Lapthe Flora

Lapthe Chau Flora ( born Vietnamese: Châu The Lap) is a   Brigadier General in the United States Army. He is the former commander of the Bowling Green-based 91st Troop Command, Virginia National Guard. He currently serves as the Assistant Adjutant General of the Virginia National Guard in Sandston, Virginia.

Early life
He is the son of Chinese parents, born in South Vietnam in 1962. His father, a South Vietnamese Merchant Marine, was killed during the Vietnam War, when he was 2 years old. His mother was left a widow with six children. When he was 11 years old he worked in a factory to help his family and himself. 

In 1980, five years after the communists won the war, when he was 18 when he fled the city of Saigon, now renamed Ho Chi Minh City to escape the indoctrination of communist principals initiated by the Hanoi government of Vietnam. He and several siblings lived in the jungle, surviving on snakes, rats porcupines and vegetation. 

He then decided to escape by boat with other refugees by sailing in the South China Sea. Their ship was later rescued and they were all taken to an Indonesian refugee camp. After a year at the camp, he was allowed to legally enter the United States and was adopted by John and Audrey Flora. 

Education
In 1983, he graduated from Cave Spring High School (Roanoke, Virginia).

He earned a degree in Biological Sciences from the Virginia Military Institute.

Assignments
In 1988, he started his military career in the Virginia National Guard after graduating from the Virginia Military Institute and has since served in every staff position within 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, including as commander of that battalion. 

He served as the 116th IBCT executive officer, 29th Infantry Division’s director of operations and most recently as the Joint Force Headquarters – Virginia director of strategic plans. He has successfully completed three overseas deployments to Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan. He has also participated in several security cooperation missions with the Republic of Tajikistan, the nation partnered with Virginia as part of the Department of Defense's State Partnership Program.

In May 2015, he assumed command of the Bowling Green-based 91st Troop Command, Virginia National Guard at the Army Aviation Support Facility in Sandston, Virginia. On 16 May 2016, he assumed duties as Assistant Adjutant General, with subsequent promotion to brigadier general.

Civilian career
Flora is Director of Quality Assurance, Night Vision & Communications Solutions (NVCS) with Exelis Inc. in Roanoke, Va., and holds six patent awards related to the AN/PVS-14 and AN/AVS-9 night goggles.  

Decorations and awards
His was awarded the General Douglas MacArthur Leadership Award.

Family
He is married to his wife Thuy and they have a daughter named Christine. His adopted father John Flora graduated from Virginia Military Institute in 1937, was a retired realtor, had been a battalion staff officer with the 116th Infantry Regiment when it landed on Omaha Beach on D-Day. His adopted parents John and Audrey Flora have passed away.

Quotes

 * "So many people take things for granted in the United States," "But freedom is a basic right that has to be defended. There are rights and responsibilities that are tied to selflessness. We're protecting our quality of life. "After eating at the table of democracy, is it too much to ask to clean up your dishes? Is it too much to ask to share the burden?"