Carlos Antonio Martinez, 86
Carlos Antonio Martinez, 86, passed away Jan. 6, 2008, in Kalispell. He was born Oct. 27, 1921, in Cebolla, N.M., to Rafael and Beroniz Martinez.
He had seven siblings, a half-sister (deceased), an older brother Phil (deceased at age 11), along with brothers Manuel, John and Abe, and sisters, Connie and Sue.
He served in the Army in World War II, spending time in the Philippines — he had mangoes there for the first time in his life ... and liked them.
After the war, he went to work at the Carlson-Frink Dairy in Denver, where he met Magdalen Mosquera. They were married in 1948 and had four children, twins Chuck and Mike, Rick and Carla. The family moved to Climax, Colo., where Carlos worked for the Climax Mine.
After Magdalen's death in 1956, he moved back to Denver and went to work for Martin-Marietta as a heli-arch welder. In addition to working on the spacecraft, he also 'baby-sat' them when they were ferried on Pregnant Guppies (a transport aircraft) to Cape Canaveral for launch.
Carlos married Donna Wright in 1958 and gained two more sons, Vince and Mikie. Two more children were born, Tony and Susan. Donna died in 1975.
Carlos continued working for Martin until January 1982, when he retired at the ripe, young age of 60. He immediately took up snow skiing, then golfing later in the summer. He relocated to Kalispell, in 1987.
He also rekindled his love of bowling, which led to loving Bev Anderson. Upon his marriage to Bev in 1998, he gained two more sons and a daughter, Ray, Mike (yep, another one), and Jennifer.
After battling with Parkinson's disease for three years, 'he is now with his Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.'
Donations to the Parkinson's Foundation is requested in lieu of flowers.
Carlos leaves a legacy of love and family.
He is survived by his wife, 11 children, 30 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, three brothers, two sisters and several nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 10, at Buffalo Hill Funeral Home in Kalispell, followed by a reception at the Easthaven Baptist Church.