WOODVILLE, OH (WTOL) - Todd Icsman can now hold a piece of his father's military past in his hand.
"My dad was a great dude. He had a goofy sense of humor. I wish he would have stuck around longer so I could have asked him some more questions," said Todd.
George Howard Icsman was stationed in Seattle, Washington while serving in the Coast Guard during World War II.
Thirteen years ago, Ken Smith found George's dog tags under a Seattle boardwalk, hoping to return them someday to family members.
But Ken misread the dog tags.
"My dad's name is George Icsman. He thought my dad's name was George Howard and was looking for a man named George Howard," said Todd.
The case of mistaken identity was corrected by a Seattle archeologist.
Ken turned to Facebook, connected with the Icsman family and returned the dog tags.
It's been an emotional ride for Todd because George never talked about his military service.
"Just because he led such a private life about those years. Nothing he ever opened up about. To have a piece of that back is quite remarkable," said Todd.
George Icsman died in 2009. He was 88 years old.
Meanwhile, Todd plans to put the dog tags in a shadow box with George's other Coast Guard memorabilia.
