‘It meant so much to me:’ Windermere man heartbroken after mother’s wedding ring goes missing

WINDERMERE, Fla. – An Orange County resident is hoping for a Christmas miracle. For the past six months, he’s been holding on to hope to find his mother’s wedding ring.

“It was gut-wrenching when I found out this scenario,” Steve Nichols said. “My mother and I were extremely close, especially in the last few years.”

Nichols is heartbroken after his beloved mother’s wedding ring got lost while on its way to Colorado.

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“In her last days, you know, she shared with us many, many stories. She shared with us that someday she was looking forward to reuniting with my dad,” Nichols said.

His mother, Ginny, wished to reunite with her dear Fred, her husband of more than 60 years.

“He bought the ring in 1949 and he would literally get $30 a week and he said it took him a long time to pay for that ring, but he was so proud of that ring,” Nichols said. “It meant so much to me, to her, and she says: ‘Please deliver this ring to my granddaughter, Brooke. "

Nichols said his mother also hoped for her wedding ring to be given to her first grandchild.

On June 13, Nichols sent the ring from a Windermere post office to Colorado, but two weeks later-- no signs of the package. After making phone calls and sending texts to the USPS, on July 31 a USPS employee in Denver located the package but the box with the ring was not inside.

“They did eventually find that box, but she called me and told me there was a gaping hole in that box and they think it got caught on a machine,” Nichols said. “I called and went over to the Windermere post office where I live and I told them about the story and they say that you know, there are certain situations sometimes where it just got caught on a machine and they have a cleaning crew come through at different times during the year and clean up and it could be in there, but I was like: ‘It was in a box. A 4-inch octagon box.’”

Nichols’ latest attempt to locate his mother’s ring was last week through a Facebook post that has now gone viral. When asked what he would say to the person who might know the whereabouts of the ring:

“If I’m talking to them personally, I would just say: ‘Listen, you know, I will pay you for the ring. I put a reward out there for that ring. If you took it, I don’t care, just return it. I’ll buy you another ring,’” he said. “My daughter said: ‘Dad, what can I get you for Christmas?’ And I said, ‘Find me that ring.’”