Albany, NY – Lost-and-Found Ring Hero Trooper Honored by State Sen. Golden

Albany, NY—State Sen. Marty Golden (R-Dist. 22 [Brooklyn—Ed.]) honored Two New York State Troopers today in a private ceremony for helping a married Jewish woman and her husband find her lost jewelry in a garbage heap last year. [Reported By VIN News]

The couple, Mr. and Mrs. Sruly Stern of Montreal, Canada’s Outremont neighborhood, was heading home from New York on August 19, 2007 when they stopped at the rest area in rural upstate Schroon Lake, New York. Mrs. Stern removed her rings to wash her hands before eating bread per Jewish religious law, and placed the jewelry in a bag.

Before leaving the rest stop, Mrs. Stern disposed the bag in a garbage can—with the rings still inside, not realizing what she had done until after arriving home in Montreal.

When Mr. Stern called the rest area for help, he was informed that the cleaning crew had since gone home, at it was past 9:00 p.m. Mr. Stern then called state police—and that’s when Trooper Leston Sheeley, with help from partner Gregory Brack, took it upon themselves to make the 40-mile trip to the rest area from their post.

Upon arrival, Trooper Sheeley climbed into an overflowing garbage bin, dug through bags of trash… and located the expensive rings, which were later returned to the Sterns.

The award ceremony took place at Sen. Golden’s Albany office.

In attendance where Mr. and Mrs. Stern, their two children, and Mr. Stern’s parents from Brooklyn, as well as Troopers Sheeley and Brack, New York State Police Jewish-community liaison Rabbi Bernard Freilich, and Rabbi Shlomo Braun, Sen. Golden’s Jewish-community representative. Also in attendance were New York State Police Major Richard Smith and Captain Tibbits of the Westport station.

In the course of the ceremony, Sen. Golden gave the Troopers an award proclamation for their beyond-the-call-of-duty actions, saying that they “are true examples of the New York State Police’s courage, integrity and service.

Upon receiving his commendation, Trooper Sheeley was deeply moved and touched, according To a VIN News source present at the event, explaining that while the State Police are frequently called upon for such trivial non-emergencies, they are rarely thanked—in contrast to the Stern case, which triggered a wave of appreciative letters and calls from the Jewish community to the State Police and which culminated in the ceremony,

“Seeing a community that comes so closely together to show appreciation of what we do gives us the inspiration to continue to do what we do, and to continually go above and beyond the call of duty,” emotionally commented Trooper Sheeley. “It brings out the best of in the New York State Police. Trooper Brack echoed the same sentiment.