ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 The family of Army Spc. Mariyah Symone Collington gathered Wednesday at the Orlando Executive Airport for a dignified transfer \u2014 the formal military ceremony honoring the return of a fallen service member\u2019s remains.<\/p>\n
For her family, it was a moment that was both heartbreaking and healing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s like a bittersweet day,\u201d said Cherlette McCullough, Spc. Collington\u2019s cousin. \u201cWe\u2019re glad her body is here so that we can celebrate her life. But today is heavy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collington, 19, of Tavares, was one of two U.S. soldiers who went missing May 2 near the Cap Draa Training Area in Morocco during the annual African Lion 26 military exercises. Her remains were recovered May 12 from a coastal cave roughly 500 meters from where both soldiers were last seen entering the ocean.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe got a call, and the call was that Mariyah was missing in the military \u2014 and that they believe she drowned,\u201d McCullough said.<\/p>\n
More than 1,000 U.S. and Moroccan military and civil personnel participated in the search for Collington and the second soldier, 1st Lt. Kendrick Lamont Key Jr., covering more than 21,300 square kilometers across sea and coastal zones. The operation utilized unmanned aerial systems, rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft, surface vessels, dive teams, mountaineering teams and ground search elements.<\/p>\n
When Collington\u2019s remains were finally found, McCullough said, the family felt a wave of complicated emotions.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen her body was found, it was a sigh of relief,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd then, you know, there\u2019s protocols and processes in place with the Army. Things don\u2019t happen overnight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collington served as an air and missile defense crewmember assigned to Charlie Battery, 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, based in Ansbach, Germany. She had been promoted to specialist just one day before she went missing \u2014 May 1, 2026.<\/p>\n
Collington grew up in the Apopka and the Orlando-area before her family later moved to Tavares. She was a graduate of Evans High School, where she was a cheerleader and was known as a popular, fashion-forward young woman with a big personality.<\/p>\n
\u201cMilitary and fashion, right,\u201d McCullough said with a laugh. \u201cBut she made them work well together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Serving in the Army was never a reluctant decision for Collington \u2014 it was a calling she had felt for years, McCullough said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was always her choice, what she wanted to do. It wasn\u2019t something forced. This is what she decided to do early on after graduation \u2014 to go in and serve in the military,\u201d McCullough said. <\/p>\n
Perhaps the most personal part of Collington\u2019s military journey was the plan she had made with her older brother.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer and her brother, they had planned this together. They were joined at the hip, very close,\u201d McCullough said. \u201cThis is how they were going to spend their lives \u2014 fighting for their country, retire and live their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
McCullough said Collington\u2019s older brother graduated from the University of Florida and entered the military just two weeks before his sister\u2019s remains were returned home. McCullough said his continued service brings the family some comfort.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was their plan to be together,\u201d McCullough said. \u201cHe\u2019s still carrying out the plan that they had together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Collington\u2019s military commanders remembered her as an exceptional soldier who brightened every room she entered.<\/p>\n
\u201cSpc. Collington was an outstanding Soldier whose unwavering enthusiasm and positive spirit uplifted every environment she entered,\u201d said Capt. Spencer Grider, commander of Charlie Battery. \u201cHer infectious energy, whether in the office, in the field or among her peers, fostered connection and camaraderie, bringing people together through her genuine warmth and heartfelt sense of humor. Her presence will be greatly missed across our formation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lt. Col. Chris Couch, the battalion commander, echoed those sentiments.<\/p>\n
\u201cSpc. Collington was a bright light in this battalion. To the Soldiers who knew her best and served alongside her each day, she was a treasured friend whose loss leaves a deep and profound void on our team,\u201d Couch said.<\/p>\n
Brig. Gen. Curtis King, commanding general of the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, also spoke to the weight of the loss.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe loss of Spc. Collington is a profound loss for the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command,\u201d King said. \u201cHer recovery closes the search for our two missing Soldiers, but our commitment to caring for their Families, friends, and teammates continues.\u201d<\/p>\n
McCullough said the outpouring of support from strangers has moved the entire family.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer mom and dad have had an overwhelming response from people they don\u2019t know reaching out and just giving their condolences,\u201d she said. \u201cI think people really feel bad for our family because of her age and the way that she lost her life.\u201d<\/p>\n
For McCullough, some peace comes from watching videos Collington left behind.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat brings me some peace is looking at her TikToks, looking at her videos of her being the life of the party \u2014 laughing, talking \u2014 and remembering how close she was to her older brother,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
She said the family is committed to keeping Collington\u2019s memory alive.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will always remember her. The way that she lost her life was tragic, hurtful. But we\u2019ll always remember her. We\u2019ll always be saying her name. She will never be forgotten,\u201d McCullough said.<\/p>\n
The family is planning a public celebration of life at First Baptist Church of Apopka on Saturday, June 13th at 11:00a.m. <\/p>\n
Collington\u2019s awards and decorations include the Army Service Ribbon.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 by WKMG ClickOrlando – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 The family of Army Spc. Mariyah Symone Collington gathered Wednesday at the Orlando Executive Airport…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":294914,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[10514,21533,2174,2583,1335,139,141,140,24772,21547,13782],"class_list":["post-294913","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-orlando","tag-apopka","tag-army","tag-lake-county","tag-military","tag-orange-county","tag-orlando","tag-orlando-headlines","tag-orlando-news","tag-serving-those-who-served","tag-soldier","tag-tavares"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294913","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=294913"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294913\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/294914"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=294913"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=294913"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=294913"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}