Good NewsNYC parks worker digs through garbage to find woman’s lost wedding ring
Early last Monday morning, Danielle Hatherley Carroll woke up to realize her wedding ring was gone.
The Australian artist quickly determined that it must have slipped off her hand after teaching an outdoor art class — and subsequent use of "slippery hand cleaner" — in New York City's Battery Park.
"It was really, really busy and we were wiping our hands frequently and throwing rags and towels into a large clear trash bag that one of my students had brought along," Carroll, who lives in the East Village with her husband, Steve, told Good Morning America. "Normally I'd be so conscious but it was so busy."
At just 5 a.m., she returned to the garbage can where she had dumped rags the day before, but it was too late. It had been emptied.
Carroll and her husband then spotted a parked Parks Department garbage truck nearby. No one was inside, so she left a note on the windshield:
"Hello, I believe my wedding ring is in the truck," it began.
See her note here.
Parks Department worker Gary Gaddist found the note and called Carroll.
"I found this note and it was great, just so honest," the 42-year-old Brooklyn dad told the New York Daily News. "So I called and she explained everything, about how she lost the ring, and how she couldn't sleep after realizing it was gone."
"He [Gaddist] said that he saw the note and asked questions about where we left the trash and what exactly we were looking for," said Carroll. "When I told him…it seemed like it was going to be a monstrous task and he didn't think he'd be able to find it. I had already pulled out our insurance policy to file a claim and start looking for another ring."
Gaddist drove to Randall's Island where he faced hundreds of black plastic bags filled with thousands of pounds of garbage. Fortunately, it didn't take long to find the clear plastic bag filled with painting rags. Within an hour, he found the ring.
"I was ecstatic, I started to cry," Carroll said. "I hopped in a cab and raced down to meet him."
Carroll thanked Gaddist with a hug and a $100 reward.
"She sounded like a nice person, and I could tell she and her husband love each other," Gaddist told the New York Daily News. "I'm glad I could help."
Carroll plans to purchase a dollar-store ring to wear during her art classes.
