Press releases
U.S. Embassy Presents Hawaii Medal of Honor to South African Mother of Slain Iraq War Veteran
September 15, 2009
Pretoria – In a ceremony at the Embassy of the United States of America September 15, 2009, Mrs. Marlene Coertze of Mossel Bay received the State of Hawaii’s Medal of Honor on behalf of her son, Private First Class Christopher Warren Lotter. Private First Class Lotter, 20, died of wounds early the morning of December 31, 2008 in a U.S. Army Hospital in Balad, Iraq. He had been shot by a sniper in Tikrit the previous afternoon.
Private First Class Lotter was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii. The Hawaii Medal of Honor was established to express the deep appreciation and gratitude of the people of Hawaii to the loved ones of members of the military with connections to Hawaii who sacrificed their lives in defense of the United States.
Private Lotter was shot while on “routine patrol” helping to secure an area around Tikrit’s water plant while fellow soldiers were inside talking to the director about upgrading the water plant at the Khadasia General Hospital. During a January 3, 2009 memorial service, Lotter’s company commander, Captain Jeff Rhodes, said the last selfless act of his life was to help the people of Khadasia to have fresh, clean drinking water. To honor his sacrifice, the soldiers of Lotter’s company pledged to complete the water treatment project and did so prior to their unit’s departure from Iraq.
In January 2009, Private Lotter’s family traveled the U.S. for a funeral and internment service at Arlington National Cemetery. U.S. Congressman Joe Sestak (D-PA), who serves as the elected representative for the district in which Private Lotter’s natural father lives in Pennsylvania, met with the family at the U.S. Capitol Building and attended the funeral service at Arlington. The U.S. Secretary of the Army also attended the funeral service. Private Lotter was also awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart posthumously.
Private Lotter grew up in Mossel Bay, South Africa, emigrating to the U.S. and becoming a U.S. citizen before joining the U.S. Army.
For more information, please contact Embassy press officer:
Sharon Hudson-Dean 012-431-4659