Kelowna man's wedding ring lost for 17 years returned days before milestone anniversary

A Kelowna, B.C., man says he never expected to see his wedding band again after losing it in the Penticton Channel nearly two decades ago.

Last month, Penticton RCMP released a statement in which they said they were searching for a couple named Stephanie and Noel after a local resident found the ring while swimming in the channel and turned it in to police.

"My father-in-law reached out to me. He had seen an article on another news site and sent it my way saying, 'Is this yours?'" Noel Nissen told CBC News.

"I thought, 'Yeah, that's totally ours,' but that ring was lost so long ago. I was just in complete shock."

Noel said he lost the ring 17 years ago, during a summer trip with their friends only a few years after they were married.

"We had gone floating down the channel with some friends of ours and ... we were on our way to the car when I realized my ring was gone," he said.

Noel said he panicked, but there was nothing much he could do.

"You can't really do anything about it. We weren't necessarily going to go and search through the channel, so we thought, 'alright, well it is what it is, and it's gone.'"

He ended up replacing it with another one at a fraction of the cost.

"I ended up buying another ring which was $50 ... and that ring lasted 17 years."

He said the lost piece of jewelry came back in nearly perfect condition and just in time for their 20th wedding anniversary.

"You wouldn't believe how good of a shape it's in after 17 years in the channel. I would have thought for sure that it would have been worn down from years of water and sand going over it."

To celebrate their milestone anniversary, Noel said they are going on a family trip this spring and possibly a romantic getaway for two next year.

"We don't have the kids around as much ... so this is a new chapter and this [ring] celebrates that for us. In sickness and in health, for better and worse."

He said they would like to thank the swimmer who found the ring and turned it in to police.

"The person who turned the ring in did so anonymously. We would have loved to give them a proper thank you."

The Penticton RCMP say they're happy at the role it and the community were able to play in the ring's return.

"Happy 20th!!" they wrote in a statement.