collage of bob trigg in ski gear on a snowy mountain and then with a group of alumni at an outdoor event
A Coming Home Feeling
Bob Trigg ’86 reflects on Trinity experiences, current career, and excitement in preparation for Alumni Weekend

It's like going to a party where you don't know who is going to come! The endless possibilities of seeing old friends, close friends, and meeting new friends.

To many, Bob is the face of Trinity University in the Colorado Rockies, a man of considerable stature among Denver's Top Trial Lawyers, and by all means, he is fully engaged as he serves on his 35-year class reunion committee in what promises to be a very enticing 2021 Alumni Weekend. 

Our recent interview, via Zoom, on a dazzlingly beautiful Wednesday morning brings me back to spring on the Trinity campus. 

Bob, good morning. I know you have a busy schedule ahead of you, so let's get down to what we both love to talk about—returning to Trinity! Let's start out on your Trinity career. It is the early ’80s—you were a senior, a math and science standout in  Denver's Cherry Creek high school. Your friends are going off to the University of Colorado. What turned your head to go south to San Antonio, a distant universe from the mile-high city with a backdrop of snow-capped mountains, ski areas, and Coors Brewery, to Trinity University overlooking the San Antonio skyline, the Alamo, the River Walk, and the Pearl?

My counselors were encouraging me to think about engineering. The University of Colorado, known for its excellent engineering science program, was a natural choice. Yet, I wanted more of a small school feeling with a strong liberal arts program. A place where I could interact more with the faculty and get to know my fellow students. I visited Trinity the weekend before the decisions were due and that sealed the deal for me.

As you approach your 35-year Trinity reunion, what memories stand out–People? Professors?

So many. Lots of working and studying hard in the engineering school with my study group: Grant Murphy, Steve Bush, Penny Walzel, and Julianna Hernandez. Fun and crazy times with my Chi Delt brothers during so many events. Working as a resident assistant, getting to know a whole other group of Trinity's students. The good live music that the fraternity and sororities had at parties and formals. And some of the best recollections are of the faculty. In a visit with my family to Trinity a few years back, we stopped by the office of Dr. Mahbub Uddin, then chair of the engineering science department, to say hello and he, in a gracious manner, gave us a 1.5-hour tour of the facility and campus. We reminisced about the campus then and now—the late Dr. Earl Doderer, Rev. Raymond Judd, Trinity's former President Ron Calgaard, President Danny Anderson, and Dr. Farzan Aminar, the current engineering science chair. I loved the Trinity people.

These are the good old days we think about as we go back to Trinity. What comes to mind about your '86 class?

Making good friends from Texas and all over the country. Trinity did a wonderful job of recruiting and retaining students from all over, and that made Trinity a really special place to go to school and made our class fun to be a part of. 

What are you most looking forward to at the upcoming Reunion? Your favorite night?

It's like going to a party where you don't know who is going to come! The possibilities of seeing old friends, close friends, and meeting new friends. Through the years, whether at an Alumni Weekend, or at Trinity Denver Alumni Chapter/Club events, I enjoyed meeting all the dynamic and interesting alumni, both older and younger, and learning about their journey when we all have the common connection to Trinity. The best alumni night? Usually, it is the first night when there is a casual event planned at a fun local spot. However, they are all outstanding. I try to fit in as many events as I can.

Bob Trigg '86 (back row, third from left) with alumni at a Making Connections event.

You have had an amazing career, a dual dialogue of digital and law—I also see an amalgamation of a prominent plaintiff jury attorney (18 years), part-time Vail ski instructor since 1992, to working in the new frontier of computers (early ’80s) as a systems analyst for Vail Associates. 

This, too, is sort of a reflection of my choice to go to Trinity and what I like in life. I went to an engineering school at a liberal arts institution because I like a lot of variety in life. That has led me to a crazy career in both technology and law. Even while being a lawyer, I love and use technology to assist in my practice and consult to other firms to help them as well. 

As a trial lawyer and partner in Galloway Trigg, LLP, you litigated civil matters and high profile cases including the Aurora theater shooting, the Broadmoor fire system fire, and GM ignition recall. Which case stands tall among the others?

Every case is a big case with my clients. It is all about helping them.

And alas, you certainly have a beautiful family— possibly a daughter followed in your footsteps? 

Thank you. I do have a wonderful wife of almost 27 years, Christine, and three grown daughters: Jordan, 24, a forensic accountant in Denver; Jennifer, 24, going to medical school in Portland, Oregon to be a naturopathic doctor; and Katie, 21, studying business at the University of Colorado. If anyone is thinking about following in my footsteps, it is Katie who is considering law school. 

Finally, what would you say to the alumni who are thinking of coming to the reunion to give them a gentle nudge?

I always have a fabulous time. Some people are shy about coming, possibly a close friend might not be there. I think of the fun and the feeling I get at every Trinity reunion—a coming home feeling.

The header image is of Bob skiing as well as at a Trinity University alumni event.

Marjorie (McLane) Maxfield '69 is a Houston-based American writer and Texas businesswoman who graduated from Trinity with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy. Visit Marjorie at www.marjoriemaxfield.com.

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