Nebraska Woman’s Class Ring Found on New Jersey Beach After Decades
BELMAR, N.J. — A decades-old mystery was solved when a Nebraska woman’s long-lost class ring was unearthed on a New Jersey beach, reuniting her family with a treasured memento thought lost forever. Andrew Ciffer, an avid metal detector enthusiast, discovered the ring buried in the sand while combing the shores of Belmar, a coastal town known for its scenic beaches along the Atlantic Ocean.
Inscribed with the initials “B.W.” and linked to Crete High School in Nebraska, the ring’s origins were a puzzle that spanned nearly 1,300 miles from the site of discovery. Ciffer reached out to the Crete Public Library for assistance, which in turn contacted the Crete Public Schools Foundation to help identify the owner. Their efforts revealed the ring belonged to Barbara Wielage, a member of the class of 1966.
Barbara’s sister, Sandi Wielage-Roche, expressed amazement at the ring’s journey and the young man’s determination to return it. “We still have no idea how the ring got there,” she told KLKN-TV. Wielage-Roche noted that Barbara had lived in Boston for a period decades ago, but the circumstances that brought the ring to a New Jersey beach remain unknown. “Of course it’s the ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ of it,” she said. “Number one, for this young man to take it upon himself to do this is monumental. So, yes, we do have the ring, and after all that time, it didn’t even suffer any damage.”
The story highlights the unexpected ways personal history can surface, bridging vast distances and generations. Metal detecting, a popular hobby along the nation’s coastlines, often yields artifacts that tell stories of the past. In this case, it restored a tangible connection between a family and a cherished symbol of achievement.
For more on metal detecting and its role in preserving history, visit the National Park Service’s guidelines. The return of the ring also underscores the power of community institutions like public libraries and school foundations in connecting people and preserving local heritage.
As the Wielage family enjoys the return of a piece of their history, the mystery of how the ring traveled across the country remains a captivating question, one that adds to the charm of this remarkable reunion.
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