Mickey Walsh of Deptford, New Jersey, did something that every husband dreads: he misplaced his wedding ring in 2016. But he didn’t just lose it in the couch cushions or the backyard; he lost it somewhere nearly impossible to find. Walsh was on vacation with his family on the Jersey Shore last August. He was enjoying himself while swimming in the ocean until he noticed his ring was no longer on his finger.

Walsh told CBS Philly, “I was playing in the waves and I noticed it was off my hand.” “I always take it off before going into the ocean, but for some reason I didn’t do it that time.” Walsh searched for it, but as anyone who has lost something in the sea can attest, it seemed hopeless. “I was pretty sure it was a lost cause.” The Walshes returned home from their vacation, distraught over the loss of the priceless memento.

Mickey assumed it was gone for good after months passed with no word of its whereabouts. However, in August 2017, 11-year-old Daniel Barr was visiting the beach with his mother, about 5.3 miles from where Walsh and his family had stayed the previous year. The child noticed something shiny in the sand while playing on the beach. He took it up.

It turned out to be a wedding ring! Daniel had the option of keeping the ring, but he knew he needed to do the right thing and find the owner. He remembered his father’s words of wisdom. “If you can right a wrong or help someone in any way, that’s what you should always do,” Daniel told CBS Philadelphia. “Be the person who does the right thing. Regardless of how difficult it may be. Do the right thing at all times.”

So he went up and down the beach, asking people if they had lost a ring, but there were no takers. He had no idea the owner had left. So he showed his mother, Kristen Barr, the ring. She was aware of another option: Facebook. After taking the ring to a jeweler and learning as much as she could about it, she posted a message on Facebook in the hopes that someone would recognize it.

“On 8/17/17, my son discovered this men’s wedding band. Beach in OCNJ between 7th and 8th Streets. There is no inscription on the inside or outside. Please assist us in locating the owner. Every contribution counts. Thank you very much!” Only a few days later, Walsh received a text message he never expected to receive. Walsh told CBS Philly, “I was at work when my wife texted me, ‘Hey, I think someone found your ring.'”

He thought it was impossible, but his wife saw Barr’s post after a friend shared it with her. She messaged Barr on Facebook. “She sent me photos, and they were a perfect match.” “She even knew the right ring size,” Barr told CBS Philly. They were reunited with the ring after it had been missing for a year. The timing was also remarkable:

It had been almost a year since Walsh had lost it, and it was just a few days before his wedding anniversary. Walsh was overjoyed that someone was making an effort to find the ring’s owner. “They seemed like great [people] right away, willing to go through all that trouble,” Walsh said of the Barrs. Kristen Barr, on the other hand, attributes all of the credit to her young son. “I’m so proud of my son for going above and beyond to find the owner,” she told CBS Philadelphia. “It felt really good to be able to return something that means so much to the owner.”