Good Turn Done: Florida Couple Rescues Illinois Scout Uniform Washed Away By Irma

(CBS) – Hurricane Ima's strong winds and heavy rain brought with it widespread damage across Florida.

It also inspired people to help clean up. Dustin and Nikki Presley of Jacksonville, Fla. were among them. And one thing they found has a lot of sentimental value to its owner.

"We were walking on the beach picking up stuff out of the surf, and he spotted it," said Nikki Presley.

What Dustin saw: A sandy Cub Scout uniform on the beach, dated from the mid 1980s.

It had some identifying patches and marks, including this clue: "Illinois."

Leaders with the Boy Scouts of America stepped in to play detective and help find the scout.

They traced the uniform back to a now-merged council in Champaign, Ill.

It turns out the Cub Scout uniform belonged -- or, belongs -- to U.S. Navy Cmdr. Patrick Gegg.

He grew up in St. Joseph, Illinois, near Champaign. The fighter pilot is now stationed in Jacksville, Florida, where he lost almost everything during Irma.

Gegg says scouting helped shape him into the man he has become, and that's why he's kept the uniform through so many moves.

"There was sadness for everything that was gone. ... I'm excited to get it back," he says.

Dustin Presley was an Eagle Scout and a Navy corpsman. He remembers the scout slogan: Do a good turn daily.