A dog has been praised for digging up a veteran 's Purple Heart 25 years after the treasured medal went missing . Smuckers , a Labrador-golden retriever , found the award buried in the backyard of his owners ' Denver house in 2004 . His discovery prompted an 11-year journey to find Korean War veteran Cpl Richmond Litman , who is buried nearby in Colorado 's Fort Logan National Cemetery . Hero : Smuckers , a Labrador-golden retriever , being embraced by Leatra Plick after he dug up her father 's Purple Heart while playing in the backyard . Her father , Cpl Richmond Litman , was a Korean War veteran . Treasured : This is tiny heart-shaped medallion which is awarded to U.S. servicemen wounded in battle . Decorated : Cpl Litman , who died in 1990 , served in South Korea between 1948 and 1950 , when he was hit . Finally , after calling every Litman family they could find , Smuckers ' owners Steve Jankousky and Tom Unterwagner saw an advert for a veterans reunion which led them to the serviceman 's daughter Leatra Plick . On Monday , at a ceremony beside Cpl Litman 's white marble headstone , Smuckers presented Plick with the small medal on a purple ribbon . Plick , whose father died in 1990 , told the Denver Post : ' I will honor it as much as he honored it when he was alive . I truly appreciate it from the bottom of my heart . ' According to the paper , Cpl Litman joined the army in 1948 , when he was immediately dispatched to South Korea . Discovery : Smuckers ' owner Steve Jankousky has spent 11 years trying to track down the family . Sniffing around : Jankousky was gardening when Smuckers ran up with the award at home in Denver in 2004 . Finally returned : The family got in touch with Purple Hearts Reunited , who helped connect them with Plick . Salute : Members of Purple Hearts Reunited salute Cpl Litman 's grave in Denver , Colorado . Two years later he was wounded in battle . He would later receive his Purple Heart for putting himself in the line of danger for his country . Litman relocated to Denver , Colorado , where he lived with his family until his death in 1990 . Describing the moment Smuckers discovered the medal , Jankousky told USA Today : ' I was just trying to put the dirt back in the hole , when I saw something shiny and that was it . 'And I went back inside and told [ Unterwagner ] , `` You 're not going to believe what she dug up . '' ' Ret . Col. Jeff Roy , of the Military Order Of The Purple Heart , told the station : 'It is very important to remember the veteran that either gave his life , or shed his blood for his country , and that it remain with the family . ' Ceremony : Jankousky gave Smuckers a purple ribbon leash for the occasion on Sunday . Special occasion : Dogs are not normally allowed in the cemetery but the directors made an exemption . Delighted : Leatra Plick , pictured with her husband , told Fox she was delighted to finally receive the medal .
Smuckers dug up the medal in his Denver back yard in 2004 . Owners spent 11 years trying to track down Fort Logan National Cemetery . Finally , they have found his family , the Korean War vet died in 1990 . Ceremony was held at his grave on Monday , Smuckers delivered award .