If anyone ever ask, just tell them its the Army's pride ribbon. I bought one off Amazon for my BIL when his daughter came out. I told him they clearly meant for her to have it and not him. His daughter loves it and thinks its just a pride ribbon. Which makes it even better.
Little trolling opportunities in life bring me such joy.
The "brass" for the LTC silver maple leaves are easy enough to get and the price is the price I or anyone would pay at the AAFES or NEX to get some to put on my uniform, nothing really special about them. There are many officers wearing rank insignia they may have been given by someone who had held that rank and gave their old insignia to the younger officer and that is cool but if the emotional connection for the oak leaves wasn't there it is just some metal. You can buy them on Amazon today https://www.amazon.com/Army-Officer-Rank-Insignia-Colonel/dp/B0743VWWXJ/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=LTC+insignia&qid=1558631249&s=gateway&sr=8-3-spell
Yeah an old Field Jacket knock off with a lot of patches on it isn't going to earn you any crap from real military. Service from 1974 to 2007.