EXCLUSIVE: How an Alameda man traced decades-old ring found on Navy ship to sailor from Georgia
ALAMEDA, Calif. (KGO) -- Aboard the historic USS Hornet in Alameda was a mystery in the making for decades: a high school class ring sitting in a desk drawer that was discovered by a volunteer.
"He was like 'Hey, we were cleaning out this space and one of these old desks on the ship' and it looked pretty interesting, it looked like it had a story to it," said Anthony Wilson, Director of Exhibitions, Collections & Aircraft for the USS Hornet.
Mal Seoane is the volunteer who found the ring in an area of the ship that had been closed since 1970. Mal passed away last year, but the search for the owner of this ring lived on.
"It could have been someone who served on the ship during service, really always piques our interest," said Wilson, noting they took to social media with photos of the ring in hopes someone would recognize it. "The only thing we had to go by was that it said Briarcliff High School on it, and it said J-S-R on the inside, so that was something."
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ABC7 Eyewitness News saw the post and put out a call.
Alameda resident Greg Helms says he was watching the news and noted what he heard next made him stop. His alma mater is Briarcliff High School in Georgia.
"I hear them start talking about something on the USS Hornet. I live in Alameda, I know the Hornet and so I kind of listened," said Helms. "They said they found a high school ring from Briarcliff High School. And I stepped out of the bathroom and went back to the TV, got the remote control, backed it up and played it again."
And then he turned to an alumni Facebook group.
"I think three people that were actually from the class of 1966 that knew Scott Reeves and one had posted, and I guess it was part of an obituary saying he had died in 2008," Helms said.
He went on to track down Jon Scott Reeves' brother.
"I went to Google and just Googled his name and came up with one of those 'check the background of somebody' and it had three Scott Reeves listed there," said Helms.
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Speaking to ABC7 Eyewitness News, Helms got emotional about the connection to his beloved high school and to his own father. He says his father was decommissioned from the Navy in Alameda back in 1955.
"I just felt I could help out with this and that I had some resources to at least start a conversation with some people to see if it went anywhere and things that," he said.
Back on the ship, the mystery was solved.
"Jon Scott Reeves was an aviation maintenance person who would have worked in that area, so it really all makes sense now," said Wilson
The USS Hornet is now working out the details with John Scott Reeve's brother to return the long-lost ring.
