Everyday hero: Months after Joann lost her wedding ring, a Christmas angel found it
When Joann Johnson lost her beloved wedding ring, her heart shattered. But three months later, on Christmas Day, an Earth angel turned up on Facebook with the most amazing gift!
Tugging on a pair of jeans in the Walmart dressing room, 67-year-old Joann Johnson felt her breath snag. My wedding ring… it’s gone! she gasped. Since battling lung cancer and losing weight, Joann’s ring had been slipping off. Quickly, she got dressed and hunted down her husband, Kip, in the men’s department.
The Port Orchard, Washington, couple scoured the store but didn’t find the cherished ring. With a heavy heart, Joann let the Walmart staff know and went home feeling hopeless and numb.
“It’s okay, I can get you a new ring,” Kip soothed, as two weeks later, they celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary.
“No,” Joann choked. “I don’t want another ring. It wouldn’t have the same meaning.”
As weeks passed, Joann struggled to accept the fact that her ring was gone forever. Then on Christmas night, she was scrolling through posts on Facebook when a picture of an Instant Pot with the message
!! READ THIS!! stopped her. Joann had been thinking about buying an Instant Pot and had even looked at a few that fateful day in Walmart. Curious, she read on and her heart skipped a beat as the words
WEDDING RING leaped out at her.
Oh, my God! Could it be? she gasped, trembling.
That morning, 29-year-old Shiloah Avery had sputtered those same words when she opened the new Instant Pot she’d gotten as a gift and saw a ring sparkling on the bottom of the box. Gazing at the worn edges and slightly smudged diamond, Shiloah knew it was wellloved… and that someone must be frantic to find it.
Immediately, she posted on social media that she’d found the ring in an Instant Pot purchased from the Port Orchard Walmart. “It will take a miracle,” Shiloah’s family told her.
But a miracle was what Joann had been praying for too. This is the season of miracles, Joann reminded herself, after she saw the post and replied to Shiloah, explaining she’d lost her wedding ring in Walmart and had been looking at Instant Pots.
Shiloah’s heart soared. But wanting to be sure, she asked if Joann had a picture of her ring. She didn’t, but drew a sketch. “Holy cow!” Shiloah exclaimed to her family. “I found the owner of this ring!”
Learning they lived just five miles apart, Joann and Kip hopped in the car on Christmas Day and drove to Shiloah’s mom’s house, where the family was celebrating. As soon as they arrived, Shiloah and Joann rushed to each other, crying, laughing and hugging, as Shiloah’s mom recorded the scene to post on Facebook, which instantly went viral.
Today, a close friendship continues as Joann, whose cancer has thankfully remained in remission for the past two years, and Kip have become a special part of Shiloah’s family.
“This adventure has blessed me with two incredible and special people that love me and my babies as their own,” Shiloah shares.
Joann beams gazing at the ring twinkling on her hand. “Shiloah is special because she listened to her heart,” Joann says with a smile. “She is and will always be my Christmas angel!”