Former Alaska resident Claire Elizabeth Martin, 84, died peacefully Dec. 10, 2007, at Rocky Mountain Care Center in Clearfield, Utah, of natural causes.
A funeral will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at Lindquist's Layton Mortuary, 1867 N. Fairfield Road, in Layton, Utah. Friends and family may call from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday and from 9:45 to 10:45 a.m. Saturday at the mortuary. Interment will be at North Ogden Ben Lomond Cemetery in North Ogden, Utah.
Claire was born Sept. 17, 1923, in Sheridan (Madison County), Mont., to Benjamin Phillip Martin and Annie Mae Judge. She was raised in Montana.
Because her father was a forest ranger, Claire spent her summer months with her parents in Wall Creek near Great Falls, Mont. During the winter months, her family would move back to Ennis, Mont., so Claire could attend school. Claire graduated from Lima High School in 1942. She was a member of the high school band and played the flute. She was also a student body officer.
Claire attended and graduated from business college and worked as a telegrapher for the UP Railroad. She married Joseph McNeil Martin on Aug. 15, 1946, in Ogden. Joe and Claire drove the Alaska Highway in a Model T Ford, arriving in Anchorage in 1947. Joe went to work for the Alaska Railroad, and Claire stayed home to raise their family.
In 1954, Joe and Claire joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Claire was active in the church and served in the Young Women's program and Relief Society. In 1962, the couple took their four children to Salt Lake City to be sealed in the Salt Lake Temple for time and all eternity. Claire loved genealogy and was actively engaged in doing family history work. Claire and Joe purchased a family grocery store in 1960, which Claire ran for 11 years. In 1971, Claire and Joe returned to North Ogden. In 2002, she moved to Layton.
In 2003, Claire was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and moved to Chancellor Garden's assisted living facility. Due to deteriorating health, Claire was moved to Rocky Mountain Nursing Home in Clearfield in October 2007.
Her family wrote: "Claire lived a full, active and meaningful life. She loved crossword puzzles, ceramics and doll making, but her greatest love was all of her family. We are grateful to celebrate her life and the legacy that she has left her family."
Claire is survived by her daughters, Barbara Ann (Kent) Larsen of Salt Lake City and Mary Louise (Philip) Miner of Layton; son, John Phillip (Brenda) Martin of Anchorage; sister, Josephine Evelyn Stoll of Anchorage; 14 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.
Claire was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph Martin; daughter, Evelyn Faye Buchanan; and brother, Dan Martin.
1 comment:
I remember the one time I got to spend with your grandma - at your graduation in Phoenix - She was sweet and funny, just as you had described. Thank you for sharing some of her life story. She seems like quite the frontierswoman. I bet she had great stories.
I know she'll be missed.
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