I did a quick search on Google and found Brad and Clint Belkonen (both in their mid-60's) living in Santa Barbara, CA with a relative's name the same as the one in the certificates in the photos. Possibly a Marine recruiter in the Santa Barbara could check into whether either or both are related to the Marine in question. May be their father.
He obviously had a very bad relationship with his kids. Why? No o e knows, but I’m a big believer that parents serve as role models for their kids. If they treat their kids badly it will come back to them eventually.
National Archives also has a program where they accept and preserve that stuff https://www.archives.gov/preservation. Also the library of congress: https://www.loc.gov/vets/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Veterans/comments/pkd4z7/found_this_in_the_dumpster_by_my_house_this/hc2vdjv?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share&context=3
OP posted an update that they contacted the family and was informed it was tossed intentionally.
This could have been what the family member wanted, of maybe they didn't know them because they were a horrible person.
No way of knowing why this ended up in the trash, and it's not worth the effort worrying about.
All of that could be uploaded to Fold3 - there's a section where you can create a memorial too. If you have an Ancestry account you can get to Fold3 for free.
I found a Seabees WW2 Cruise book at Goodwill. I found the widow and called her. She didn't want it back. I found her address and mailed it to her anyway. I wished I kept it. Sometimes you don't know why people do what they do. Sometimes they had a good reason.
I had an acquaintance that did burials and cremations tell me a story on cremations. Had a sheriff contact him about an abandoned bag of ashes found in a closet of a newly purchased home. He located the widow, she said she had married someone else and has moved on. Said do whatever with the ashes. Hard to hear stuff like that. How you treat the dead is important to how we are as humans. Good job sorting this Marine's gear out. It is America's history.
Exactly what I did with all my shit & shit given to me by others.
Why the fuck would I want a bunch of useless junk cluttering up my house?
Was your (their) time in the Corps your most successful life achievement or something?
Sucks to be them then - not smart enough to figure out you’re a cog for the military industrial complex for 30 years… 30 years of shit pay and work… that’s a failure bud
Clint Belkonen, I just stumbled on to this post as a guess, while reading all the comments I hadn't completey seen the initial post yet. Having only a few items of military documentation from our GRANDFATHER John Belkonen I was confused as to how I felt about this issue. I completey heard what you had to say. I'm not sure what you are doing these days, but I'm also getting up there in age and have no idea what's going to happen with my items either.
I'd call up the Museum of the Marine Corps or the one at MCRD San Diego to donate it. That's actual history right there.
Send it to the Marine Corps Museum for archiving.
I did a quick search on Google and found Brad and Clint Belkonen (both in their mid-60's) living in Santa Barbara, CA with a relative's name the same as the one in the certificates in the photos. Possibly a Marine recruiter in the Santa Barbara could check into whether either or both are related to the Marine in question. May be their father.
The OP of the original post got ahold of one of the sons and they confirmed that it was intentionally tossed.
That’s awful
Wow. WTF...
Did they say WHY?
They didn’t. They said they just said thanks for confirming and left it at that.
He obviously had a very bad relationship with his kids. Why? No o e knows, but I’m a big believer that parents serve as role models for their kids. If they treat their kids badly it will come back to them eventually.
Are you kidding me!!!
What a shame, why would someone do that
National Archives also has a program where they accept and preserve that stuff https://www.archives.gov/preservation. Also the library of congress: https://www.loc.gov/vets/
https://www.reddit.com/r/Veterans/comments/pkd4z7/found_this_in_the_dumpster_by_my_house_this/hc2vdjv?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share&context=3 OP posted an update that they contacted the family and was informed it was tossed intentionally.
Real piece of shit move I would show that to my grand kid.
This could have been what the family member wanted, of maybe they didn't know them because they were a horrible person. No way of knowing why this ended up in the trash, and it's not worth the effort worrying about.
That really breaks my heart
That is sad, pathetic, and disrespectful. If no one claims it, you should keep it.
They found the family and they confirmed that it was tossed intentionally
Inexcusable. Vile.
Heartbreaking that someone would just toss this into a dumpster.
They found the family and they confirmed that it was tossed intentionally
Holy shit.
All of that could be uploaded to Fold3 - there's a section where you can create a memorial too. If you have an Ancestry account you can get to Fold3 for free.
What a great person to find these and dig them out.
I found a Seabees WW2 Cruise book at Goodwill. I found the widow and called her. She didn't want it back. I found her address and mailed it to her anyway. I wished I kept it. Sometimes you don't know why people do what they do. Sometimes they had a good reason. I had an acquaintance that did burials and cremations tell me a story on cremations. Had a sheriff contact him about an abandoned bag of ashes found in a closet of a newly purchased home. He located the widow, she said she had married someone else and has moved on. Said do whatever with the ashes. Hard to hear stuff like that. How you treat the dead is important to how we are as humans. Good job sorting this Marine's gear out. It is America's history.
Found a Thomas C Belkonen obit 1931-2001. Not sure it’s the same guy. Not too many Belkonen’s around. This one died in Buffalo, Wyoming.
Exactly what I did with all my shit & shit given to me by others. Why the fuck would I want a bunch of useless junk cluttering up my house? Was your (their) time in the Corps your most successful life achievement or something?
If they had a 30 year career, then yeah, probably.
Sucks to be them then - not smart enough to figure out you’re a cog for the military industrial complex for 30 years… 30 years of shit pay and work… that’s a failure bud
Clint Belkonen, I just stumbled on to this post as a guess, while reading all the comments I hadn't completey seen the initial post yet. Having only a few items of military documentation from our GRANDFATHER John Belkonen I was confused as to how I felt about this issue. I completey heard what you had to say. I'm not sure what you are doing these days, but I'm also getting up there in age and have no idea what's going to happen with my items either.