His father Jorge Hidalgo said, "My boys all decided to go into the military”. “ Daren was hard working and willing to take on a challenge, but also kind-hearted and the "sparkle in everyone's eye." Aside from his military career, Daren Hidalgo was "one heck of a good athlete," his father said.” He was a phenomenal man, very athletic, and he participated in some of the toughest schools the military offers — the ones most people don't even attempt," Jorge Hidalgo told The Freeman of Waukesha.
Dave Gable, Daren Hidalgo's high school wrestling coach in Pennsylvania, said the youth was an outstanding wrestler.” He was the type of person that everybody loved," Gable told the York Daily Record. "He had a magnetic personality, a big smile, and was generally happy about everything that was going on."
Dallastown Area High School Principal Alan Fauth said Daren Hidalgo was a mentor to younger students in the wrestling program.
"I've known tens of thousands of kids," Fauth told the York Dispatch. "I put Daren in the top 10."Fauth said he is planning a memorial service for Hidalgo on Wednesday, starting the day with an announcement on the school's student television broadcast and asking for a moment of silence. He said he has also asked the school's Junior Color Guard to stand at attention in the lobby all day in honor of Hidalgo.
"We're just going to have a very visual reminder of what war is and, unfortunately, one of our students paid the ultimate price," Fauth said.
After High School, Hidalgo went on to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 2009. He completed Infantry Officer Basic Course, Airborne, Ranger, Army Combatives and Stryker Leader Course at Fort Benning, Ga.
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