This week’s Veteran is Joe Flores, who served in the U.S. Army from 1944-1946. Joe recently turned 100 years old at the Worthington Manor in Conroe, at a party given by his friends and family. Many of his friends and family came in from as far away from Arizona, Illinois, and Missouri. It was a joyful reunion for Flores with those loved ones and the residents of Worthington Manor. Joe is still very active in walking over one mile per day around the manor with only the assistance of a cane. Flores served with the 84th Infantry Division during World War II arriving in Europe in 1944 following the D-Day Invasion of France. Joe arrived on the French-Belgium border in late 1944 and was assigned to the 84th Infantry Division, and was thrust in the Rhineland, or the tailend of the Siegfried Line Campaign. From there he went straight to Ardennes-Alsace, which involved the Battle of the Bulge, the last major German offensive campaign of the war. As an Infantryman, the battle conditions for soldiers were bone-chilling from mid-December, with the soldiers’ constant exposure to the weather conditions, having horrendous effects on the body. The ground was so frozen that creating foxholes for cover was near impossible. Near the end of The Bulge, his unit was near the town of Houffalize, Belgium, east of Luxembourg, and about 23 kilometers northeast of Bastogne. From there, Flores went into Central Germany with the division, marching his way across Germany, winding up on the Elbe River north of Berlin. In early 1946, Joe’s division returned to the United States, and he was mustered out of the Army. Joe began working with Owens-Illinois Plastics Division, first starting out as a bookkeeper, then working his way up to a top plant manager for the company. Good Luck Joe, and Congratulations on being MCNs ‘Veteran of the Week’.