thedrifter
09-20-06, 09:22 AM
Cabino to be honored
By David Riley/ Daily News Staff
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
FRANKLIN -- It took her words away.
That is the only way Jodi Cabino-Cipriano can explain the loss of her son, Marine Lance Cpl. Shayne Cabino, to a roadside bomb nearly a year ago in Iraq.
There is no way to put the emotions into words.
"I've been silenced by it," Cabino-Cipriano said at her home yesterday, surrounded by photos of her five children.
But seeing her son honored in his hometown this week will mean the world.
The town's new Rte. 140 bridge, a roughly 560-foot span that opened last year, will be dedicated in Cabino's name Friday at 9:30 a.m.
The structure is being named the Lance Cpl. Shayne Cabino Bridge, thanks to legislation sponsored by state Rep. James Vallee, D-Franklin, and state Sen. Scott Brown, R-Wrentham, and signed into law by Gov. Mitt Romney last month.
The ceremony comes two weeks before the one-year anniversary of Cabino's death, Oct. 6, 2005.
"If it has to be," Cabino-Cipriano said of losing her son, "this is an honor."
The dedication is expected to be attended by Cabino's family, many friends, fellow Marines, and state and local officials. The public is welcome.
The dedication holds special meaning for Cabino's family, who used to live on Forge Hill, not far from the new bridge.
Although they have lived in a few different places in Franklin over the years, the children still think of that house as home, their mom said.
"Everyone that goes by will see the name, 'Shayne,'" Cabino-Cipriano said of the bridge.
She also sees the dedication as a step in helping her set the record straight on her son's background. The Marines and early news coverage listed Cabino's hometown as Canton, where he signed up for the military.
But he only lived there a year with his father, William Cabino Sr., while finishing high school, his mother said. Shayne was a Franklin native.
"He deserves to go down in American history as who he was," Cabino-Cipriano said. "History is important. Facts are important."
Asked about the upcoming anniversary, Cabino-Cipriano said she simply lives one second at a time. The ordeal, she said, has strengthened her faith in God.
She recalled how Cabino called home from Iraq at least once every week.
As a mortarman, he was often out on missions for five or six days at a time, she said. He had just finished a mission when his truck struck a bomb, killing him and three other members of his battalion.
Although he was always adventurous and fearless, Cabino-Cipriano said she knew her son, who was 19 when he died, had grown up quickly in the Marines from their last phone call.
Cabino's family is tightknit, and the children always were encouraged to be able to tell their mom anything, no matter what, she said. But Cabino-Cipriano recalled thinking he was leaving something out in that last conversation.
"He said, 'It's OK, Mom, don't worry about it,'" she said. "He wanted to protect me."
The year has been difficult, too, for Cabino's siblings, she said: Brandi Cabino-Navas, 27; Justin, 23; Billy, 21; and Zach, 9.
Billy is considering following his little brother's footsteps and joining the Marines too, Cabino-Cipriano said.
"I have to respect his decision, whether I like it or not," she said.
Cabino-Cipriano said she has been in touch with Marines from her son's unit, traveling for memorial services at Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Three fellow Marines plan to travel to stay with Cabino's family and attend Friday's bridge dedication.
Although Cabino-Cipriano said she is not used to having a full house with her grown children, they all are home for the event too, she said.
Together, they are still mourning, and Cabino-Cipriano said the pain is not something the family will simply get over.
"It becomes part of who you are," she said. "You can't change it. It just is."
Friday's dedication is not the only upcoming event in Cabino's honor. His uncle, Mark Mazelli, plans to run the Boston Marine Corps Honor Run 10K Sunday.
Mazelli had planned to do so last year and mail his bib number to Cabino, who would have been amused by the thought of his uncle running a race.
Cabino was killed before Mazelli could run. This year, Mazelli plans to lay his bib on his nephew's grave.
David Riley can be reached at 508-634-7585 or driley@cnc.com.
