Cpl. Charles McMahon Jr. of the Marine Corps was among the last U.S. soldiers killed in Vietnam more than 50 years ago.
A Legacy
McMahon, of Woburn, Massachusetts, not only left behind a legacy of service and sacrifice, but also his class ring, a memento he gifted to his high school sweetheart.
Carol, his former girlfriend, died recently. Her daughter, Dawn DiCicco, a staffer for NBC News, was going through some of her mother’s belongings when she discovered the class ring, along with a letter McMahon wrote to Carol from Vietnam. DiCicco made it her mission to return the ring to McMahon’s niece, Vanessa McMahon.
Recently, she surprised McMahon’s family with a gift five decades in the making.
“This is the ring that we found,” DiCicco said, pulling it from a small, clear Ziplock bag.
“It’s beautiful,” Vanessa McMahon replied.
George Holland, McMahon’s closest childhood friend, was on hand when DiCicco brought the mementos.
“I do not believe my eyes,” Holland said, greeting DiCicco. “You do resemble your mom.”
Always Wanted to be a Marine
Holland said McMahon aspired to join the Marine Corps as far back as middle school.
“He always wanted to be a Marine,” Holland told NBC News’ Sam Brock.
The letter and class ring helped Vanessa connect with an uncle she never knew. She’s craved information about him for decades.
“The ring will go to my son, Joseph, who’s a Marine security guard himself, following in Uncle Charlie’s footsteps,” Vanessa said.
She read the note Charlie sent to Carol, dated March 26, 1974, some of the last words written to his high school love.
“Don’t worry. Things always work out one way or the other,” Charlie penned. “P.S.S., see you when I come home next. Love, A Marine.”
Vanessa choked back tears as she stared at the letter, clutching it in her hands for a moment longer. She looked at Holland and said, “That’s nice.”
“It’s emotional,” she told Brock.
DiCicco, Holland, and Vanessa also visited McMahon’s gravesite, adorned with flowers, along with American and Marine Corps flags. McMahon was less than two weeks shy of celebrating his 22nd birthday when he was killed, along with fellow Marine Darwin Judge, on April 29, 1975. One day later, Saigon fell to the North Vietnamese as U.S. forces pulled out of South Vietnam following a war that raged for nearly two decades.
McMahon and Judge were the last of more than 58,000 U.S. troops to die in Vietnam.
Both servicemembers were honored with military funerals and a 21-gun salute, the shots piercing the heavy air of a nation weary from years of war and painful loss.
While McMahon’s letter and ring may be small items, they build a bridge for his niece to discover the warm, caring person her uncle was, while also keeping his memory alive, along with DiCicco’s mother’s.
“It’s like breathing the same air for them,” DiCicco said. “And so, I’m happy that they have a piece of that.”
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