Student found joy in sociology, individualism
Caitlin Valora died in a motorcycle crash Monday.
Published Aug. 12, 2010
Caitlin Valora, 20, died Monday in a motorcycle accident in Columbia. She was a resident of Wildwood, Mo. Her father, Mike Valora, said words were difficult to come by when describing his daughter.
“She was an incredible daughter,” he said. “We were both blessed. She was an awesome daughter.”
Mike Valora said his daughter had hundreds of friends, and he could not believe how many people she knew.
“She was an incredible girl,” he said. “She was smart, beautiful and funny.”
A sociology student, Miss Valora would have begun her junior year at MU this fall.
“She loved the field,” Mike Valora said. “I did not even understand how much she loved it.”
Mike Valora said he remembered his daughter bringing her sociology books home to read them for entertainment. Although Miss Valora had not decided how she was going to use her degree, her father said she was sure of her field.
“She loved working with kids,” he said. “She worked at a daycare and she talked about her kids constantly.”
At MU, Miss Valora was not involved in any groups or organizations, something her father attributed to her individualism.
“She was a free spirit,” Mike Valora said. “She did not do a lot of organized groups. She did her own thing.”
Miss Valora is survived by her father and her mother, Patricia Valora.