Disneyland honors Maritime who died through 2021 Kabul assault

The memory of a U.S. services member who was killed in the 2021 Kabul airport assault was honored at Disneyland on Monday – practically a year following he died. 

Marine Lance Cpl. Dylan Merola, 20, was a California indigenous who was murdered in the Aug. 26 suicide bombing amid the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. 13 U.S. assistance associates have been killed in the assault on Hamid Karzai International Airport – which also killed at least 170 Afghan civilians and wounded a lot more than 150 many others.

The Merola family was acknowledged all through the Disneyland Vacation resort Flag Retreat Ceremony in Anaheim, California. Merola's spouse and children was in attendance, together with his mother, his grandparents and his sister. 

Merola's relatives was acknowledged throughout the ceremony. (Disneyland Resort)

"It meant so significantly to me nowadays to honor my son," Cheryl Rex, Merola's mom, claimed. "As he was growing up, we attended a large amount of issues at Disneyland. We experienced year passes considering the fact that he was minimal."

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Lance Cpl. Dylan Merola was killed in Kabul attack. (Deborah Gembara/Mana Rabiee)

"It is really significant. It really is a particular put to us," Rex added. 

Spouse and children associates say that Merola had only been in Afghanistan for a lot less than two months when he was killed during the tragic assault.

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Maritime Lance Cpl. Dylan Merola, who died in the course of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, was honored at Disneyland. (Disneyland Vacation resort)

The ceremony – which has been a tradition at Disney vacation resort parks for a long time – is held daily equally at Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. 

Merola's ceremony was not the only time the Walt Disney Enterprise honored the services users who died all through the Afghanistan withdrawal. They held a comparable Disneyland ceremony for Hunter Lopez, a 22-calendar year old Maritime, in September 2021. 

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Maritime Lance Cpl. Dylan Merola was a single of 13 support users killed in the 2021 Kabal attack. (Disneyland Resort)

According to his mom, Lopez was a huge fan of Disney. He reportedly informed his mom and dad he preferred to be buried with a lightsaber he made at Disneyland in 2019. 

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Merola's mother Cheryl Rex was presented with the Navy Achievement Medal. (Disneyland Resort)

"As we walked into Disneyland, the marching band was coming out onto Main Avenue [U.S.A.] and began to perform a Star Wars song," Hunter's mother Alicia told Disney Parks Web site. "We never know if it was Disney magic or no matter if it was Hunter, but both way it felt good knowing he was there with us."