk Autenrieth, who, in 2006, got married 40 years ago. RA to K.B. 4-16-66. ... Flynn tracked down a Karen and Robert Autenrieth in San Antonio and reached out to Karen Autenrieth on Facebook Messenger.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/heidi-stevens/ct-heidi-stevens-long-lost-wedding-ring-home-for-valentines-day-0209-20210209-du4veozxbrer7m4dap6qznzl7u-story.html

[tblue37]

1. Sweet story.

[UpInArms]

2. Thank you

I needed that ...

Let there be love.