LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Southern California woman who grew up knowing little of her father — a heroic casualty of World War II — is now the proud owner of his long-lost battle medals, including a Silver Star and Purple Heart.

Hyla Merin's mother never spoke about the Army officer who died before she was born. The scraps of information she gathered from other relatives were hazy: 2nd Lt. Hyman Markel was a rabbi's son, brilliant at mathematics, the brave winner of battlefield honors who died sometime in 1945.

Aside from wedding photos of Markel in uniform, Merin never glimpsed him.