Few things hold as much sentimental value as a piece of jewelry given to a person for a special occasion or during a particularly difficult time in life.

Wareham resident Joan knows this all too well.

Joan, who wished her real name not be used, was robbed roughly two years ago. A man, who was later caught by police, entered her home through a window and stole nearly an entire jewelry box worth of jewelry, she said.

The stolen items included jewelry that Joan's husband had given her for anniversaries, a locket that was her sister's who has since passed away, and another piece from her sister-in-law, given to Joan when her brother was sick.

"My sister died and she gave me the pendant right before she died," Joan explained with tears in her eyes.

Though some victims of home break-ins are able to get stolen items back, Joan was not. The only thing she could do was submit an invoice with the estimated value of the stolen items to the court and seek restitution from the defendant, she said.

Joan didn't know what to do.

"I don't care about the money," she said. "I wanted my jewelry back."

On principle, Joan decided to seek restitution. If the man who stole the jewelry doesn't pay, he faces jail time, she said, adding that she would rather see him go to jail for the pain he caused.

But there was another problem. Joan only had receipts for a few pieces of jewelry. She'd have to find out the value of the other stolen items.

She was distraught. At the suggestion of her daughter, Joan visited Gold World on Cranberry Highway this month. In addition to selling jewelry, Gold World appraises and repairs jewelry, so Joan thought the employees may be able to help.

Gold World owner Steven Fillion had an employee help Joan go through books of jewelry and pick out the pieces she had owned. Fillion then prepared an invoice with the values each of the pieces, amounting to roughly $6,000, which Joan could submit to the court.

"I can't say enough about them," Joan said. "Honest to God, [Fillion] was so nice it was unbelievable."

Fillion said he and his employees often assist people who are in that situation.

"Every time someone's [home] gets broken into, they need help like that," Fillion said, adding that his own home was broken into about 20 years ago. "I know how it feels."

Fillion said that every time the value of gold increases, he sees more and more people come into the shop either to sell their jewelry or to ask for help determining the value of jewelry that was stolen from them.

"With the [downed] economy, people are unfortunately looking for easy money," Fillion said.

Fillion recommended that consumers keep a running list of every piece of jewelry owned and take advantage of technology to make the restitution process easier in the event of a theft.

"Take digital pictures of all your jewelry," Fillion said. "It helps you get ahead of the game."

Fillion was humble about his act of kindness to Joan. "We always try to help out as much as we can," he said.

But Joan said Fillion played a big role in her quest for justice following the break-in. She is still visibly shaken when speaking about it.

"[Fillion] was just wonderful," she said. "I just wanted to reach over the counter and give him a hug."