Tony Le Veque, 43, passed away on 20 May 2026. Born in Seoul, Korea, and adopted into the United States, Tony dedicated 13 years to the Air Force National Guard, including a deployment to Kuwait during the Iraq War.

He is survived by his wife, Joanne “Joie” Barnhart, and her son, Shiloh Barnhart, whom he loved deeply.

To me, Tony was most importantly my friend. For eight years, we shared a friendship rooted in something difficult to explain to others—the experience of being Korean adoptees growing up and living in America. We understood each other in ways that didn’t always require words. We talked about questions of identity, belonging, and where we came from—things we had often never been able to say aloud to another person.

Tony was introspective, intelligent, thoughtful, and deeply caring. He had a way of looking beneath the surface and truly thinking about the people and things that mattered.

The day before he left us, Tony spoke about how much he loved Joie and Shiloh. He worried about them and wished he could do more for Joie and for her father, who is struggling with cancer. His thoughts were with the people he loved and how he could care for them.

I will always carry that conversation with me. I wish I had known it would be our last.

Some friendships give us companionship. Others give us the rare feeling of being truly understood. Tony was that kind of friend to me.

I am grateful for the eight years we shared, for the conversations only we could truly understand, and for the sense of belonging we found in one another.

Eight years was not nearly enough.

Tony, I will miss you more than words can say. I hope you are at peace, my friend.

May you rest peacefully, and may you always be remembered.

In loving memory to you my friend, Tony Le Veque.

Julie Kwon Evans