Petty Officer First Class Johnny Douangdara was born December 29, 1984 in Sioux City, IA. He was the third of five children of his parents – mother, Seng, and father, Sith.

The Douangdara family was originally from Laos. After the Vietnam War ended when the South Vietnam capital of Saigon fell to North Vietnamese forces in 1975, Laos was taken over by communist forces. Because of their support of U.S. involvement in Southeast Asia, many Laotians were targeted for reprisals. At the risk of severe retaliation many, including Seng and Sith Douangdara, escaped to Thailand where they were placed in refugee camps for a year. Their escape included Sith swimming across the massive Mekong River with Seng, who was seven months pregnant, on his back.

The family immigrated to the U.S. in 1978 as a result of being sponsored by an Alta, IA farm family. They ultimately settled in South Sioux City, NE where Johnny’s mother and father worked at Tyson Foods.

Johnny had many friends, was non-confrontational, and was extremely well liked. He loved sports and was active in football, wrestling, and track.

During his senior year in high school, Johnny enlisted in the Navy. He graduated a semester early and, according to his brother, Pan, he immediately transformed from a boy to man. Pan also shared that Johnny viewed his commitment to military service, the Navy SEALs, and being a dog handler as a calling.

Johnny began serving on active duty on February 4, 2003. Following basic training, he attended Master-at-Arms training from April to June 2003. His first assignment was as a Master-at-Arms at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Italy from June 2003 to July 2006. During that time, he deployed to Iraq from August to November 2005. He next served as a Master-at-Arms at Submarine Base New London, Connecticut from August 2006 to January 2008. This was followed by service as a Combat Assault Dog Handler with Naval Special Warfare Development from January 2008 until he was killed in action on August 6, 2011.

Johnny was killed with fellow U.S. service members (including 22 Navy SEALs), eight Afghan soldiers, and Johnny’s assault dog, Bart. They were on a mission assisting an Army Ranger unit when their Chinook helicopter was hit by an enemy RPG and crashed. Johnny was 26 years old.

Following Johnny’s death, his parents, Sith and Seng, and other members of the family traveled to Dover, Delaware to receive his body. Also present were military and government officials including President Barack Obama. President Obama spoke individually with Johnny’s mom for 15 minutes. Afterwards, Johnny’s dad said, “I can’t believe I was standing there with the President of the United States because of what my son had done for this country.”

Johnny was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery. His headstone is engraved with the symbol of the Buddhist faith that he lived.