Gene Kenneth Martin

Gene Kenneth Martin graduated from Earth peacefully on July 24, 2024 in his home in Fairfield, Ohio, as his two youngest daughters enveloped him with loving arms. His wife, Linda Shields Martin, joined him a mere six days later.

Gene was born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island on October 4, 1945 and grew up in Madawaska, Maine with his parents Armand Martin (1919-present) and Yvette Michaud Martin (1920-1981). Gene was the oldest of five children, Philip (Gloria) Martin, Phyllis (Louis) St. Amant, Roger (Rejeanne) Martin, and David Martin (1959-2023). His children believe he is now joyfully reunited with both his mother and youngest brother.

In his youth, Gene enjoyed playing basketball on the high school varsity team and played trombone in the high school band. After graduating from high school he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served in the Vietnam War from 1965 to 1968.

After one of the meetings aboard his ship, Gene and the other servicemen were informed that there were plates of cookies located in the back of the room that had been baked by co-eds from Brigham Young University (BYU). Gene, loving home-made cookies, went to one of the many tables and picked a plate of cookies. The plate of cookies he picked had been baked solely by Linda Shields after her roommate backed out of assisting her in the service project.

Gene immediately wrote Linda a Thank You note, which initiated frequent correspondence through letters and phone calls. They quickly fell in love and decided to get married once Gene was released from duty. His children find it amusing that even though Gene’s first letter to Linda says that the cookies were hard, they obviously tasted good enough for him to break off his engagement to a girl back home and propose to Linda!

Linda wrote a letter to her parents explaining her rapid engagement to a man she had never met in person. In that letter she described Gene perfectly when she said “I know that Gene will do his very best for me in all ways and will love his family above all else.” And that’s exactly what he did.

Gene and Linda were married on February 1, 1969 and later sealed in the Manti, Utah Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Gene received his Bachelor of Science from BYU during their first years of marriage. They lived in Utah, Texas and Wisconsin, while Gene worked as a computer engineer for various companies such as Texas Instruments and Zimpro. They ultimately settled in Fairfield, Ohio when Gene accepted a position with General Electric. Along the way they had five children: Kerry (James) Christensen, Michael (Kerri) Martin, Debra Martin, Chris (Sokha) Martin, and Nicole (Thomas) Weber, with sixteen years separating the oldest from the youngest. They currently have 13 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Gene was always a “seeker of knowledge and truth.” He taught himself how to play the keyboard and chess, and studied poker hand probabilities. He also loved learning about the mysteries of the universe and how to be healed from type 1 diabetes. He loved to share his knowledge with others, especially his children, and they would laugh that he always repeated the same thing to them three times just to make sure they understood it! Gene enjoyed bike riding, eating Skyline Chili, playing tennis, and riding roller coasters with his family at Kings Island. He was full of love and life, and of course, dad jokes. Gene could fix basically anything as long as he had the right tools. He was often found puttering around in his garage, cutting the grass or walking around the neighborhood stopping to visit with his wonderful neighbors.

Gene spent much of his life serving in various church callings, including volunteer clergy and clerk positions. He consistently donated to non-profit organizations and enjoyed actively serving in his community. He even served a few terms as PTA President and Vice President for their local school! Gene valued his relationship with God and loved ones above all else, which was evidenced by the way he treated everyone with unconditional love and respect.

Gene’s final resting place will be next to his wife Linda in the Garden of Eternal Love at Butler County Memorial Park.

A joint Celebration of Life Open House for Gene and Linda will take place at their home in Fairfield, Ohio on Saturday August 10, 2024 from 3-5pm. Please text or call their daughter Nicole at (513) 238-9970 if you need additional information.

In lieu of sending flowers or gifts, please consider meeting a neighbor in honor of Gene who considered all of his neighbors to be his friends.

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