ADJ3 Manuel Trujillo Aguilera

Born: 11 January 1945, Deming, New Mexico

Death: 9 December 2013, Pico Rivera, California

Aviation Machinist’s Mate 3 Manuel (“Manny”) Trujilo was born on 11 January 1945 in Deming, New Mexico. He was of Chiricahua Apache and Mexican-American descent. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy on 27 June 1963 after graduating from Cobre High School. ADJ3 Aguilera served as an Aviation Drone Specialist along with his brother Gilbert at the Naval Air Facility in China Lake, California. This station supports “the Navy’s research, development, evaluation (RDAT&E) of cutting-edge weapons systems for the warfighter.”[i]

ADJ 3 Aguilera received an honorable discharge and worked for Ford Motor Company of Los Angeles and the Southern California Gas Company. He had a daughter, Erica Binns, and two grandsons, Trentin and Preston Binns, and loved horse racing. He died on 9 December 2013 after a fight with cancer. ADJ 3 Aguilera is buried at Ft. Bayard National Cemetery in Section F, Row L, Site 2. His father Manuel and mother Josephina are also interred at FBNC.

Images & Documents

Notes:

Prepared by Dr. Andy Hernández, Western New Mexico University

Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Legacy Memorial, Find Your Veteran

https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/MANUELTRUJILLOAGUILERA/3F9D9FE

[i] “Welcome to Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake,” https://cnrsw.cnic.navy.mil/Installations/NAWS-China-Lake/, accessed September 12, 2023.

[2] “Manuel Trujillo Aguilera,” Find A Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/149720147/manuel-aguilera, accessed September 12, 2023.

[3] “Freshman Team,” Cobre High School Year Book, 1960. Ancestry.com. U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-2016 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.

[4] “Manuel Trujillo Aguilera,” Veterans Legacy Memorial. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/MANUELTRUJILLOAGUILERA/3F9D9FE, accessed September 12, 2023.