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Goodwill Purple Heart


seanmc1114
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TheMariner

Excellent Navy ww2 KIA medal! The medal has significant worth also $800 and up maybe over $1000 depending on what ship he was killed on! Im guessing it was the family who donated it to Good Will in the first place! I guess it is worth a shot but I wouldn't have high hopes of finding them and I would be very carful giving something back worth that amount of money unless you can prove they aren't the ones who disposed of it in the first place!

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Often there is no family left and this maybe the case here.

 

Im sure your message box will be getting lots of traffic....

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seanmc1114

Perfect can you show a picture of the case also

The two pictures I posted are the only two shown in the link.

 

Often there is no family left and this maybe the case here.

 

Im sure your message box will be getting lots of traffic....

I have nothing to do with this medal. I just posted the story I found online.

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Wait the purple heart isn't his! This news story has been circulating on CNN etc!

 

Did you see the link at the bottom of his post !!!!! ???? or read that he said he "ran across the link"

 

 

Posted Today, 08:34 AM

I ran across this link to a Purple Heart donated to Goodwill in southern Arizona. They are trying to locate the recipient to return it.

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aerialbridge

As pristine as that case and heart are, and the fact that it showed up at Goodwill, I doubt very much it came from a deceased collector and just got donated there. More like an acorn falling from some distant branch of a family tree, that the do-gooders now search to reunite with some other distant branch of a family tree that undoubtedly don't know him from Adam. Marvelous.

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And after being reunited, it will be sold because now the family knows what its worth and they still dont want it. Watch for it on eBay soon...

 

I would venture to say that most of the time when medals like this end up in donation boxes its because the family does not care and does not want them, not because they were stolen. Last year I bought an entire grouping of medals from a guy who said that came from his grandfather. His grandfather died 20 years before he was born, and he didnt want them.

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On the other hand, the family may care but may be overwhelmed after another member of the family passes away. I have a 1,300 sq ft shed with 8 foot tall shelving that is 90% full of stuff from my inlaw's and their side of the family. I'm talking hundreds of boxes of unknown stuff that has been sealed upwards of 30 years. I'm a collector and I simply do not have the time nor energy to go through every box looking for good stuff, no matter how valuable or important it might be. When my inlaws pass on, all of this stuff is going away because I refuse to live my life burdened by it.

 

I'm sure I'm not the only person in this country in that position...

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I contacted the Goodwill store and gave them more information on the recipient. They have been offered $20 to $1200 for the medal. They are trying to reunite it with a family member. I told them in many cases the family just doesn't care about these things and they wind up in the trash. They have also been contacted by a few people trying to pull a fast one by misrepresenting themselves.

 

Things like this brings out the worst in people.

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The medal was returned to a family member based on research by two private eyes. So the medal is back with the family.

 

Congress take note: It did not take a law to have the medal returned. Returning found medals to family members has happened for over 50 years without Washington D.C. interference.

 

Just saying....

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At least this medal was identified and tracable.....There was an unidentified PH at my local goodwill store....I inquired about purchasing the item, but they were going to give it to the purple heart foundation.....I tried to get them to understand, the medal was not named or numbered to any one individual, and that it would never get back to the family.....Fell on deaf ears....Wonder what ever became of it?.....Bodes

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Sadly, many times family members don't have the interest, or like Dave don't have the time and energy to go over all the things in a home being emptied. I am dealing with this exact scenario literally right now. I bought a massive collection of letters, tapes, papers and documents that belonged to a Vietnam War Marine Aviator. I did some research and much to my total shock was able to track him down. I am now in close contact with him documenting his service. He was not the person that discarded the materials. They were sent to his first wife during the war and when they amicably split a few years after, she kept them. When their children now grown were emptying her home recently they simply threw all the materials away and they were taken by flea market pickers, which is how I managed to find them. That is sobering to say the least, but when I asked the Marine if he wanted his letters and papers back, he said no that wasn't necessary. It's an example where pretty much everyone involved, including the veteran, didn't really want the stuff. That said, he's been incredible in talking with me about every aspect of his service. We've probably talked for 5 hours at this point, and plan to meet up as well. He's an amazing man who though deeply humble is a true unsung hero. He flew well over 100 combat missions in Vietnam, was awarded well more than a dozen Air Medals, and was also awarded the DFC. His letters, which after contacting him he gave me complete permission to read and study, are an incredible insight into the daily life of an accomplished combat pilot. They are worthy of publishing, which I'm seriously moving towards doing. But I digress, the point is that sometimes, no one else connected wants this stuff. Sad, but also many times true.

