A returned ring

When you've lost so much, sometimes the little things can lift the spirits.

Such was the case for Robert De Vincenzi, a victim of Superstorm Sandy, and a Cape Girardeau couple whose paths crossed in an unusual way.

Newlyweds Randy and Linda Wilkinson, from Cape Girardeau, were taking a beach stroll in the Bahamas on their honeymoon in November when they found a ring encrusted in coral. They took the ring to Zickfield's Jewelry store in Cape Girardeau and, after having the crust removed, discovered it belonged to De Vincenzi. It was his class ring from Wagner College, Class of 1976.

The Wilkinsons went the extra mile to find the ring's owner. De Vincenzi lost the class ring on a trip with friends in 1977.

"There was no way to find it and honestly, I'd never gotten over it. It was always such a loss for me," he said.

De Vincenzi's home near Staten Island Beach was damaged by superstorm Sandy in October. It had more than 12 feet of water in it; it still was standing but was uninhabitable.

The discovery of the ring was a bright spot in an otherwise gloomy time for De Vincenzi. It was a touching story, and one that wouldn't have been possible without the Wilkinsons going above and beyond the norm to do a very nice thing for a stranger.