Lost & found- affirmations of goodness in many people

[shootingstar]

I lost a (fake) pearl dropping earring at work yesterday. Even checked across 2 building floors, washrooms..
It was turned into Security office! This is a building with over 1,000 employees plus public wandering about.

My faith in goodness of some people continues because:
*4 months ago: I left pkg. by a bank machine in a shopping mall. I reported it in person at mall security office. 3 wks. later, Someone delivered an envelope of work documents to my work building 5 blocks away.

Other incidents over past 25 yrs.:

*Left a purse hanging on hook in washroom cubicle. In a shopping mall. I retrieved purse from security staff 1 hr. later. (Yea, had wallet, etc.)
*Left a SLR Nikon camera on subway train. 5 min. getting off subway train, I realized I left it behind. I retrieved camera 20 min. later from subway authorities' lost and found office.
*Left purse on back of shopping mall food court chair. I retrieved purse half hr. later from security desk.
*Left wallet on ferry to Nantucket Island. I was in a panic. I was in a foreign country without my wallet. I reported to ferry office. Wallet mailed to me 3 wks. later to Canada.

Security staff can be valuable...anywhere.

I have no interest in carrying a hand/shoulder purse. For me it must be knapsack type.

[Adventure Girl]

I lost a diamond earring in an aerobics class. (I found the back!!). I filed an insurance claim and before I received the check, someone at the gym found the earring and turned it in to the front desk. I was shocked to get it back! I never found out who found it and returned it!

My husband was on a cross-country motorcycle trip. He left his wallet at a gas station in Colorado. The lady who found it searched through the wallet and called the only phone number she found in it. The number belonged to our insurance agent. The insurance agent contacted me. I contacted my husband. He contacted the good samaritan and retrieved his wallet. The woman would not accept ANY reward. I really don't know what would have happened if he did not get his wallet back. It had all is money, credit cards, ATM and ID! He was 1500 miles from home!!

[Catrin]

11 years ago when I moved to Indianapolis, I left my purse in a shopping cart at Kmart. I didn't notice it for about 20 minutes, went back and of course I didn't find it. Headed home kicking my butt...and opened my apartment door to find it sitting there in the middle of the floor! Someone found it, looked up my address and took it to my apartment manager. The apartment manager put it in my apartment and nothing was missing! The manager checked with me the next day to make certain that nothing was missing, it was all pretty amazing and it happened so fast! I DID go to a small thing at church before going home, so probably 2 hours had passed between losing it and arriving home.

[Kathi]

My SO found a money clip in a ski area parking lot. It contained a drivers license, Amex credit card and $200 cash. Because of the cash we were reluctant to turn it into lost and found so we took it to the local police dept. They called Amex, got the guys telephone no. and called him. He was on his way to the airport with no ID. He had looked for it but gave up. He was able to turn around to get it and still make his flight. The guy made a point of calling and thanking my SO.

On a different note a local shop that I buy my skis and boots from sent me an email and told me how much they appreciate me continuing to do business with them. I live in ski country and could get better deals from many other shops but I know the owners and their service is so good. Last year I bought a pair of skis from them. I paid for the skis but somehow the charges on my credit card got reversed and I ended up owing $0 for the skis. They probably would have caught it sooner or later but I told them immediately about the reversal. I couldn't "cheat" them out of their money.

[VeganBikeChick]

It's so nice to hear about the goodness of others. I lost my wallet last week - pretty sure I left it at a restaurant I picked up takeout from. Have called several times with no luck, even put up an ad on Craigslist with no response. When I called my bank to report my card lost, there hadn't been any fraudulent activity, so I just keep praying that some good soul will find it. In the meantime, it sure has been a pain getting replacements of everything!!

[shootingstar]

I would have visited the restaurant in person to make the query with a piece of paper/business card in hand. Have you tried at least reporting it to the police? You never know.. Make sure you do this. The police aren't looking at craiglist (much).

Catrin, that's cool.
Adventurecycling, impressive. A diamond earring. Now, I would not be good with quite expensive jewellery.

Oh yea, more stories:

*My partner left behind his pannier full of some clothes, etc. in a parking lot. We were finishing a group bike ride. He forget to check on the other side of the car that was giving us a car lift with bikes, belongings. Then 30 km. later, he realized his pannier wasn't there. They drove back to parking lot but it was gone.

Dearie received a phone call a day later. A woman with her child when shopping, picked up the pannier.

So dearie went from Vancouver (cycling), took a 2 hr. ferry ride over to Vancouver Island (where we did our group ride) and biked, then got the pannier back from her. He biked over 120 km. that day.

[Owlie]

My dad lost his wallet in the Dallas airport, somehow. (Luckily, he was on his way home when it happened.) Some kind soul found it, got our address off his driver's license, and mailed it to him, cash and everything still in place. Dad sent him a very nice thank-you note.

