John Martin Fagley

John Martin Fagley, (Jeff or Jefesito), passed away Sunday, January 12, 2025, in Rio Rancho, NM. He was born June 23, 1951, in Mount Kisco, New York. His mother was Mary Jane Coburn Fagley. His father was Richard M. Fagley. He is survived by his wife, Miriam Velazquez-Fagley: his daughter, Caitlin Velazquez-Fagley; his son-in-law, Alvaro Agundez Garcia; his granddaughter, Matilda; his sister, Mary Jo White; his brother, Robert Fagley; his nieces: Krista, Shaula, Felicia, Sylvia, Sofia, Romy; nephews: Casey and Stephen; his SIL's: Donna Fagley; Maritza Velazquez; BIL: Raymond Velazquez; and the Fagley, Cobourn and Velazquez families besides his friends.

Jeff's passions were hiking; exploring the backroads of NM; traveling overseas; reading the classics and history books; sports (basketball, football and baseball), and his job as an adobe home builder. Every morning, he would work on the New York Times crossword puzzle while having his 'famous' breakfast of scrambled eggs with green chile and Vermont cheddar.

He loved hiking the Sandia Mountains. For years, he would hike the La Luz Trail or the Crest Trail from Placitas. He was an active and loving father. When Caitlin joined the Outdoor Leadership Program at Sandia Prep, he took days off from work to do the hiking and camping trips. When she took ice skating lessons, he was on the rink speeding along with her. He did the same when she did rollerblading and cycling. He even started a sports day with Caitlin and friends. His life was about learning and acquiring experiences. His travels took him to many countries. He completed four Camino de Santiago pilgrimage walks in Spain, covering more than 500 miles on each trip.

He was a passive solar adobe builder for 47 years. He loved his work, his customers, the people who worked with him and his subcontractors. He was conscientious about each customer, but also about building strong and functional homes. Jeff met his wife, Miriam, 51 years ago on a geology field trip to Mexico from Colgate University in upstate New York. It is the day they celebrated as their anniversary because it's when an adventurous life began for both of them. Being culturally different was a fun challenge for both. Her family in Puerto Rico and New York embraced him completely.

Jeff loved to figure everything out in terms of numbers. We always knew how many miles we walked, cycled or how far we went on trips; the currency exchange; how tall a mountain was; how high a city was; how to convert temperature, what the population of a city was and so on. He had a love of numbers and was always trying to figure out averages, stats, conversions, equations, and usually calculated everything in his head. His new joy in life, granddaughter, Matilda, gave him several years of pure happiness.

We are grateful to God to have had such a funny, kind, intelligent, generous father, husband, brother, and friend in our lives.

Buen Camino! We love you always.