By Jaimie Julia Winters
When Michael Langhirt spotted an old military hat at a garage sale in Wayne, it wasn’t the hat itself that caught his attention – it was the word “Kearny.”
Langhirt, a former U.S. Army staff sergeant who served from 1996 to 2009 and grew up in Kearny, was browsing items posted on Facebook Marketplace when he came across the hat. He paid $15 for it.
The woman selling it also gave him a name: John McGaughan. Apparently, the owner’s son was a family friend. But the rest was a mystery.
Langhirt didn’t know who McGaughan was, but he was curious. He searched online and began finding references to McGaughan’s relatives. Then he turned to several Kearny Facebook groups, hoping someone might know more about the man behind the hat.
“I originally wanted to keep it for my younger brother, who also served but now lives in Alabama,” Langhirt said. “We both love historical items from our hometown.”
But as he learned more about McGaughan, Langhirt decided the hat belonged somewhere else — with the family of the man who wore it.
That search led to Frank Azack, whose wife Mary Ellen was McGaughan’s goddaughter.
“I saw Michael had posted it and saw the name,” Azack said. “John was my wife’s godfather.”
Azack happened to open the Kearny Facebook page and saw Langhirt’s post about the hat.
“I saw the name and told my wife,” he said. “And that’s how this whole thing started.”
Azack told Langhirt that McGaughan was from Kearny and later lived in Lake Hopatcong. He was believed to have served as an Army medic. McGaughan also came from a prominent Kearny family. His brother, James Raymond McGaughan, was a longtime Kearny resident who served as a Third Ward councilman, Kearny Board of Health president and treasurer of the local Democratic organization. Another brother, Frank McGaughan, was the longtime editor of The Observer.
The discovery also revealed an unexpected connection between the two families.
Langhirt said his family has operated a window-cleaning business in Kearny since the 1950s and had washed the McGaughan family’s windows before they eventually left town.
“Someone always knows someone” in Kearny, Langhirt said.
For Langhirt, however, the search was about more than connecting an old hat to a name. His grandfather served during World War II, and he said he could imagine how meaningful it would be if someone found one of his grandfather’s belongings years later and returned it to the family.
“Being military and finding something that would hopefully bring back fond memories of family members who have served is a no-brainer to me,” he said.
That feeling became even stronger when he learned that members of McGaughan’s family have also served in the military.
“It’s fitting that they should have a piece of their heritage and family’s military service,” Langhirt said.
On Aug. 12, Langhirt posted the hat from Pompton Lakes at a Federal Express. The next day, the hat arrived at Azack’s home in Toms River.
“I just got the hat delivered to me about 20 minutes ago,” Azack said Thursday.
But the hat won’t stay with him. Azack plans to give it to his brother-in-law, Jim, who treasures his family’s history. Jim also has two sons currently serving in the military — one in the Navy and one in the Marine Corps.
“He will be down here this weekend,” Azack said. “Jim will be thrilled.”
For Langhirt, returning the hat brought a sense of satisfaction and gratitude.
“Bringing the hat to be mailed made me feel honored and appreciative of his service,” Langhirt said. “Knowing it will bring joy to the family and maybe bring back some memories of the man.”
He believes the hat will become more than an old military item. It will be something the family can talk about and pass down.
“It will be a conversation piece for the family, I’m sure,” Langhirt said.
Langhirt said he has never found anything at a garage sale with this kind of significance.
“Life happens sometimes and things can be misplaced or forgotten,” he said. “To me it’s nice to have been raised to appreciate the importance of family, especially its history. We all have a story, and one thing the military definitely has is love for country and family.”
And if McGaughan could somehow see the unusual journey his hat took back home, Langhirt has an idea of how he might react.
“John would probably laugh at how it got there, curse at himself for letting it go, then proceed to tell a story or two of his military service,” Langhirt said. “At least I know that’s what my grandfather would do, as well as me.”
