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ENLARGE
A snapshot of Charles Owens is draped by some of the military medals that belonged to him.
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ENLARGE
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Rose Haven Nursing Center certified nursing assistant Belinda Whittington looks over medals she discovered on a shelf at the Roseburg facility about a year ago. The box full of military medals belonged to Charles “Chuck” Owens, who died at Rose Haven in 1990. Whittington tracked down Owens’ family and will be returning the medals.
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The nursing home room had been deserted for years. The storage cabinet that nearly touched the ceiling of the room had been empty for just as long.
Or so everyone assumed.
But tucked in the back corner of the cabinet was a small box that had been overlooked for nearly two decades. Inside were three picture frames that displayed the war achievements of Charles “Chuck” Owens, who died in January 1990.
The glass of the dusty frames had been broken at some point throughout the years, but the medals remained exactly as Owens had arranged them.
The silver and bronze badges were assembled on pieces of cardboard that, decades ago, had been covered by royal blue fabric and placed in the black picture frames.
One cardboard plaque held four medals awarded for achievement, good conduct and bravery and included a Bronze Star medal. Another included three medals recognizing Owens’ marksmanship with a machine gun and pistol. And the third piece held just one medal: the Purple Heart.
When Belinda Whittington began cleaning the abandoned room in the 700 wing of Rose Haven Nursing Center, she had no idea she would discover the military medals that had been left behind when Owens died and that were never retrieved by family members.
But as soon as the certified nursing assistant came across the mementos, she knew she needed to find the family to which they belonged.
“I was just fascinated by them,” she said of the medals, which she found nearly a year ago. “And I thought if they were my grandpa’s, I’d want them returned, so I did.”
Whittington discovered Owens’ name engraved on the back of the medals and began researching the man. Old newspapers in the library revealed he died in 1990 and was buried in Sutherlin.
Employees at the Roseburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center informed Whittington that Owens had been a patient at the center and had no family in Douglas County. The VA did have contact information for a sister and daughter of Owens’, though, and handed it over to Whittington.
When the phone numbers supplied by the VA didn’t work, Whittington returned to the medical center and asked for more recent information. A VA employee told Whittington that the center didn’t have any more details and suggested she donate the medals to a veterans group.
“They weren’t mine to donate. They belong to somebody in that family,” she said. “And I told them, ‘I’ll find (the family). It may take me a while, but I’ll find them.’”
So Whittington turned to the Internet. She posted what little information she knew about Owens on a genealogy Web site, GenForum.com, and waited.
A few weeks ago, Whittington heard from Owens’ niece, Mary Ciaccia, and her husband, Jack Ciaccia, who now live in Colorado.
Jack Ciaccia checks the Web site from time to time, hoping to discover more information about his wife’s family, and was surprised to see information about Owens, he said in a phone interview last week.
Ciaccia and his wife had been close with Owens and his wife, Marguerite, for many years. But when Marguerite died in 1984, Owens moved from city to city and the Ciaccias — and most of the family — lost touch with the man.
After connecting on the Web site, Whittington and Ciaccia exchanged a few e-mails. Whittington offered to mail the medals to the family, and Ciaccia provided Whittington with some history on the man about whom she knew so little.
Owens was born and raised near Missoula, Mont., on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. He went to Montana State University-Bozeman, where he received a boxing scholarship. After a few years in school, he went to work as a lithographer with a printing company.
In 1941, Owens joined the U. S. Army and served for four years during World War II. While in Italy, Owens was wounded when shrapnel was lodged in his back during the Battle of Anzio. The incident earned him the Purple Heart.
Upon completing his enlistment, Owens moved to Klamath Falls and worked in lumber mills. He married and had a daughter, Patty. A few years later, Owens and his wife divorced, and in 1950 he married Marguerite.
The pair managed hotels in the Klamath Falls area until they retired. When Ciaccia and his wife were married in 1962, they turned to Owens and Marguerite for a place to stay. Ciaccia and his wife moved into the housekeeping apartment of one of the hotels Owens managed.
Ciaccia said he and his wife and children lived near Owens for years and included him in family life. The Colorado man said Owens was a good man who was great with kids. He can still remember watching Owens play the organ while Ciaccia’s children sang along with their great-uncle.
Owens also loved spending his time playing cards, bowling and picnicking with his wife. In all the years Ciaccia knew Owens, Ciaccia said he could only think of a couple of instances when Owens mentioned his service in the military, but Ciaccia did remember the medals.
Ciaccia could still recall seeing the various medals pinned to the cardboard and placed inside the black picture frames that hung on the wall of Owens’ home. But Ciaccia said he didn’t know what had happened to the medals when Owens moved into the Roseburg nursing home in 1989.
“I thought they were long gone,” Ciaccia said of the medals. “... I’m completely surprised that he still kept them. Obviously they meant more to him than he let on.”
And Whittington agrees.
While holding one of the cardboard plaques in her hand — occasionally running her fingers across the raised shapes on the medals — Whittington thinks about the man she never knew.
