GUERNSEY – If you’ve ever misplaced your phone or your wallet, there’s a sickening feeling that instantly overtakes you.  With so much of our critical personal information stored in our phones and access to funds dependent on the use of a chipped plastic card for our bank accounts, the thought of it all being lost triggers an overwhelming feeling of dread.

That’s exactly how Stacey and Nate Cook felt on July 8th this year when Stacey lost those items and more when her purse wound up somewhere in the North Platte River while taking part in the Madison Beach Raft Build-Off, a public river float held in memory of the Cooks’ daughter Madison, who lost her life in a domestic violence incident in April, 2021.  

Many of the floaters that day extended their trip beyond Madison Beach near Register Cliff and planned to get out of the river at Whalen Dam, about six miles east of Guernsey.  As the Cooks neared the end point, a person riding on their float fell into the river and while trying to grab hold of the raft, accidentally pulled a cardboard box off the raft and into the water.  Along with some t-shirts and prizes for the build-off, Stacey’s purse was also in the box and contained both of the Cooks’ cell phones, credit and debit cards, drivers license and more.  But included in the “more” were two very special items—a necklace that had belonged to Madison and a ring that had been Stacey’s grandmother’s.  

When the box hit the strong current of the water, it disappeared quickly before anyone had time to react to save it and at that point, there was little anyone could do.  The slim but only chance there might be to recover any of the items would have to wait until the river dropped low enough to search, an event that would not happen until well into the fall. 

It would be long odds to find anything, considering the amount of water that would flow over the site in the next three months and Stacey didn’t have very high hopes of ever seeing any of those items again.  

But this past Sunday, the Cooks beat those odds.  About two weeks ago, the level of the river dropped substantially, giving them the opportunity to see if they could find the right area and much to everyone’s surprise, they were able to locate not only the purse but much of the contents.  Remarkably, the items were found within a short distance of the place where the box hit the water.  Partially buried in the heavy mud and silt that remained on the river bed, they found the shredded remains of the purse and both cell phones, as well as the bank and store cards.  Even more amazing was the fact that they were able to recover some of the photos that were on Nate’s cell phone—found when they removed the SIM card.  

But unfortunately, the two items that meant the most were not located, despite a diligent search.  Stacey lamented, “I really didn’t expect to find anything, so I’m glad we found the phones and other things, but of course I really was hoping to find the necklace and the ring.  Those mean the most to me and I really would like to find them.”  

Stacey says the hunt is not over yet though.  Along with some friends, they plan to head to the site with metal detectors and do a more thorough search this week.  Once again, they will be up against some long odds and they know that.  But with a little bit of luck, and perhaps some “divine intervention” this search too will be a success.