Our dedicated Advisory Board member and dear friend, Mark Solit, passed away suddenly in January 2022. Mark was a great supporter who was deeply committed to giving back to his peers by getting involved with Swords.  

In 1967, when he was enrolled at Columbia University, Mark was drafted by the U.S. Army to serve in the Vietnam War. He served as a 2nd and then 1st Lieutenant in the 1/506th Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division. Mark was cited with several honors during his time in the Army, including a National Defense Service Medal, a Bronze Star Medal for Valor, and a Purple Heart. Mark returned to the U.S. to finish his service at Fort Ord in Monterey, CA in 1972.  

Upon finishing his undergraduate and graduate degrees, he worked as the in-house counsel for a construction company before realizing his dream as a real estate developer. He was a successful businessman and worked in real estate development in the Bay Area from 1983 to 2022.  

Mark had several passions and causes he cared for and helping Bay Area veterans was one of his top commitments. Mark contributed a significant amount of time and resources to Swords to Plowshares and served in an advisory capacity for years. He worked hard to help veterans in need, including a dedicated effort to provide labor opportunities for veterans on his construction projects. We will miss Mark dearly. We are thankful for the generosity and continued support his family has shown Swords to Plowshares as they cherish his legacy.