Stunned husband, 54, is reunited with wedding ring he lost while ‘splashing about’ in the sea off the Isle of Wight after it was found by an 11-year-old girl in ‘one in a million’ discovery
- Matt Eastley, 54, lost his wedding ring in the sea on August 6 on the Isle of Wight
- He asked Toni from Toni’s Tea Rooms to get in contact if the ring should turn up
- The next day Priya Sahu, 11, discovered the ring in the sand on the same beach
- Working with her mother Aswita, the pair reunited Mr Eastley and his lost ring
A wedding ring that was lost in the sea has been returned to its owner after a mother and daughter found it washed up on the Isle of Wight.
Communications worker Matt Eastley, 54, lost his gold wedding ring while visiting the Ventnor Beach on the Isle of Wight on August 6.
He had been holidaying on the island with his wife Lisa and daughter Alice when they had been hit by a big wave.
Communications worker Matt Eastley, 54, (pictured) lost his gold wedding ring while visiting the Ventnor Beach on the Isle of Wight on August 6
Mr Eastley (left) married his wife Lisa (right) 15 years ago and the ring slipped off his finger when he was hit by a big wave
The ring he received when he married Lisa 15 years ago had slipped off his finger when he was hit by the wave and he had not noticed.
His daughter’s glasses were also sent flying by the wave, but those had been found by the family.
Before leaving the Isle of Wight Mr Eastley, from Paddock Wood in Kent, asked the owner of a cafe on the beach if they could keep a lookout for his ring on the off chance that it turned up.
He said that he had asked the cafe owner, expecting never to see it again and had already made plans to replace the band.
11-year-old Priya Sahu, (pictured) who attends King Edward VI secondary school in Southampton, Hampshire, discovered the ring washed up on the shore
Before leaving the Isle of Wight Mr Eastley, from Paddock Wood in Kent, asked the owner of a cafe on the beach if they could keep a lookout for his ring on the off chance that it turned up
However, less than 24 hours later, 11-year-old Priya Sahu, who attends King Edward VI secondary school in Southampton, Hampshire, discovered the ring washed up on the shore.
Priya said: ‘I was looking under sand for sea shells and then I saw something shiny in the ground and I thought “ooh, what’s this?”
‘So I picked it up and said “mummy I’ve found a ring” and then she really wasn’t that interested at all, she said it was probably just a fake ring.’
Together with her mother, Priya worked to locate Mr Eastley in order to return his ring.
Priya’s mother, artist Aswita Sahu, from Southampton, said: ‘Priya said it would be magical if we could actually find this person.’
Pictured: Aswita, her husband Debendra and Priya standing with Matt Eastley after returning his ring
Priya and her mother returned the ring to Mr Eastley in Watts Park, Southampton, on Sunday
By contacting a series of friends, the mother and daughter got in touch with the cafe owner who then directed them on to Mr Eastley.
Toni from Toni’s Tea Rooms rang Mr Eastley to say: ‘You’re not going to believe it, but someone’s found a ring.’
Mr Eastley described the phone call as a ‘one in a million’ event.
Mrs Sahu rang Mr Eastley and asked him to measure his finger size to make sure that the ring belonged to him.
Mr Eastley had his fingers measured and sent pictures of the ring to Aswita, who then arranged a date for them to meet.
Priya and her mother returned the ring to Mr Eastley in Watts Park, Southampton, on Sunday.
He described the return of his ring as a ‘glass slipper in Cinderella’ moment and that the ring had been irreplaceable.
Mr Eastley said: ‘It’s been a bit of a grim 2020 but [the find has] certainly put a smile on my face.’