Ellie
By David Riley/ Daily News Staff
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
FRANKLIN -- It took her words away.
That is the only way Jodi Cabino-Cipriano can explain the loss of her son, Marine Lance Cpl. Shayne Cabino, to a roadside bomb nearly a year ago in Iraq.
There is no way to put the emotions into words.
"I've been silenced by it," Cabino-Cipriano said at her home yesterday, surrounded by photos of her five children.
But seeing her son honored in his hometown this week will mean the world.
The town's new Rte. 140 bridge, a roughly 560-foot span that opened last year, will be dedicated in Cabino's name Friday at 9:30 a.m.
The structure is being named the Lance Cpl. Shayne Cabino Bridge, thanks to legislation sponsored by state Rep. James Vallee, D-Franklin, and state Sen. Scott Brown, R-Wrentham, and signed into law by Gov. Mitt Romney last month.
The ceremony comes two weeks before the one-year anniversary of Cabino's death, Oct. 6, 2005.
"If it has to be," Cabino-Cipriano said of losing her son, "this is an honor."
The dedication is expected to be attended by Cabino's family, many friends, fellow Marines, and state and local officials. The public is welcome.
The dedication holds special meaning for Cabino's family, who used to live on Forge Hill, not far from the new bridge.
Although they have lived in a few different places in Franklin over the years, the children still think of that house as home, their mom said.
"Everyone that goes by will see the name, 'Shayne,'" Cabino-Cipriano said of the bridge.
She also sees the dedication as a step in helping her set the record straight on her son's background. The Marines and early news coverage listed Cabino's hometown as Canton, where he signed up for the military.
But he only lived there a year with his father, William Cabino Sr., while finishing high school, his mother said. Shayne was a Franklin native.
"He deserves to go down in American history as who he was," Cabino-Cipriano said. "History is important. Facts are important."
Asked about the upcoming anniversary, Cabino-Cipriano said she simply lives one second at a time. The ordeal, she said, has strengthened her faith in God.
She recalled how Cabino called home from Iraq at least once every week.
As a mortarman, he was often out on missions for five or six days at a time, she said. He had just finished a mission when his truck struck a bomb, killing him and three other members of his battalion.
Although he was always adventurous and fearless, Cabino-Cipriano said she knew her son, who was 19 when he died, had grown up quickly in the Marines from their last phone call.
Cabino's family is tightknit, and the children always were encouraged to be able to tell their mom anything, no matter what, she said. But Cabino-Cipriano recalled thinking he was leaving something out in that last conversation.
"He said, 'It's OK, Mom, don't worry about it,'" she said. "He wanted to protect me."
The year has been difficult, too, for Cabino's siblings, she said: Brandi Cabino-Navas, 27; Justin, 23; Billy, 21; and Zach, 9.
Billy is considering following his little brother's footsteps and joining the Marines too, Cabino-Cipriano said.
"I have to respect his decision, whether I like it or not," she said.
Cabino-Cipriano said she has been in touch with Marines from her son's unit, traveling for memorial services at Camp Lejeune, N.C.
Three fellow Marines plan to travel to stay with Cabino's family and attend Friday's bridge dedication.
Although Cabino-Cipriano said she is not used to having a full house with her grown children, they all are home for the event too, she said.
Together, they are still mourning, and Cabino-Cipriano said the pain is not something the family will simply get over.
"It becomes part of who you are," she said. "You can't change it. It just is."
Friday's dedication is not the only upcoming event in Cabino's honor. His uncle, Mark Mazelli, plans to run the Boston Marine Corps Honor Run 10K Sunday.
Mazelli had planned to do so last year and mail his bib number to Cabino, who would have been amused by the thought of his uncle running a race.
Cabino was killed before Mazelli could run. This year, Mazelli plans to lay his bib on his nephew's grave.
David Riley can be reached at 508-634-7585 or driley@cnc.com.
Ellie