WATCH: Christmas has come early for a Salt Spring Island woman who lost a priceless diamond ring thanks to an unlikely hero. That hero is a homeless Nanaimo man who did everything he could to find the ring since she accidentally dropped it with change in the hand of another homeless man.
Trudging through the snow Monday, Raymond Ahlstrom was feeling the spirit of the season like he hadn’t in years. The homeless Nanaimo man was about to give a priceless gift and make someone’s Christmas come early.
“Do you feel good today?” CHEK News asked him. “Yeah,” Ahlstrom said with tears in his eyes. “Yeah I do.”
The 52-year-old’s been on a mission ever since CHEK News interviewed him on Sunday.
“It struck a cord,” said Ahlstrom.
We told him how Trinda Gajek was looking everywhere for a young homeless man she had handed over all her change to in a Nanaimo parking lot on Wednesday night. While she was giving the man money, she ccidentally gave her diamond ring to him.
“I would so love it back,” Gajek said. “I would so love it back and wouldn’t it be fantastic if I got it back,” she said smiling.
Ahlstrom said he would try to help.
“I’ll put my energy into that one,” he said Sunday.
And did he ever. Ahlstrom knows a lot of people on the streets and with the description of the young man and the ring, he went to work. He enlisted the help of his friend Willy Curry and Curry’s truck to drive him to where he thought the man was. Curry says he handed the vehicle over right away on Monday night because it was Ray.
“If there’s anybody in the neighbourhood that needs anything, Ray’s right there like that,” said Curry. “No word of a lie.”
“You’re kidding me,” said Gajek after hearing the story of Ahlstrom’s efforts. “That’s incredible.”
After Ahlstrom found the ring, he arranged a meeting with Gajek.
“Thank you so much,” said Gajek hugging Ahlstrom. “That is awesome.”
“Here it is,” he said handing over the white gold ring covered in diamonds.
“That’s my ring. Wow,” said Gajek.
“Restored faith, hope all of that,” said Gajek while talking about how she feels after the experience. “I mean it’s incredible.”
Skye Ryan
