Charles “Charlie” Maurice Martin; age 93, passed away on September 11, 2023, at home in Amarillo, Texas.
Charlie was born December 11, 1929, in Nettleton, Arkansas, and was the son of William Herbert Martin and Mildred Neva (Locke) Martin.
He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Barbara Jean Martin (Gipson); his daughters Deborah Martin, Heather Martin, Erin Richardson (Billy), and Melody Martin (Sissy), who he referred to as his harem; his sister, Betty Poe; five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren.
He spent most of his life in Ridgecrest, California (1962-2019), where he was employed as a Mechanical Engineer at China Lake Naval Weapons Center and was also employed part-time as a math instructor for Cerro Coso Community College. After retiring from China Lake, he continued to teach math at Cerro Coso or as he put it “I taught bonehead math to incoming students.” While teaching at Cerro Coso, he was nominated for and received Teacher of the Year award twice.
In addition to being a consummate storyteller, Charlie had great talent for telling tall tales to the point that people asked whether the story he just told was true or not. He especially enjoyed sharing stories about his life.
Charlie was a deeply spiritual man, who loved the Lord. Throughout his life, he attended various churches, Immanuel Baptist Church and Desert Christian Center most notably. He could be found reading his bible most days of the week and maintained his spiritual walk with God.
A memorial/celebration of life service will be held at a later date
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