The day you marry the person you want to spend the rest of your life with is pretty memorable as it is, but add on, losing your ring and having an entire community rally around you to help you find it is even better.
Tamar Silverbrook, 30, and Adam Richardson, 32, tied the knot on February 20, 2022, at Elora Mill Hotel & Spa in an intimate mirco ceremony. After saying "I Do," they headed over to Victoria Park to capture some photos of their special day when Richardson's ring slipped off his finger and into the snow.
"We were taking our photos after our wedding ceremony, and the last photo was a fun snow throwing photo, just to embrace the Ontario winter, and as we were all throwing snow at each other and up in the air and Adam's ring went flying off," Silverbrook told Narcity.
Wedding photos of Tamar Silverbrook and Adam Taylor on February 20, 2022.Assaf Friedman
Assaf Friedman, a Toronto wedding photographer, took pictures of the special day and captured the moment the ring slipped off Richardson's finger.
"The second the photo was taken, we just hear Adam say, 'Uh oh guys, my ring," Silverbrook says.
Wedding photos of Tamar Silverbrook and Adam Taylor on February 20, 2022.Assaf Friedman
The entire wedding party started to dig through the snow for about half an hour before heading back to the venue for lunch empty-handed.
Richardson says five or six of them went back out with the Elora Mill staff to look for the ring as the venue tried to find equipment to help with the search.
Wedding photos of Tamar Silverbrook and Adam Taylor on February 20, 2022.Assaf Friedman
"When we saw that photo, we kind of had an idea where we were looking, and we were combing through," and "as we were looking, this family walks past, and they offered to go grab their metal detector," the groom adds.
"While they were doing that, another woman named Elske she walked past and she posted in this community Facebook group, and it got so many hits. So many people were offering throughout Wellington to come and help us look for the ring."
Brian and Robyn Poletto, the first couple who had offered them help, returned with their metal detector.
Soon after, Nick and Zachary Patterson, a father and son duo who had seen the Facebook post, also came out with their metal detector to help locate the ring.
Richardson says that after three hours of searching, once they had "two metal detectors in play," they "were able to find it pretty quickly."
"Brian found it hovering over with his metal detector, and it beeped. It was completely fresh snow totally untouched which is crazy because a ring dropped through it."
After finding the ring, Richardson says he was filled with a "great feeling" of success, although the ring didn't hold any particular significance before the wedding to him or Silverbrook.
"We worked so hard for this wedding. We've been working through COVID, planning for it, leading up to it. The ring kind of symbolizes all that, and we were able to find it," Richardson adds.
The bride says they were already on a high from their wedding day that finding the ring with the help of the community was the "cherry on top."
"They came out on Family Day, and their time, their energy and their effort was just so appreciated," Silverbook concludes.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.