The late Robert (Bob) Valentine's senior ring is shown with his senior yearbook photo. The ring was recently returned to Valentine's family after several years missing. (Salem News photo by Kevin Howell)

LEETONIA — Several years ago a gentleman discovered a Leetonia High School class ring in the Kent/Akron area, stashing it away with all intents to return it to the school.

But retirement soon arrived, and a move to the San Francisco Bay area ensued. An then recently that gentleman stumbled across the ring and mailed it back to Leetonia High School Principal Troy Radinsky on the off chance the owner could be located.

Little did he know how quickly the owner would be determined and what the ring would mean to the owner’s family.

The return

“Leetonia is unique because it is the only one in the United States,” said Leetonia Schools Superintendent Rob Mehno. “Not only that, but it’s a very close-knit community, with many alumni employed at the school.”

No sooner had the ring arrived at the school than multiple people identified the owner.

Engraved with the year 1979 and the initials RJV, the ring obviously belonged to Robert (Bob) Valentine, as confirmed by superintendent’s secretary Leisa Lorch, whose brother graduated with Valentine.

Coincidentally, Valentine’s mother Marge is a volunteer at the elementary, assisting the teachers in the two second-grade classes, so the district quickly turned over the ring to her.

The ring went to Marge because Bob could not retrieve it.

He died in 1999.

The ring

According to Marge, Bob purchased the ring when he was in school. She said she remembers telling him she better not see it hanging around his girlfriend Denise’s neck, the custom for boyfriends and girlfriends at the time.

The next day she saw it hanging around Denise’s neck.

“They got married two years later,” Marge said.

Both Bob and Denise graduated in 1979. They went on to have three children.

Unfortunately illness claimed Denise two years after Bob.

No one knows how the ring became lost.

“The last I knew, Denise had it,” Marge said. “I was completely unaware it was missing.”

The receipt

One day in late March, Mehno asked Marge to stop by his office after her day of volunteering.

High School Principal Troy Radinsky, who received the ring in the mail, presented the ring and a letter from the sender without letting her know what she would be seeing.

“My eyes just welled with tears,” Marge said.

Knowing that the ring belonged to late son proved tremendously moving, Marge said. Having it back reawakened memories of Bob that Marge knew she would be able to share with his children and grandchildren.

“It feels so good to have the ring back,” Marge said. “It’s something that can be shared with his children and grandchildren, give them something that represents Bob, represents the grandfather and great-grandfather that they didn’t get a chance to know.”

The recovery

John Docherty worked at Northeast Ohio Medical University in Rootstown. He guesses he found the ring in the local area approximately 10 to 15 years ago, but cannot recall the specifics or where or how he found it.

He said he put the ring in a box, planning to contact the high school in order to find the owner, but life got in the way, as it often does, and the ring became an afterthought.

Upon retirement three years ago, Docherty moved to the San Francisco Bay area and ultimately rediscovered the ring in a box from the move. Again it was forgotten until recently, when Docherty said he finally made the attempt to return it.

He said he never expected the story that would follow.

“I thought there would be an attempt to find the owner, but it would be unsuccessful,” he said. “Or I figured that the owner would be found, but that they would be living an ordinary life, just an ordinary story.”

The Valentines’ story caught him completely off guard, Docherty said.

“I was totally floored by their story,” he explained. “Of course I’m very pleased I sent it back because of what it means to them.”

The response

In addition to Marge, the Leetonia community is served by a second of her three sons, Dan, who is the Salem Township constable. She and her husband also have six grandchildren, one of which is a teacher’s aide at Leetonia, and twin great-grandsons, Dylan and Kyle Brown.

Having back the ring, even though such a small token of Robert, is an immense memento of days gone by, people lost but never forgotten.

And it proves good people still exist in the world, despite how it may appear today, Marge said.

“How many people would have just tossed the ring away,” she said. “John actually contacted the school and sent the ring back. I think that’s outstanding.

“There’s still good people left out there. It’s nice to have a happy story, a feel good story instead of all the bad news we’ve been hearing.

khowell@salemnews.net