Taken from Doris Martin Welch bio, "My Saga" published in 2007:
B. GAYLN EARL (Born July 23, 1922. Wamego, Kansas)
News articles in Dad’s papers show Dad had a chicken hatchery in 1923 with incubators holding 5,000 eggs. Gayln was born with blonde hair, blue eyes, and clefts chin. Mother and Dad both had black hair and brown eyes. Mother said he looked like her uncle Earl, so made Gayln his namesake.
Mother described Gayln as independent, mischievous, and strong willed. As he got older, he started running off. Once after such an episode, when mother found him, to teach him a lesson, she got a rotten rope and tied him to a tree in the front yard.
Mother recognized his musical talent, so when he was about 10, started him on piano lessons. However, since we had no piano for him to practice on, and he didn’t like going somewhere else to practice, that didn’t last long. In high school, he played bass tuba in the band and helped me get into the band-I played the glockenspiel (bells) when marching, and E flat alto saxophone other times. We both used the school’s instruments.
When Gayln was a baby, Mother and Dad invested in a new invention, the Victrola. It stood about 5’ tall, with the top opening up for the turntable, the middle being enclosed with the speaker, and the lower portion containing slots for the thick records. Dad obtained quite a collection of the ¼” records and we spent many enjoyable hours listening to them. You had to wind a handle at the side to make it play. One of my favorites was “The Frog and the Nightingale”-the frog’s part was real low, and the nightingale’s song, high with whistling.
When we lived at the Wetmore place, Mother discovered that cookies were disappearing from the cookie jar. She questioned each of the boys and they all attested to their innocence. She said she knew who had taken them, and since he did not own up to it, she would have to pack his bag, as we could not tolerate anyone who told lies. He was so frightened at this prospect, he owned up to it.
Gayln was always looking for ways to make money. When just a little fellow, he went to work in a grocery store, but didn’t last long there as the owner told Mom that Gayln ate more than he was worth and he had to let him go. When he got a little older, he worked around Mr. Root’s place, clipping hedges, pruning his palm trees, and doing other yard work. Mr. Root nicknamed him “Tarzan”. He was a real wheeler-dealer, always needing money. I would loan him 50 cents and he would pay me back 75 cents when he got paid-not bad. He didn’t like working at home-no pay.
Because he would not cry when punished, he got punished that much more and longer. Once Dad was spanking him with a board when Gayln cried out, “Dad, that board has a nail in it.” Once when he was swimming in the lake behind our place, he stepped on a sharp piece of glass and came hobbling home, his foot covered with blood. Mom cleaned his foot up with Lysol and Dad bandaged it-we only went to the doctor for emergencies.
When Gayln was in high school, he ran around with the elite-going out camping, fishing, hunting, caddying at the golf course, etc. He sometimes spent most of his summer out camping at Lake Walk-in-the-water or other nearby lakes with his friends, only coming in to town for supplies and ice. We sometimes visited them taking ice, and going fishing or swimming. Often there were wild hogs roaming around their camp, so they had to nail boxes with food in them, in the trees. Gayln told us alligators would line the shores, or lay along the fallen trees on hot sunny days, sunning themselves, or basking in the moonlight when the moon was full. They ate the heart of the swamp cabbages, caught fish, hunted, and roasted potatoes in their hot coals.
Gayln was always very sociable, both with his peers, their parents, and the town leaders, principal, teachers, etc. He and his friends were always cooking up something, and sometimes it involved activities as a game of golf or fishing, during class time. When my folks were informed of Gayln’s absence from school, they questioned him. He always had an excuse, whereupon Dad would get stern and bring him back into line for a while.
In order to get a little extra money, Mom and Dad fixed up efficiency rooms for rent to itinerant fruit workers. One such room was rented to Mr. and Mrs. Saunders and their little toddler, Joanna. Mr. Saunders, who worked at the packinghouse, liked hunting and so went out with my brothers on a cold, damp misting day in the fall. He came home, chilled to the bone, developed a bad cold which went into pneumonia, and died shortly thereafter in our home. He had a Model A Ford, but his wife Hazel, did not know how to drive it. Dad bought it for the boys for $75. The folks helped Hazel with the necessary arrangements to return her husband’s body, her belongings, and put her and Joanna on a bus to Alabama. At this time, Gayln was in high school and he and his friends and Merrill were always out there cranking the Ford and taking off.
