Gary Martin

Gary Martin

1953 - 2010 NEWFANE, VT Gary Martin, 56, of Newfane, passed away on Friday, Jan. 22, 2010, at the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H. He was born on Aug. 22, 1953, at Grace Cottage Hospital in Townshend, the son of Millard and Lucille Fitts Martin.

Gary attended Brattleboro Union High School and graduated from Leland & Gray Union High School in 1971. He held many jobs during his youth, such as mowing the cemetery and digging graves in Newfane and selling night crawlers, to name just a few. During high school, he held jobs at Mary Meyers and Concel, prior to starting a career working almost 34 years in the paper industry for the Speciality Paperboard, Fibermark and Boise Cascade paper companies. On Aug. 21, 2008, Gary was blessed with the gift of a donated kidney, after 27 months on dialysis.

On July 1, 1972, Gary was married to Darlene Ballantine; they later divorced, but had always remained friends. He was a family man, a Vermonter, loved animals, and was proud of having built his own home on Newfane Hill. Gary loved spending time fishing with family and friends, He was an avid Snipe hunter and took a special pride in his two young grandsons. He also loved his backyard wildlife, took great joy in feeding them, documenting their visits on DVDs and sharing them. He will be remembered for his amazing love, warmth, quirky sense of humor, and all the lives that he touched.

Mr. Martin leaves two daughters, Danielle Chase and her husband, Clifford, of Kensington, N.H., Kimberly Martin and her companion, Tim, of South Deerfield, Mass., a stepson Patrick Perrotti and his wife, Shenandoah, of Vernon; his father, Millard Martin, a sister, Susie Fletcher, a brother, Todd Martin, and two grandsons, Kade Perrotti and Reis Perrotti.

He was predeceased by his longtime companion, Annmarie Perrotti.

FUNERAL NOTICE: Funeral services for Mr. Martin will be on Tuesday Jan. 26, 2010, at 1 p.m. at the WHITE FUNERAL HOME in Townshend. Burial of his cremated remains will be private and at a later date. Calling hours will be on Monday evening from 6 to 8 p.m. at the funeral home.

For those who wish, memorial contributions may be made to the Polycystic Kidney Foundation by phone at 1-800-PKD-CURE (1-800-753-2873), via mail to PKD Foundation 9221 Ward Parkway, Suite 400 Kansas City, MO 64114-3367 or online at www.pkdcure.org.

Arrangements are under the care of the White Funeral Home on Main St. in Townshend, VT 05353 and at www.kerwesterlund.com.