US Marine killed in freak accident at ski resort

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A 24-year-old Marine Sergeant died after she was injured in a skiing accident at a popular resort in Colorado while home visiting her family for the holidays.

Jessie Mello, 24, was skiing at Powderhorn Mountain on Dec. 24 when she suffered a severe head injury and broken bones, the Mesa County Coroner and the resort confirmed to Fox News Digital. 

Officials said that the Marine was on an intermediate-level trail when the Christmas Eve accident occurred. 

Her father, Eric Mello, told The Colorado Sun that eyewitnesses reported she hit a patch of ice and collided into a tree. He said that she was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. 

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Jessie Mello, a 24-year-old Marine from Grand Junction, died earlier this month following a ski accident at Powderhorn Resort in Mesa, Colorado. (Eric Mello/Facebook)

Following the accident, the ski patrol responded, and she was flown to St. Mary’s Hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado — roughly 40 miles from the resort— and was placed in intensive care.

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The Mesa County Coroner said Mello remained hospitalized for several days but died on Jan. 5 from head injuries.

“My baby girl went peacefully into Jesus’s arms tonight,” her father, Eric, wrote in a Facebook post.

She died from her head injuries at the hospital Jan. 5, according to the Mesa County Coroner’s Office. (Eric Mello/Facebook)

A funeral was held for Mello at Messiah Lutheran Church on Jan. 10. 

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Jessie Mello was remembered by family as being hardworking and full of “character.” (Eric Mello/Facebook)

She was remembered as a “woman of incredible talent, character, and love.”

“She made you want to be the best you could be, no matter what. Her mere presence brought people together and allowed others to find the strengths that made them unique. She would celebrate your victories and weed out your failures,” her family wrote in her obituary. “Excellence was not a lofty goal for Jessie; it was the standard.”

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“Jessie leaves behind a loving family who will cherish her memory and carry her light forward,” her family wrote. She is survived by her parents, Eric and Jennifer Mello, and two brothers, Bo and William Mello.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the U.S. Marines for comment.

Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a U.S. writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. 

Story tips and ideas can be sent to sarah.rumpf@fox.com and on X: @s_rumpfwhitten.