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Kham Xiong was 'a superb role model to his peers'
Washington Post ^ | 11/6/2009 | Dan Zak

Posted on 11/06/2009 8:49:08 PM PST by Saije

Army PFC Kham Xiong, 23, came from a St. Paul, Minn., family with ties to military life that spanned hemispheres. His father, Chor Xiong, battled Communist insurgents in Laos during the Vietnam War, according to Minnesota Public Radio, and his younger brother Nelson is enlisted in the Marines.

In a phone interview, his 8th grade teacher, Tim McGowan, recalled Xiong's positive energy and his commitment to supporting his family.

"Kham was just a person of sound character, and his greatest attribute was his ability to make everybody smile," said McGowan, now a principal at Community of Peace Academy, a St. Paul charter school from which Xiong graduated in 2004. "He was a superb role model to his peers and siblings and children."

Xiong was among the first killed at Fort Hood as he waited in line to get a flu shot and a vision test, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported.

Xiong was one of 11 children, a hard-working man who called home every night and who recently moved with his wife and three young children (ages 10 months to 4 years) to a home near the Texas military base, according to the Pioneer Press. He was expected to deploy to Afghanistan within the next two months.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; US: Minnesota
KEYWORDS: army; forthood; soldier; xiong
A young man with small children whose parents came here and worked hard to give him a better life. It's just so wrong that he's gone because another son of immigrants didn't want to go to Afghanistan or felt picked on or couldn't find a wife or whatever is the current explanation. Condolences to Pfc Xiong's family.
1 posted on 11/06/2009 8:49:09 PM PST by Saije
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To: Saije

Very sad. And sickening.


2 posted on 11/06/2009 8:50:32 PM PST by dr_who
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To: Saije

The Vietnamese here in L.A., especially the OC area are very patriotic. MOST of them are Republicans and whose parents escaped/fought the commies in Vietnam. It’s not rare to see the South Vietnamese flag stickers in little Saigon..


3 posted on 11/06/2009 9:01:53 PM PST by max americana (i)
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To: max americana

“The Vietnamese here in L.A., especially the OC area are very patriotic.”

Was he a Montegnard or a Cambodian? His name is not Vietnamese. I know the Yards were super patriotic, then the Democrats screwed them.


4 posted on 11/06/2009 9:15:27 PM PST by Rembrandt
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To: Saije

BTTT.


5 posted on 11/07/2009 1:01:14 AM PST by little jeremiah (Asato Ma Sad Gamaya Tamaso Ma Jyotir Gamaya)
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