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A hero's homecoming: US marine Nicole Gee, 23, who was killed in Kabul bomb blast is honored by her community as crowds line streets for solemn procession ahead of her funeral in Sacramento

  A US Marine who was killed in a suicide bombing during the chaotic evacuation at Afghanistan's Kabul airport was honored by loved ones...

 A US Marine who was killed in a suicide bombing during the chaotic evacuation at Afghanistan's Kabul airport was honored by loved ones in California on Thursday afternoon.

A large crowd of people lined the streets of Sacramento with American flags in hand as the body of Sgt. Nicole Gee, 23, processed through her hometown.

The procession allowed her community to pay their respects to Gee and her family ahead of her funeral on Saturday, which is expected to have large attendance, according to the Sacramento Bee. 

Gee, of Roseville, Calif., which is located about 19 miles north of Sacramento, became nationally known after her death because of a recent photo she posted to social media that showed her holding an Afghan baby. She captioned the picture: 'I love my job'.

'She was proud to be a Marine, and she was proud of what she was doing in Afghanistan,' Gee's sister, Misty Fuoco, 25, told the newspaper.

'She was an amazing sister, daughter, wife, aunt, niece, cousin, friend, and she was one pretty bad a** Marine.' 

Gee, who was one of the 13 US troops slain in the Kabul blast, is remembered as a 'hometown hero'.

Like the others killed in the attack, Gee has been posthumously awarded an Purple Heart, which is the oldest US military award still given to American service members.

A US Marine who was killed in a suicide bombing during the chaotic evacuation at Afghanistan's Kabul airport was honored by loved ones in California on Thursday afternoon

A US Marine who was killed in a suicide bombing during the chaotic evacuation at Afghanistan's Kabul airport was honored by loved ones in California on Thursday afternoon

A large crowd of people lined the streets of Sacramento with American flags in hand as the body of Sgt. Nicole Gee, 23, processed through the greater Sacramento area on Thursday

A large crowd of people lined the streets of Sacramento with American flags in hand as the body of Sgt. Nicole Gee, 23, processed through the greater Sacramento area on Thursday

Motorcycles lead the procession carrying Sgt. Nicole Gee's remains from Sacramento International Airport to Mt. Vermon Memorial Park

Motorcycles lead the procession carrying Sgt. Nicole Gee's remains from Sacramento International Airport to Mt. Vermon Memorial Park

People salute as motorcycles leading the procession carrying the remains of Marine Sgt. Nicole L. Gee drives past on the way Mount Vernon Memorial Park

People salute as motorcycles leading the procession carrying the remains of Marine Sgt. Nicole L. Gee drives past on the way Mount Vernon Memorial Park

The hearse carrying the remains of Marine Sgt. Nicole L. Gee passes flag-bearing people en route to Mount Vernon Memorial Park

The hearse carrying the remains of Marine Sgt. Nicole L. Gee passes flag-bearing people en route to Mount Vernon Memorial Park 

A group of young Californians salute and hold American flags as the processional for Sgt. Gee is underway

A group of young Californians salute and hold American flags as the processional for Sgt. Gee is underway


Gee's body arrived to the Sacramento airport around noon on Thursday, KCRA reported. 

After the arrival - which was private for her family - a procession led by motorcycles carried her remains to Mt. Vernon Memorial Park and Mortuary in Fair Oaks.

Citizens lined the procession route, congregating on highway overpasses and city streets.

They were seen saluting, waving American flags and standing together in solidarity. 

A memorial service is scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m. at Bayside Church Adventure Campus in Roseville. The event is open to the public.    

Gee's casket arrives to Mt. Vernon Memorial Park and Mortuary in Fair Oaks after a procession from Sacramento International Airport on Thursday

Gee's casket arrives to Mt. Vernon Memorial Park and Mortuary in Fair Oaks after a procession from Sacramento International Airport on Thursday

People lined the streets as Gee's casket arrives to Mt. Vernon Memorial Park and Mortuary in Fair Oaks after a procession from Sacramento International Airport on Thursday

People lined the streets as Gee's casket arrives to Mt. Vernon Memorial Park and Mortuary in Fair Oaks after a procession from Sacramento International Airport on Thursday

Sacramento Municipal Utility District employees fly a flag and display photos of Marine Corps. Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, as the hearse carrying her remains drives past

Sacramento Municipal Utility District employees fly a flag and display photos of Marine Corps. Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, as the hearse carrying her remains drives past

Gee's community and loved ones say she is remembered as a 'hometown hero'

Gee's community and loved ones say she is remembered as a 'hometown hero' 

Gee's memorial service is scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m. at Bayside Church Adventure Campus in Roseville. The event is open to the public

Gee's memorial service is scheduled for Saturday at 11 a.m. at Bayside Church Adventure Campus in Roseville. The event is open to the public

Gee was one of 13 service members – and one of two female Marines - who died in a suicide blast at Kabul Airport alongside 170 desperate Afghans seeking to leave their beleaguered country. 

Gee, like the other US servicemen killed in the attack, will be posthumously awarded a Purple Heart, the oldest US military award still given to American service members.

She and her sister, Misty Fuoco, grew up in Roseville, California – a small commuter city just outside Sacramento where their father Richard, 56, still lives. 

At the point, Gee moved across the country to be with her husband who is stationed Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and joined the Marines herself.

Fuoco told DailyMail.com that her sister had always been driven and determined to make a difference but hadn't always planned to join the Marine Corps.

She said: 'She didn't always want to be a Marine, but she was always ambitious and passionate. We had an ongoing family joke that she was the golden child because she was exemplary in everything that she did.

'She was loving and caring and she had straight A's in high school and did various academic activities. 

Gee was one of 13 service members – and one of two female Marines - who died in a suicide blast at Kabul Airport alongside 170 desperate Afghans seeking to leave their beleaguered country

Gee was one of 13 service members – and one of two female Marines - who died in a suicide blast at Kabul Airport alongside 170 desperate Afghans seeking to leave their beleaguered country 

Gee (right) and her sister, Misty Fuoco, (left) grew up in Roseville, California – a small commuter city just outside Sacramento where their father Richard, 56, still lives

Gee (right) and her sister, Misty Fuoco, (left) grew up in Roseville, California – a small commuter city just outside Sacramento where their father Richard, 56, still lives

Gee moved across the country in 2019 to be with her husband who is stationed Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and joined the Marines herself
Fuoco said Gee had always been driven and determined to make a difference

Gee moved across the country in 2019 to be with her husband who is stationed Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and joined the Marines herself. Fuoco said Gee had always been driven and determined to make a difference

'She was an overachiever and after high school, when her and her husband started dating, he knew for a long time he wanted to be a Marine. 

'He joined the Marine Corps and less than a year later, she decided she wanted to join as well. So it was through his passion, drive and desire that motivated her.

'She absolutely loved it, every second of it.'

Fuoco also said her sister would text her regularly from Kabul to tell her how 'amazing' her job was, and described her as 'fearless.'

'She knew there were risks but she was fearless – nothing would stop her from continuing to help and do what she was doing,' explained Fuoco.

'She was a big advocate of positive mental health and helping others and she was just absolutely thrilled with the work she was doing in Afghanistan.'

Fuoco previously shared that she is trying to take comfort in the fact Gee died doing what she loved. 

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