The family of Army Sgt. Mark Ecker, and the entire community, is dealing with the loss of the local heroes sudden death Friday night. A good samaritan has returned to the Ecker family something they feared were lost: his dog tags.

For the second time in three days, a policeman visited Mark Ecker at his home in East Longmeadow. Friday night, an officer brought the news of Sgt. Mark Ecker's death. Monday afternoon, an officer brought the family relief, in the form of Mark's missing dog tags.

"He wore them always, on the outside of his shirt," said Debra Ecker, Mark's mother.

The dog tags, a part of Army Sgt. Mark Ecker, show his passion for serving our country.

"It connected to him to his fallen comrades and the military over there fighting now," said Mark's father.

They were lost in the crash that took Sergeant Ecker's life Friday night. Ecker was thrown from the car he was riding in, and his dog tags came off. His family wanted them back badly, and a stranger fulfilled their wish.

"To have them back, like my wife said, it is part of him. Part of his identity," said Mr. Ecker.

New Hampshire resident Steve Boyson heard about Ecker's death, and although he never met the solider, he drove to the accident scene on Interstate 93 in Andover to started looking. Somehow, in the thick brush, he found one the dog tags.

"I was on my way back to the car, using a stick to move the brush back and forth and saw a metal object, I knew right away," said Boyson.

Boyson served in the military, as does his own son. That is why he says he felt drawn to go down and find Ecker's dog tags. While Boyson couldn't be there when the Ecker family received the metal tags, he hopes they will help them heal.

"Now it can go back to where it belongs with his family," said Boyson.

Sgt. Mark Ecker will be laid to rest this weekend. The wake will be held inside the East Longmeadow High School auditorium from 3pm to 8pm on Friday.

Then on Saturday, the memorial service is at the football field at the high school starting at 11 in the morning. The funeral will take place Monday at Forastiere Smith Funeral Home in East Longmeadow. That starts at 10:30am. Sgt. Ecker will be buried at Veterans Cemetery in Agawam following the funeral.