10-26-67 Souvenir Shows up at McCain Event

ABC News’ Brett Hovell Reports: In the small South Carolina town of Batesburg-Leesville Monday night, John McCain finished taking questions and was wrapping up a campaign event in the back room of Shealy’s Barbeque. But before he could "ask for your vote," the emcee of the event interrupted him, and recognized a woman in the back of the room. She stood, with a microphone already in hand and addressed McCain.

"It’s a privilege to be here tonight to meet you," she started as people shifted around in their seats to get a look. She was an older woman in a bright red shirt.

"I wore a POW bracelet and it’s got your name on it," she said holding aloft a Ziploc bag with a silver cuff in it. The audience gasped at the coincidence as the woman continued.

"And the date is 10-26-67. And I want to return it to you."

The crowd of about 250 people came to their feet and applauded as McCain made his way through the crowd to the back of the room to hug her. As they embraced, the Senator asked if she would keep the bracelet.

McCain was shot down over Vietnam on October 26, 1967, and spent 5 ½ years as a prisoner of war in Hanoi.

It was a touching moment for those in the room, but not an unusual one for McCain. A few weeks ago McCain stopped by a pizza place in Lancaster, NH, and a woman there had recently found her POW bracelet from the Vietnam War. On it was McCain’s name. She didn’t know McCain would show up at the pizza place so she didn’t have it with her, but ran to her house and grabbed it to show him.

When he returned from Vietnam, McCain said he received hundreds of the metal bracelets, and has box full of them at home. Even recently he said he was receiving them every one or two weeks.