Born in La Mesa, Calif., Trent moved to Colorado in 1996 and lived with his grandparents, Stanley and Marcella Maddux, of Pagosa Springs, Colo., while his mother, Meegan Maddux-Valdez, finished her nursing program at Trinidad College in Alamosa, Colo.
Trent attended Pagosa Springs schools from 1999, graduating from Pagosa Springs High School in 2010. During his early school years, he was active in 4-H rocketry and animal husbandry programs.
Trent attended high school from 2006 to 2010. While in high school, he was on the school’s wrestling and golf teams. He also participated in the Skills USA Colorado leadership program and won a gold medal. After graduation, he moved to Alamosa, where he attended Trinidad Junior College, and in 2011 earned a certificate in welding.
Trent worked in the family business, Foam Insulation Specialists, alongside his grandfather, Stan.
Trent was known for his kind heart and good soul. He was always willing to lend a helping hand to friends and family alike. He loved hanging out with friends, working on his truck, snowmobiling and motorcycle racing. He would attend motorcycle races in Aztec, N.M., and Alamosa with friends. If you asked him his favorite time of year, he would say winter, and then share stories about snowmobiling in the mountains near Chama, N.M., and at the higher elevations at Wolf Creek, Pagosa Springs.
He also looked forward to fall each year, when he could hunt turkey, elk, deer and bear. He loved fishing any time of the year. Trent was also an animal lover and spoiled his three young dogs: Ruger, Angel and Diamond. He was training them to become hunting dogs.
Surviving are his great-grandmother, Jean Maddux, of Alamosa; his grandparents, Stanley (Marcella) Maddux, of Pagosa Springs, and Mencor and Janet Valdez, of Farmington, N.M.; his mother and step-father — Meegan (Mike) Valdez, of Bayfield, Colo.; his sisters: Marissa (Geoffrey) Danielson, of Ocala, Fla., and Ashley (Cole) Sutak, of Glendale, Ariz.; brothers Kaden and Kyler Valdez, of Bayfield; aunts Brenda (Todd) Viar and Tracy Maddux, of Brookville, Kan.; uncle, Richard (Janice) Johnson, of Woodville, Texas; cousins: Jessica and Miranda Merrill, of Brookville, Kan.; Christina (Lisa) Maddux, of Michigan; and Corey (Elizabeth) Maddux, of Salina, Kan.; and their children, Preston and MacKenzie; and two nephews and one niece, Deegan, Alakai and Bryghton Sutak, of Glendale, Ariz.
A memorial service is planned for Saturday at 9 a.m. in the high school auditorium. Burial will be at the Maddux family plot (Alamosa Cemetery) in Alamosa.