Marian Ruth Martin

1929 - 2021

Marian Ruth always went by both her first & middle names. She was born May 4, 1929, to Leonard C. & Flossie Pierce. She was the first of two children. Marian Ruth was preceded in death by her husband of 71 years, Lynn L. Martin who died on September 11, 2020. She was also preceded by her brother, Donnie; and her parents; along with many close in-laws. Both the Martin & the Pierce families were rather large.
By living a full Christian life & passing at the age of 92, if all relatives were listed here, it would take up most of the page. Please know all her family is loved & appreciated. She is survived by 2 children, Gary L. Martin (Jeannie), Tyler, TX & Connie Martin Patterson (Dan), Sandia Park, NM; grandchildren, Jarin Martin, Vancouver, WA, Mikah Shields (Brenden), Junction City, KS, Kristen Breffitt (Chris), Wichita Falls, TX, David Patterson (Valerie), Rio Rancho, NM, Dana Gilpatrick (Dan) Rio Rancho, NM; great grandchildren, Ayden Martin, Ameliana Shields, Zane & DJ Breffitt, Lexie Totten, Austin Patterson (Dominique), Brady Patterson, Clay Patterson, David Patterson, Kellie Gilpatrick, Bryiah Gilpatrick and Nancy Gilpatrick. She leaves behind a large extended family of nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Marian Ruth arrived in Clovis at age 2 and could be called a lifelong resident. Her passions were music, feeding people and wind energy. She distinguished herself at a very young age by her musical talent on the piano. At age 11 she first performed in a church service playing the pipe organ at First Methodist Church. By the time she was 13, she had already surpassed her teachers and began teaching private piano & organ lessons.
Since you couldn't carry a piano on the football field, she auditioned for & became a baton majorette & excelled in baton twirling with the marching band. Meanwhile, she continued teaching advanced piano students.
She graduated from Clovis High School in May 1947. Shortly afterward, auditioned for & was accepted as member of a highly select group of student musicians to attend the American Conservatory of Chicago. During that time, she excelled in her advanced study & classical music training.
Foregoing a professional concert career for family goals she returned to Clovis. Shortly after her return, she met her husband Lynn and they were married on November 15, 1948, at First Baptist Church.
Following the birth of Gary & Connie she continued teaching private music lessons while returning to school at ENMU to obtain her bachelor's degree & teaching certificate, followed by her master's degree.
She accepted a position as a Choir Teacher at Marshall Junior High School. This began an award-winning career, which resulted in many students excelling or being influenced by her kindness. It included an honor of the Marshall choir being named the top Junior High Choir in the state one year. She also served at First Baptist Church playing piano or organ for over 40 years.
Following her retirement, she did not slow down. She kept active with the family businesses, Martin Realty and Lakeview Mobile Home Park. She was active also in farming/ranching activities.
After observing the wind & dust blowing in eastern NM all her life, she thought why not investigate wind electrical generation for the area. This began a quest that lasted the better part of the past 15 years.
She was instrumental in organizing landowners who were interested in exploring the possibilities of developing the wind resources. After many long years of work and a few dead ends, she contacted Apex Energy, which was interested in developing a wind farm in the general area of Grady. As a result of her endeavors, it has been named the Grady Martin project.
While work continues on the Grady Martin Wind project, the beginning of construction may still be some time in the future. Those of us close to her had wished her to be alive to see one of the wind turbines she worked so hard for operating & producing electricity. Sadly, she did not see it during her earthly life. We can't help but imagine when the project is complete, she will have a bird's eye view with our Lord Jesus Christ by her side.
In lieu of flowers, Marian Ruth would have wanted donations to either First Baptist Church, Clovis, NM or the Baptist Childrens Home, Portales, NM.
A viewing and funeral service for Ms. Marian Ruth will be held on Friday, October 1, 2021, at First Baptist Church in Clovis, New Mexico at 1:00pm. Burial will follow at Lawn Haven Memorial Garden in Clovis, New Mexico.
Due to Covid concerns the service is available virtually at this link: https:\\jarinmartin.com\marianruthmartin\ If you attend in person, please wear a mask and honor social distancing and other Covid safety practices.