Procession Returns Fallen Massachusetts Marine To Lawrence

LAWRENCE, MA — The body of a U.S. Marine from Massachusetts returned home Saturday, more than two weeks after she was killed in a suicide attack at the Kabul airport.

A procession that included first responders, local officials and Marines escorted the remains of Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo from Logan Airport to the Farrah Funeral Home in Lawrence, Pichardo's hometown.

Rosario Pichardo's family, joined by Lawrence Mayor Kendrys Vasquez, paid their respects at the airport before her casket was placed into a hearse, WCVB reported.

Other Massachusetts officials, including Gov. Charlie Baker, Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, Rep. Lori Trahan, Acting Boston Mayor Kim Janey and Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins, were also at the airport to pay tribute.

The public lined the procession route, and police officers and firefighters from across Massachusetts saluted the hearse from highway overpasses.

Rosario Pichardo, 25, was killed in the Aug. 26 attack on the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. Twelve other service members and over 160 Afghans were killed in the attack.

Rosario and the other U.S. service members were all posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.

A GoFundMe for Rosario's family has raised over $100,000, and hundreds gathered for a vigil in her honor in Lawrence Aug. 31.

Rosario was born in the Dominican Republic and graduated from Lawrence High School in 2014. She was a member of her school's Junior ROTC program before serving eight years in the Marines.