CLEVELAND — One veteran who served in the army for years still serves this nation at NASA as they work to get to the moon.
Since Carlos Flores was young, his dream never changed; he always wanted to be a soldier.
That serving opportunity came in 2004 during the war in Iraq and Afghanistan; right after finishing his master's degree, Carols didn't hesitate to enlist as a U.S. Army Engineering Officer.
“I completed four combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. I got the opportunity to lead some amazing projects, both in those countries and overseas,” said Flores.
He served 11 years on active duty with the U.S. Army, leading projects where they rebuilt Iraq's highways, bridges, and roads.
“When I think about my contributions, I think of myself like this. I am one tiny brick and a big wall, and that wall protects our countries, and I am just very proud to be that little piece,” said Flores.
When he left active duty to start his next mission, it landed him in Cleveland at the NASA Glenn research center.
“I feel like the luckiest guy in the world. I was able to transition from a military career. So now a civilian career at NASA, and I’m living my second version of the American dream,” said Flores.
It was a dream that transformed into his new role as chief of the strategic planning branch for facilities and infrastructure.
“In my branch, I lead programs. One of those is the construction of facilities, and one that I spent a lot of time working on is our center's master plan,” said Flores.
That service involves planning and building facilities like this top-of-line Aerospace Communications facility.
“I don’t have a work document as a result of all my labor; there’s actually tangible physical things that we build,” said Flores.
Flores is still in disbelief that he was once a soldier who built bridges overseas, and now he finds himself bridging the gap between here and his next dream, the moon.
“I love to build structures in places that are hard under the worst circumstances. And I feel like if we ever build something on the moon, I want to be part of that,” said Flores.
As for his military career, Carlos is a lieutenant colonel in the army reserves and the commander of the 443rd engineer facilities detachment in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.
