1st Lt. Daren Hidalgo Wanted to Give to Country

Although 1st Lt. Daren Hidalgo spent time at high schools in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, there was no doubt about who he was cheering for in Super Bowl XLV.

“Guess who he was rooting for?” said his father, Jorge Hidalgo. “He was rooting for the Packers.”

While his former classmates at Dallastown High School in Pennsylvania were rooting for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Hidalgo was halfway across the world, cheering on the Green Bay Packers. Hidalgo, of Waukesha, was stationed in Afghanistan, but that didn’t keep him from rooting for the Super Bowl XLV champions.

“He was up in the middle of the night watching the game,” Jorge Hidalgo said.

Hidalgo won’t watch the Packers reach another Super Bowl, though. Two weeks later, after being struck by an improvised explosive device while serving his country with the U.S. Army.

Jorge Hidalgo said that no parent wants their children in harm’s way, but that didn’t stop Hidalgo and his two older brothers from serving in the military.

“We live in a phenomenal country, a great country and whenever possible we should serve our country,” Jorge Hidalgo said. “They all had choices.”

One of the choices Hidalgo had to make was between a scholarship to a school in Pennsylvania, where the family moved while Hidalgo was in high school because of Jorge Hidalgo’s job as a vice president and general manager at Harley-Davidson. Instead Hidalgo attended West Point, where he graduated in 2009.

“Daren has always been a very giving person,” Jorge Hidalgo said. “… One of the things he wanted to do is give back to the community.”

Hidalgo was extremely athletic and excelled in wresting. He also participated in many other sports opportunities. But what his friends remember him for is his smile and happy-go-lucky attitude, Jorge Hidalgo said.

“He was a very well-rounded individual,” Jorge Hidalgo said.

Spending time moving across the country helped Hidalgo form a special bond with his younger sister but the 24-year-old never forgot his Wisconsin roots.

“When he came on vacation, believe it or not he came here,” Jorge Hidalgo said about Hidalgo's visits to Waukesha.

When Hidalgo would enter the room, everyone would light up because he had such strong charisma, his dad said. That is what the family will miss as they move forward.

“He was a really phenomenal young man,” Jorge Hidalgo said. “… We will miss him so much."