Organization seeks relatives of Purple Heart recipient

A graveside ceremony is planned this weekend honoring a Korean War veteran whose Purple Heart was discovered by a dog digging in a Denver backyard.

Purple Hearts Reunited says it hopes the ceremony planned Sunday at Richmond Litman’s grave in Denver will help it find Litman’s relatives. Purple Hearts United was founded in 2012 to get lost or stolen medals back to veterans or their families.

Purple Hearts Reunited says a dog dug up the medal behind a Denver house a decade ago. The homeowners recently contacted the organization, which determined Litman was born in Texas in 1926 and was wounded in action in South Korea in 1950, earning his Purple Heart. He died in 1990 and he and his wife Ida are buried at Fort Logan National Cemetery.