Samaritan Sunday (August 11, 2013)

[If you should choose to adopt this prompt to contribute your own stories of folks who have gone out of their way to lend genealogy-related assistance to others, I would greatly appreciate a mention to Filiopietism Prism whenever you do so.  Thank you!  And please do use the same photograph below to illustrate the prompt.  ;-) ]

Just imagine the anguish Julia Postupack of Beaver Meadows, Pennsylvania went through when she realized she had lost the diamond engagement ring that James Filbert, her fiance, had given her.  Suddenly it was no longer on her finger and she had no idea when or where it had slipped off -- and she and James had been busy that Friday night.  They had gone to dinner in Hazleton, visited a friend, stopped at a business in Hazelton, rode around in the car, and walked icy sidewalks where Julia slipped and fell at one point.

Julia was really panicked because the ring from James was not just her engagement ring; it was a Filbert family heirloom made of platinum . . . and it was 125 years old!  

Julia and James retraced their steps.  They searched the car.  They tried to find the exact spot Julia slipped and fell and searched in snow piles using a borrowed metal detector.  They called the business and the restaurant hoping some Good Samaritan had found the ring and turned it in.  No luck!

Desperate, Julia placed an ad in the local newspaper hoping against hope, but by the following Tuesday there was still no luck.  On her way to work Julia was despondent and when she stopped at a convenience store she tearfully told the story to an employee there.  He listened and said, "There's this guy . . ."

Larry Kelly is quite a guy.  He is a Good Samaritan who is skilled at metal detecting and he likes to volunteer to help find lost items like wedding bands, class rings, etc.  Julia called Larry before the sun had even risen that cold January morning.  Larry made a vow to Julia and went to work and . . .  Well, Larry kept his vow and Julia got her ring and you can see the ring and Julia and Larry and learn where the ring was found here.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Photograph of the The Good Samaritan sculpture by Francois-Leon Sicard (1862 - 1934).  The sculpture is located in the Tuileries Gardens in Paris, France.  The photograph is by Marie-Lan Nguyen and has been placed in the public domain by her. See, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Good_Samaritan_Sicard_Tuileries.jpg

 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Copyright 2013, John D. Tew

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _