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Kevin Renard Carden
May 10 , 1967 – February 13 , 2018
Kevin Renard Carden , affectionately known as KC to most everyone , crossed the finish line of his final race in this life and passed peacefully away at his home , surrounded by his family , on February 13 , 2018 .
Born on May 10 , 1967 in Dallas , Texas to Jasper & Karlean Carden , who divorced when he was young , KC spent his childhood in Dallas . He attended Dallas Roosevelt High and became part of a 1600meter relay team which won the Texas high school championship , Texas Relays , and set a national high school record in 1984 . He was also an alternate on the 1984 US Olympic team as well .
He attended Oklahoma State University , where he received a degree in education , and after coaching for a year , began training race horses full time in 1991 . Over the next 19 years , with 515 wins from 3673 starts at tracks throughout the country , his training program at Futurity Farms in Elgin , Texas , produced three world champions and horses which earned over $ 4.6 million . He also owned , bred , and trained Brindis Por Cayenne , which earned over $ 454,000 and has gone on to become a successful sire . He was champion trainer in 2004 , 2008 , and 2009 , and leading owner in 2006 and 2007 in AQHA ’ s Racing Challenge .
He met his future wife , Candice Frome , while she was working as a veterinarian in Elgin . Though he never thought he would ever settle down , true love convinced him otherwise , and they were married on October 10 , 2006 . They spent the next several years traveling and working at various racetracks together . They welcomed a daughter , Kamryn , in 2010 . She was and is , by far , his proudest achievement . KC stopped training horses once Kamryn arrived , and immensely enjoyed several years of being a fulltime dad .
The family settled in northern Wyoming in 2011 , and together they owned and operated Powder River
Veterinary Hospital in Kaycee and Sheridan , Wyoming . KC also continued to be involved with horse racing and ranchsorting . His friendly demeanor , bright smile , contagious laughter , and big heart forever endeared him to all he met . He was a very respected and dearly loved “ father figure ” to many young people throughout his life , and loved time spent with family and friends .