SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) -- 91-year-old Gene Coyle of Sioux Falls finally has his Purple Heart.
Coyle won the medal nearly 70 years ago in the Korean War, but his official records were apparently lost in a fire, so repeated requests by his family went nowhere.
Some intervention by Senator John Thune (R) finally broke the bureacratic log jam.
Thune had the honor of presenting the long-deserved medal to Coyle at a special ceremony in the lobby of the Sioux Falls VA Medical Center on Wednesday.