Mum’s tears at losing engagement ring on visit to Alton Towers
LAUREN LEFT IT ON BENCH ... AND IT WAS GONE WHEN SHE WENT BACK
A MOTHER has issued a plea for help and is offering a reward to anyone who can find her treasured engagement ring after she lost it on a day out at Alton Towers.
Lauren Murphy and James Farrall got engaged in December 2017 after 35-year-old James hid the ring inside an advent calendar in a romantic festive gesture.
The couple visited the theme park last Friday with their two-year-old son, Lauren’s step-daughter and her friend, to enjoy a day out before the children returned to school in September.
The trip was supposed to be filled with happiness and laughter, but soon turned to one of panic for Lauren when she discovered her £600 engagement ring was missing.
The 30-year-old said: “We thought we’d take our son around Cbeebies Land [at the theme park] while we were there and let my step-daughter go off with her friend.
“There were quite a few queues so we thought we’d take a walk around the gardens.
“We went for a walk and then were on our way back out of the gardens when we stopped at a bench just by the entrance of the garden.
“I started to tie my hair up because it was annoying me. I took my ring off for what I thought would be two minutes just while I tied my hair up because it kept getting caught due to the design of the ring.
“I put the ring on the arm of the bench next to me. As I was tying my hair up my son wanted to be moved on and get moving so I started getting all our bits back together.
“With all the stress of trying to get everything together and calm him down we walked off and I completely forgot to put my ring back on.
“It was about half an hour later when I realised I didn’t have my ring so we went straight back to the bench where I left it but it had already gone by then.”
Frantic Lauren, from Cheshire, was now in tears and rushed to customer services to see if anything had been handed in but there was nothing.
Her details were taken but she has heard nothing back from the theme park. She has since contacted a number of jewellers and pawn brokers to alert them to her missing ring.
She has also shared details on Facebook, hoping someone will come forward and return the white gold ring. She said: “All the diamonds at the top are individual set diamonds. It’s called a princess ring.
“When you look at it from the side it’s got detail underneath the main part of the ring where it’s like a little crown. There’s also a little diamond. There’s a crown symbol in the inside band of the ring.
“I’ve not heard anything so I can only assume that somebody has picked it up.
“When I realised the ring wasn’t on my finger there was a sinking feeling in my stomach, I felt sick straight away. I just started crying straight away, I was devastated. I thought with it only being half an hour it would still be there but it was gone.
“The thought of somebody having my ring makes me feel sick.
“The ring means the world to me. It’s not a cheap ring and it took my partner a long time to save up for it. It’s a commitment between me and my partner.
“I’m hoping by making it public someone might get in touch or leave it somewhere for me. Just please consider how much that ring means to somebody.
“It’s not just a ring I can go and pick up the next day. It’s got so much sentimental value.
“I’m even willing to give some sort of reward or pay something to get it back, I’m that desperate.
“I want them to realise how special that is and really think can they really live with taking that off somebody just for the sake of trying to get a bit of cash from it.
“I’d like to think somebody can’t be that spiteful and mean.”
It’s not just a ring I can go and pick up the next day. It’s got so much sentimental value.
Lauren Murphy