The National West Service is monitoring another potential severe thunderstorm happening for Friday in the West Chicago area. All hazards will be possible with these storms including damaging winds, large hail, and isolated thunderstorms. Stay weather aware during the evening while these storms move through the area.
Your local area forecast through the Memorial Day Weekend:
Friday Night
Showers and thunderstorms likely before 1am. Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly clear, with a low around 56. South wind 10 to 15 mph becoming west northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Saturday
Sunny, with a high near 76. West northwest wind 5 to 10 mph, with gusts as high as 15 mph.
Saturday Night
A slight chance of showers between 1am and 4am, then a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms after 4am. Partly cloudy, with a low around 56. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Sunday
Showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm before 7am, then showers and thunderstorms likely after 7am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 72. Chance of precipitation is 70%.
Sunday Night
Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 55.
Memorial Day
A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 70.
Monday Night
A chance of showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 53.
The National West Service is monitoring another potential severe thunderstorm happening for Friday in the West Chicago area. All hazards will be possible with these storms including damaging winds, large hail, and tornadoes. Stay weather aware during the evening while these storms move through the area.
Reuniting Purple Heart Medals with Their Rightful Owners
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I was recently in Washington, D.C. for a couple of visits to the White House on fighting junk fees and discussing labor principles in private equity, as well as speaking to North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU). Between meetings, I walked with a friend to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a powerful monument that lists every one of the 58,318 Americans who gave their lives in service to their country in that war.
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I wanted to see my Uncle Doug’s name.
In April 1968, he was killed by an enemy mortar in Vietnam on my parents’ wedding day, though they didn’t find out for a couple of weeks.
At the memorial, I saw a man making a rubbing of a name, and asked where he found the paper and pencil. He told me his name was George, and he gave me a sheet and let me borrow a pencil. I found Doug’s name, made a rubbing, reflected silently for a bit, and went to return the pencil.
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The photo above is of my uncle Doug, who died in the Vietnam War. His full name was Amel Douglas Royalty.
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George said he did the rubbings for people who couldn’t make it to D.C. but wanted a memento of their friends or family members who didn’t make it back alive. As we talked, a group of veterans approached visiting the memorial as part of an Honor Flight. The veterans wore identical yellow T-shirts, and I saw that they were from the Quad Cities.
I wasn’t going to bother them during a somber time, but I noticed a woman stretching to make a rubbing for a veteran. When I overhead her say, “If only we had someone tall!” I took that as an invitation to help.
It wasn’t long before there was another request to help with a name that was just out of reach. I was happy to do this small thing for the families and friends of people who made the ultimate sacrifice. It wasn’t difficult, but it made me feel good to help them out.
On Monday, we will observe Memorial Day, and if you are looking for some small way that you might be able to do something for those who served our country, I have a suggestion.
People store valuables in bank safe deposit boxes because they don’t want them stolen or destroyed in a fire. Sometimes, those boxes are abandoned as the owner dies or moves and forgets about them. I am in charge of unclaimed property in our state, and banks send us the items from those boxes, including military medals earned in service to our country.
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I was glad to help people make rubbings and take photos of the names of their loved ones on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
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A couple years ago, I started Operation Purple Heart to try to track down the rightful owners of these medals. We have returned 10 medals so far, and there are more to return.
We have compiled the information we have about these medals and could use your help. Please take a look at our Purple Hearts web page and see if you know any of the people listed and have information that might help us track them down.
Purple Hearts can be difficult to return. These medals often were earned posthumously. Neither names nor the war they were earned in are engraved on the medals. In many cases, the owner of the safe deposit box wasn’t the medal’s recipient. In addition, many soldiers returned home with PTSD. We tracked down one recipient, but he is now believed to be living off the grid and has not responded to our attempts to return his medal.
These last Purple Hearts are challenging to return, but a little time from you could result in a small clue that would make a big difference to someone who has lost something valuable to them.
Memorial Day is a national holiday dedicated to those who died in service to our country. They answered the call and made the ultimate sacrifice. Can you please give just a few minutes to help them?
Sincerely,
Michael W. Frerichs
Illinois State Treasurer
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