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Diver finds lost ring and returns it to owner – nearly 40 years after it was lost

Published

11 years ago

on

Diver Brian Tovin swam deep into South Carolina’s Cooper River in search of fossils and relics. In 40 feet of murky water, fighting the current, something shiny caught his eye.

“Without even shining my light on it, it was clear that it has weight to it, and it was metal or gold,” Tovin said.

“And when I shined my light on it, I said, wow, this is the first time I’ve ever found jewelry underneath the water,” he said.

But it was more than just jewelry. It was a ring that had become the “stuff of legend” since the owner lost it nearly 40 years ago.

“I held onto it for the rest of the dive. I just didn’t want to lose it,” Tovin said.

Inscribed on the large, gold ring were the initials RLP and the date 1974. The ring also displayed the name of a nearby school: the College of Charleston. With those clues, Tovin’s journey to return the jewelry began.

Tovin first called the college’s alumni association. The college determined that only two people who graduated in 1974 had those initials, and one was female.

Now, Tovin knew who he was looking for: Robert LeVaughn Phillips.

After searching on social media, Tovin eventually connected with Robert’s son, Eric Phillips. Tovin quizzed him to make sure he had tracked down the rightful owner. Phillips e-mailed a copy of his father’s diploma, and Tovin was convinced he was in the right place.

Tovin soon learned that like so many other things in life, this very simple college ring — lost for so many years — had more meaning to it than many will ever understand.

“My dad was a storyteller, kind of a used-car salesman at times,” Eric Phillips said.

“He kind of has some of the same jokes, but he talked about the ring all the time because it came from his mother, and you know it’s just one of the stories that just epitomized a season of his life.”

Robert Phillips was boating on the Cooper River with his future wife, Nancy, when he lost the ring in 1974 — just two weeks after he got it.

“He was very upset and hated to tell his mom that he lost it,” Nancy Phillips said.

“Losing it in the river, we never thought we would never, ever, ever see it again.”

Growing up without his father in his life, Robert Phillips was determined to succeed on his own. He graduated from the College of Charleston with a degree in business administration.

The ring, a symbol of all he had accomplished, was his mother’s last gift to him before she passed away from pancreatic cancer.

Tovin hoped he could return the cherished ring to Phillips at his home, but Phillips — now fighting cancer — was not there. He was rushed into surgery at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston last weekend for brain surgery.

That setback didn’t stop a reunion 39 years in the making. A few days after Phillips’ operation, Tovin met Phillips in the hospital. With his family by his side, Phillips sat in a hospital chair. His voice was barely above a whisper, but it was full of life as a stranger returned a part of his life to him.

Down on one knee, Tovin opened up a ring box to reveal Phillips’s lost treasure.

“I was down there fighting strong currents and alligators trying to get you your ring back,” said Tovin, as Phillips smiled.

“And I’ve got it here, and I know this is going to look like I’m proposing to you, so please don’t tell my wife, OK,” he said, as the room erupted in laughter.

“Wow. That is awesome,” Phillips said.

Then, Phillips began to tell Tovin and everyone the story that his family has heard endlessly — the story of the lost ring.

“I was on the back of the boat. And I decided I needed a beer,” he said softly.

“I pulled the pop top and when I did, my finger got caught in the pop top, and it went with it,” he told Tovin.

“I guess I have to go have it sized now, don’t I,” he added with a grin.

“You’ve got a lot of years left. So, you’re going to be wearing that ring,” Tovin responded.

With his wife and two children watching this reunion of sorts, they all felt this ring would give their patriarch the comfort he needs right now.

“No matter how much time he has with us, we’ll always have that ring. And it will always signify a good season of our life and a good memory of our father, and the fact that he got to share in it before he left us,” Eric Phillips said.

In some ways, this decades-long loop of life has been closed, and a new story — one that the Phillips family will be telling for generations — has been written.

“Thank you Lord that I got it back,” Robert Phillips said.

“I had a nightmare the other night that I lost it again,” he said.

“No more beer cans,” he laughed.

Source: http://www.wptv.com

Photo: Tim Sheerman-Chase

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Book Review: Fire on Monroe Bravo by Fred Lockwood

Published

16 hours ago

on

July 26, 2024

By

the ship beneath the ice

Fire on Monroe Bravo is the latest book in the Jack Collier series by Fred Lockwood.  Our story begins with our lead characters, Jack and Sandro, owners of Marine Salvage & Investigation Company, arriving on the Monroe Bravo Oil & Gas Platform in the North Sea.  Having secured a contract for their vessel the MV Stavanger to act as support ship to the platform for TransGlobal Oil, our protagonists are on a celebratory visit.

However almost as soon as they arrive a series of explosions rock the platform, causing huge damage, loss of life and the very real danger of a massive human, ecological and financial disaster.

