RALEIGH -- There's no telling who dropped a pair of wedding rings into the Salvation Army kettle, whether it was the fed-up spouse of a two-timing husband, a widow who remarried or just a kind soul handing out thousand-dollar jewelry.
It came wrapped in a $10 bill, and when the workers counting donations discovered it Saturday, they were too excited at what appeared to be diamond rings to write down which kettle it came from.
But wherever it came from, whatever finger it has lately graced, the ring and matching wedding band stand as a reminder that generosity hasn't disappeared - even in a down-year for donations.
"It's amazing," said spokeswoman Haven Sink. "This is definitely a first."
Non-cash donations with big price tags have popped up in red holiday kettles in several cities this year: a $2,000 diamond and sapphire ring in Miami, tucked inside a $50 bill; a 3/4-carat diamond ring outside Kansas City; a $1,700 gold coin stuffed in a $5 bill in Alberta.
Trinkets sometimes slip into Wake County kettles, said Sink, but nothing on the order of a diamond ring. Fake rings, yes. But no diamonds.
"Some people will throw lottery tickets in," Sink said.
About 30 kettles are placed around the county, and so far, the Salvation Army is about 10 percent off raising last year's mark of $303,000 in charitable donations.
The ring, which will be appraised and converted to cash, helps. It looks time-worn, the edges on the white gold band and setting looks smooth, but the stone itself appears to an untrained eye to be substantial enough to value at least into four figures.
But there are still several more days to donate before Christmas, and anybody with a new diamond ring dreams of a pair of matching earrings.
