Boy, 10, Finds Diamond Wedding Ring in Costco Parking Lot, Surprises Owner

A young boy, who says he “has an eye for things that are shiny,” spotted a diamond wedding ring in a Costco parking lot during a recent Saturday morning shopping trip with his dad. His parents — and the ring’s owner — were moved by what happened next.

Ten-year-old Kal Blank told local St. Louis outlet KSDK that after finding a shiny object in the lot, he was immediately struck by how heavy it was. “I was like, ‘Why is this so heavy?’ I put it in my pocket, and my pocket was like — whoa — just hanging down,” Kal said.

He later showed his find to his mom, Dr. Kelli Blank.

“He drops this ring in my hand, and my hand about hits the floor,” she recalled, as she remembered thinking, “This is a beautiful ring, and someone is missing this terribly.”

Indeed, the owner of the ring, Mae Pratzel, was devastated when she discovered that the ring was no longer on her finger. She told KSDK that she had lost some weight after recently undergoing surgery, and her normally snug-fitting ring slipped off when she was returning her cart at the Costco in Manchester, Mo.

The ring’s center stone was the original diamond from her engagement ring — given to her by her husband, Alan Pratzel, more than 50 years ago — and had been reset several times over the decades.

“It was one of the most awful feelings,” Mae said of losing the ring. “We kept saying, ‘It’s a thing, it’s a ring.’ But it was more than that.”

Little did she know, the ring was about to make its way back to her in a very special way.

Keen to return the ring, Kal’s mother called the Costco store and learned that someone had reported a missing ring with a description matching the one her son had found. But before she and Kal brought the ring back to the store, the 10-year-old did something surprising — and incredibly touching.

He took some time to polish the ring and placed it in a special box that Kelli had brought back from a trip to Ireland. He then sat down and wrote a note to Mae.

“I kind of wanted to keep it ’cause it was pretty and shiny,” he wrote to her, per KSKD, before ending with, “I hope you relax now that you have your ring back.”

Mae later drove from her home in Springfield, Mo., to the Manchester store to be reunited with her ring.

She then called Kal and his parents to thank them for their kindness and, in another surprising turn, the conversation revealed some connections between the two families. One of Mae’s grandchildren attends school with Kal’s sister, Josephine. In addition, Kal’s father, Shane Blank, who works as an assistant U.S. attorney, had professional connections with Mae’s husband, Alan, a retired lawyer.

Mae and Alan then insisted on meeting Kal in person to thank him once again. When the couple arrived at the Blanks’ home, bearing gifts, Mae immediately approached Kal, put her arms on his shoulders and said, “You don’t know how special you are to me!”

She then told the boy;s parents, “He is an extremely special kid, and you guys have to be so proud.”

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Alan told KSDK that Kal’s thoughtful gesture toward his wife “just restores your faith in humanity.”

Kelli, who noted that her son “has been a finder of things since he was old enough to walk,” said Kal typically likes to keep the “treasures” he finds out in the world in a special collection that contains everything from coins and rocks to various trinkets.

But he was more than happy to make an exception for Mae, returning her ring just in time for a milestone occasion for the Pratzels: their 50th wedding anniversary in December.