Spencer Christian Lewis Sloan

Spencer Christian Lewis Sloan was born in Medford, Oregon on September 20, 2002 and passed away December 30, 2025 at his home in Grants Pass.

How do you recap a life lived at such a high rate of speed? He came into the world a chubby little bundle of joy, hit the ground running and never really stopped. He attended Grace Christian preschool, kindergarten at Fort Vannoy and then Allendale Elementary, where he terrorized the playground and had a series of great teachers like Susan Merritt, Kim Beggs and Jo Margeson.

He then moved on to South Middle School where he was taught by dedicated career educators like Kregg Scarcello, Hillairee Russell, Dawn DeHarmony, Sam Serrage and Scott Gottula. South is where he first met his favorite mentor and coach Todd Willaman as well as being coached by family friend Chris Rossetta.

He moved on to Grants Pass High School and was mentored by teachers that really motivated him like Michele Napier, Ross St. Clair and Jake Leair. He also had the privilege of great coaching from the likes of GP legends like Stacy Morgan, John Musser, Jenner Yriarte, Kyle Swanson, Stan Goodell, Randi Stuart and Robbie Zaina. Thank you one and all for keeping him on track to graduate from GPHS in 2021 and ultimately making his years there the high point of his brief life.

He excelled in all sports from a very young age especially football and track and earned multiple varsity letters and awards in both sports. Through athletics he made lifelong friends in Kai Perez, Andrew Prulhiere, Yahir Gonzalez, Ben Hart, David Ruiz and the late David Morris. He had to play offensive lineman in Pop Warner as a 6th grader so he always considered himself a lineman at heart even as he transitioned to running back in middle school and high school. In track and field he could compete and get points in any event (except hurdles where his sister ChloeJane could smoke him). He ran the sprints, high jumped, long jumped, triple jumped, pole vaulted, threw the javelin and discus and shot putted. It was just a natural evolution for him to become a decathlete. He started competing in Decathlons throughout the Northwest in 2017 and improved his PR every single time we went to a meet. This culminated in Spence qualifying to compete in the 2019 Pacific Northwest Junior Olympics Championships in Tacoma as a 16 year old in the 17-18 year old division, where he finished a very respectable 5th. We all thought that we would be traveling and competing in decathlons all over the country for years to come and that’s what would take him to college and beyond. The pandemic shutdown robbed Spence of that privilege as it did for a lot of Oregon athletes his age. Those were tough times and they left a mark on Spencer as well as his classmates. Without organized sports to keep him occupied for over a year he sort of lost his mojo. He really missed being part of a team that held him accountable and coaches that kept him goal oriented and optimistic about what was over the horizon. The measurable meritocracy of track and field gave him attainable goals to strive for and keep his head in the game. The entire family misses traveling all over the PNW for his athletics and there will forever be a massive hole to fill.

He also loved to be outdoors fishing, hunting, golfing, exploring, doing parkour, swimming, riding motorcycles up too steep hills with his Papa Rod and friends, catching snakes and lizards and bugs. He had also recently discovered a talent for bowling with his friend Elgin Noveske and had joined a league at Caveman Bowl.

He always had to do things his own way and eventually succeeded at everything he tried. He was incredibly kind, not just to his family but with strangers, competitors, underdogs and just literally anyone he ever met. We never had to worry about Spence bullying anyone, it would’ve been just the opposite of his nature. Spence was also always up for a good time, would help you move, rescue you in the mountains by towing your truck out of the mud and then sit and have a beer with you. He had a lot of friends we’ve never even met and we’re sure they all have a lot of stories to tell. Spence was also just a little crazy when it came to going fast on anything with a motor and he started riding as soon as he could walk. He was a constant source of bewilderment and entertainment to onlookers. Some of his exploits on a motorcycle or quad will go down in history.

He is survived by his parents Brandi and James Wright and Christian Sloan, his sisters Jilian (Cody) Bogart and ChloeJane (Cooper Branson) Wright, step siblings Nick (Melissa) Wright and Tara (Austin) Nickens and his grandparents Rodney and Ruby Cochran and Robert and Charlotte Sloan. As well as his 95 year young Great Grandmother Mary Leffler Cochran. He absolutely adored his 17 month old niece Kiara (KiKi) Bogart and got her laughing hysterically just a few hours before his passing. He also leaves behind his closest friend and soulmate Halle O’Brien who was never his girlfriend but is so much more. He is also survived by countless beloved teammates, coaches, teachers, friends, nieces and nephews both born and unborn, cousins, aunts and uncles. He never had an unkind word to say about any of you.

There will be a celebration of Spencer’s life at Grants Pass Golf Club 230 Espey Rd at 5:00pm on Friday, January 9th in a room that means a lot to our family. Yes, we know that the Peach Bowl with Oregon vs. Indiana is at the same time. There will be TV’s on and he would love it if you’d keep an eye on the game for him while you watch a video his sister is making about his 23 years on earth along with his friends and family. We have thousands of videos and pictures of his daredevil thrillseeking and high jinx but if you have more please send them our way.

If you’d like to send flowers for the service please send them to Grants Pass Golf Club in care of Mary O’Brien or Jim Wright.

Please leave a memory of Spencer in his Guestbook.