Shaun So is Anna Chlumsky’s husband. The duo got married in 2008 and have two daughters. Born in 1980, the American celebrity spouse is currently 44 years old. Shaun served several years in the US military but is now part of the business world as an entrepreneur.
Shaun and Anna met during their days as students at the University of Chicago, and despite coming from two totally different cultural and religious backgrounds, the couple was determined to make their relationship a success. They eventually tied the knot in 2008 and have been together ever since. The duo share two children, and there are rumors about a third child.
Summary of Shaun So’s Biography
- Full Name: Shaun So
- Gender: Male
- Date of Birth: 1980
- Shaun So’s Age: 44 years old
- Ethnicity: Asian-American
- Nationality: American
- Sexual Orientation: Straight
- Marital Status: Married
- Shaun So’s Wife: Anna Chlumsky
- Shaun So’s Children: Penelope Joan So and Clara Elizabeth So
- Shaun So’s Height in Inches: 5 feet 7 inches
- Shaun So’s Height in Centimetres: 174 cm
- Shaun So’s Weight: 64 kg
- Shaun So’s Net Worth: $3 to $4 million
- Famous For: Being the husband of Anna Chlumsky
- Shaun So’s Instagram: @shaun.so
How Old is Shaun So?
Shaun So is currently 44 years old as his date of birth is listed as 1980. The exact month and day are not known. Shaun was born in the United States, which makes him a citizen of America, however, his ethnic background is Asian-American.
Shaun has never bothered to reveal his parents’ identities in the public space, but the tidbits we gathered from reports revealed that they migrated to the United States from China. His father earned a living as an academic staff of a university; he functioned as a culinary instructor. Shaun’s dad later went into business by launching his own restaurant in Topsham, Maine. The eatery called China Town specializes in selling just China Cuisine.
It is not known whether Shaun So has any siblings or was raised as an only child.
Shaun is well Educated
We were not told where Shaun So attended elementary and high school. However, he earned his first degree as a student at the University of Chicago, where he met the woman that would become his wife. He joined the higher institution in 1993 to study political science, and when he graduated in 2003, Shaun earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in his discipline.
The quest for further academic qualifications took the Asian American to Tsinghua University in 2001, where he spent one-year studying language immersion; one of the languages he mastered was Mandarin. Shaun completed his studies in 2001.
Following this, he got admitted into The City University of New York to study business administration (Entrepreneurship) at a Master’s degree level graduating in 2011. He achieved this in the University’s Zicklin School of Business under Baruch College.
Shaun So has some special qualifications; the Asian American earned a license as an Open Water Diver from PADI. Since 2015, he has been a Wilderness First Responder.
What Does Shaun So Do for a Living?
With all his academic and special qualifications, Shaun launched a successful career as an intelligence security in the military and did wonderfully well when he waded into entrepreneurship.
His Work in the US Military Lasted for Several Years
The veteran military officer and businessman first joined the America Defense Intelligence Agency where he worked from 2003 to 2006 as an intelligence analyst. For another five years, he functioned as a special counterintelligence agent.
During his years of service, Shaun So didn’t just want to be an office-based military guy. He wanted a piece of the action, and this wish landed him in Afghanistan to work with the Army reserve already on the ground there.
The counterterrorism expert eventually left the military in 2011 after serving for ten years and went on to settle down as a businessman.
What was Shaun So’s Role in The Army?
Just watching the United States then-war on terrorism from his TV set annoyed Shaun so much that he took the decision to enlist in the Army in order to have a firsthand experience of the war.
Following his enrolment in 2003, Shaun was with the Defense Intelligence Agency of the US Federal government. During his days with the counterintelligence special squad, he functioned as the squad’s tactical Intelligence team sergeant, and from time to time, Shaun So was called up to lead international and domestic combat operations.
While with the United States’ Intelligence squad, Shaun has some gigs on the side, working with McNeil Technologies as a defense contractor; the position started in July 2006 and ended in March 2009.
