Simone Kuyck searching for her late father’s rings since 2018

It has been almost five years since her beloved dad’s wedding rings went missing in the post, but this Qld bride has never given up hope of finding them in time for her own wedding. Now, time is running out.

A Nanango bride-to-be has spoken of her tumultuous journey to find a lost family heirloom.

The tumultuous journey of a bride-to-be’s quest to find a missing parcel containing a precious family heirloom has heightened as her wedding day approaches.

Simone Kuyck is working against the clock to locate her parent’s missing wedding rings before her own wedding in August 2024. She has been searching for almost five years.

The well known Nanango celebrant and mother-of-two says she has jumped through countless hoops to find the sentimental parcel, which went missing after an Australia Post bungle in 2018.

Miss Kuyck said she was gifted the rings in 2012 by her recently deceased father.

She had the rings resized by a Hervey Bay jeweller, who posted them to her via a tracked and registered Australia Post package.

The parcel contained an 18-carat gold wedding ring and a 24-carat gold engagement ring with a 0.5-carat diamond.

“On December 22, 2018, I received a text message saying the rings had arrived at the Nanango Post Office and when I went to collect the same day they had been delivered to the PO Box where I was staying with family,” Miss Kuyck said.

Simone Kuyck and her daughter Gracie. Simone and her partner, Mark Patridge, intended to use the rings on their wedding day.

“When I looked in the PO Box it wasn’t there, so I went back to the post office where the post office admitted it had been placed in the wrong numbered PO Box,” she said.

Miss Kuyck said she visited the Nanango Post Office nearly every day for two weeks, before being told the parcel had returned to the post office and the manager had returned it to sender.

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“It was a very stressful time as I was was pregnant and it was over Christmas; a hard time for someone who has lost someone,” Miss Kuyck said.

“I had been going in to the post office every day so I was very confused as to why it would be returned to the sender.

“When I called Australia Post to get a tracking number for the return to sender, it was nowhere to be found.

“I made posts online to encourage anyone with information to come forward,” she said.

The Nanango Post Office delivered Miss Kuyck's package to the incorrect PO Box.

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The parcel and the rings had disappeared.

Miss Kuyck and her and long time partner Mark Patridge intended to use the rings on their wedding day.

“I am the fourth generation of a large Nanango family and everyone knows me and if not me, my mum Rhonda or siblings,” she said.

“It’s just been terrible and the rings were the only possessions of my dad’s I had left.”

An Australia Post spokesman said Australia Post apologised for losing the parcel.

“We investigated this in 2019 when we first became aware of the missing item; our processing and delivery teams work hard to handle every item with care and deliver them safely,” a spokesman said.

“Australia Post encourages any customers experiencing delivery issues to call us on 13 7678.”

Miss Kuyck said if the person who did have the rings handed them in she would not ask any questions or press charges.