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Several years ago there was a local estate sale. The father was career military with a LONG history of military medals, awards, etc. When the pictures were posted showing the military items for sale, people started berating and basically slamming the family for not keeping every single item. The daughter was very upset and stated her husband was also career military. With the constant moving, they could only keep the items that meant the most. She was still condemned.

 

I remember another story where a grandson was chastised for not keeping his grandfather's military items. He said he and his grandfather worked on model trains together so he was keeping those items. Since his grandfather never talked about the war, the trains meant more. Fell on deaf ears.

 

It is almost like people "worship" the military part of someone's life rather than looking at the entire person. A military career is just one small part of a person's life. Do not judge a family for their decisions because their back-story is unknown.

 

Kat

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It is almost like people "worship" the military part of someone's life rather than looking at the entire person. A military career is just one small part of a person's life. Do not judge a family for their decisions because their back-story is unknown.

 

Kat

 

Well stated

 

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CNY Militaria

I’ve also seen examples where the vet was highly decorated or a high rank in the military, but the family remembered him as an abusive drunk and/or someone that was never around, and thus had no interest in keeping his items.

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Agree completely with the above comments, insofar as they relate to understanding that these men we study, collect, research, honor, etc are human beings with a life both before and after their service. Military service impacts different people differently, for some it defines the rest of their days, for others it was something they did and they rarely if ever think about it again. I agree with all that, and as much as possible with groups or items I really value I *want* to know the rest of the story as well, it completes the picture.

All that said, I think what people (at least in this pursuit of ours anyway) get annoyed with is when families don't take the time to acknowledge or understand the military service of their relatives and discard the things related to it without giving it much consideration at all. Yes many of these men had lives after their service, but life in general doesn't require the sacrifices and commitment, nor the possibility of never going home, in the way military service did. That unique combination of sacrifice and its role in being part of a larger theme of US history and patriotic service is in part what sets military vets apart and why many of us choose to reflect so intently on their contributions.

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I have spoken to vets who did not like anyone any of his nephews or nieces and did not want his items going to them.. so they sold them.

 

In other circumstances, the vet said that a future relative will just sell them anyway... he may as well spend the money (VERY TRUE statement indeed).

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but life in general doesn't require the sacrifices and commitment, nor the possibility of never going home, in the way military service did. That unique combination of sacrifice and its role in being part of a larger theme of US history and patriotic service is in part what sets military vets apart and why many of us choose to reflect so intently on their contributions.

 

I agree with everything you stated but there are a LOT of professions that require dedication, commitment, and the chance of never coming home again. All of our first responders from police to fire to medics including the doctors and nurses directly serve our country every day. They work nights, weekends, holidays to serve us. Also you have other law enforcement agencies such as the FBI, CIA, ATF, etc. You could even extend it to probation officers and prison guards. While we definitely respect the military, they are not the only ones who serve the citizens of the U.S. on a daily basis.

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I have spoken to vets who did not like anyone any of his nephews or nieces and did not want his items going to them.. so they sold them.

 

In other circumstances, the vet said that a future relative will just sell them anyway... he may as well spend the money (VERY TRUE statement indeed).

So absolutely true, one of my largest collections came directly from the 90 year old AAF CBI Navigator of a B24, who sold me his footlocker filled with uniforms, B-4 bag with more uniforms and his original A2 flight jacket, ribbons, medals, etc. He told me he had a daughter and three grand daughters none of whom had any interest and he wanted the items to go to someone who would study and cherish them. I wrote a biography on him after interviewing him. The collection will always stay together as long as I am the caretaker.

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So absolutely true, one of my largest collections came directly from the 90 year old AAF CBI Navigator of a B24, who sold me his footlocker filled with uniforms, B-4 bag with more uniforms and his original A2 flight jacket, ribbons, medals, etc. He told me he had a daughter and three grand daughters none of whom had any interest and he wanted the items to go to someone who would study and cherish them. I wrote a biography on him after interviewing him. The collection will always stay together as long as I am the caretaker.

I understand both your side and the vets side but there is no difference between you saying "as long as I am the caretaker" and families. Once you are no longer the caretaker, the next person has no direct connection with the veteran so no telling what will happen to the items. They may or may not keep the items together. This is the same as families who are generations removed from the veteran. We cannot judge anyone's decisions based on unknown facts.

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