THE FALLEN AT FORT HOOD

Kham Xiong was 'a superb role model to his peers'

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By Dan Zak

Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, November 6, 2009; 7:26 PM

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.