Shaun’s days in the US military saw him go through a couple of accidents – the first time, the Asian-American’s Humvee was hit by an IED; this was revealed by his girlfriend turned wife, Anna Chlumsky, in October 2014. The next incident was when So’s team encountered an ambush in the field.
Shaun So is an Entrepreneur
After he hung his booths in 2011, Shaun So went into the wheeling-dealing world of business. Barely a year later, in 2012, the University of Chicago alum launched the So Company. The firm’s work portfolio involves growing revenue, managing company employees, and forming strategies. All these put together are targeted towards the improvement of public services for the final users.
So Company’s clientele base includes large government agencies, including small American and European startups. Before Launching So Company, Shaun already founded Cubby – an organization targeted at urban logistics startups. Between 2011 and 2012, Shaun So was the company’s CEO. He also takes the credit for founding the non-profit Digital Services Coalition, which is comprised of selected firms that assist in accelerating governments’ digital transformation.
Why He Founded Cubby
On how he came up with the initiative to launch his first business, Cubby, Shaun said it was the difficulty his wife experiences in dealing with several bags while at work that panted the idea in his head.
Thus, he designed Cubby to be a pop-up store specializing in providing people with a short-term store facility for their luggage. With this, they will be free to roam the town while being assured that their stuff is safe with Cubby. This service attracts a charge from users. While this business venture flourished at the beginning, it closed within one year.
Shaun So Worked as a Columnist
Shaun So had a two-year stint with the renowned business magazine Forbes. From 2012 to 2014, the intelligent ex-military officer was one of the media outlet’s contributors on special issues bordering on business interests, entrepreneurship, and veterans.
He later launched his own blog called Ironsighting.com. However, the site has been pulled down a long time ago
How Did Shaun So Meet his Wife, Anna Chlumsky?
The former US Intelligent officer and businessman met his wife for the first time during their days as students at the University of Chicago. According to Anna Chlumsky, she was supposed to attend the campus party called Spring Fling with someone, but the person had flu and called off at the dying minute, thus, she attended the bash alone.
When she met Shaun So, they ended up dancing for four hours even though they only knew each other’s first names. At the end of the party, Anna expected that her new friend would at least see her home, but Shaun just said “bye”, though she later discovered that he was just too shy.
As fate would have it, Anna saw Shaun at the campus’ Eminem and Roots concert the next day, and she told the friend she was standing with, “That’s the dude I danced with last night”. The friend quickly asked for Shaun’s name, following which she called him and ducked; Anna and Shaun then took it from there.
It was at that point that the Asian American gathered the courage to intimate what later become an enduring relationship that has lasted for more than two decades and still going strong. They first became good friends and then admitted that it was more than just friendship.
They never bothered about the fact that Chlumsky was one year ahead of Shaun, and there was also their ethnic background which were worlds apart. Shaun So and his love interest later cohabited in his house in Brooklyn before he moved to Afghanistan for military service.
Shaun So and Anna Chlumsky Survived a Long-Distance Relationship
Because Anna was one year ahead of Shaun, she graduated before him and moved to New York in pursuit of her post-grad-fact-checking position. Her boyfriend, who was still a student, had to stay back in Chicago to complete his final year in college. When this happened, the couple did not see the distance as an obstacle. They would always take advantage of the public transportation system to visit each other. They also spent most of their weekends together.
Upon his college graduation, the Asian-American opted to join the US Army and was deployed to the Washington, D.C.-based Department of Defense. The dynamics of the lovebird’s long-distance relationship further changed when the Intelligent officer was moved to Afghanistan on official duties. Describing the latest development, Anna shared a piece about how she would build a fortress around herself just to stay strong for her soldier. “If long-distance dating is a sport, deployment is the X Games,” were Anna’s exact words to Glamourpiece.
