SMITHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Between the World War II-era journal, pictures, and Purple Heart, Phillip and Jenny Vining have a box of treasures.
They've never met the family it belongs to. The box says, 'Grand Paw. War Two.'
Phillip found it in the Dekalb County Cookeville Highway Collection Center in Smithville. He was hauling trash when he saw the box on one of the dumpsters. He looked inside and immediately spotted the Purple Heart.
"I questioned, 'why would God allow him to find it?'" said Jenny. "I do know why. We want it to get back to the family."
The Vinings have some important clues to get it there. Most key is a dog tag.
"Russell Emery. Russell M. Emery," Phillip read, then held up a panoramic picture. "This was his battalion, I guess, before they shipped off to fight in the war."
Also important is a journal with details of the Emery family.
"[Russell] went over and was slightly wounded in France somewhere," said Phillip. "He came home on the Queen Mary, and this was inside the box."
Phillip showed a crinkled old picture of the Queen Mary.
"He was a member of VFW 5312," he continued. "Haven't had a lot of luck getting ahold of them. It's in Aurora, Indiana."
While the pictures include the battalion and Queen Mary, there is not a specific picture of Emery.
Of course, Philip and Jenny have many questions. What's the story behind a second dog tag in the box belonging to Gary Schneider? How did the box end up at the Dekalb County Cookeville Highway Collection Center?
"Don't know how it made it to the dump, but it sure didn't belong there," Phillip said.
Phillip tells WRTV Emery's daughter lives in Dearborn County, Indiana and they plan to mail the keepsakes to her this week.
-
State approves $15M for Miami County immigration detention center
The State Budget Committee has approved more than $15 million to help prepare the Miami County Correctional Facility, dubbed the "Speedway Slammer," to serve as a federal immigration detention center.
Body recovered from pond near Castleton, IMPD investigating
IMPD has confirmed a death investigation is underway after a body was recovered from a pond near Castleton at 82nd Street and Craig Avenue Wednesday morning.
Bystander killed by stray bullet in Greenwood, suspect in custody
A 21-year-old Indianapolis man is in custody after a shooting that left an uninvolved bystander dead at a Greenwood apartment complex.
AES Indiana seeks public input on coal ash contamination corrective measures
Groundwater monitoring results of the Harding Street Station's Ash Pond System found levels of arsenic, lithium and molybdenum above groundwater protection standards.
