Watch left behind at Fort Hood more than 50 years ago after Vietnam deployment returned home to family of Manitowoc veteran who died a year ago
MANITOWOC - A wristwatch, forgotten in a box for more than 50 years, has been returned to its rightful owner, thanks to a little detective work and a newspaper article.
U.S. Army veteran Stephen (Shorty) Menendez, who lives in Tennessee, reached out the Herald Times Reporter a few weeks ago in hopes of finding a man who accidently forgot his watch when he shipped out of Fort Hood in 1974.
“I’d just really like to get the watch back to him or his family,” Menendez said. “They deserve to have it.”
Family members who read the news story identified the man as Thomas Seiler, who died almost a year ago. Menendez mailed the Timex to Rob Seiler, Thomas’s son.
“It was kind of a noble thing for Shorty to do,” Rob said. “It isn’t a fancy, expensive watch. Probably what an 18-year-old in 1974 could afford. Most people probably wouldn’t have bothered. But it’s nice to have it, and now it has a good story behind it.”
Menendez — who found the watch in a box of old memorabilia — didn’t have much to go on when he started his search.
He knew the former soldier grew up in Manitowoc and planned to return home, and thought his name was Tony. He couldn’t remember Tony’s last name and had no photo.
Luckily, he recalled one unique detail.
“(Thomas) is remembered by his truck, which he had me paint names above each wheel well on this tan- and brown-colored Dodge truck — Milly, Willy, Dillet and Tilly,” Menendez, who was Thomas’s sergeant, said. “He had a great sense of humor and this was just for fun.”
Since Thomas grew up in smallish Manitowoc, people began to try to identify a guy named "Tony."
“My dad grew up in this town, so people knew him,” Rob said. “My uncle flagged down my other uncle, Pete, who was closest to my dad. Then, they called me and said ‘Is this Tommy?’”
The truck seemed familiar, but because Menendez identified Thomas with the wrong name, Rob was hesitant. Finally, he decided to call Menendez to see what he knew.
“We have a picture of my dad in the service with half a tooth missing,” Rob said. “We always joked with my mom about what she ever saw in him.”
Menendez remembered Thomas as a guy with a goofy smile that reminded him of the "Mad" magazine mascot Alfred E. Neuman.
“As soon as he told me that, I said, ‘Yeah, that’s my dad,” Rob said.
Menendez told the newspaper the pair served together in the Army’s 17th Combat Engineers Battalion at Fort Hood, working on heavy equipment, including cranes, bulldozers and graders. Menendez was Thomas’ sergeant.
Thomas took off his watch while working on machinery and Menendez said he accidentally left it above a locker in the office.
From there, Thomas was stationed in Korea, where he met his future wife. They returned to Manitowoc and raised three boys.
He proudly continued running heavy equipment throughout his career after leaving the service, Rob said. Thomas was a member of Operating Engineers Local 139 for more than 30 years.
Thomas went into hospice on Thanksgiving 2021 and died on Dec. 17. The family keeps the Timex watch near his folded U.S. flag given to veteran's family after they pass away.
“I think Shorty was happy to find us, even if he was disappointed he just missed my dad,” Rob said. “For our family, the return of the watch is a great story.”
And what would Thomas say about his returned watch?
“He’d have a good laugh,” Rob said. “Then, he’d say ‘Why would you keep that old watch for so long?’”
Contact reporter Patti Zarling at pzarling@gannett.com or call 920-606-2586. Follow her on Twitter @PGPattiZarling.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Timex watch left after Vietnam returned to family of Manitowoc veteran
