Employees at a Goodwill store in Edmond, Oklahoma, recently stumbled upon a remarkable find, unveiling hidden documents and items dating back to World War II.
Workers at the store found a secret compartment in a lockbox filled with discharge papers from the United States Navy, service records, a medal with several service ribbons, and a thank you letter signed by then-President Harry S. Truman. Goodwill employees believe the well-preserved documents belonged to a young Navy sailor named Robert H. Lynch, who was honorably discharged after serving his country.
The President's letter reads, "To you who answered the call of your country and served in its Armed Forces to bring about the total defeat of the enemy, I extend the heartfelt thanks of a grateful Nation. As one of the Nation's finest, you undertook the most severe task one can be called upon to perform."
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. >Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
"Because you demonstrated the fortitude, resourcefulness and calm judgment necessary to carry out that task, we now look to you for leadership and example in further exalting our country in peace," the letter from the White House continues.
Believing the items had been accidentally donated, the Goodwill staff was able to track down a living relative in the area.
"Based on the condition of the papers, the team was confident the person who donated the lockbox likely did not know about their existence," Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma said in a statement.
The team returned the documents over the Fourth of July weekend.
This wasn't the first time that family items accidentally turned up at Goodwill donation centers. In 2015, the thrift store chain received an urn with human ashes at one of its Washington locations. Most recently, a woman's wedding dress was accidentally donated to a local Goodwill in California by her parents.
