Jimmie "Jim" Martin

Jimmie “Jim” Martin

January 18, 1938 – November 15, 2021

Jimmie Lee Martin, “Jim”, a long-time resident of Canon City, Colorado, passed away November 15, 2021 at the age of 83.

He was born on January 18, 1938 to Orval and Ruth Martin in the small town of Olney Springs, Colorado. He was the oldest of four children. He completed his schooling through the 8th grade at Olney Springs School then joined the United States Air Force in 1953. He served in the USAF as an aircraft mechanic working on B-52 bombers and was stationed primarily at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina and Ramey Air Force Base in Puerto Rico. He retired from the USAF as a Sergeant in 1963.

Following his military career, Jim started his long career in the automotive industry in Fowler, Colorado where he was Service Manager at the local filling station and repair shop. He also worked as Service Manager for R.D. Lewis Trucking and the Fleming Chevrolet Dealership while in Fowler.

Jim married Katherine “Kathy” Marshall on January 16, 1966. He would always say this was an “early birthday present.” Together they moved to Canon City, Colorado where they raised their two children: Curtis and Katie. Jim continued his automotive work in Canon City where he first worked as the Service Manager at Dale Russell Motors. He also became a member of the Canon City Elks and Canon City Jaycees. In the 1970s, Jim decided to pursue his own businesses and opened both Fremont Auto Sales followed by Fremont Auto Salvage and Towing. In the summers, Jim would place a “Gone Fishing” sign on the door and travel to Blue Mesa Reservoir to enjoy his favorite hobbies: boating and fishing.

In addition to boating and fishing in the summers at Blue Mesa Reservoir in Gunnison, Colorado, Jim and Kathy spent many winters in Lake Havasu, Arizona with friends and family. You could often find Jim fileting fish in the morning after catching his limit early in the day. Jim always loved an adventure and was a bit of a thrill-seeker. He loved to water ski at Lake Meredith when he lived in Fowler, and he would be out on the lake after work with R.D. Lewis for hours and hours. He raced stock cars at Beacon Hill Speedway in Pueblo, Colorado where Jim touted #9 on his car and was known to be working into the early hours of the morning before race-day. Following his racing days, Jim earned his pilots’ license at Fremont County Airport in the early 1970s. Throughout his years of flying, he owned three airplanes including a Piper Cherokee and was known to fly out of town just to meet up with a friend for a cup of coffee (another love in his life). Jim always made friends wherever he went, and people will tell you “he never met a stranger.” He took pride in lending a helping hand to his friends, who he always had nicknames for, and would build a solution to any problem. His other pride and joy was his family. Jim took care of his family as his number one priority and was a wonderful and loving husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. He touched many lives and his sense of humor always kept everyone on their toes, and was a blessing that brought smiles over the years. Jim was known for many of his famous quotes (that sometimes only made sense to him). Some of those include “well, doggies” and “let’s travel.” His one disappointment in life was that his body could no longer do all the things he wanted to do. He will be dearly missed by many.

He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Kathy Martin; daughter, Katie Martin; son, Curtis Martin; grandchildren, Beau Masse, Joleen Masse, Brittany Donath (Masse), and Kaleen Masse; and great-grandchildren, Marek Faust and Leif Donath, many nieces and nephews, and friends.

He was preceded in death by his father and mother, Orval and Ruth; brothers, Charlie and Jackie Martin; sister, Evelyn Gossett (Martin); grandson, Jamie Masse; and beloved pet dogs, Pepper, Corky, and Charlie.

Family and friends are invited to attend Jim’s funeral service on Wednesday, November 24th at 10 a.m. at Wilson Funeral Home, 1449 S. 9th Street, Canon City, Colorado.  A viewing will be held at 9 a.m. with funeral and graveside services at Lakeside Cemetery to follow. Following the graveside service, friends and family are invited back to Wilson Funeral Home for a luncheon.

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