As the danger mounts for both our heroes and the surviving workers, Jack and Sandro will have to escape the inferno, all while trying to save the platform and the men still trapped unable to help themselves.

The disaster sets the scene for the unfolding story lines following the fate of the platform and our main characters, the police investigation into a suspected terrorist act and the actions of TransGlobal Oil as they attempt to navigate the pubic outcry and financial repercussions.

In his eighth book, Fire on Monroe Bravo, Fred Lockwood delivers an explosive thriller, with plenty of above and in-water drama, and our heroes fighting for survival, what more can you ask for?  

We thoroughly recommend this read and look forward to the next in the series. For more information about his book series, you can check out the reviews of his previous books here on Scubaverse.

  • Title: Fire On Monroe Bravo
  • Author: Fred Lockwood
  • ISBN: 979-8325324536

Available in a paperback version and for Kindle from Amazon and book stores.

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Alonissos: The complete diving destination (Part 1)

Published

5 days ago

on

July 22, 2024

By

In June we were incredibly fortunate to be invited to dive in Alonissos, a small Greek Island in the Sporades island chain located in the North Aegean Sea.  While I have long been a big fan of the Greek Islands as a great holiday destination, I had not had the opportunity to do any diving on previous visits and Mike and I were extremely excited to see what Alonissos had to offer both above and below the surface!

The Sporades are easily accessible via the airport in Skiathos (the first island in the chain), which is served by Jet2 flights from all major UK airports from May through October.  Numerous ferries and charter boats make island hopping from Skiathos Town a breeze.  After an hour boat ride, the picturesque port of Patitiri was a wonderful introduction to Alonissos, where we were met by our gracious hosts Kostas of Albedo Travel and Dias of Alonissos Triton Dive Center.  Mike and I were delighted to be staying at the Paradise Hotel, aptly named for its stunning views over the sea and great location for walking to the waterfront.

Alonissos is beautifully situated in the National Marine Park of Alonissos and the Northern Sporades, the largest marine protected area in Europe.  The surrounding seas offer fabulous marine life, including incredibly rare species such as the Mediterranean monk seal.  They boast deep walls covered in gorgonians and sponges, stunning topography with caverns, swimthroughs and pinnacles, and the first accessible ancient shipwreck from 500BC!

In locations where historical sites have been reported, the waters are largely restricted, but with collaboration between government, underwater archeologists and dive centres, incredible underwater museums are being created for a truly unique diving experience.  Alonissos is home to the first of these, the Ancient Shipwreck of Peristera Accessible Underwater Archeological Site.  The chance to dive into history (along with reports of healthy reef life and amazing underwater topography) meant Mike and I were keen to get in the water.

Our introduction to the diving around Alonissos was at the Agios Georgios Pinnacles, in the channel between Alonissos and Skopelos.  This fantastic site was named “The Chimney,’ and proved to have a huge amount to see.  We got to a decent depth here (over 25m), and marvelled at a colourful reef wall with a wonderful swim through whose rocky walls were absolutely covered with life.  As well as brilliant topography there was no shortage of macro life here.  We saw numerous nudibranchs, five different species in total.  The second dive at Mourtias reef nearby was a shallower dive along a nice wall with lots of crevices. Several moray eels and grouper called this site home.  We enjoyed looking in the crevices for lobster and smaller benthic life, such as cup corals and tunicates.

Our itinerary allowed us two dives a day with afternoons left to explore the island with our hire car and evenings to enjoy the famous Greek hospitality.  This proved to be a lovely mix of in-water and land based diversions.  

The next days diving to the Gorgonian Gardens and Triton’s Cave was to be even better!  These two stunning sites are nothing short of fabulous.  The Gorgonian Gardens was a deep wall near to the Agios Georgios islands.  The ever-present currents in this deep channel meant that the sea life was amazing … the namesake Gorgonian sea fans dotted the wall at a depth of 30 to 50 meters, getting ever larger the deeper we went.  Above 30m was by no means less beautiful, with sponges, corals, scorpionfish, moray eels and some rare and colourful nudibranchs.

The second shallower dive of the day was to Triton’s Cave or the Cavern of Skopelos, on the east side of that island. The spectacular rock formations had wild striations both above and below the water making a truly epic topography.  The cavern entrance was at 14m, and big enough for a buddy pair, winding up to 6m and passing two beautiful windows out into the blue.  Emerging from the cavern, the light at the shallower depths and the incredible rock formations made for a fantastic gentle swimming safety stop and we all surfaced by the boat with massive grins. 

Check out our next blog :Alonissos: The complete diving destination (Part 2)” to hear about our amazing dive on the 2500 year old Peristera Wreck!

Thanks to:

Alonissos Triton Dive Center https://bestdivingingreece.com/

Albedo Travel https://alonissosholidays.com/activities/

Paradise Hotel https://paradise-hotel.gr/

Alonissos Municipality https://alonissos.gr/en/

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