A Purple Heart belonging to a World War II veteran from Illinois spent decades in a safe deposit box before being returned to his family in time for Veteran’s Day.
The Purple Heart, awarded to U.S. Army rifleman James Bennett during World War II, ended up in the possession of Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs as part of Operation Purple Heart, a program he launched to return military medals from abandoned safe deposit boxes to their rightful owners.
“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 told FOX 32 Chicago.
Bennett, a longtime Oak Park resident, died in 1990 at the age of 76. His wife, Ann, died seven years later.
The couple’s niece, Patty Knies, became the legal guardian of their daughter, Susan, who suffered from severe disabilities. Knies said Susan had not been expected to survive beyond childhood, but she lived into her 50s.
Knies said she didn’t know about the safety deposit box in Ann Bennett’s name until she was contacted about the Purple Heart. The box’s contents had been surrendered to Frerichs’ office in 2022.
“I knew nothing about the safety deposit box,” Knies told The Reporter newspaper. “When my aunt and uncle passed, a lot of items were also passed on. But in no way did I know about this. This is exciting. He was a really great guy.”
Frerichs presented Knies with Bennett’s Purple Heart in a ceremony on Monday.
“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,” Knies said. “And I hope that this also encourages other people to look into getting their Purple Hearts from their family members.”
Frerichs said Operation Purple Heart’s work is ongoing.
“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.
