Major Kurt Chew-Een Lee, USMC, a San Francisco native and Korean War hero, has died at 88. Major Lee passed away on Monday, March 3, 2014 at his home in Washington, DC, it is believed as the result of a heart attack.
Major Lee was the firstborn son of Chinese immigrants and the first Chinese-American ever to be commissioned as a regular officer in the Marine Corps. He overcame the prevalent racial prejudice of the time to earn the respect and loyalty of his men under fire in the brutal Chosin Reservoir campaign of November-December, 1950.
During the night of November 2-3, in rugged mountainous terrain and under stark, below-zero winter conditions, then-Second Lieutenant Lee led his men in a ferocious attack through thousands of besieging Chinese Communist forces to rescue a surrounded Marine rifle company that would have no doubt been wiped out otherwise. For his valor in that action, Lee was awarded the Navy Cross, the Marines’ second-highest honor. Many felt – and still feel – that he should have been awarded the Medal of Honor. Here is a KGO-TV (San Francisco) story about Major Lee that ran in 2011: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?id=8013142
On February 14, just a couple of weeks before his death, Major Lee had flown from Washington to San Francisco to serve as Honorary Marshal of the city’s famed Chinese New Year Parade. Two days later, he was the Guest of Honor at a gala luncheon hosted by San Francisco’s American Legion Cathay Post #384. Here he is speaking at that gathering:
Photo by Galin Luk, American Legion Cathay Post #384, February 16, 2014
In addition to his Navy Cross, Major Lee was also the recipient of the Silver Star, the Purple Heart, and other military honors. The story of his bravery under fire was the subject of a 2010 Smithsonian Channel documentary, “Uncommon Courage: Breakout at Chosin”.
Semper Fidelis, Major Lee. You are not forgotten.
Photo from Commandant, USMC’s 235th Birthday Greeting, November 10, 2010