A funeral will be held today for a man, with Flagstaff ties, who passed away during Drill Sergeant Academy at Fort Jackson, South Carolina recently. Forty-year-old Jaime Contreras Junior served in the Army for 12 years as a food operations specialist and culinary officer. He joined the military after spending time working as a cook for various resorts in Sedona and Phoenix. He was working at an award-winning restaurant at Encore at Wynn in Las Vegas when he decided to enlist. Contreras grew up in Flagstaff after his family moved to the city in 1989. He attended Kinsey and Cromer elementary schools, Flagstaff Middle School and is a 2001 graduate of Flagstaff High School. During his time in the Army, he earned numerous awards and decorations for his service. A memorial service will be held today at 10 a.m. at Flagstaff Church of the Nazarene at 3505 Soliere Avenue in Flagstaff and is open to the public. The service will be followed by a procession and graveside burial, with military honors, at Calvary Catholic Cemetery. The public is invited to line the procession route to pay your respects to Contreras.