By Laura D.C. Kolnoski
TINTON FALLS – A battle-worn American flag that survived conflicts in Vietnam and Afghanistan now flies over Soldier On’s Gordon H. Mansfield Veterans Community, a gift from a fellow veteran.
Residents, staff, dignitaries and community supporters JBJ Soul Kitchen, Netflix and Fulfill gathered for the facility’s second annual Veterans Day picnic Nov. 8. Netflix and JBJ co-sponsored the event again this year, with JBJ chefs doing the cooking.
The opening ceremony featured the Monmouth County Honor Guard, resident Carol Jones singing “Amazing Grace,” and a wreath-laying in front of the columbarium where four deceased residents’ ashes are now interred.
Army veteran John Lee of Howell, an E4 to whom the flag was presented in Afghanistan by his commander, then came forward to gift the flag, which flew over Combat Outpost Tangi in Afghanistan’s Wardack province. The outpost, near a large Taliban presence, was established after a National Guard convoy was ambushed there. Lee served in the 173rd Army Airborne Brigade 1/503 Charlie Company, nicknamed the “Sky Soldiers.”
“We arrived in the valley in late 2009 when the small outpost was in infancy stages of construction with limited power, no running water, and mostly tents and plywood structures,” he said, voice choking with emotion. “The unit we were relieving had an estimated 30 soldiers either killed or injured. (The flag) flew until May 2010 after we were ordered to take it down because someone felt it was offending the local nationals.”
A year later, the Tangi Valley was back in the news when a Seal Team 6 helicopter was shot down there, killing six. Lee said the flag was only raised once since then, at a Howell event a couple of years ago.
“I defended this flag in Afghanistan,” he said. “It flew through rocket and mortar attacks, is beaten, torn and has been through battle.”
He noted the picnic date had an additional connection to Vietnam, where the flag flew in 1965, and was immortalized in country duo Big & Rich’s song “8th of November.” The lyrics honor 48 soldiers in the 173rd who died in that conflict. Community residents assisted Lee in raising the flag on the Essex Road property.
Among those addressing the gathering were Col. Yvonne L. Mays, Adjutant General of New Jersey and commissioner of the N.J. Department of Military and Veterans Affairs who commands 8,400 soldiers and airmen of the New Jersey National Guard. She said that after touring the facility, she tossed her prepared remarks and opted to “speak from the heart.”
“New Jersey is one of the friendliest states for the military,” she said. “Sometimes you give of yourself and you don’t get it all back. Some don’t make it out, but this place is brick and mortar, a tangible example of how we represent the best of this nation and are still needed. Veterans, you are the best of what this nation has to offer.”
Referencing the recent presidential election, she concluded, “We have more in common than differences. You feel it at an event like this.”
It was also the first visit for Lukas Bundonis, a representative of Vetflix, Netflix’s internal veteran employees’ resource group. The 10-year Army Reserves veteran served at Fort Dix. Netflix plans to build a major film production studio on nearby former U.S. Army base Fort Monmouth once it closes on the property in about two years.
“I love this facility and what Soldier On does,” he said. “A place like this helps bridge the divide. These organizations are so important to what we do.”
“We are grateful for the warm welcome from the community as we develop an East Coast production facility at the historic Fort Monmouth campus,” wrote Will Castleberry, Netflix’s director of U.S. State Regulatory and Production Policy in a statement sent to The Two River Times. “We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Governor Murphy, local officials, and residents to transform Fort Monmouth into a world-class production hub that will create new job opportunities.”
Soldier On’s Gordon H. Mansfield Veterans Community opened in 2021. The four-story complex of 70 one-bedroom apartments provides qualifying veterans with affordable housing complemented by support services. The nonprofit Soldier On organization, headquartered in Massachusetts, partners with public and private entities to provide residents with counseling, legal and medical services, transportation and more. The property includes greenhouses, an outdoor patio, a bocce court and a trail.
Ten units are dedicated solely to female veterans in a wing named for retired Monmouth County Commissioner Lillian G. Burry, who spearheaded the 10-year effort to get the complex built. All Soldier On locations are named for the late Mansfield, a Vietnam War veteran and former U.S. Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs who helped create the first Soldier On residence.
“Lillian Burry was the real driving force who made this happen,” Soldier On CEO and president Bruce Buckley told the crowd. “I’m still in awe 70 homeless vets call this place home. We continue to build these because of the success of this building and others.”
David Ginsberg, senior vice president of Winn Development, Soldier On’s construction partner, said New Jersey’s second Mansfield facility, containing 84 units, will break ground in West Deptford in June.
“We hope this picnic becomes an annual tradition,” Ginsberg said. “We have fostered a community here. It’s the pride of my career.”
State Assemblywoman Margie Donlon (D-11), a practicing physician and former Ocean Township mayor, and Monmouth County Commissioner Director Thomas Arnone also addressed attendees.
“There should never, ever be homeless vets,” Buckley said. “Don’t just honor a vet, find a way to truly love a vet.”
The article originally appeared in the November 14 – November 20, 2024 print edition of The Two River Times.
