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Ward customers will get jewelry back By Shari Downhill Montgomery Ward�s bankruptcy filing in late December left jewelry-service customers in Medford and across the country stranded without their merchandise until this week. Jewelers contracted to service Wards merchandise had been holding it "for ransom" until they received payment, said Joyce Pemberton, a spokeswoman from the Montgomery Ward corporate office. Once the company discovered what was happening, Wards� legal team approached the federal bankruptcy court four days ago to request permission to pay jewelers across the country. "Under the bankruptcy code, we cannot pay any claim prior to court authorization," Pemberton said. Jewelers began receiving payment and returning jewelry to stores Thursday, she said. Medford Wards customer Robert "Steve" Lambeth, of Jacksonville, said Wards has been holding his jewelry since Dec. 28. He bought a diamond ring for his fiancee at the Rogue Valley Mall store Dec. 8 and gave it to her on Christmas. He returned the ring to Wards� jewelry department for resizing Dec. 28, the day the company announced it had filed bankruptcy. "They took the jewelry and said they were going to send it back to the jeweler," Lambeth said. Lambeth returned to the store several times to retrieve the re-sized ring. "But, everyone I talked to said, �Come back in two more weeks,� " he said. Employees then became increasingly terse, refusing to talk to him at the jewelry counter or over the telephone, he said. "I asked (the employee) if they were going to �two-week� me until the doors closed. When nobody else was around, I asked her if there was a chance I might not get my ring back. She said �yes.� " Lambeth was told the Medford Ward store owed a local jeweler $3,000 for work and was not paying the shop because of the bankruptcy filing. After calling the Jackson County district attorney, the state Attorney General�s Office and Wards� corporate office in Chicago and receiving no help, Lambeth said he wasn�t sure which way to turn or how to get his fiancee�s ring back. "I�m at a loss," he said. Pemberton said now that Wards has been authorized to pay jewelers, Lambeth�s ring will be forthcoming. "First of all, (Lambeth) will get his ring back, guaranteed," Pemberton said. "Our legal team has made it a top priority once they found out what had been happening. "We have offered to pay for all of the jewelry the jewelers have in their possession right now," Pemberton said. "We�re very optimistic customers will receive their jewelry soon. "Now the jewelers have no excuse to not let people�s possessions go," she said. Customers may inquire about their jewelry by contacting Montgomery Ward store manager Connie Hooper at 857-0400. Reach reporter Shari Downhill at 776-4463, or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.