Darcey Beaucage and his family are mourning the death of their father, Larry, today.

According to Darcey, they all believe Larry would have died sooner had he not been waiting for the return of his stolen ring.

"People who are dying, they wait for certain moments, certain relatives to come by. They wait for permission from their family to say it's OK for them to go," Darcey said.

"We all told him it was OK to go. He held on and the doctors were baffled as to why."

A month ago, Larry was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer. During one visit to St. Paul's Hospital in Saskatoon, where Larry was cared for, his wife Gayle's purse was stolen.

He held on and the doctors were baffled as to why - Darcey Beaucage

The family appealed to the public for the return of the purse, as it contained Larry's white gold diamond ring, which he received as a 50th wedding anniversary present from Gayle.

The family tried to keep the theft a secret from Larry. However, Darcey said he believes that his father, although unresponsive, must have picked up on nurses or police talking about the incident.

Darcey said his father wore the ring every day until he had to take it off while in hospital.

"We think he must have overheard and was holding out for that ring," said Darcey.

Larry Beaucage died on Saturday shortly after getting back his stolen ring. (Submitted by Darcey Beaucage)

He added that Larry would have wanted to know that the ring was with Gayle before he died.

Saskatoon police located Gayle's purse in an undisclosed location and found the ring at a pawn shop in the city. Officers met with Darcey at St. Paul's Hospital to return the precious keepsake on Saturday morning.

Darcey told CBC News that Larry passed away 10 minutes after Gayle placed the ring back on his finger.

Darcey also wanted to thank police, media and everyone who helped get the word out about the missing ring.