TAPPAN, NY –  On June 7th, 2013,  Vietnam Veteran, Carl Morton  was presented with a piece of the past – from nearly a half a century ago – his dog tag

Back in 1993, a Vietnam USMC veteran and retired police chief, was in Vietnam with a group called Operation Smile. He was there as logistics support coordinator for the project’s medical program. In the streets outside his hotel, he met villagers who had what appeared to be old, rusty American dog tags. He bought over 400 of them back home and later gave them to the POW/MIA Awareness Committee of New Jersey to locate and return the dog tags to the veterans.

One of those dog tags, belonging to Carl Morton, is now back home in his hands.

“What we have done with this project since receiving the dog tags, is to ensure that each dog tag, when welcomed, is hand delivered to the veteran – by a fellow veteran – brother to brother, ” Sue Quinn-Morris, Director of Research for the POW/MIA Awareness Commitee of NJ, stated.

After locating Morton, his dog tag was given to Charles Maushardt, who is President of the Nam Knights of America MC – Hudson Valley Chapter. The Nam Knights of America MC is a Military and Veteran Motorcycle Club, who has been onboard with the project since its onset and they continue to handle dog tag returns all over the country. To date their chapters have handled returns in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Washington DC, Florida, Illinois, Tennesse, Michigan, Arizona and New York..

The two, Morton and Maushardt, met in Tappan NY where Morton was presented with dog tag.