GM Lori Salas was quick to respond when our customer forgot his wedding ring at her location.
Houston—When U-Haul customer Jay Ribble left his wedding ring on the sink at U-Haul Moving and Storage at 34th Street, he thought he was in the “doghouse” for life. But, thanks to General Manager Lori Salas and the rest of her U-Haul Team, this irreplaceable item is back where it belongs.
The start of this story is a sad one. Ribble, a resident of Moore, Oklahoma, needed to help settle the affairs of a family member who had passed away. This included emptying their three-bedroom house, which took multiple 450-mile trips from Houston to Moore.
U-Haul Team members strive to make the moving process a smooth one—especially when our customers are at their wits’ end. This was exactly the case in Ribble’s situation.
“People aren’t always moving because of something good,” observed Salas. “You have to put yourself in their situation and understand what they’re going through.”
Lost …
Jay Ribble was devastated when he thought he lost his wedding ring.
After helping hook up a tow dolly to a U-Haul truck, Ribble went inside to wash his hands in the bathroom.
“I usually put my wedding ring in my pocket when I wash my hands, but for some reason this time I didn’t,” explained Ribble. “I guess I had a lot on my mind.”
Equipment secure and hands clean, Ribble headed home to Moore. During the long drive, he realized his ring was missing. Knowing that the center was already closed, his heart sank.
Ribble arrived home around 2 a.m. but couldn’t sleep. “I just felt sick to my stomach. I thought it was gone forever.”
First thing in the morning, Ribble started making calls. He spoke with someone at the U-Haul call center who said they were going to send some emails since the store wasn’t open yet. He also called a friend in the Houston area to go by the center to see if they could pick it up.
At the time, Ribble was newly married and couldn’t stand the thought of losing his practically brand-new wedding ring.
… and Found
The lost ring was back on our customer’s finger as soon as possible.
When the center opened, Ribble spoke with Salas. He told her the situation and she jumped into action.
“I told him that I would look around and also check the safe and call him back,” Salas recalled. When she didn’t find the ring right away, she explained, “I kept calling him to make sure he knew that I was still looking for it.”
When Salas found the wedding ring, she called Ribble immediately.
“I could hear the worry in his voice,” Salas remembered. “He was so relieved when I found it. I offered to take a picture of it with my cell phone and send it to him.”
While on the phone, Ribble’s friend entered the center and was able to pick up the ring for him.
“It’s pretty amazing that they were so honest and helpful,” complimented Ribble. “It would be so easy for someone to put my wedding ring in their pocket and have a little extra pay that week.”
For Salas, keeping the ring never crossed her mind. “You have to be honest,” she explained. “It’s karma—what goes around comes around.”
“There is no way that I can express the gratitude of getting my wedding ring back,” Ribble declared. “That was something that could have haunted me for the rest of my life.”
What’s your lost and found story? Tell us all about it in the comment section below.
