Purse returned to rightful owner – 10 years later
The purse contained bank cards, a driver’s licence, ID book, R300 in cash, and most importantly a gold necklace with a diamond pendant.
For Charmaine Pretorius of Southport, the power of social media is undeniable – a post on Facebook played a defining role in returning her purse which had been stolen 10 years previously.
The Herald got wind of the story and met up with Charmaine at Thompson Nissan Port Shepstone where she is an administrative assistant.
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Her story is one of heartbreak.
Ten years ago she took her terminally ill husband, Marthinus to Southport beach to see the ocean one last time.
She parked the car at the lifeguard tower and helped Marthinus on to the beach.
They returned to to the car, only to find it had been broken into and her purse stolen.
“I looked everywhere for my purse, as it contained R300 in cash, bank cards, my driver’s licence, ID book, and most importantly a gold necklace with a diamond pendant my husband had given me for Christmas. The clasp had broken, so I had put it in a pill bottle in the purse for safekeeping until I could get it fixed.”
The search proved futile, and Charmaine resigned herself to the fact that her purse – and the necklace – was gone for good.
Marthinus died four days later, and she slowly picked up the pieces of her life.
The years went by and she didn’t give her stolen purse much thought.
“It’s strange,” mused Charmaine. “A couple of weeks ago I was admiring a colleague’s necklace, which was similar to mine which had been stolen, and I so wished I could get it back for the memories it held of my late husband.”
A short while later, her friend Berrinice Jacobs called and excitedly told her that Southport couple Faan and Joni Else had posted on Facebook, looking for a Charmaine Pretorius as they had something they wanted to return to her.
They had also provided an ID number to help with their search.
Charmaine called and discovered that the couple had stumbled across her stolen purse, abandoned next to the railway line in Southport.
“It never crossed my mind 10 years ago to take my search to the railway tracks.
“Faan and Joni love to walk in the area and spotted my purse, which was looking much the worse for the wear and had taken a severe beating by the weather.”
On opening the purse Charmaine was in for a pleasant surprise.
“Everything bar the R300 was still there including, most importantly the pill bottle containing my necklace, which means the world to me.
“I am so very grateful to Faan and Joni for taking the time to track me down and return the purse.”
As for the tattered ID book and driver’s licence, Charmaine is thinking of framing them as a keepsake.
The necklace? Well, it goes without saying, it will be fixed and kept close to her always.
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