Throughout our history, Native Americans have defended our country and served in the Armed Forces with great courage and distinction. Today, more than 8,000 Soldiers of Native American or Alaska Native descent serve in the U.S. Army and more than 150,000 are veterans.
Among their ranks is Sgt. 1st Class Salomon Mireles, an Active Guard Reserve, or AGR, talent manager serving in the Reserve Personnel Management Directorate here at U.S. Army Human Resources Command.
Mireles was raised in Escondido, California. His father is of Mexican and Chichimeca descent and his mother is Yaqui. The Chichimeca, also known as the Nahua, originated in the Bajio region of Mexico, and the Yaqui Tribe is native to Sonora, Mexico and Southern Arizona.
“My mom is still very much fully Yaqui,” Mireles said. “[She] raised me in that culture, eating the foods and observing the Native American rituals, ceremonies and holidays. She made sure I grew up with a dream catcher in my window and instilled in me an understanding of how we are still very much closely tied to our Yaqui Tribe in Arizona and how her grandparents still spoke the native tongue.”
After high school graduation, Mireles attended community college and worked a 60-hour a week job as an inventory clerk and parts driver for a car dealership. After five years, at the age of 23, he joined the Army Reserve to get his life on track and earn money for college.
When Mireles returned home from basic training July 15, 2007, his mother threw a coming home party, rooted in Yaqui rituals, to celebrate his return.
The celebration included traditional Yaqui foods and a relative performing the famous Yaqui Deer Dance wearing a deer headdress, mimicking deer movements. The dance is a spiritual ritual symbolizing the relationship between humans and nature. In the past, a celebration was held and the dance performed after a young man returned home from his journey to become a warrior.
“We do the deer dance in celebration that he is now a man, a warrior that we can now take on the hunts,” Mireles said. “Having the Deer Dance as part of my celebration – I felt like I had accomplished something in my life that had truly made my Family proud and that they could see I was on the right track to becoming more than just their little boy, but a successful young man with promise and potential for great accomplishments.”
He said joining the Army helped him tap back into his warrior spirit, which in Native American culture is about embodying strength, courage and resilience. According to Mireles, this feeling is reflected in the military through camaraderie, discipline and dedication to protecting and serving others.
“It's a combination of mental toughness, physical endurance and an unwavering commitment to one’s values and community,” Mireles said. “Getting put into physically hard settings in basic reminded me that I can overcome, and that I can kind of tap into something that is deeper than me, almost like having supernatural strength. It was nice to be able to reconnect with that when I initially joined the Reserve.”
As a Troop Program Units, or TPU, Soldier, Mireles served in assignments as a human resources specialist in a number of locations including 806th Adjutant General Company, March Air Force Base, California; an 18-month deployment to Kuwait with 376th Human Resource Company out of Bell, California; the 314th Military Intelligence Battalion in San Diego, California; and with the 806th Adjutant General Detachment, March Air Force Base.
He became a member of the AGR in 2015, serving first with the 1397 Deployment and Distribution Support Battalion, Vallejo, California. He went on to serve in the 100th Training Division; 7305th Medical Training Support Battalion and 450th Civil Affairs Battalion (Airborne) before being assigned to HRC June 2023.
As an AGR talent manager, Mireles oversees the careers of 580 Soldiers in eight different military occupational specialties. He finds his job to be very rewarding.
“I do enjoy serving my country, but more than anything I enjoy serving Soldiers, it fills my cup,” Mireles said. “Because that’s what ‘sergeant’ means, it means servant and I take that very seriously as far as making sure that I am being a servant leader even when I’m not in an official leadership position.”
Mireles is always willing to give 110% to help, support, mentor, train, and coach Soldiers become the best version of themselves, but he also expects them to put forth the same kind of effort to better themselves.
“I expect a lot because I have my own self expectations and I think of the next generation as being the future of the Army,” Mireles said. “I can remember how senior leaders invested in me and helped me grow as a leader, and I want to be able to help the next generation of Soldiers grow and serve as well.”
For Mireles, being a Soldier and a Native American brings him a huge sense of pride.
He plans to serve as long as the Army will have him while he continues to live the indigenous culture instilled in him.
A dream catcher still hangs in his window and Mireles continues to maintain a deep connection to the environment and nature, often listening to birds singing and observing wildlife while engaging in Native American activities like beadwork and storytelling.
He is also raising his 7-year-old son to know and live the Yaqui culture. His child has a dream catcher, powwow drums and attends powwows and festivals with the Family to maintain traditions and community bonds.
“I don’t want us to forget our history,” Mireles said.
