A Florida man has asked for the public’s help to find the owner of a necklace filled with ashes that he found on the beach on Memorial day.
“I was neck deep in the water at Siesta Key last night and found someone’s mother’s ashes on a necklace. Share this and help me find the owner!!” Shawn Rauch wrote on Facebook on May 27, accompanied by a photo of the silver necklace with a ball charm that has the word “Mom” etched on to it.
After Rauch made his post, many social media users quickly linked the necklace to one that had been missing since January.
A South Philadelphia woman posted to Facebook on Jan. 2 that her bag was stolen while she attended a parade to celebrate the New Year. Inside the bag was her necklace with her mother’s ashes.
“I had it on all day so I sat it down not thinking anything because all my friends were standing there,” McCollum said.
“It me took a few minutes like I didn’t have it on my neck and I’m like, ‘Oh my God my necklace is in there.’ So I started freaking out,” she said.
She said her grandmother had given her the necklace to put her mother’s ashes in, who had passed away two years ago.
“I’ve worn it every day since I’ve gotten it. The one day I take it off to be safe this happens,” she said. “That’s all I had. Pretty much all I had. The closest thing I have left to my mom.”
In her Facebook post she wrote: “My bag was stolen down 2st last night in south philly all I want is my necklace with my moms ashes I know this is a long shot but if somebody comes across it please just give me my necklace back ... it was in a purple jansport school bag on 3rd st in between wolf and Jackson.”
The post was accompanied by a photo of the necklace she lost, which has a similar shape and design to the one found by Rauch.
Many social media users have alerted McCollum about Rauch’s post, hoping that the necklace found was the one lost five months ago.
Nick Reed said his sister had found the camera and he helped her track down the owners by posting photos of the camera and the wedding photo on his social media account.
The owners, newly-wed couple Heather and Kole Powell, were ecstatic when they received a call from their photographer that the camera, which had been lost for two months, had been found. Reed had tagged the professional photographer, who took the photos, on his post.
“I just was so shocked,” Heather said. “I ran over to my husband and said, ‘Oh my gosh, someone found our camera.’”
The couple contacted Reed and he sent the camera and memory card back to the Powells. He had managed to salvage all 500 photos on the camera, including about 200 from the couple’s wedding and other photos before and after the event.
“We tried to convince him to let us pay the shipping and he wouldn’t,” Heather said.
“We told [Nick and Maria] that if we make it out to California again we’re going to buy them dinner and meet them to thank them.”
“Both my husband and I are just blown away by their kindness. There aren’t enough words.”
