Trego went to Our Lady of Rosary school and on to Chaminade High School, where he graduated in 1971. In high school, he was not only an athlete but played in the band for all four years, switching from clarinet to obo and then picking up saxophone and flute. His talent helped him earn a scholarship to the University of Dayton, where he majored in music education.
“UD was a great experience,” Trego said. “I eventually became the field commander of the Pride of Dayton Marching Band.”
Putting his music education degree to good use, Trego took a job at Bethel High School — his first after college. There he was hired as a band director, the fifth in five years.
“I started out at Bethel with 16 kids in band,” Trego said. “Three years later, we went to state with 77 members.”
Trego remained at Bethel until 1977 then accepted a band director position at Sidney High School, which had a much larger and more developed music program.
In 1982, he and his wife Diane, were married.
“We needed a change, and we wanted to start our lives together,” Trego said. “So I applied to a high school in Colorado Springs. We moved there and loved it.”
The couple’s oldest child, Daniel, was born in Colorado. But the couple missed Ohio and wanted to be closer to family. Trego accepted a job in Hart, Mich. because he couldn’t find a job that fit in Ohio at the time. They moved to Michigan in 1986, and Trego again took over a band program that needed help to grow.
“We ended up moving to Brookville, Ohio in 1988, and after two years I was working as a band director in Tipp City.” Trego said. “I became interested in educational administration and started working on my master’s degree at UD.”
After graduating, Trego was hired for his first school administrator job in 1994. He became the assistant principal at Carlisle High School and after two years there, he was hired as principal at Twin Valley South School District in West Alexandria.
“I was principal for grades 5 through 12,” Trego said. “It was a very busy job.”
He continued to build his second career as a school administrator and in 2000 he was hired for his first superintendent job at National Trail Local School District, in New Paris. Over the years, he also served as superintendent in Sidney and in Chillicothe.
He and Diane had two more children, twins Rachel and Jacob.
“As the kids were all becoming college age, I decided to take a college level position at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana,” Trego said. “I was the director of principal and superintendency licensure.”
Trego reached a pinnacle at that time, teaching master’s and doctoral students and helping launch their own careers in educational administration. He continued teaching at that level for nine years.
“I kind of retired after that,” Trego said. “But I knew I had more to offer, so I went to the Wright State University Lake Campus in Celina.”
But Trego was caught up in a mass layoff when the university had financial problems. He was 65 years old and had a goal of working in education for 50 years. But the COVID-19 pandemic hit and devastated the world, especially education. He retired completely from education that year. And decided to reinvent himself, again.
Trego switched gears and harkened back to his time as a track athlete in high school.
“I found out that there was a need for track and field officials and that has given me a whole new career,” Trego said. “My wife told me to find a hobby, so I did.”
Today, at 71 years old, Trego is a master level certified USTAF official and travels the country judging track and field events.
“I’ve done everything from judging national finals in pole vaulting to Olympic trials to para-Olympic trials,” Trego said. “I also volunteer for a therapeutic horse farm, pass out meals for the Salvation Army, and work at blood drives in our area.”
Trego’s band director at UD and his inspiration for life is Claire Miller. Miller, though retired and now 86 years old continues to stay active.
“I visited him (Miller) in Florida,” Trego said. “And he told me ‘don’t let the old man in.’”
“Don’t Let the Old Man In,” is a song written by the late Toby Keith for his friend Clint Eastwood’s movie “The Mule.” Miller took the lyrics of the song to heart.
And so has Trego.
“This became a mantra for me,” Trego said. “It’s about having a positive attitude. A strong work ethic is part of it. But the positive attitude is everything.”
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