Rosario Pichardo, Johanny

Sergeant Johanny Rosario Pichardo was a 25-year-old Marine from Lawrence, Massachusetts. She served as a supply chief with the 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, Marine Forces Central Command. The Department of Defense confirmed her home of record as Lawrence.

On August 26, 2021, Pichardo was killed during a suicide bombing at the Abbey Gate of Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. The attack, claimed by the Islamic State ? Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), detonated in a dense crowd of civilians and U.S. service members. The blast killed 13 U.S. service members and at least 170 Afghan civilians, according to U.S. and United Nations reports.

Pichardo died during Operation Freedom's Sentinel, the U.S. military mission that succeeded the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in January 2015. Her death occurred during the non-combatant evacuation operation (NEO) at the airport, a massive airlift of U.S. citizens and Afghan allies following the Taliban's takeover of Kabul in August 2021.

Her body was returned to the United States at Dover Air Force Base on August 29, 2021. The City of Lawrence held a public vigil in her honor. Marine Corps Commandant General David Berger said in a statement that the fallen Marines, including Pichardo, 'answered the call, went into the danger, and saved tens of thousands of lives.'

Sergeant Pichardo was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant. She was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal. A public school in her hometown of Lawrence was renamed in her memory in 2022.

Johanny Rosario Pichardo was killed during Operation Freedom's Sentinel (2015?2021). The conflict concluded in August 2021 with the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.

Among those documented in the same conflict: Golden, Jonathan Joseph, Sanchez, Maria Victoria, Dawson, John Michael, Ruiz, Pablo Allende Iii.

← Return to the full memorial | Add a memorial record