Builder reunites St Neots woman with her grandmother’s lost wedding ring

Builder Matt McGoffey, discovered the wedding ring, for Heather Watts, in her garden, in St Neots, (Image: Archant)

Matthew McGuffey, 44, was working on the foundations of a new extension for Heather Watts, in Admirals Way, Eaton Socon, last Wednesday (November 18), when he discovered the 22 carat gold wedding band.

The ring had once belonged to Mrs Watts grandmother, Amy Watson, who died in the 1970s, and passed the ring down through the family to her. Mrs Watson was married in 1915.

Mrs Watts, 63, a former payroll clerk at St Neots Packaging, lost the ring almost five years ago while out in the garden and said she “couldn’t believe it” when Mr McGuffey pulled it out of the dirt.

She said: “That day I lost the ring I was in the garden and had just returned from shopping. I was devastated when I realised because things like that are very precious.

“My grandmother was the only grandparent I had, three of my grandparents died before I was born so she was the only one I knew.

“Matthew was just digging out down to the foundations when he found it and came and asked me if I’d lost anything. I couldn’t believe it, I was just so happy.”

Mr McGuffey, of firm DIY Rescue, said he had found some fossils when digging before but nothing with as much sentimental value as the ring.

He said: “We had just dumped a load of earth back into a truck and something shiny caught my eye, and it turned out to be a ring. I asked Mrs Watts if she had ever lost anything and when I pulled it out of my pocket a tear came to her eye, she was really pleased.”

The truck load of dirt was about to be taken away to landfill and, had he not spotted it, Mr McGuffey said the ring would probably have been lost forever.

Mrs Watts said she plans to hand the ring down to one of her nieces.