An American flag led to a Memorial Day surprise that an Arizona family will never forget.
A few months ago, Lisa Gomez bought an American flag while at a flea market in the Mesa, Arizona, area.
Wrapped inside the folded flag was a card containing the name of World War II veteran Donald Peigh, from Hamlet, Indiana, who had served in the U.S. Army from 1943 to 1945.
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"I just thought, oh my gosh, I can't unfold this flag, it belongs to someone," Gomez told KPHO-TV. "I'm sure the family would love to have it back."
Gomez is from a military family herself. Her son is a U.S. Marine and her father was in the U.S. Army. She said she knew she had to find Peigh, or his family, and return the flag.
Gomez tried looking for the veteran on her own, but didn't have any luck. She asked the help of KPHO-TV, which was able to track down Peigh's daughter.
"I know how much my father's flag means to me, and we have that proudly displayed," Gomez said. "I was just thinking for sure, this means something to someone out there."
Peigh's daughter, Patti Peigh, lived nearby in Scottsdale.
On Monday, Memorial Day, Gomez met Patti Peigh at her father's grave site. He passed away 18 years ago and Gomez gave Peigh the flag that belonged to her father.
Peigh said she didn't know the flag even existed.
"This is the biggest surprise I've ever had in my life," Peigh said. "This is probably the best day of my life."
Now, Peigh says she is happy that her father's flag is home, where it belongs.
"My dad is in heaven smiling right now, and my mom is saying 'thank you very much,'" Peigh said.
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