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Weymouth family honors son and other fallen veterans

The Patriot Ledger - 5/24/2020

WEYMOUTH -- There are 337 American flags in their yard on North Street in Weymouth, but the Handibodes only had one "Petey."

Joanne and Peter Handibode planted the flags as a memorial to the state's military service members who have been killed in U.S. conflicts since the Sept. 11 attacks. The Handibodes lost their son Peter J. Handibode, a 19-year-old active-duty U.S. Marine, on June 20, 2015. He died by suicide.

Want news like this sent straight to your inbox? Head over to PatriotLedger.com to sign up for alerts and make sure you never miss a thing. You pick the news you want, we deliver.Joanne Handibode said the idea to plant her own flags came when she learned that the Massachusetts Military Heroes Fund couldn't allow volunteers to place more than 37,000 flags on the Boston Common for Memorial Day because of the coronavirus pandemic. The decade-old tradition commemorates the men and women of Massachusetts who have given their lives in service to the country since the Revolutionary War, and Joanne Handibode had participated for several years.

"I decided to take it on myself and just run with it," Joanne said. "The flag garden in town made such an impact on me."

She said she ordered the flags online and took a few days to set them up this week along with signs, one honoring her son.

She said her large family and groups like the Heroes Fund have helped the family deal with the tragedy.

"It's a great group that no one wants to be part of," Joanne said. "But once you are, it's a family."

Joanne said her son wanted to be a Marine "since the day he was born," and follow in the footsteps of his father, a combat veteran of the first Gulf War.

"It was always a dream of his," Joanne said. "He was always a great kid. He wanted everyone to be liked, was always smiling, friend to everyone."

Her son enlisted shortly after graduating from Weymouth High School in 2014. He died while stationed in Pensacola, Florida and was about to graduate with honors from air traffic control training.

She said this time of year is usually a tough stretch for her family, which includes two daughters, between her son's birthday in March, Memorial Day, and the anniversary of his death in June.

Joanne Handibode's advice for other families who have lost a service member is to "be kind to yourself," and embrace any and all help.

"Never stop saying your baby's name, never stop saying your husband's name, never stop saying your person's name," she said. "Never stop telling their story."

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 800-273-8255. For veterans, press 1. Veterans can also text to 838255, or chat online at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat.

Reporter Joe Difazio can be reached at jdifazio@patriotledger.com.

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