A RELIEVED man whose “heart sank” after losing his wedding ring will no longer be in the dog house after metal detectorists found his priceless possession.
Denis Strickland, 63, from Great Bentley, was clearing out his overgrown pond when his wedding ring flew off and sunk to the bottom amongst the silt.
After unsuccessfully trying for several hours to retrieve the sentimental treasure, he eventually, and somewhat desperately, issued a call for help on social media.
“I was pulling out some well-established bulrushes and the roots were clinging on for dear life below the waterline,” said Mr Strickland.
“As I pulled a nine-foot bulrush out from the silt, my hand slid and my ring flew through the air, almost in slow motion, and plopped into the pond.
“My heart sank as soon as I heard that ‘plop’ and I then attempted to sift through the smelly silt, but with no success.
“I then came up with the idea of contacting local metal detecting clubs with underwater equipment – I was overwhelmed by the positive response.”
After seeing his urgent appeal, the East Coast Searchers, Mick Pickering, Nicola Pickering, Bob Jemmett and Glen ‘Ginge’ Blake, offered up their services.
The metal detectoring group has been in operation for years and has raised thousands of pounds for charities such as St Helena Hospice by hosting fundraising ‘digs’ on farmland.
Following their arrival at Mr Strickland’s home, the eager metal detectorists wasted no time in diving into the huge pond with the hope of the retrieving the ring.
“After about an hour, hey presto, the wedding ring was found and I was so, so pleased,” said Mr Strickland, who married wife Emily at Colchester Castle in 2017.
Nicola, who says the group is always looking for landowners willing to host one of their charity digs, said it meant a lot to the team to be able to help in the way they did.
She added: “It was great fun and we thoroughly enjoyed being able to help someone out by finding something which we could then actually pass back to the owner.
“We usually just find old and historic stuff on our digs, so this was a pleasure.”
Any groups who would like the East Coast Searchers to potentially help them raise funding can call Glen Blake on 07727146383.
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