The Story of a Lost Alliance Found in Burn Pile and Restored in Bloomington | Local News

“He remembered removing his gloves near the burn pile, while answering a call,” McCourt Springman said. “We both got out and crawled on all fours, raking the yard.”

They bought a strong magnet and borrowed a friend’s metal detector, without success.

“This ring had extremely important meaning,” she said. “We were (both) widowed and neither of us ever thought we would remarry. This ring was a circle of our lives and our ability to love again. We were both so sad, but Rob was determined. He dug in the burning ashes, determined that God would reveal the miracle of love.

The inside of the ring is engraved with “My Golden Forever,” a phrase Robert Springman coined for his wife.

McCourt Springman posted on Facebook that the ring had been lost and inundated with offers of help, including a couple who do metal detecting as a hobby. They visited the Springmans and looked for a windy, rainy Saturday with no luck. They came back on Sunday and this time they found him, buried in the ashes in the burn pile. It was almost unrecognizable but the inscription was still legible.

The Springmans contacted Bremer Jewelry in Bloomington, the jeweler where they purchased the ring.

“We have a silversmith on site here and he thought he could restore it,” manager David Haynes said, referring to Decatur native Eric Wetherholt. “He went to work on it that day, and within hours it was almost like new. We were able to regain it and it was a miraculous thing.

Alliance crashes aren’t that unusual, Haynes said. The store has already seen rings that were in fires and one that was accidentally dropped into the trash while running. Wetherholt is an expert at his craft, said Haynes, and the store was originally a repair and restoration service.

“Bremer’s jewelry team, including the company, had decided they were going to do everything they could to restore the ring,” said McCourt Springman. “This ring could not be redeemed. Rob wore it burnt and was just happy to have it, but this lovely jewelry family worked everything to make it happen. The whole team was there to give us the restored ring free of charge. What a beautiful Thanksgiving day wrapped in a Christmas miracle.