Wedding ring lost in snow decades ago returning to Texas woman for Valentine’s Day
A Texas woman who lost her wedding ring nearly 50 years ago will get to slip it on once again for Valentine’s Day.
A bit of luck and a historical society played a big part in the unlikely reunion.
Karen Berk Autenrieth lost her ring in a pile of snow outside her grandparents’ home in 1973, according to the Ridge Historical Society in Chicago.
“It was very cold and the snow plows had plowed the snow up onto the curbs,” she told the Chicago Tribune. “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.”
After failing to find the ring even after the snow melted, Autenrieth moved on, the newspaper reported.
Ironically, another lost wedding ring decades later would help Autenrieth be reunited with her long-lost jewelry.
A man recently posted on Facebook about losing his wedding ring in the snow, which prompted a woman to share about a ring she discovered several years earlier gardening at her home, according to the Ridge Historical Society. Though the ring was inscribed with initials and a date — R.A. to K.B. 4-16-66 — she couldn’t find the owner.
When the historical society learned about the ring, its members started digging through building records, newspaper archives and genealogy websites. Their research led them to Autenrieth, a granddaughter to the previous owner of the home where the ring was found whose maiden name initials matched the ring’s inscription.
“It’s a beautiful ring — heavy gold, and in surprisingly good condition for being in the dirt for 50 years — a little scratched up, but not bad at all,” Carol Flynn, a researcher at the historical society, posted on Facebook.
Soon, Bob Autenrieth will once again put the ring on Karen’s finger in front of family — this time during a gathering at their San Antonio home on Valentine’s Day, according to San Antonio Report. She plans to wear it again in April for their 55th anniversary.
“A ring is a commitment — it’s a circle,” Bob Autenrieth told San Antonio Report. “A circle is forever.”
This story was originally published February 10, 2021 at 5:35 PM.