Diver off the coast of Barbados finds ring lost in 1977

Nov. 5 (UPI) -- A man whose class ring from an Ontario university fell into the ocean in 1977 was reunited with the item on his 83rd birthday thanks to a diver's surprise discovery.

Alex Davis said he was diving with his metal detector near Miami Beach in Barbados in mid-October when he found a ring buried underwater.

The McMaster University ring bore the year 1965 and the initials "FMP," so Davis contacted the Hamilton school for help finding its owner.

Karen McQuigge, McMaster's director of alumni engagement, searched through the database with her team and identified the ring's likely owner as Morgan Perigo, who had graduated with a math degree in 1965.

McQuigge reached out to Perigo, who revealed he had lost his ring into the ocean during a family trip to Barbados in 1977.

"One day I took my younger son and waded into the ocean. He was knocked over by a wave, so I reached to grab hold of him. He pulled on my hand and my Mac Alumni ring came off," Perigo said in an email to the school. "We searched for it but were unsuccessful."

David sent the ring to its owner via FedEx and it arrived on the evening of Perigo's 83rd birthday.

"What a wonderful, unexpected 83rd birthday present," Perigo said.