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Family And Friends Pay Final Respects To Cpl. John Dawson Of Northbridge

BOSTON (CBS) - It was a somber day for family and friends of a hero from Massachusetts who was laid to rest Monday.

Cpl. John Dawson, 22, from Northbridge was killed earlier this month in Afghanistan.

Dawson's funeral was conducted with full military honors at St. Gabriel's Church in Upton.

Spc. John Dawson
(Image Credit: United States Army)

In high school, Dawson was accepted into the National Honors Society, but his sense of duty led him to the Army, instead of college.

When Dawson joined the Army he tested so well that they offered him just about any job he wanted.

He chose combat medic.

"I asked John why medic? He replied 'because I want to help people Dad," John's father Michael Dawson said.

Dawson died 12 days ago in Jalalabad, Afghanistan when his platoon was ambushed by an Afghan soldier.

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