A Purple Heart Medal that once belonged to a war hero from Rockville Centre finally has a new home.

Technical Sgt. Charles Crabbe was killed in action during WWII in 1944. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal for his sacrifice, but 75 years later it ended up tucked in a sofa at an estate sale in Orlando, Florida.

The person who found the medal gave it to Brenda Carlson of AMVETS 81 in North Fort Myers, Florida. Carlson launched a mission to return the medal to Crabbe's family but her emails and letters to his last known address went unanswered.

That's when Carlson enlisted the help of other veterans' groups and the nonprofit Purple Hearts Reunited.

"A Purple Heart is such an honor and such a high honor that it needs to be returned the family," says Carlson.

After a two-year search, Carlson and her team of researchers found a couple of distant cousins of Sgt. Crabbe. They decided the best way to honor Crabbe's heroism was to share his medal with the country.

Carlson donated the medal to the National Purple Heart Honor Mission. It will be showcased in a traveling exhibit across the nation.

Richie Lay, of the National Purple Heart Honor Mission says, "Our entire mission at this point is to make sure the younger generation understands in this era of lets forget our past history, that's not going to happen with Sgt. Crabbe. We will always honor him."