Army Reserve Maj. Charles R. Soltes Jr., 36, Irvine; Killed in an Explosion

There was never a doubt that Rob Soltes would grow up to become a soldier. He was born in the base hospital at Ft. Walters, Texas, while an Army band played “Stars and Stripes Forever” on the adjacent parade ground.

The son of an Army officer and Vietnam veteran, Soltes attended Norwich University, a military school in Vermont, where he was class president and graduated in 1990 as a second lieutenant.

“Robbie loved the military. We knew he was probably going to be a soldier,” said Greg Liccardi, who grew up with Soltes in Boonton Township, N.J. “His whole life from the time we were kids was about helping others, and that’s what he did as a soldier.”

Maj. Charles Robert Soltes Jr., 36, was killed Oct. 13 when an explosive device struck his convoy in Mosul, Iraq, killing him, another officer and wounding five soldiers. Soltes was assigned to the 426th Civil Affairs Battalion, an Army Reserve unit in Upland.

As a company commander, his mission was to help rebuild the public health infrastructure in Mosul, said his father, retired Col. Charles Soltes Sr. He said his son was killed while returning from a meeting with Iraqi health officials, and had been in Iraq less than a month.

Soltes lived in Irvine with his wife, Sally Dang Soltes, and two sons, Brandan and Ryan. Sally Soltes is eight months pregnant with the couple’s third child.

They met when they were students at the New England College of Optometry, where the Army sent Soltes to school after he graduated from Norwich. The family moved to Orange County in 1999 after Soltes completed five years of active duty, which included an assignment as director of optometry at Keller Army Hospital at West Point. Soltes and his wife own two optometry shops, in Garden Grove and Westminster.

Charles Soltes Sr., who served with the fabled 1st Battalion 9th Cavalry of the 1st Cavalry Division in South Vietnam, said his son understood the danger of serving in Iraq. Despite the peril, his son was “motivated by his mission to help the Iraqis rebuild,” said the elder Soltes, who flew a UH-1 Huey gunship and served two tours in South Vietnam. “I didn’t push him to be a soldier. But I knew he had been influenced by my life in the military,” said Soltes Sr, who served 30 years on active duty and in the Army Reserve.

“Before he left for Iraq, I told him I hoped he wasn’t doing it because he felt he had to follow in my tradition.” He said his son responded that he was not seeking glory, but to make a difference in the lives of others.

Soltes, who loved to fish and camp, played rugby in college. His preference for the bruising sport did not overshadow his charitable nature, friends said. “Even as a kid, Robbie was an uncommon human being,” Liccardi said. “I don’t think he ever had a job that wasn’t about helping others.”

Soltes also is survived by his mother, Nancy; a brother, Jeffrey; and a sister, Carolyn Soltes Matthies.