More recently, he left his wallet in a hotel room in Boston and checked out. He discovered his lack of wallet when he got to the airport. (They did let him on the plane. How, I do not know. I think he had alternate but unconventional forms of picture ID on him.) The hotel housekeeping found it, and the hotel called his cell phone to tell him they had found his wallet and that they'd FedEx it.

Yes, my dad has a knack for losing his wallet while traveling.

[OakLeaf]

Years ago I was between jobs and, when the end of the semester approached, I went back for a couple of weeks to the college where I'd graduated, to type people's term papers and try to make a few bucks.

This was in the days before ATMs and large chain banks. All my earnings, like $1500 in cash and checks IIRC, were in my wallet. I was couch surfing and didn't really feel I could leave anything valuable in the apartments and dorm rooms where I slept for a couple of days at a time before mooching off another friend.

This was also in the days before cell phones, Facebook and Google. My name and home address 100+ miles away were in my wallet. No local contact information, since I didn't really have any.

I skipped off to church one morning. By the time I came back from services, the person I was staying with had had a phone call from campus security that someone had found my wallet in the grass. I hadn't even yet noticed I'd lost it. They'd tracked me down through the grapevine. Nothing was missing.

[PamNY]

There's a slight complication to do-gooding in NYC. Police have planted backpacks and purses, and arrested anyone who picked them up. This news story (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/28/nyregion/28about.html) says the person is arrested only if they walk past a uniformed police officer without turning in the item, but I still would not touch anything on the subway. I'm glad the person who found my wallet in the subway station and returned it to me wasn't afraid to pick it up.

When I found a wallet on the bike path, I was a little worried about picking it up, but it seemed unlikely that a sting operation would be set up in that location.

[redrhodie]

Years ago my dbf was at the dentist having some work done, when he got a phone call, not to his cell phone, but at the dentist's office phone. It turned out to be a guy who found his wallet in a cab, and noticed the appointment card in there. He didn't even notice the wallet was missing yet, so he got it back before going through the stress of knowing it was lost.

This is a great thread.

[eofelis]

Years ago we were down the street at the Rite Aid store with our bikes. My bf must have left his wallet on the top of his pannier rack and rode off. When we later discovered it was missing we called Rite Aid. They had it. Someone had picked it up and brought it into the store until it's owner could be found.

A few years ago I was riding the Colorado National Monument route here while Ride the Rockies was in town and they were riding it also. Lots of riders. I spotted a credit card and drivers license laying in the road. It belonged to someone from California. I picked it up and brought to the RtR officials when I got into town. Hope they got it back to the guy! I assume the rider had stashed it in his jersey pocket and it fell out when he was rummaging around in there while riding along.

The next week I was riding Bicycle Tour of Colorado (for reals) and again found someone's credit card along the route. Hope that got back to the owner.

I always put all my little pocket items into a small nylon stuff sack and put that in my jersey pocket.

[Penny4]

There's a slight complication to do-gooding in NYC. Police have planted backpacks and purses, and arrested anyone who picked them up. This news story (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/28/nyregion/28about.html) says the person is arrested only if they walk past a uniformed police officer without turning in the item, but I still would not touch anything on the subway. I'm glad the person who found my wallet in the subway station and returned it to me wasn't afraid to pick it up.

When I found a wallet on the bike path, I was a little worried about picking it up, but it seemed unlikely that a sting operation would be set up in that location.

Seriously?? Surely there are better things for police to be doing?!

I was on the greenway a few months ago and saw a car key on the side of the path. I thought about leaving it, in case the person who lost it was trying to find it. But I decided their chances of finding it were slim. I picked it up and asked every single person I passed or who passed me from behind if they had lost a key. Most folks looked at me like I was crazy, which i thought was strange.
I got to the parking lot and hadn't found the owner. I went back down the path about a mile or so again asking everyone I saw. Finally I went back to the parking lot and tried to figure out what to do. I thought about turning it in to the police, hanging it on the trail head sign...just wasn't sure what to do. Finally, I realized, duh, i can figure out if the car is in the lot by hitting the unlock button. I foudn the car and waited around for 15 min or so to see fi the owner returned. In the end, I wrapped the key up in a piece of paper and stuck it on the front seat, out of site. Not sure if it was the right thing to do...but I hoped that the owner got back to his car before a thief did. Would you have taken it to the police?
I always double check to make sure my key is tightly secured in my saddle bag now, in the key hook thingy!

A few days ago I was trying to open the hood of my car to put more washer fluid in. FOr some reason I always have trouble with that, I can't ever find the latch. A guy pulled up next to me and asked if I needed help and popped it open. Only took a second of his time, but it just made me smile. It's so nice to have a stranger lend a hand when you need it.

[OakLeaf]

I wrapped the key up in a piece of paper and stuck it on the front seat, out of site. Not sure if it was the right thing to do....

I've found keys in someone's car door and just locked them in the car. Not that you can do that with a modern car, but at the time, I figured that if they didn't have a second key, the cost of a locksmith is still less than the cost of a new car. Nowadays I'd probably make a note of the plate and drop them at the cop shop.

