re: Found the saddest thing ever at a garage sale last weekend

Posted by Philzilla2k

Member since Oct 2017

11074 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 3:36 pm to theantiquetiger

Awards only matter on your ERB

Posted by tiger91

In my own little world

Member since Nov 2005

36741 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 3:38 pm to theantiquetiger

WHAT THE HELL

I have my dad's Army dog tag ... when I was training/running half marathons, I kept it pinned into my shorts pocket.

WHO THE HELL SELLS THOSE?? And for .50???

Posted by tiger91

In my own little world

Member since Nov 2005

36741 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 3:39 pm to theantiquetiger

And now I'm sad.

Posted by Champagne

Already Conquered USA.

Member since Oct 2007

48461 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 3:45 pm to theantiquetiger

Was she hot?

Posted by madamsquirrel

The Snarlington Estate

Member since Jul 2009

48860 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 3:47 pm to theantiquetiger

quote:
for sell

que?

My great uncle died in France in WWII. Apparently my great grandmother was distraught. She had him buried there and all of his medals were in a box in the back if the guest room closet. No one spoke his name even decades later because she would burst into tears. After she passed away my aunt had them mounted and hung them in my grandmothers house. But they were never displayed or cared about by my great grandmother.

Donation to a museum is a great idea if family doesn't want them.

This post was edited on 11/10/20 at 3:55 pm

Posted by Traveler

I'm not late-I'm early for tomorrow

Member since Sep 2003

24275 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 4:19 pm to madamsquirrel

Those of you in possession of a casket flag of a family member that you would like to donate to a honorable cause, please consider the Avenue of Flags Foundation in Lake Charles.
These flags are cataloged with the deceased name, hometown, military background and are flown in Orange Grove Cemetery on Memorial and Veterans Day. They now have over 1,000 flags and it is an impressive and moving sight to see them all displayed.

Ave of Flags

This post was edited on 11/10/20 at 4:20 pm

Posted by Buckeye Jeaux

Member since May 2018

17756 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 5:56 pm to theantiquetiger

quote:
This event has bothered me for four days now. How could someone do this?

She genuinely didn't know their significance, would be my guess.

Good for you for explaining things to her. And good for her for keeping them.

Posted by 56lsu

jackson mich

Member since Dec 2005

7441 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 5:58 pm to Lincoln Dawson

Posted by dbeck

Member since Nov 2014

29453 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 6:06 pm to theantiquetiger

quote:
She decided to keep them (I guess I guilted her into it)

She probably sold them for $0.25 to the next person after you left.

Posted by SpotCheckBilly

Member since May 2020

6544 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 6:45 pm to Traveler

quote:
Those of you in possession of a casket flag of a family member that you would like to donate to a honorable cause, please consider the Avenue of Flags Foundation in Lake Charles.
These flags are cataloged with the deceased name, hometown, military background and are flown in Orange Grove Cemetery on Memorial and Veterans Day. They now have over 1,000 flags and it is an impressive and moving sight to see them all displayed.

Good to know.

My wife's aunt and uncle died and they had no kids. All the nieces and their husbands gathered up to go through the house. I ended up with his WWII uniform and his casket flag because no one else wanted them and I wasn't about to let that stuff be thrown away. He followed Patton around in Europe.

Posted by chinhoyang

Member since Jun 2011

23604 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 6:51 pm to theantiquetiger

There is some sad stuff.

Years ago, I received a call to buy a very nice 50's Lionel boxed set with a Lionel Virginian FM diesel. It was like new, fully boxed and was a super set.

I offered market price and went to pick up the set. When I arrived, the woman and her husband said "I'm sorry but we just cannot sell this set. We bought it for our son as a Christmas present but he was struck by a car as he was getting off the school bus and he was killed." I don't blame them for not selling it. I showed them how to archivally pack the train so it would not rust or be damaged.

Posted by chinhoyang

Member since Jun 2011

23604 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 6:54 pm to theantiquetiger

Dad's Marine stuff had been "grazed" over the years - probably some relatives but also some visitors. He had stuff signed by Chesty Puller, Admirals Nimitz and Kimmel and Halsey, etc. All gone, except for one signed by Holland "Howling Mad" Smith.

A lot of his medals also disappeared.

Posted by kywildcatfanone

Wildcat Country!

Member since Oct 2012

119430 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 6:57 pm to theantiquetiger

Your post is a microcosm of what is going on in the country as a whole. That is terribly sad.

Posted by Traveler

I'm not late-I'm early for tomorrow

Member since Sep 2003

24275 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 6:58 pm to SpotCheckBilly

quote:
He followed Patton around in Europe.

I'll bet he had some interesting stories about his travels.

The flags are numbered and if you wish to see it displayed on Memorial and Veterans Day, the volunteers on hand will direct you to where it is displayed. And as expected, they are handled and stored with care and respect.

For us kids, seeing his flag with others was like my Dad was back with his old WW2 buddies again.

This post was edited on 11/10/20 at 7:00 pm

Posted by HoustonGumbeauxGuy

Member since Jul 2011

29640 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 7:08 pm to theantiquetiger

quote:
This event has bothered me for four days now. How could someone do this?

Because you get emotionally invested in the lives of strangers.

Posted by TexasTiger89

Houston, TX

Member since Feb 2005

24352 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 8:49 pm to theantiquetiger

Yes that is sad. My father-in-law fought in WWII. We have his medals in a shadow box. Will do the same with my Dad's medals from Vietnam.

Posted by Steadyhands

Slightly above I-10

Member since May 2016

6818 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 8:58 pm to solus

quote:
If you think that is sad, You really need to get out more.
Never heard the saying one man's trash is another's treasure? People don't value everything the same.

My goodness, look at this trash here. You certainly are every man's trash and no man's treasure.

Posted by NoSaint

Member since Jun 2011

11304 posts

Posted on 11/10/20 at 9:18 pm to northshorebamaman

quote:
Look, she may be a terrible person, but I'm just not going to assume so when there are other reasonable explanations.

I think the obvious guess is that plenty of war heros aren’t good parents too. In fact some are downright terrible.

Clearly I don’t know anything about the situation but sad he wasn’t trying to make money, it was just a half step above throwing them out. Kind of shouts “is this someone that hurt her badly but she feels some obligation to” which would fit an abusive parent or some similar narrative.