Couple visiting Topeka for Sunflower State Games realized something was missing
For Alice Macke, marriage has been one of the most rewarding parts of her life.
June 26, 1971, was the day when she married her high school sweetheart, Merlin. The couple spent much of their relationship living in Baileyville, located in western Nemaha County.
"We went to the same school, you know," Alice Macke said. "He was older than me, but we did go to the same school. We knew each other's families."
She said the couple farmed in Baileyville.
"I helped out doing farmwork," Alice Macke said. "I drove the tractor and the combine and all of that kind of stuff that goes along with farming. And then we built a new house in Axtell, Kansas."
Being married for 52 years, patience is something that she and her husband have learned to practice through the years, she said.
And patience has definitely been virtue for the couple in recent weeks when Alice Macke realized, for the first time in 52 years, she lost her wedding ring.
Couple were in Topeka for Sunflower State Games when ring was lost
The Mackes visited Topeka in July for their granddaughter's martial arts meet in the Sunflower State Games where she competed at the Stormont Vail Events Center, 1 Expocentre Drive. They later visited Cook's American Grill, 1936 S.W. Gage Blvd., for lunch.
The Mackes have two sons who live in the Kansas City area, and the couple has two grandsons and a granddaughter.
After returning to the Expocentre from Cook's, Alice Macke realized she lost her wedding ring. She said she thinks it's at one of the Topeka locations.
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"I was trying to debate what am I going to do because now I go out and I feel like something's missing on my hand," she said. "So, I'm hoping I get it back pretty soon before I do something different. It's a beautiful ring. You know, it makes you just want to cry."
The ring is the original one placed on her finger 50 years ago, and she said she never misplaced it before. It was purchased at Briman's Leading Jewelers, which closed its doors in July 2020.
The Mackes can be emailed at mmacke@bluevalley.net with information about the ring. The couple is planning to give a cash reward upon its return.
Keishera Lately is the business reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. She can be reached at klately@cjonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @Lately_KT.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Alice and Merlin Macke were visiting when wedding ring was lost
