Diver recovers wedding ring that fell in Lake Tahoe during ceremony on California dock

Maddie Capron
·2 min read

Andrew Kent went to pull his wedding ring out to get married to his soon-to-be wife, it slipped — and went right through the cracks in the dock they were on and into Lake Tahoe.

The couple from Vancouver, Washington, was getting married in Tahoe over the water, surrounded by blue skies, photos show.

A Washington couple dropped their wedding ring in Tahoe and it fell through the dock. They posted a call out in a Facebook group, and a diver retrieved the ring.
A Washington couple dropped their wedding ring in Tahoe and it fell through the dock. They posted a call out in a Facebook group, and a diver retrieved the ring.

When Kent dropped the ring, he wanted to jump in after it, his wife Marlee told KTXL.

Instead after finishing the ceremony, the couple turned to Facebook. Kent posted to “Tahoe Scuba Divers” on March 12 hoping someone there may be able to help him retrieve the ring.

They could see the ring from the dock, Kent said on Facebook. It was sitting on a rock about 40 feet off shore and 15 feet deep.

“Is there anyone in this group that would be willing to help us out?” Kent asked. “Or if anyone knows anybody that could lend a hand? Any help is appreciated!”

The couple was blown away by the response they got on the Facebook post. Multiple people reached out saying they would love to help or know someone who could help them get their ring back.

Phil Abernathy, an administrator for the Facebook group, approved the call out for the group and immediately knew he wanted to help them, he told McClatchy News.

“I knew that I would have some free time the following morning, and I genuinely love to dive,” Abernathy told McClatchy News in a message. “I have done many different training courses. So It’s nice to be able to use the skills that I have trained.”

He dove into the water and pulled the ring up to the shore.

Diver Phil Abernathy retrieved the couple’s ring.
Diver Phil Abernathy retrieved the couple’s ring.

“Hey guys, Did your ring look like this?” Abernathy asked the couple. “At that moment the feeling of joy was one that no words can describe.”

Abernathy said there was “the biggest feeling of excitement you could imagine” when he showed the couple the ring.

“Lookie what we pulled out of the lake,” he said on Facebook. “It’s a happy ending for this story.”