“I think he would have been very proud of them,” she said of the medals. “I think there would have been stories behind them.”
• You can reach reporter Marissa Harshman at 957-4202 or by e-mail at mharshman@nrtoday.com.
Or so everyone assumed.
But tucked in the back corner of the cabinet was a small box that had been overlooked for nearly two decades. Inside were three picture frames that displayed the war achievements of Charles “Chuck” Owens, who died in January 1990.
The glass of the dusty frames had been broken at some point throughout the years, but the medals remained exactly as Owens had arranged them.
The silver and bronze badges were assembled on pieces of cardboard that, decades ago, had been covered by royal blue fabric and placed in the black picture frames.
One cardboard plaque held four medals awarded for achievement, good conduct and bravery and included a Bronze Star medal. Another included three medals recognizing Owens’ marksmanship with a machine gun and pistol. And the third piece held just one medal: the Purple Heart.
When Belinda Whittington began cleaning the abandoned room in the 700 wing of Rose Haven Nursing Center, she had no idea she would discover the military medals that had been left behind when Owens died and that were never retrieved by family members.
But as soon as the certified nursing assistant came across the mementos, she knew she needed to find the family to which they belonged.
“I was just fascinated by them,” she said of the medals, which she found nearly a year ago. “And I thought if they were my grandpa’s, I’d want them returned, so I did.”
Whittington discovered Owens’ name engraved on the back of the medals and began researching the man. Old newspapers in the library revealed he died in 1990 and was buried in Sutherlin.
Employees at the Roseburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center informed Whittington that Owens had been a patient at the center and had no family in Douglas County. The VA did have contact information for a sister and daughter of Owens’, though, and handed it over to Whittington.
When the phone numbers supplied by the VA didn’t work, Whittington returned to the medical center and asked for more recent information. A VA employee told Whittington that the center didn’t have any more details and suggested she donate the medals to a veterans group.
“They weren’t mine to donate. They belong to somebody in that family,” she said. “And I told them, ‘I’ll find (the family). It may take me a while, but I’ll find them.’”
So Whittington turned to the Internet. She posted what little information she knew about Owens on a genealogy Web site, GenForum.com, and waited.
A few weeks ago, Whittington heard from Owens’ niece, Mary Ciaccia, and her husband, Jack Ciaccia, who now live in Colorado.
Jack Ciaccia checks the Web site from time to time, hoping to discover more information about his wife’s family, and was surprised to see information about Owens, he said in a phone interview last week.
Ciaccia and his wife had been close with Owens and his wife, Marguerite, for many years. But when Marguerite died in 1984, Owens moved from city to city and the Ciaccias — and most of the family — lost touch with the man.
After connecting on the Web site, Whittington and Ciaccia exchanged a few e-mails. Whittington offered to mail the medals to the family, and Ciaccia provided Whittington with some history on the man about whom she knew so little.
Owens was born and raised near Missoula, Mont., on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. He went to Montana State University-Bozeman, where he received a boxing scholarship. After a few years in school, he went to work as a lithographer with a printing company.
In 1941, Owens joined the U. S. Army and served for four years during World War II. While in Italy, Owens was wounded when shrapnel was lodged in his back during the Battle of Anzio. The incident earned him the Purple Heart.
Upon completing his enlistment, Owens moved to Klamath Falls and worked in lumber mills. He married and had a daughter, Patty. A few years later, Owens and his wife divorced, and in 1950 he married Marguerite.
The pair managed hotels in the Klamath Falls area until they retired. When Ciaccia and his wife were married in 1962, they turned to Owens and Marguerite for a place to stay. Ciaccia and his wife moved into the housekeeping apartment of one of the hotels Owens managed.
Ciaccia said he and his wife and children lived near Owens for years and included him in family life. The Colorado man said Owens was a good man who was great with kids. He can still remember watching Owens play the organ while Ciaccia’s children sang along with their great-uncle.
Owens also loved spending his time playing cards, bowling and picnicking with his wife. In all the years Ciaccia knew Owens, Ciaccia said he could only think of a couple of instances when Owens mentioned his service in the military, but Ciaccia did remember the medals.
Ciaccia could still recall seeing the various medals pinned to the cardboard and placed inside the black picture frames that hung on the wall of Owens’ home. But Ciaccia said he didn’t know what had happened to the medals when Owens moved into the Roseburg nursing home in 1989.
“I thought they were long gone,” Ciaccia said of the medals. “... I’m completely surprised that he still kept them. Obviously they meant more to him than he let on.”
And Whittington agrees.
While holding one of the cardboard plaques in her hand — occasionally running her fingers across the raised shapes on the medals — Whittington thinks about the man she never knew.
“I think he would have been very proud of them,” she said of the medals. “I think there would have been stories behind them.”
• You can reach reporter Marissa Harshman at 957-4202 or by e-mail at mharshman@nrtoday.com.