[Artista]

In the end, I wrapped the key up in a piece of paper and stuck it on the front seat, out of site. Not sure if it was the right thing to do...but I hoped that the owner got back to his car before a thief did. Would you have taken it to the police?
Some nice person did this for me when I dropped my key next to my car in a grocery store parking lot. I was very appreciative that someone took a moment to help a stranger and thankful that I didn't have to try to track down the key in the store or police dept.

[Crankin]

I've had my wallet stolen (at ASU, when it was stashed in my briefcase under my desk when I was a TA) and it was returned, but only after I had replaced everything. What a pain. They saw my faculty ID and returned it to the department office. I've never lost anything, though.
I keep my small bike sized wallet in my purse, which is kept under the front seat of my locked car (I have a station wagon, so no trunk), when I go in to see clients at their homes or schools. I bring my work bag in with me, where I have my cell phone, glasses, and a couple of bucks. I don't take my wallet into my office, either. I used to take my purse in with me to clients, and then, about a year ago, I *think* I had some money stolen. I say think, because I couldn't remember how much cash I had. I rarely use cash for anything, and when I get it, it's usually a good amount, so I don't have to go to the ATM too often. I also keep my car key, the electronic kind, either in a zipped pocket in a coat, or in the same exact spot in my work bag or purse. I am obsessive about checking to see that I have it before exiting my car, as it's not the kind of key that can go on a chain.

[missjean]

For a while last year, my husband seemed to be leaving his wallet behind when ever he went to the grocery store or CVS (work was stressing him out) but we always got a call letting him know that they had it. Nothing was ever stolen.
I've found a couple of wallets in parking lots over the years and turned them in and once I found $60 in the grocery store and gave it to the manager.

[Biciclista]

Both Donald and I have found cell phones and wallets and returned them many times. Sometimes people even force you to take a reward!

But when you are a repeat finder, sometimes you find stuff that you just keep. We found countless stuffed animals along our rides (many whose faces appeared here somewhere in the forum) as well as lots of money (coins usually) and earrings.

But on one of Donald's last solo bike rides he found a gold bracelet. It was on the sidewalk near a bank and a supermarket. He brought it home and gave it to me. I still wear it. It is part of the magic that surrounded him in his last months of life. We looked in the paper and on craigslist to see if anyone had reported it lost, but there was nothing.
I know that one of these days, this bracelet is going to fall off of me and then it will become someone else's. In the meantime, it is one of the last things my darling ever gave me; right in time for our anniversary last year.

then just last month, right in time for Valentine's day, I found a brand new Starbuck's Card on the ground. It had 25 bucks on it. What could I do? I thanked him.

and that's the rest of the story.

[Aggie_Ama]

Mimi- Your post made me smile. :)

I try to find the owners of things I find if it is the type of item you can find the owner. I find countless water bottles mountain biking that have bounced out of the bottle cage. When I find one I stick it in my bottle cage or extra jersey pocket and watch for a rider without water. Once I have found the owner, one time I found a terribly unprepared young family who took the water (it was 100 degrees), most of the time I take them home and wash them then add them to the collection. I find tons of ponytail ties, I rinse them and give them to my cat because it is her favorite toy.

[AppleTree]

This was years ago, but I was on my way home with my son from a soccer game. I had the most HORRIBLE cold you can imagine, and my head was even foggier than usual. I stopped at the ATM in my car to make a withdrawal and then proceeded to drive off, leaving my card in the machine... I hadn't even finished the transaction, it was on the screen that said "do you want to make another transaction"!!!!!!! :eek: Didn't even realize what I had done.

Drove home, and then just collapsed on the couch. Well, pretty soon I got a strange call, asking me my name, and if I banked at such and such... I am always suspicious, so I'm a little terse with him, thinking he wanted to sell me something or was trying to scam me maybe. Finally I figure out what he was saying. Never been so shocked and relieved at the same time. This man had tried to follow my car home, to return my debit card, and failing that, he went home, looked us up in the phone book and called and then came over and brought it to me. I was so grateful, and thanked him over and over, but because I was so sick, never even thought to get his name or anything so I could try to send him a thank you gift later, or at least bring him over a cake or something. I hope that his good karma rewarded him later though.

When I think of what COULD have happened... OMG. :rolleyes:

[eofelis]

This morning on my way into work (bike commuting) I spotted a credit cardish looking thing in the gravel on the corner a couple blocks from my office. Stopped to pick it up. It was not signed on the back, recently issued maybe. Then I noticed a lot of papers strewn around across the street and in a church parking lot. Went over to look at a couple. Same name as on the credit card. From the variety of papers it looked like this person just had a kid, was on food stamps, had overdue bills, etc. I picked up one that had the address on it. Maybe I'd try to get the credit card back to the person.

When I told one of my coworkers about this she wanted to help. Person had a unique name so she was easily able to find her on FB, etc. and send a message. Haven't heard if she got a hold of this person yet.