Latest news with #classring
Yahoo
a day ago
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Man, 77, Reunites with the Class Ring He Lost on a Beach Over 55 Years Ago: 'It's in Marvelous Condition'
The Fordham University graduate initially lost the ring while hanging out on a pier in Long Island, N.Y., in 1969 NEED TO KNOW A man was reunited with his Fordham University class ring after losing it over five decades ago Al DiStefano, 77, lost the ring in 1969 while hanging out on a beach in Long Island Long Island resident Dave Orlowski recently found the inscribed ring while scanning the local beach with his metal detector A man was recently reunited with his college class ring after losing it over five decades ago. Al DiStefano, 77, lost his Fordham class ring in the Long Island Sound while hanging out on a Cedar Beach pier in May 1969, per the New York Post. The then 21-year-old had paid $110 for the gold ring with a garnet stone and couldn't afford a replacement. 'It was a nice ring,' DiStefano told the Post. 'It was important to me. I probably should have spent a little more time looking for it.' Cut to over 55 years later, when Long Island, N.Y. resident Dave Orlowski was sweeping Cedar Beach with a metal detector. Orlowski told the Post he got what he called 'a good hit' on the detector, and began digging in sand in near waist-deep water. 'I was digging, digging, digging. When I pulled up the ring, I couldn't believe the size and condition,' Orlowski, 56, recalled. Orlowski, who has a collection of found gold and silver objects from the past 25 years, said he briefly considered keeping the item, estimating it could be worth around $2,000 due to the fact that it contained white gold palladium. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. However, the career electrician said his wife, Denise, ultimately persuaded him to find the ring's original owner. 'She told me it would be bad karma to keep the ring since we had the name of the person inscribed,' he told the Post, adding, 'She asked me if I'd want my ring back in that situation, and that answered my question.' Orlowski ultimately located a Fordham Class of 1969 Facebook group, and he reached out to the group's administrator, Karen Manning, who helped connect him with DiStefano. 'David made me feel good about people again for going out of his way to try to find the owner,' Manning told the Post. DiStefano, a retired oncologist who now lives in Texas, was shocked when he learned his ring had been found. 'Once in a blue moon, I'd think about the ring having a nice life at the bottom of the Sound,' he told the Post. The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now! 'He [Orlowski] mailed it to me, and I got it less than a week later — it's in marvelous condition. I'm wearing it now. I figured I ought to make up for lost time,' he added. DiStefano also said that he has thanked Orlowski profusely and plans to send him some gifts from Texas to show his appreciation. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
a day ago
- General
- Yahoo
Man, 77, Reunites with the Class Ring He Lost on a Beach Over 55 Years Ago: 'It's in Marvelous Condition'
NEED TO KNOW A man was reunited with his Fordham University class ring after losing it over five decades ago Al DiStefano, 77, lost the ring in 1969 while hanging out on a beach in Long Island Long Island resident Dave Orlowski recently found the inscribed ring while scanning the local beach with his metal detector A man was recently reunited with his college class ring after losing it over five decades ago. Al DiStefano, 77, lost his Fordham class ring in the Long Island Sound while hanging out on a Cedar Beach pier in May 1969, per the New York Post. The then 21-year-old had paid $110 for the gold ring with a garnet stone and couldn't afford a replacement. 'It was a nice ring,' DiStefano told the Post. 'It was important to me. I probably should have spent a little more time looking for it.' Cut to over 55 years later, when Long Island, N.Y. resident Dave Orlowski was sweeping Cedar Beach with a metal detector. Orlowski told the Post he got what he called 'a good hit' on the detector, and began digging in sand in near waist-deep water. 'I was digging, digging, digging. When I pulled up the ring, I couldn't believe the size and condition,' Orlowski, 56, recalled. Orlowski, who has a collection of found gold and silver objects from the past 25 years, said he briefly considered keeping the item, estimating it could be worth around $2,000 due to the fact that it contained white gold palladium. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. However, the career electrician said his wife, Denise, ultimately persuaded him to find the ring's original owner. 