That experience drew her toward water engineering and the opportunity to rethink how systems can be more practical, efficient, and resilient.

As an engineer, Valdes finds it especially rewarding to see an idea on paper become a system that can actually be built and used.

“There are so many decisions behind a water system that most people never see, from treatment and pumps to piping and storage, and it's rewarding when all of those pieces come together in a way that works in practice,” Valdes said.

Curiosity keeps her motivated. Whether she’s learning about a new treatment process, pump, plumbing detail, or a code requirement, Valdes enjoys understanding how things work and why they were designed a certain way.

One of Valdes’ proudest career moments was joining Epic Cleantec, where her attention to detail has made an impression.

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On a recent competitive bid, Valdes reviewed a competing manufacturer’s equipment submittal line by line, identifying discrepancies between what was specified and code minimum requirements. The scrutiny helped protect the owner from an underbuilt system and raised the technical standard of the procurement.

“Her technical rigor has become something of a legend on our team,” said Aaron Tartakovsky, co-founder and CEO of Epic Cleantec. “This is what the next generation of our industry should look like: engineers who read the code closely enough to catch what others miss, and who treat every submittal as a document to be verified rather than accepted.”

Outside of work, Valdes and her sister co-founded a nonprofit after her sister experienced cardiac arrest in 2020. Together, they raise awareness, provide CPR and AED education, and support preventative heart screenings in their community.