Isaiah James Ortega

It is with profound sadness that the family of Isaiah James Ortega would like to announce his passing. He was born in December, 2000, in Taos, NM to Melanie Lovato and James Ortega. 

Isaiah grew up in Cerro, NM till the age of 7, at which time he moved to Denver, Colorado with his dad, Loren, Mom, Melanie and sister, Pearl. During this time, he also resided in Albuquerque with his father, James, Stepmom Michelle and sister Gianna. 

Isaiah had 4 beautiful sisters he loved dearly and protected until his last day on earth. Pearl Lyanne Lovato, Gianna Rose Ortega, Angelika Nevaeh Vigil and Alayna Reylynn Vigil. 

Isaiah had 3 brothers, Antonio, Enrique and Brayden Vigil. The bond Tonio, Rick and Zay shared was very special, like that of triplets. Each year at certain times of their life they were all the same age for 5 days. 

Due to his short life, Isaiah did not have any children. He did, however, have fur babies he loved dearly and treated like his own kids. Sazia, Rarri, Nala and Zara. The love he had for his animals was very apparent, whether he was howling with Nala, carrying Sazia like a big baby or cuddling with Rarri, his therapy dog. Zara was his other cuddle buddy, his cat whom he bonded with dearly. Zaras purring comforted and soothed his soul. 

Isaiah was not married but shared his life with Camryn Shea Martinez. The true love of his life. They shared 5 beautiful years together. Camryn was his rock and always stood by his side. Camryn was there day in and day out, through thick and thin, good days and bad days, for better or worse, regardless of the situation. The love they shared was special and true. Isaiah loved to spoil her, make her laugh, scare her and most of all cuddle with her. Most recently they talked about their future together, about getting married and having children. Their young true love shined brightly throughout their relationship. They were both quick to forgive, forget, learn and move forward to see better and brighter days together. Thank you, Camryn, for never leaving his side and for being his true ride or die. 

He attended Mountain Range High School, through his sophomore year and eventually graduated from The New Mexico Youth Challenge Academy in 2017, in Roswell, NM. 

Isaiah played sports his entire life. The 2 sports he loved most were football and basketball. However, he thrived in football and was known as one heck of a middle linebacker. He was fearless on the field and was thrilled when Loren was able to coach him for 8 years, until which time he started High School football. During the 8 years of Lorens’ coaching, the team won 4 championships. Those championships motivated him to continue high school football with the Mountain Range Mustang’s. Isaiah played football with the Mustangs in his freshmen year. Unfortunately, his football career ended after he sustained several concussions and a shoulder injury. Isaiah was born into a Dallas Cowboys family. After his move to Denver, Colorado, he became a diehard Denver Broncos fan. Most of that was due to Loren and his Uncle Jerome Ortega who were also Bronco fans. 

Isaiah was a jokester and known for giving family and friends unique and funny nicknames. He too had numerous nicknames. To his Mama he was “Punky, Chunky Butt or Kid”. To Loren, he was “The Kid”. To James he was “Zaya Monster”. To Nana he was “My Guero". To Camryn he was “Stinky, Chunk, Baby Boy and Bub”. Other nicknames he acquired over the years were Zay, Zay Zay, Zayo, Flintstone, Isaiah “Bruise” Ortega, Milkweed and Miklo. 

Most recently, Isaiah worked as a trailer mechanic. He was starting to learn a lot in the field and told his mom he had finally found his true calling. He was proud of new abilities and used that knowledge to help others with their vehicles. This new knowledge and the ability to help people pushed him to work harder and learn more. He was in the process of enrolling in a trade school to become a diesel mechanic. However, he had also recently spoken to a recruiter about possibly entering the military. Joining the military had been a lifelong dream of his. 

Isaiah’s hobbies included snowboarding, watching movies, building guns, traveling, and gaming online with family and friends. He also loved gambling and betting on sports games with his dad James. However, his all-time favorite thing to do was spending time with family and friends. 

Music was Isaiah’s outlet and brought him so much joy. He loved every genre of music. However, as he grew older, his love for country music grew deeply. Rap and hip hop had been his music growing up. Recently you would find Isaiah listening to country music and attending country concerts. His most recent favorites were Morgan Wallen and Jelly Roll. He was proud when he bought his first pair of cowboy boots and wore them proudly with a cowboy hat. Although country was now his music of choice, you would still catch him listening to oldies and Spanish music on Sundays with Loren. He and his sister shared a passion for music and were planning to attend a concert in the near future. 

Isaiah loved to make others laugh, even when he was down. He had the most beautiful and contagious laugh, that would fill the room with laughter and joy. His belly laughs and gritos were genuine, and pure from the heart 

Isaiah had many friends and held all his friendships close to his heart. He treated friends like family and would give the shirt off his back for those he cared about. He literally made friends everywhere he went. It was easy with his radiant charismatic smile and outgoing personality. He had friends across the country. He took his friendships seriously and kept those relationships imprinted in his heart. He reached out and made it a point to stay in touch. He loved to communicate via facetime. Isaiah was very much a social butterfly and was always the life of the party, wherever he went. 

Isaiah made such an impact on many lives, young and old. He valued his elders and always showed them respect, whether it was greeting them with a smile, hug or a kiss. He always gave his seat up to make sure his elders had a place to sit. When Isaiah loved, he loved BIG. He leaves so many broken hearts behind and would want to be remembered for his big loving heart and radiant smile. Please help us honor him and keep his memory alive. Be good and do good in this cruel and unfair world. God bless you all. 

Isaiah is proceeded in death by Great Grandparents Eloy and Adonila Rael, Great Grandmother Pearl Vigil, Great Grandparents Bernie and Dolores (Lola) Ortega, and Great Grandparents Tom and Esperanza Kittredge. 

Isaiah is survived by his Mother Melanie Lovato (Loren Lovato) and Sister Pearl Lovato, Dad James Ortega (Michelle Ortega) and Sister Gianna Ortega, Girlfriend Camryn Martinez, Grandparents Anthony and Gloria Vigil, Grandparents Lawrence and Rosalie Ortega, Aunt Jenny Vigil (Keyvon Riley), Brothers Antonio, Enrique and Brayden Vigil, Sisters Angelika and Alayna Vigil. Aunt Melissa Rael (Jonathan Rael) cousins JJ (Sydney) and Layla Rael, Eli and Josh Rael, Uncle Jerome (Lori) Ortega, Cousins Mateo and Carlos Ortega, Uncle Lorenzo (Berna) Ortega and cousins Lorenz and Sebastian Ortega, Uncle Jesus (Heather), Braylee and Zamaya Ortega, numerous great aunts and uncles, cousins and an abundance of friends.