Marine Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo: Dominican-American Casualty in Kabul, Afghanistan

[NALs]

One of two women from the US Marines killed in Kabul.

The other was Marine Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Mass. Sergeant Rosario was commended by her unit in May for excellence in a supply chief job usually given to someone of higher rank.

“Her service was not only crucial to evacuating thousands of women and children, but epitomizes what it means to be a Marine: putting herself in danger for the protection of American values so that others might enjoy them,” Marine First Lt. John Coppola said about Sergeant Rosario in a statement.

Among the Troops Who Died, Two Women on the Front Line (Published 2021)

The Defense Department on Saturday officially identified the service members who were killed, and family and friends paid tribute to their lives and their sacrifice.

www.nytimes.com

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1431451903943192576

A memorial for Rosario was planned Saturday afternoon in Boston by Massachusetts Fallen Heroes, an organization founded by veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Dominican Republic’s embassy in the United States tweeted that Rosario was originally from that Caribbean nation.

Sonia Guzman, the Dominican Republic’s ambassador to the United States, tweeted that the Dominican community shares in the loss.

“Peace to your soul!” she tweeted in Spanish.

Rosario served with the Naval Amphibious Force, Task Force 51/5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, which praised her efforts as supply chief this spring and thanked her for a job well done.

In Lawrence, Massachusetts, Mayor Kendrys Vasquez said he has been in contact with the family.

“We are heartbroken by the death of the servicemen and women due to the bombing in Kabul this week,” he said. “I and the city of Lawrence are particularly saddened that one of those brave souls was a daughter of our city.”

The family wishes for privacy “and that their loved one be recognized as the hero that she was,” the mayor said.

Massachusetts woman among US troops killed in Kabul blast

A memorial for Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo was planned Saturday afternoon in Boston.

bangordailynews.com

All three photos are cited in the August 28, 2021 article in Santo Domingo's newspaper El Caribe:
Johanny Rosario: Sargento de origen dominicano de 25 años que murió en el atentado suicida en Kabul

RIP

 

[william webster]

Sad - very sad - for all of them.....so young

 

[JD Jones]

Never Forget.

 

[Sailor51]

I wanted to put the 'angry' emogi there but was afraid it would be misunderstood.
But ... I am angry because it's such a waste.

 

[Auryn]

Lawrence can be a pretty tough place. Huge Dominican population there, close to half. She deserves a lot of respect. Very sad.

 

[playacaribe2]

I wanted to put the 'angry' emogi there but was afraid it would be misunderstood.
But ... I am angry because it's such a waste.

News of her death spread like wildfire in the Dominican communities of Massachusetts.

In speaking with an influential member of the Dominican community there (Lawrence), shock and disbelief has turned into sadness which has also turned into anger.

They are angry because she was someone who was making it despite having come from the poorest city in Massachusetts and she was taken way too early.

They are also rightfully proud that she chose to serve her country and that she was a beacon of light for her community…..but make no mistake……they are angry too.

Respectfully,
Playacaribe2

 

[Gadfly]

Thank you for your service rest in peace Johanny

 

[Chuddy]

She is now guarding the gates of heaven
SEMPER FI

 

[playacaribe2]

Following up a bit..............Johanny joined the Marines after graduating from High School in 2014 and intended to make a career of the military. While she was not born in the US, her passion to serve her new country grew stronger after she enrolled in junior ROTC while still in high school.

She was working on attaining Staff Sergeant and eventually her goal was to become a Sergeant Major in the Marines before her twenty years were up.

The poverty of the city she grew up in was her motivator..........not her crutch.............

The world could use more like Johanny.


Respectfully,
Playacaribe2

 

[Luperon]

God Bless her, may her family, friends and all who ever knew or heard of her remember why this happened and do the right thing so it NEVER happens again.