CHICAGO – A Purple Heart lost for decades is finally back where it belongs.
The family of World War II Army rifleman James Bennett of Oak Lawn received his medal Monday. With Veterans Day on Tuesday, there’s also a way you can help find the next one.
What we know:
Bennett was wounded twice during World War II — once in France and again in Germany. When he could, he wrote letters home. His words still carry his voice.
After the war, Bennett and his wife settled in Oak Lawn. He volunteered with the local fire and police departments and repaired toys for children with disabilities.
His Purple Heart ended up in an unclaimed safe deposit box.
“When I came into office, I went down into our vault and I saw in a display case a Purple Heart. I wondered who this belonged to and why we were holding on to it. It turns out, a lot of people store their military medals in a bank safe deposited box to keep them from being stolen or burnt up in a house fire,” said Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs.
That discovery inspired Frerichs to launch what’s now known as “Operation Purple Heart,” a state program that tracks down lost medals and returns them to veterans’ families.
“We have to do a bit of homework, detective work out there. We work with the media. Chicago Tribune helped us track down some of these families because it’s not always so easy,” Frerichs said.
That detective work led to Bennett’s relatives in Oak Lawn.
Bennett died in 1990. His wife and daughter have since passed away as well. On Monday, his niece accepted the medal in his honor.
“I think I’m just going to display it at home and I also want to take a picture and send it to all the relatives that are left alive and share it with them too,” said Patty Knies. “And I hope that this also encourages other people to look into getting their Purple Hearts from their family members.”
Her hope echoes the treasurer’s mission to bring more medals home.
“This is the 17th Purple Heart we’ve returned since taking office. I believe that’s the most in the country. But our job is not done yet. We still have six more in our possession that we would love to get into the warm embrace of their family and out of our cold vault,” Frerichs said.
Once tucked away behind steel, Bennett’s medal is now back in the hands of those who remember him.
What’s next:
Illinois has returned 17 lost Purple Hearts since 2015. Six more remain unclaimed.
If you think one might belong to someone you know, visit the Illinois Treasurer’s Operation Purple Heart website.
The Source: The information in this article was reported by FOX 32’s Terrence Lee.
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