Vigil Planned Tuesday Night For Lawrence Marine Johanny Rosario

North Andover MA

31 August, 2021

11:35 AM

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LAWRENCE, MA — A vigil will be held Tuesday evening for the Lawrence marine who died in Thursday's suicide bombing in Afghanistan, the city said Monday night. Marine Corps Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, was one of 13 American service members who died in the suicide bombing near the Kabul airport Thursday. More than 160 Afghans were killed in the attack. A vigil for Rosario will be held at Veterans Memorial Stadium, 240 Osgood Street, at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The city is assisting Rosario's family in holding the vigil. "We are heartbroken by the death of the service men and women due to the bombing in Kabul. I, and the City of Lawrence, are particularly saddened that one of those brave souls was a daughter of our city," Lawrence Mayor Kendrys Vasquez said in a news conference over the weekend. Rosario was a 2014 graduate of Lawrence High School. She had also been a member of her school's Junior ROTC program. Born in the Dominican Republic, the brave Marine was proud to call Lawrence home and honored to serve her country. Sonia Guzmán, the Dominican Republic's ambassador to the United States, tweeted that the Caribbean nation was saddened to learn of Rosario's death. Rosario and a dozen other American troops were killed when a car bomb exploded outside of the airport where military forces had helped more than 100,000 American and Afghan citizens flee the country after it fell under Taliban control two weeks ago. The mission was scheduled to last until Aug. 31. The terror group ISIS-K claimed responsibility for the suicide attack. Thursday's bombing was the single deadliest day for American troops serving in the country since 2011. "I am continually humbled by the courage and warrior spirit exhibited every day by Marines across the globe," Marine Corps Commander General David H. Berger said. "The sacrifices Marines make on behalf of freedom must never go unnoticed or unappreciated. "I ask that you keep these Marines and service members, and especially their families, in your thoughts and prayers."