Grandsons to be reunited with grandfather's Purple Heart

A Purple Heart, like those that will be presented to victims of the July 16 shootings, is pictured.
A Purple Heart, like those that will be presented to victims of the July 16 shootings, is pictured.

The grandsons of a military veteran will be reunited with his Purple Heart medal Friday after it was abandoned in a safe-deposit box in a local bank.

Tennessee State Treasurer David H. Lillard Jr. will present Charles Parris and his brother Freddie Parris with their grandfather Claude Parris' Purple Heart at 11 a.m. at the First Volunteer Bank.

The Purple Heart was one of two military decorations earned by Claude Parris for his service in World War II. His grandsons said Claude Parris served on the European front, fighting with United States forces in both Paris and Luxembourg, where he tragically lost part of his right leg while fighting in the Battle of the Bulge.

Charles Parris stored the medal in a safe-deposit box in a Chattanooga branch of the First Volunteer Bank. The box was abandoned, but thanks to a Tennessee law protecting all military decorations, the bank turned it over to Tennessee Treasury's Division of Unclaimed Property.

This is the first military medal returned by the Tennessee Department of Treasury Division of Unclaimed Property since the law went into effect in 2011.

Upcoming Events