When about 15, Gayln joined the First Baptist church and we all went to his baptism. In high school he and his friends started a new fad-shaving all their hair off. (When he came home, Mom was really upset.) He also went out for football and became a star quarterback for the team in 1941. When school was over that year, he and many of his buddies went into the service, he joining the Navy. He was sent to Norfolk to boot camp and later to a radio school in Indianapolis. In December 1941, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and sank many of our ships, the U.S. joined World War II, which had been going on since 1939 in Europe.
When Mom learned Gayln would be around Chicago, she asked that he look up her long-lost brother, Beverly, whom A. Leona had tracked down. Gayln found him in a bad section of town, and when he identified himself, received a cool reception. Beverly, who played trumpet and sang with a band at night, sleeping by day, was summoned and probably embarrassed at his disheveled appearance and also the appearance of those in the apartment with him. (In 1955, Beverly went through Florida on his honeymoon and saw Mom for the first time in 34 years. He had married a very sweet nurse, Ann. He implicitly told Mom to keep her mouth shut about his past.) In September 1964, he and Ann retired and moved to the Lake Okeechobee area. After this, they visited Mom quite often, helping her with repairs, yard work, cleaning, etc. Beverly died on Nov. 14, 1969, approximately one year after Mom’s death, which he took very hard (he called Mom “Babe”.)
In 1942, Gayln was on a tramp steamer in the North Atlantic making the Murmansk Run to Murmansk, Russia, which, on its return, was sunk by a German submarine. He was picked up by a British Corvette and taken to Rjakevick, Iceland.
He returned to Norfolk for more training and sailed in and out of here often. In Norfolk, he met his future wife, MARIETTA ELEANOR NUHN (born 27 Dec., 1925 in Norfolk, Va.). Gayln’s Naval career included duty in the Atlantic and Pacific (Manila, P.I., the island of Leyte, etc.) He transferred into the air corps and after completing flight training at Natchitoches, La., was sent to the Middleton Flying School at Ark. Polytechnic College as a student pilot. While here, he married Marietta in a beautiful ceremony at 8:00 P.M. July 3, 1944, at the college’s Little Theatre, with a Presbyterian minister officiating. Her sister, Dorothy Nuhn was her only attendant, the ushers were all servicemen in full dress uniforms, and Merrill got leave from Rice University in Houston, to be best man. Mom went from Florida by train, to attend.
A few days after his marriage, Gayln’s plane crashed when it took a nosedive into some woods. It seems he was playing follow-the-leader with another school plane, but couldn’t pull his plane out of a low dive, as the other guy had done. In the Navy’s investigation, they pressed him for details, but he would not squeal on the other cadet, so he was flunked out of the school. He received a cut over his right eye that took twelve stitches to close. He was admitted to an Arkansas hospital and later transferred to a New Orleans Hospital.
Gayln was injured another time when fishing off a minesweeper that hit a mine and he was blown into the sea. We only found out about this when he came home on leave and Mom happened to see stitches across his back. Some time after his accidents, while in California, he started having severe headaches and was admitted to a San Francisco hospital for corrective surgery for exposed nerves. He had a gash from the middle of his forehead down across his right eye.
a. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California, on March 29, 1947, weighing in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces.
After a 6-year stint, Gayln was discharged from the Navy as a radioman lst class, and then entered the Arkansas School of Technology in Russellville, Ark. where he studied for two years. He transferred to the U. of Florida at Gainesville, and received his BSA and Masters Degrees in Entomology, the study of bugs, particularly how they affect the citrus trees.
