Michigan man's lost class ring turns up in North Carolina 25 years later

Sept. 28 (UPI) -- A Michigan man whose class ring was lost about 25 years ago finally has it back after it ended up in the possession of a woman hundreds of miles away.

John Leath said his Berrien Springs High School class of 1984 ring had been given to his aunt for safekeeping and the family lost track of it when his aunt developed health issues about 25 years ago.

Leath said he hadn't expected the ring to turn up, but earlier this year North Carolina woman Margaret Langley bought some jewelry from a friend and noticed a ring among the collection had a name engraved inside.

Langley posted photos of the ring to a Berrien Springs group on Facebook, and soon Leath received a text message from a friend asking if he was the ring's owner.

Leath reached out to Langely, and soon she was mailing the ring back to him. The ring's cross-country journey remains a mystery, but Leath said he was overjoyed to get it back.

"It was almost like the very first day I got it, you know," Leath told WNDU-TV. "Everybody's so proud when they first get their class ring because it's an identity thing."