Lee entered the Army in 1975 as a Private First Class when 2% of the Army workforce was female and retired over 38 years later as a Major General. Upon her retirement in 2014, only seven women had gone further in the Army. After almost four decades of service, she left a legacy of delivering groundbreaking technologies to U.S. Forces across the globe.
In her last assignment, Lee spearheaded the Army’s hugely successful effort to share operational data with 45 partner nations in Afghanistan which facilitated faster coordination and execution of combat missions. Her team’s success was recognized by awarding them the Department of Defense’s highest acquisition award. Her team remains the only organization within the Department of Defense to win back-to-back awards (2009 & 2010).
During her career, Lee delivered a vast array of communications and cyber capabilities to U.S. Forces and the U.S. State Department in Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, and South Korea. She served as the Deputy Acquisition Executive for the Special Operations Command (SOCOM) at a time of unprecedented growth in Special Operations missions, acquiring gear for the SEALs, Rangers, and the Marine and Air Force Special Operators. Lee was the first woman to be selected for General Officer while serving in a Special Operations unit.