Michael Bernard Fitzgerald is giving away his never-used wedding bands

A Calgary musician wants to pay it forward, in the form of two wedding bands and an engagement ring.

"The summer of 2014 had me almost getting married — preparations were in place, rings were purchased and the date was set," musician Michael Bernard Fitzgerald told the Calgary Eyeopener on Wednesday.

"But love is hard sometimes, and life doesn't always play along, even with the best intentions. The date was postponed, and ultimately became less of a reality day by day.

"We drifted, separated and I took to spending more time writing [music] in Los Angeles."

• MORE CALGARY NEWS | Theatre Calgary artistic director steps down for opportunity in Ontario
• MORE CALGARY NEWS | Calgary Stampede unveils 1st public art at ENMAX Park

Fitzgerald wrote, tracked and mixed a record, I Wanna Make It With You, during his time in L.A., before returning to Calgary where the idea for an online giveaway was born.

"I thought for a while about what to do with them and was in a writing session ... and we started joking about the idea we could give them away," he said. 

"The idea seemed better and better over time and now here we are giving them away."

Fitzgerald has created a website where entrants can submit their own love stories until June 7.

"I'm going to have a love story reading party here in Calgary, we're going to highlight our favourite moments and eventually I think a story will make its way to the top and we'll give them the rings," he said.

"I didn't know what else to do with them at the end, I guess you could take them to a pawn shop ... but I think that would also betray the whole story, it would cheapen the whole tale.

"In this way, I know what my story is with them and I can kind of wrap that up and at the same time support another great Canadian couple as they take a leap."

Fitzgerald's ex is also on board.

"I think she appreciates the sentiment of the idea of giving them away," he said.

"But at the same time I think it comes back to the core of it, whether it's uncomfortable at times or not, doing this is really the only way of doing something positive with them."

Fitzgerald's reservations lessened once stories started arriving in his inbox.

"At times I thought this idea maybe wasn't the best idea I've ever had, but I've spent the last couple days starting to read through some of the submissions, there's already 150 stories that have been submitted," he said.

"I've started to read through them and it's amazing the people who are out there, as soon as I started reading the stories, I'm fully on side with the idea. I think it's great."

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener