Tan Quoc “Ngo Go” Ngo was born on June 23, 1988, in Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon. He was the son of Binh Thanh Sam and Ut Quoc Ngo. He graduated from Westview High School in Beaverton, Oregon, in 2006. After graduation, he joined the Job Corps, where he initially trained as a chef before working as a house painter. He had attempted to enlist in the Army several times but was initially unable to do so because of asthma. After his health improved, he successfully enlisted in October 2007 and joined the infantry. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment, based in Hohenfels, Germany, and was later deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

PFC Ngo was killed on August 27, 2008, in Kandahar, Afghanistan, when his unit came under attack from enemy forces using small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades. Ngo was serving as a turret gunner aboard a Humvee when enemy forces opened fire as the vehicle passed an orchard. He is now buried in the Willamette National Cemetery, Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, USA.

Sources of information: www.findagrave.com, thefallen.militarytimes.com