Someone once said love reminds you that nothing else matters. But chances are that person never lost their engagement ring.
Just ask bride-to-be, Brooke Bene.
Engaged in April and headed to work on Wall Street Tuesday, the young Huntington professional took her usual morning seat on a Long Island Island Rail Road train wearing a two-carat, sapphire and diamond engagement ring on her left hand.
Looking to moisturize with a splash of anti-bacterial lotion on the 6:38 a.m. ride from the Atlantic Terminal, the 1999 graduate said she took the rock off and placed it on her lap.
It was then that the morning routine started to change.
Exiting the LIRR car, she caught the city subway and braced for the downtown commute as the train was about to pull away.
She said the doors closed and then shock set in.
"Usually I hear a little clicking sound of my ring hitting the bar," said Bene. "As soon as I grabbed on and realized there was no sound, I turned to run out of the door because I realized I probably left the ring somewhere."
In a panic, she threw her bag on the floor and "ripped everything out of it." To make matters worse, frightfully ringless for the first time in neary three months, she had to suffer through the 20-minute commute before calling the LIRR.
"I had my hopes up, but I wasn't really 100 percent sure I was going to see it again," said Bene, the daughter of former Huntington School Board member, Christine Bene.
With younger Bene's former LIRR train motoring to Hempstead, 13-year LIRR employee Deana Teemer got the call for help and contacted the train's conductor, Tim Parrett. After a quick search, the ring was found in the space between the seat cushion and the seat back.
Back in Manhattan, Bene said she began to get a little worried because she hadn't heard back from Teemer after making the initial call, so she called back before discovering the good news.
"I have it right in my hand," said Teemer to Bene, who reunited with the ring at Penn Station not long after.
"Deana and Tim's actions represent the best traditions of customer service that we all strive for every day at the LIRR," said LIRR President Helena Williams.
According to the LIRR, Penn Station handles more than 15,000 lost items annually with about half returned to their owners. Cell phones are the most lost items for riders, according to the LIRR.
And for Bene's beau?
"He's very much relieved now," said Bene, with a laugh. "I didn't tell him until I found the ring."
No date has been set for the wedding, according to Bene, who expects it to take place sometime next year.
"I don't take my ring off anymore .. it can get dirty, I can just clean it later," she said.
