“Operation Ring Return”
A lost and found mission becomes a story of good deeds, friendship and legacy
Written by: Shalonna Anderson, University Communications - Alumni
Photos by: Amy Hart
When Susan Flake, a volunteer at the Cathedral Baptist Church in Wadesboro, North Carolina, was collecting clothing from a consignment store for a fundraiser to help church youth attend camp, she noticed something had fallen from a pocket of one of the items. It was a green and gold UNC Charlotte class ring.
The 1991 Jostens ring included a replaced crown and the inscribed initials “P.R.R.” Flake immediately thought about her daughter, who attended UNC Charlotte’s School of Nursing. She also recalled losing several pieces of jewelry – including her own class ring and a ring belonging to her grandmother – due to theft years earlier. Determined to find the ring’s owner, Flake started creating an ad to place in a Monroe newspaper. But first, she took a chance by calling the UNC Charlotte Harris Alumni Center, where she spoke directly to the center’s coordinator, Lisa Stewart ’81.
“I was searching everywhere for my ring!"
With Stewart on the case, she was able to narrow down three possible graduates based on the initials and graduation year etched into the ring. Within hours, Flake was stunned to receive a call from an excited Stewart who exclaimed, “We have a match!”
The beloved class ring belonged to Patricia Rae Rimer Hafliger ’91, an elementary school educator in Union County. “I had been searching everywhere for my ring,” said a thrilled Hafliger, who recollected the moment when Stewart called with news about it. “I am just so grateful that someone was nice enough to return it to me!”
Hafliger who majored in psychology and double minored in mass media and public relations, comes from a family of UNC Charlotte graduates, including her mother and sister. Hafliger’s son, Alan, who is studying Computer Science at Charlotte, is scheduled to graduate this year.
With the ring owner located, Stewart arranged what was affectionately named “Operation Ring Return,” allowing Flake to return the ring to its rightful owner. With family in tow, Flake drove to the Harris Alumni Center, where Hafliger enthusiastically waited. Before Flake could present Hafliger with the contents of the pink and gold ring box, the women threw their arms around each other and bonded over their UNC Charlotte connection as well as a shared passion for helping children.
When Hafliger finally opened the box to see her ring for the first time since March, she exclaimed, “This is it!” and quickly slipped the ring on her finger, verifying it was a perfect fit.
“This is much bigger than a lost-and-found story.”
As Hafliger and nearby UNC Charlotte staff jokingly made Cinderella references, the participants of Operation Ring Return were whisked away to the statue of The Miner where they were met by Charlotte’s mascot, Norm the Niner, who also sported his class ring.
“This is much bigger than a lost-and-found story,” said Jodi Kaplan, executive director of alumni engagement, during an intimate rededication ceremony. “This is a story about legacy. I hope your son is as proud of that class ring as I am of my father’s class ring,” she said to Hafliger, revealing the keepsake. “Legacy matters, and you should pass that ring to him when it’s time.”
In UNC Charlotte ring tradition, students and alumni dip their rings into the Miner’s pan allowing the water to christen their ring and further their bond to UNC Charlotte and its roots. Hafliger cheered as she proudly dipped her ring into the pan and was presented with a green and gold UNC Charlotte commemorative coin with the inscription, Once a Niner, always a Niner.
Hafliger paused and said, “Amen.”