Parents: Eugenio and Isabel Saenz
Married: Emily Medrano June 1987. Div.
Children:
Married: Lydia Gonzales July 25, 1998. Remarried July 25, 2022
Children:
Jessica Gonzales Born 1989
Dania Sicily Saenz Born 1995
Lillian Aaliyah Jade Saenz Born 2001
Pets: Mocha a Yorkie/Bichon Frise, born Oct 2011
Sir an Australian Silky, born 2004
Bio:
Born in Alice, Texas, in 1966, he moved with his family to Houston, Texas, at the age of five. From an early age, he developed a passion for music, taking piano and guitar lessons at the Moody Park Community Center. He attended Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, where his interest in music continued to grow, and by the sixth grade he had discovered a talent for playing the drums.
Outside of school, he spent countless hours riding bicycles and jumping homemade ramps, inspired by daredevil legend Evel Knievel and dreaming of performing death-defying stunts of his own. That passion eventually gave way to a new obsession—skateboarding.
While attending Marshall Junior High School, he enrolled in the school band as a drummer. His dedication extended beyond music; after classes he would often run across town to train at Ray’s Boxing Club, balancing athletics with his growing musical ambitions. He later attended Jefferson Davis High School, where he continued to excel as a percussionist.
A memorable moment during a school concert helped create a nickname that would follow him for years. Wearing a shirt emblazoned with a wolf, he performed a drum solo that prompted a crowd of middle school students to chant, “Wolf! Wolf! Wolf!” The name stuck. Around that time, his mother purchased a small wooden drum set to complement his prized Premier snare drum, further encouraging his musical development.
Throughout high school, he immersed himself in music. He performed in Stage Band, Marching Band, and Concert Band while studying music theory and playing with a local rock band. His creative interests extended beyond music into writing, and one of his poems was selected for publication in the school yearbook.
His talents were not limited to the arts. He also competed in mathematics competitions and earned a trophy for first place in Algebra, demonstrating both analytical and creative abilities.
As graduation approached, he hoped to continue his education and pursue a career as a music composer. However, during his senior year, the longtime band director who had supported his aspirations accepted a position with a band in New York, and the anticipated scholarship opportunity disappeared. Despite this setback, he remained determined to build a meaningful future.
He graduated from Jefferson Davis High School in 1985 and, seeking new opportunities and challenges, enlisted in the United States Army in June 1986, beginning a new chapter of service, discipline, and achievement that would shape the rest of his life.
He met Lydia in 1992.
Military Biography
Eugenio Saenz Jr. served honorably in the United States Army from June 1986 until his retirement in May 2012, completing a distinguished 26-year career.
He began his service as a 76C Supply and Service Specialist (1986–1992) serving as a Supply/Dispatcher in HHC DISCOM, 3rd Infantry Division, Larson Barracks, Germany. While there he passed the Audie Murphy promotion board.
In 1990–1991, while assigned to the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment out of Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, he deployed in support of Operation Desert Shield and participated in Operation Desert Storm during the Gulf War, contributing to the coalition’s liberation of Kuwait.
In 1993, he transitioned to the 92A Automated Logistical Specialist MOS. He enlisted in the National Guard and served in a Rotary Aviation Unit at Ellington Airfield in Houston.
In 1995 he transferred to Camp Mabry Military Reserve where he worked full time in an Active Guard Reserve as an Automated Logistics Sergeant managing seven companies.
In 1998 he moved his family to Fort Campbell in the 101st Airborne. He successfully graduated from the Air Assault Academy at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, earning the Air Assault Badge. He also volunteered extensively as a unit combat photographer, capturing critical operational imagery and historical documentation during training and deployments.
He was transferred to the 25 Infantry at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii in 2000. He served as a 92A and became an instructor educating and certifying and cross training soldiers on updated systems quarterly.
He served in the Combat Service Support Automation Management as a 92A, he educated himself in CCNA, A+, Network+, MCP and served as a 25B Information Technology Specialist, providing essential communications, cybersecurity, and automation support to his units, attended Hawaii University. Noteably setting up military ground satellite systems noteably in Mosul, and Kirkuk, used for intelligence gathering, navigation, and military communications.
Between deployments in 2006, he developed a school, where he would educate soldiers on the Unit Level Logistics Systems, on coding, and maintenance, graduating 120 soldiers quarterly.
Eugenio deployed again in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. From September 2004 to September 2005, he served with the 25th Infantry Division’s Stryker Brigade Combat Team (1st Brigade), operating under the 1st Infantry Division (“Big Red One”) as part of Task Force 1 Battalion, 63rd Armor Regiment, conducting operations in the Kirkuk, Iraq area.
In 2005 he graduated from Basic Noncommissioned Officer Course (BNCOC).
His final deployment was a 15-month tour during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2006–2008) with the 25th Infantry Division in Mosul, Iraq, where he supported intense stability and counterinsurgency operations in northern Iraq as part of Task Force Lightning.
Awards and Decorations
Eugenio earned the following awards and decorations during his career:
• 5 Bronze Service Star Medal (for meritorious or heroic actions, with “V” device for valor)
• Army Commendation Medal (ARCOM) for specific meritorious service
• Combat Action Badge (awarded for OIF 1-2)
• Southwest Asia Service Medal (SASM) with Bronze Service Stars for the Defense of Saudi Arabia (Desert Shield) and Liberation and Defense of Kuwait (Desert Storm) phases
• Iraq Campaign Medal (ICM) with campaign stars for the Liberation of Iraq, Transition of Iraq, and Iraqi Governance phases
• Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal (GWOT-EM)
• Global War on Terrorism Service Medal (GWOT-SM)
• National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) – awarded for both the Gulf War and Global War on Terrorism periods
• Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia)
• Kuwait Liberation Medal (Government of Kuwait)
• Air Assault Badge
Throughout his military career, Eugenio balanced service with higher education, attending college while on active duty. He continued his studies after retirement and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in English Literature and Psychology.
His service demonstrated exceptional versatility and dedication across logistical, information technology, and documentation roles while serving in both armored cavalry and infantry/Stryker formations. From the deserts of the Persian Gulf in 1991 to the complex urban environments of Iraq in the mid-2000s, Eugenio exemplified commitment to duty and lifelong learning.
He retired in May 2012 after more than two and a half decades of faithful service to the nation.
Continued Education:
After retirement he continued his education to reinvent himself earning an Associates in Journalism, with a concentration in Astrophysics, and a Double Major in Psychology and English by attending several colleges including the Austin Community College, University of Hawaii, University of Houston, and University of Phoenix.
He now resides on the outskirts of Houston, where he writes, compose his music, paints, and captures with his lens the luminous borderlands where earth kisses eternity.
Book: Memoir Of Stardust
Saenz Reunion 