Rich Hageney, a medical-device salesman from Downingtown, has been helping people find the precious possessions they’ve lost with his metal detector, writes Shaun Brady for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Hageney is a part of The Ring Finders, an online directory that connects people with a metal detectorist in their area.

He began searching for metal items as a hobby until, one day, a woman came running to him in tears, asking for help finding her rings that she lost in the sand. He found them within three minutes.

The incident had Hageney immediately hooked on using his hobby to help people.

“It feels great to be the hero,” he said.

Hageney also has to use his wits to find an item. When a retired fireman lost his 20-year fire-service ring while feeding ducks in a park, Hageney searched for more than an hour in the pond, to no avail.

Then, he decided to retrace the fireman’s steps and discovered he sometimes strolled to a nearby shallow patch to make sure no ducks were missed.

“I trudged down there and found it right away,” said Hageney. “It brought me so much pleasure.”

Read more about Rich Hageney in The Philadelphia Inquirer here.

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