Upon completion of his education in August 1951, he moved his family in with the Nuhn’s, who had relocated from Norfolk upon Mr. Nuhn’s retirement from the railroad, to a small lake outside Lake Wales. Since jobs were scarce, Gayln temporarily took a job tending groves @ 90 cents an hour. In December 1951 he took a job at the Hunt Brothers in Lake Wales. Then he found a better job with Swift & Co. in Miami where they relocated.
b. ROBERT EARL was born in Miami on April 21, 1952. We visited Gayln and family in Miami and Gayln took us all out deep-sea fishing.
In January 1953, Gayln was transferred to Bartow as the field representative for Swift, covering the Ridge district. He bought into half-ownership of 40 acres of lake property ten miles east of Lake Wales, surrounded by mostly woods and some groves, with a man in his 70’s. This was the property our family had camped on every summer when growing up-we all loved it.
c. PATRICIA LEE was born 28 November 1954 in Lake Wales.
d. STEVEN ALAN MARTIN was born 27 June 1957 in Lake Wales.
In November 1957, Gayln sold his Bartow home and moved out to his lake property, which he had now totally owned. He began building his home there, and this is where the entire Martin clan has its annual Easter and Christmas reunions.
Being the great outdoorsman of the family, Gayln bought a houseboat in May 1965, which his family enjoyed using. He also purchased a marina on the river that housed about seven boats.
In 1964, Gayln and Marietta bought the Tam O’Shanter gift fruit business on N. Scenic Highway (Alt. 27), naming it Martin Citrus, and operating it in conjunction with Martin’s G.M. Fruit Company. This kept him and Marietta busy day and night during the fruit season. This was sold in about 1970.
Besides enjoying fishing and hunting (sometimes traveling out of state to hunt deer and other game), Gayln was an avid Univ. of Florida gator fan, following the games around the country; was a great golfer (In 1961, he scored a hole-in-one in golf, and in 1964 was the winner of the Johnson-Tillman championship tournament at the L.W. Golf and Country Club), spending several days each week at the sport. For many years, he bought and restored old junked cars, putting them in mint condition and selling them for a nice profit. (He interested his son Steve, in this and Steve became an excellent mechanic.) Also, Gayln had a beautiful vegetable garden and raised much of his own produce.
His occupation consisted mainly of advising and working with grove owners on the care and sale of their fruit-also buying property and planting and tending groves of his own. In about 1988, he bought a motel consisting of about seven efficiency apartments in the heart of Lake Wales near the post office. These were completely remodeled, landscaped, and rented out.
In early 1968 Gayln had his first light heart attack (age 48) and was in the hospital a week. The doctor told him to eat no fried foods and to stop smoking, which he did immediately. From May 1974 he had several more attacks, until Feb. 23, 1989, when he had quadruple by-pass.
Gayln and family traveled to N.C. every summer on vacation and as time went on, he managed to buy about 40 acres of beautiful mountain property near Grandmother Mountain and Boone, at Banner Elk, N.C. They sold some of the acreage to their friends and Merrill’s son, Larry, and Larry’s in-laws (who bought about 15 acres.) Gayln at first built a cabin halfway up the mountain, which they used for several years, until about 1980 when he had property cleared all the way to the mountaintop. He built a beautiful house up there in the shape of a barn with decks and glass panels most of the way around, so you could enjoy the view from many angles. They spent their summers there in the cool mountains and their winters in Florida, for many years, until their health started declining. They eventually sold the property, and then resided only in Florida until their deaths.
In September 1997 Marietta discovered a lump behind her ear, went to the doctor, and after tests, was told she had inoperable cancer of the liver and head. Even though she underwent many radiation and chemotherapy treatments, the cancer spread very quickly and she died at home Dec. 12, 1997.
