Fallen Soldier: Florence B. Choe

Navy Lieutenant Florence B. Choe, 35, from El Cajon, Calif., was assigned to Camp Shaheen, Mazar-E-Sharif, Afghanistan, a medical station that served US troops as well as Afghan troops and civilians. She was mentoring the Afghans as they devised a healthcare system for their army. On March 27, 2009, an Afghan National Army soldier opened fire, fatally wounding Lt. Choe and another Navy officer.

Lt. Choe attended high school in the San Diego suburb of Spring Valley. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Biology (1997) at UC San Diego and a master’s degree in Public Health and Healthcare Administration (2001) at San Diego State University. Days after 9/11, she went to a Navy recruiting office and signed up to serve and follow in her father’s footsteps as a career sailor.

An avid snowboarder and runner, Lt. Choe met her husband, Naval Academy graduate, Lt. Commander Chong “Jay” Choe while working at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. The two married in 2004.

LT. Choe’s daughter is the recipient of the Folds of Honor Children’s Fund scholarship.