Against all odds, Anna was determined to work for the survival of their relationship, and so was her love interest Shaun So, In January 2006, the soldier eventually came back from his mission but continued serving in the US Army for another five years.
Talking about her experience in Shaun’s absence, Chlumsky said she was so lonely. Besides, people who heard that her boyfriend was an Army personnel would give her looks. She also said her role in Homer’s Odyssey helped her combat loneliness.
They Got Engaged in 2007
Anna recalled when Shaun was on a two-week leave, and they had to go into a deep discussion about their future. She said they talked about her acting career, Shaun’s job, and the Army, and after their lengthy talk, the couple concluded that life can only be better when they stay together despite all uncertainties.
There and then, the lovebirds said they relied on what they described as “their collective obstinacy and determination to make it for the very long haul.”
Shaun So made things official in October 2007 when he asked for Anna’s hand in marriage. An ecstatic Anna, who obviously gave her boyfriend a yes answer, wasted no time in taking to social media to share her good news with fans, and so did Shaun.
Shaun So Has Been Anna Chlumsky’s Husband Since 2008
The interracial couple were barely one year into their official engagement when they went on to exchange wedding vows on the 8th of March 2008
In her speech about their upcoming wedding ceremony, Chlumsky described it as a fusion of two totally different cultures, with her as a Catholic and her husband a Chinese. However, when they eventually tied the knot, the couple had to skip that part of Chinese tradition where the bride will be kidnapped.
The wedding was an intimate affair hosted in Brooklyn, New York, with friends and family in attendance. The guest list included some top-notch acting personalities, military officers, and more.
The bride was the center of attraction, appearing in an all-white neckless wedding gown and a beautiful hairband. The groom, on the flip side, appeared in a black tuxedo sporting a white shirt with a grey tie, black party shoes, and an army-look haircut.
The couple surfaced on the internet space after the ceremony to thank fans and the general public while describing the event as the best day of their entire lives.
The couple’s union has lasted for over 15 years and counting. Shaun So and Anna Chlumsky have been each other’s support system, always making public appearances together.
Who is Shaun So’s Wife?
Anna Chlumsky, the wife of Shaun So, is an American movie and television actress. She was born on the 3rd of December 1980 to Nancy Chlumsky, who earned a living as a flight attendant but later became a singer cum actress. Just like Shaun’s dad, Anna’s father, Frank Chlumsky Jr., is also a chef but doubles as a saxophone player.
Though an American by nationality, Anna has Czech and Croatian background. The Chlumsky family are Catholics and raised their daughter to follow the faith.
Anna was still very young when she followed her mother into the entertainment industry as a model. As an actress, her breakout roles were witnessed on the sets of My Girl (parts 1 and 2.
Anna has recorded appearances in other productions like Veep, The End of the Tour, Rugrats, They/Them, The Pill, White Collar, Law and Order, House Rules, In the Loop, and 30 Rock
Shaun So’s Children
Shaun So and Anna Chlumsky took their time before welcoming children into their union. The couple was already married five years before their first child – a baby girl named Penelope Joan So announced her birth on July 11th, 2013.
According to the movie and TV actress, who was then 32, they took Penelope’s name from Homer’s The Odyssey. In the movie, Penelope, who was the wife of Odyssey, waited 20 long years for the return of her husband from war.
Penelope became a big sister at age three when Shaun’s second daughter, Clara Elizabeth So, joined the family on the 28 of July 2016. There are speculations that Anna and Shaun had a third child, but the details are unknown. During the recording of Anna’s movie, Inventing Anna, she was pregnant, but no mention has been made of the actress giving birth to a third child.
The two So girls have July birthdays, and their actress mother once joked about it in an interview session, saying it works out perfectly well with her work schedule.
While Shaun So’s wife started modeling at an early age, the American actress has revealed that her children are not going to step into the limelight as early as she did. She told People that her children will first attain adulthood and be able to make decisions for themselves before having to contend with the pressure of making money.
