BETHLEHEM, Pa. — In a mission rooted in respect and reverence, state Treasurer Stacy Garrity announced a milestone achievement approaching Memorial Day weekend.
Since taking office in 2021, Garrity’s department has returned 500 military medals and pieces of memorabilia to veterans and their families, according to a release.
That includes smaller items — such as dog tags — that are being processed for return to a resident of Northampton County, Garrity’s office confirmed.
“Each item that comes to our vault is an important part of someone’s story. And returning each one to the rightful owner who earned it or their family is a way to show our gratitude for their immense sacrifices for our nation’s defense.”Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity
The office received dog tags from an abandoned safe deposit box in 2009. The box belonged to a man named Robert Reed, who lived in Bethlehem and died in 2012.
The dog tags belonged to Reed's father, Harry K. Reed, a World War I Veteran. The dog tags were pre-WWI dog tags, inscribed: "Harry K. Reed SER G Z BN 23 ENRS U.S.A."
Garrity's office was able to connect with the veteran’s grandson, who now lives in Texas, and is in the process of returning them.
“Each item that comes to our vault is an important part of someone’s story," Garrity said.
"And returning each one to the rightful owner who earned it or their family is a way to show our gratitude for their immense sacrifices for our nation’s defense.”
Tokens of service, sacrifice
The 500 items returned include 12 Purple Hearts, three Bronze Stars and a rare Gold Star medal — tokens of service spanning generations and wars.
Many of the decorations found their way to the Treasury’s vault in Harrisburg after sitting dormant in abandoned safe deposit boxes, Garrity’s office said.
By law, such property is turned over to the state after three years of inactivity.
Some of the returned items included:
- A Bronze Star and engraved funeral bullet casing to the family of Frank Musto, a U.S. Army veteran from Westmoreland County. Musto was wounded in France during World War II and earned multiple decorations, including a Purple Heart and the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal.
- Medals — including a National Defense Service Medal and Korean Service Medal — that belonged to Timothy Marahoris, a Korean War veteran from Harrisburg. The items were returned to his church, Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral, after it was discovered he had no surviving relatives.
- A 1933 Gold Star Mothers and Widows Pilgrimage Medal returned to the descendants of Agnes Morrison. She visited her son’s grave in France after he was killed in action just 10 days before the end of World War I. He had received the Croix de Guerre with palm for his bravery. The medal, awarded to French and Allied soldiers, signifies exceptional gallantry in the face of the enemy.
Hundreds of decorations remain unclaimed
Today, about 500 military decorations — medals, ribbons, pins, buttons and more — still sit unclaimed in the Treasury's vault.
But Garrity said she's determined not to let them remain there.
“The team at Treasury is dedicated to finding the veterans and families whose medals are in our care,” Garrity said.
“They make cold calls, dig through records, and scour the internet. We leave no stone unturned.
"And as long as I’m treasurer, we will never stop searching for the rightful owners. I encourage everyone to help us in the search for these veterans and their families.”
The public can help by visiting patreasury.gov/unclaimed-property/Medals to view the list of unclaimed military items and possibly identify their rightful owners.
"It’s my solemn duty to make sure every medal in our care is returned to the veteran who earned it or to their family who also made tremendous sacrifices for our country.”Pennsylvania Treasurer Garrity
Garrity, who also is a veteran, said she finds deep personal meaning in the mission.
“Every return is near and dear to my heart,” she said. “It’s my solemn duty to make sure every medal in our care is returned to the veteran who earned it or to their family who also made tremendous sacrifices for our country.”
The work is just part of a larger mission. Alongside military memorabilia, the Pennsylvania Treasury is working to return more than $5 billion in unclaimed property statewide.
Items include varied things such as bank accounts and insurance policies, with the average claim valued at $1,000.
To see if you or a loved one has unclaimed property, visit patreasury.gov/unclaimed-property.
