BATH, Maine (AP) - A new U.S. guided missile destroyer now bears the name of a Marine corporal who won the Medal of Honor after
giving his life in Iraq.

In a solemn ceremony punctuated by talk of courage, service and sacrifice, the mother of Jason Dunham christened the warship honoring her son. He died after covering an exploding grenade to protect his comrades in Iraq.

After composing herself and taking a deep breath, Deb Dunham smashed a bottle of champagne over the bow of the 510-foot warship
Jason Dunham. She then held the bottle aloft before a cheering crowd of more than 1,500 people at the Bath Iron Works shipyard in Maine.

She was joined by family members and the Marines who served with her son, including the ones he saved that day in 2004.

Before the ceremony, Dunham's mother said her son would "get a kick out of" having his name on a guided missile destroyer.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)