'She told me it would be bad karma to keep the ring since we had the name of the person inscribed,' he told the Post, adding, 'She asked me if I'd want my ring back in that situation, and that answered my question.' Orlowski ultimately located a Fordham Class of 1969 Facebook group, and he reached out to the group's administrator, Karen Manning, who helped connect him with DiStefano. 'David made me feel good about people again for going out of his way to try to find the owner,' Manning told the Post. DiStefano, a retired oncologist who now lives in Texas, was shocked when he learned his ring had been found. 'Once in a blue moon, I'd think about the ring having a nice life at the bottom of the Sound,' he told the Post. The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now! 'He [Orlowski] mailed it to me, and I got it less than a week later — it's in marvelous condition. I'm wearing it now. I figured I ought to make up for lost time,' he added. DiStefano also said that he has thanked Orlowski profusely and plans to send him some gifts from Texas to show his appreciation. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
06-07-2025
- Yahoo
Grandview Heights class ring lost by the sea returned before 50-year class reunion
Someone at Mary Melfi's church recently asked her why she was still wearing her class ring. "I said, 'Oh, you don't know the story?'" she recounted. Right as she graduated from Grandview Heights High School in 1975, Melfi exchanged class rings with her then-boyfriend and drove to visit his brother in Golden Beach, Maryland, that May. When they got there, the two went down to the beach to enjoy their vacation and celebrate being done with high school. Melfi, who was going by her maiden name then, Masse, said her boyfriend put her ring in his pocket and went for a swim. When he returned from the water, the ring was nowhere to be found. "He said, 'I put the ring in my pocket, and it's gone,'" Melfi said. "I just remember slugging him and saying, 'I just got that ring.'" At some point, she and her boyfriend broke up but decided to keep in touch. She later married Larry Melfi, a 1969 Grandview Heights graduate. As the years went by, Melfi completely forgot about the ring. That was until 49 years later, when she began receiving messages on Facebook claiming a man in Maryland had her ring. That man was Shaun Tippett, who had newly picked up metal detecting as a hobby. On Tippett's third time out on the beach with his detector, he found the ring buried a foot in the sand in May 2024. Instead of keeping the ring for himself as a souvenir or trying to sell his spoils, the amateur treasure hunter took to the internet and researched Grandview Heights. He found a yearbook for the central Ohio school's class of 1975 and located the only person whose name matched the initials engraved on the ring, MVM, for Mary Virginia Masse. "I had a couple instant messages, and I reached out to them. One of them was my brother. He said, 'Yeah, some guy in Maryland said he found your ring,'" Melfi said. All these years later, Melfi has the ring on her finger once again. Tippett mailed the ring to Melfi's former flame in central Ohio, who then sent it down to her in St. Augustine, Florida, where Melfi and her husband now live. "I'm glad she's happy. I'm glad she got her ring back. It's just a cool story. I enjoy telling it," Tippett said. "People ask me, 'What's the best thing you've found?' And that's what I always tell them." Now, Melfi is preparing to attend her 50th high school reunion in Grandview Heights in early September with a story to tell. "I am now the proud owner of my GHHS 1975 class ring that was lost when I was a senior in HS while visiting a beach in Maryland. A kind soul who was metal detecting found my ring," Melfi wrote in the Grandview Heights 60's Classmates Facebook group. "The beach sand took very good care of it . . . almost 50 years later! GO CATS!" She will also return to Ohio as the owner of both rings — as she never returned her boyfriend's ring all those years ago. "One time, I said, 'You know, sweetheart, you should send his ring back," Larry Melfi joked. His wife playfully interjected. "I said, 'Well, he may think it's over if I send it back.' It's always kind of a joke." This article was made possible by support from the Center for HumanKindness at The Columbus Foundation, which has partnered with The Columbus Dispatch to profile those making our community a better place. Help us inspire kindness by suggesting people, initiatives or organizations for Reporter Sophia Veneziano to profile. She can be reached at sveneziano@ Learn more at The Dispatch retains full editorial independence for all content. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Grandview Heights class ring returned before 50th class reunion
