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| LIFE IN SOLERA | AUGUST 2024 | 41 The Flags were raised in July for Independence Day (7/4/24). There are no occasions to raise the Flags in August. Thank you to those few dedicated resident volunteers who are up "at the crack of dawn" on these special days to put up and take down our flags. Contact for the Flag Brigade – Nick Gercis, nick.gercis@gmail.com. Upcoming Flag Schedule: Labor Day: Mon., Sept. 2; Patriots Day: Mon., Sept. 11; National POW/MIA Day: Fri., Sept. 20; Veterans Day: Sat., Nov. 11; Pearl Harbor Day: Thurs., Dec. 7. To all veterans, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE! Over the years, you likely will recall me mentioning that we have supported three fathers and then their sons. Father number one was an Army Warrant Officer-4 and his son, a Marine. Father number two was an Army Master Sergeant and his son, also a Marine. The last father was an Air Force Technical Sergeant and his son, who also happened to be the grandson of Solera residents, and was in the Army. Did you know that we also supported two husbands, and their wives, at the same time? We began supporting a female soldier, and she informed me that her husband, also in the military, was serving overseas. We supported this husband and wife during their tours. About a year later, we had a similar situation. A female soldier, who was serving in Kuwait, told me of her Army husband, who was serving in nearby Iraq. We began another husband, wife support. This husband was able to get a short leave from his duties in Iraq and go to Kuwait to visit his wife. The female's roommate found other lodging for the several days so our husband and wife could be together. We have now spoken of father and sons, and then husbands and wives. Now let's speak of brothers. We have also supported an Army Captain in Kuwait, and his Army Staff Sergeant brother in Iraq. Captain Issac (Zack) Chongulia and I communicated almost every day. Zack and his brother, Tyrus, had a rather interesting background. Their father was born and lived in Thailand. He met their mother, who was an American. The couple married and had the two sons, Zack and Tyrus. They lived for a number of years in Thailand, before moving to Texas. The two boys got to experience two extremely different lifestyles in Thailand and Texas. When Zack went off to college, one of his ways to earn extra money was by repairing other college students' bicycles. Being stationed in Kuwait, he saw that there were a lot of bicycles being used by soldiers. Sometimes when a soldier was rotating back stateside, and had waited too long to sell the bike or it was broken, the soldier would abandon it. To pass the time, Captain Chongulia began refurbishing them. Solera's Chain Gang Bicycle Club and people in the community donated supplies and tools to assist him. ~ Jesse Donardt SUPPORT OUR TROOPS VETERAN ASSISTANCE FLAG BRIGADE Billy (Mitch) Mitchell is a resident and Veteran who has voluntarily worked with individuals and the Veterans Administration to assist Veterans in obtaining benefits. If you are a Veteran and want to know which benefits you may be eligible for, contact Mitch at (951) 797-0800.