A Texas man is reunited with the class ring he lost 56 years ago : NPR

Al distefano with the ring he received during his diploma from Fordham University in 1969. The ring was found by David Orlowski using a metal detector a few kilometers from the place where distefano says he lost it.

Al distefano

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Al distefano

It was May 1969 when Al Distefano stood on a long Island quay, New York, looking at the sunset.

“I leaned over the balustrade,” said Distefano, “and the ring just slipped from my finger, and I watched it descend into the dark. And I said:” Well, let’s go. I’m never going to recover this. “”

This ring was settled with a red garnet and engraved with the seal of Fordham University – from which Distefano has just finished its studies – as well as its name and the year.

A more in -depth examination of the class ring of the Fordham University of Al Distefano.

Al distefano

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Al distefano

He rested underwater for more than five decades until the beginning of the summer, when an electrician named David Orlowski took his metal detector to Cedar Beach at Mount Sinai, New York.

“I was roughly on my knees at low tide and I was very strong on the metal detector,” said Orlowski. “I dug several times, quite deep, and I finally pulled it. And I said to myself:” Wow, look at this thing! “Not realizing what it was.”

Back home, Orlowski sat with the ring for a few days. He planned to sell it – made of Palladium, it is worth the value of a few thousand dollars on scrap.

But something about this did not go well.

“I said to my wife,” What should I do with that? “” He said. “And she says:” Well, if you lose your ring, you would like, right? “”

What do you know? Question answered there. “”

Based on the engravings of the ring, he searched online and found Karen Manning, a graduate of Fordham the same year.

“He said:” I found a ring belonging to someone in your class “,” said Manning. “So I published a message on our Facebook page and asked if someone was in contact with Al Distefano.”

Now 77 years old and more than 1,600 miles in Arlington, Texas, distefano calls a “miracle” discovery. He asked his factor to film when his ring had returned.

“Fifty-six. Can you imagine that?” Distefano says in the video. “And look at it! To be in the water for so long …”

“It looks like it’s quite good shape!” The factor says.

“It still doesn’t match,” adds Distano, laughing.

For Manning, who helped connect points, the real story does not concern the ring.

“For me, the most important thing was that someone took a lot of joy in making this precious object that had a lot of memories attached to it,” she said. “You don’t see many things that happen these days.”

David Orlowski does not expect a reward – he just hopes that the stick gesture.

“I hope it’s contagious and people do the right thing,” he said.