Someone once said that what is lost will find its way back to you, if it’s meant to be.
I’m just not sure they were talking about a digital camera that was swallowed by a raging Colorado river.
But that’s just what happened for one woman who happened to lose her camera more than 13 years ago. And until recently, she never even thought it would be found.
When Coral Amayi attended a wedding party in Colorado in 2010, she and the newly-married couple, along with friends, went on a tubing adventure on the Animas River. The river travels for more than 126 miles and is a popular site for tubing, rafting and canoeing.
When Amayi was tossed out of her tube, she climbed back in, not knowing that her camera had disappeared.
“When I got to shore, the small cord that attached the camera to the lanyard and floatation device had broken,” she told Today. The memory card contained photos from the wedding and bridal shower. She tried to find it, but the water was too deep. Amayi was devastated, she said.
I walked back to my boyfriend’s house and was uncontrollably crying,” she said.
Photos from the lost camera, courtesy of Amayi.
From time-to-time, Amayi would think of the lost camera, but knew that she likely would never see it again. That is, until a fisherman made a fantastical discovery.
While Spencer Greiner was on the shore of the Animus River, he noticed a beaten and rusted old digital camera. After putting the memory card into a computer, he was speechless after realizing that the photos had been somehow saved despite the time in the water.
“I was shocked that I was able to read the SD card to begin with! When I saw that the pictures were from a wedding and bridal shower I figured it was worth a go to try and find the owner,” Greiner told Today.
Not thinking he’d get a response right away, he posted some of the photos to a Facebook group. One hour later, the groom from the wedding had commented on Greiner’s post.
“I couldn’t believe that I was able to find someone in the photos so quickly,” Greiner said.
Within days, Greiner had contacted Amayi, realizing that they had mutual friends, as well.
Amayi, a teacher, said couldn’t be more grateful that she got her camera back.
“I am really thankful Spencer took the time to find us,” she said.
People who take the time to help locate the owners of a lost item make the world a better place. It takes a small amount of effort but the reward of gratitude from someone who is reunited is priceless.”
A photo from Amayi’s camera of the bridal party.
Greiner, for his part, doesn’t think his kind deed should be a big deal.
“I don’t feel that what I did was anything anyone else wouldn’t have done,” he said. “I knew those pictures were sentimental to someone. Taking five minutes to make a Facebook post was the least I could do. It turns out that was all that was needed.”
But Amayi feels differently and hopes others are moved to make an extra effort to help others when something is lost.
“It may seem insignificant to you but that lost earring may have been someone’s treasure from their grandma, that hat may be the last thing someone’s brother gave them before they died,” she said. “Most people would be thrilled to get an old wallet back even if they have already had to get new cards. If more people took time to care for others the world would be a better place.”
Watch Amayi talk about the amazing discovery of her camera below.
