Robert Valenton

Those who had the opportunity to know Robert are fortunate. In him we see some of the best parts of ourselves, some we know and some we feel. Always seeking joy he radiates bliss through his laughter and wit. Even now those who know him can hear him inside. Creativity and artistic expression are his hallmarks. But what remains unseen is the diligence to master the tools of artistic expression and the persistence to constantly strive for the highest result, then to do even better.

Born in Manilla, Philippines in what he describes as “the world’s biggest slum” on July 18, 1951 to a family with many brothers and sisters he learned how to get along with others and navigate a world of uncertainty. His family migrated to France and then to the United States as his father was in the service. Robert also was in the military. Soon after high school he enlisted in the US Navy as many of his contemporaries did to escape being drafted into the Army to fight in Vietnam. As it turned out he did serve in Vietnam. Not in Vietnam exactly, as the US military was not officially in Cambodia or Laos. But Robert was. While working as a Naval Hospital Corpsman in a small clinic in Subic Bay, Philippines he was “temporarily” assigned as the field medic for a four man reconnaissance squad and spent many months behind allusive lines charting enemy movement along the Ho Chi Minh trail. It was in those jungles that Robert and his squad were repeatedly exposed to the toxic defoliant Agent Orange. Robert was the last of his crew to die from that exposure.

After his war experience he lived in San Francisco where he continued his love affair with photography. In the late 70s he moved to Sacramento where a position at Kaiser Hospital helped him to become the Assistant Administrator for Outpatient and Dental Operations at a medical facility in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It was in the desert that he met his beloved Joy, his partner and wife for 37 years. They traveled the world together and made Sacramento their home being married in the McKinley Rose Garden on September 8, 1984. Although Joy is his great love, his son Trevor, born in 1987, is his greatest pride.

After returning to Sacramento Robert earned a Management Information Systems degree from National University and worked in private and public service in various IT departments. In lieu of climbing the corporate ladder, Robert preferred to remain in positions where he could get hands on experience with ever evolving electronic hardware ultimately landing him at CalPERS where he retired after thirty years of service.

Retirement gave Robert the freedom to dive deeply into his art. As a photographer he

redefined the world for others to see in new ways. He saw different perspectives and captured

them as a play of light against darkness. “I photograph light”, he would say when others would

ask which genre of the art was his specialty. At home with wildlife or beautiful botanicals his

favorite task was to make a stunning portrait of a natural landscape including the cosmos.

Nowhere was his love of light best exemplified than in the dark of night as the Milky Way shown

brilliantly through his lens.

Robert left us on the night of October 24, 2021 riding the cyclone bomb atmospheric river

from his much loved home to his much loved sky.

A committal service will take place on Wednesday, December 8, 2021 at 9:30 am at the Sacramento Valley National Cemetery. A gathering will immediately follow at the International House, 10 College Park, Davis, CA 95616 from 10:00am - 1:00pm