Gayln seemed to lose his zest for life after Marietta’s death. She was such a great wife, always dropping everything to do things and go places with Gayln. He continued meeting his friends for coffee, taking his walks, doing chores, etc., but when he came home, particularly in the evenings, he got very lonely and blue. He made no more hunting trips, did less fishing and gardening, and his health steadily declined. He lived with Charlotte for a while, and was finally put in a nursing home to live out his last days. He died of heart and other complications on February 13, 2002. We miss him very much! He kept the tradition of the Martins meeting at his place on the lake semi-annually going until his last days, and now his daughters and
son Bobby (who took over his home place) carry on the tradition. How fortunate for us that they have so graciously consented to do this-it means so much to us all!
GAYLN’s CHILDREN:
1. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California on March 29, 1947. I didn’t see Charlotte until she was about 4 years old, so I didn’t know her as a baby, but from the baby picture I received, she looked a great deal like Gayln. I was told that as she became a toddler, she would bring all sorts of bugs to Daddy for his examination (he was studying Entomology—the study of bugs), after which she would play with some of them.
Mother wrote that Charlotte often stayed with her and she became very attached to her. I know as the other children came along, she was a tremendous help with them.
Charlotte was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales and sang in the choir, was member of the Young Girl’s Club (received the Friendship Cup in December 1963). She was also into many school activities: co-captain of the cheer leaders in Sept. 1964, President of the Honor Society, a member of the Latin Club, Glee Club (went to Jamaica Apr. 66), was in the operetta “South Pacific” May 65, wrote the teen column “Teen Talk” in the Lake Wales News 64-65, etc. She was an honor speaker at her graduation, one of the four having the highest scholastic rankings through high school. Based on her scholastic records, she received a $2,000 4-year nursing scholarship to the University of Florida, a Gov. Hayden Burns $250 educational grant (one of four Polk Countians receiving such grants), and a commendation award (one of five) given by U. of Fla. to entering freshmen. She was just as active at the U. of Fla., being in the University Glee Club and Choral Union, as well as maintaining high marks in her subjects. She graduated cum laude with a B.S. in nursing in June 1969. (During the summer of 1968, she worked at the Lake Wales hospital.)
On July 5, 1969 Charlotte became the bride of ROBERT MICHAEL WEIS at the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales. “Bob” graduated from Clearwater high school, St. Petersburg Junior College, and received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Florida in March. He was Vice President of Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity and was accepted in the Officers Candidate School of the Air Force. Among her attendants were Patsy, bridesmaid; Bob, groomsman; Steve, Junior usher, and Susan Bond, flower girl. After their honeymoon, they went to San Antonio, Texas, where Bob was stationed at Randolph AFB. They were then stationed many places over the years: Macon, Ga. AFB, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio; Grand Forks AFB, N.D.; Beavercreek, Ohio; and Prattville, Ala. Charlotte finished schooling to become a certified teacher and substituted in the Beavercreek elementary school, taught Sunday school, sang in the church choir, chaperoned band trips, was gymnastics groupie and an amateur judge in 1989.
When their daughters were growing up, Bob chaperoned the high school band trips, enjoyed computering and playing the stock market. Bob retired in 1991 and they moved to Lake Wales where he got a job as Director of Computer Services at Webber College. They built a beautiful home in the Country Oaks development outside Lake Wales, and Charlotte got a job substitute teaching. In about 2000 Charlotte and Bob divorced. Charlotte continues to reside in her home, for a while was the Network Manager for her charter school, teaches two gifted classes and a reading class, plays in her church’s bell choir, and enjoys her grandma time.
Charlotte and Bob were blessed with three daughters: PATRICIA ANN born March 30, 1971; SUSAN MICHELLE born July 12, 1973, and DEBORAH LEIGH born April 13, 1976. All three girls were sweet,
polite, thoughtful, and a delight to be around. Pat was a keyboardist, studied jazz, played the flute and the piano, played in the bell choir, was drum majorette for a marching band, was a member of the school orchestra, received all A’s and B’s, was picked for a delegation of high school students to be ambassadors to six European nations (W. Germany, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy) traveling to Washington to meet the president during the summer of 1989. Pat went to the Wright State University and transferred to Florida State University, from which she graduated in 1996. On June 15, 1997 she wed TOM NEPUTE and they have two daughters: ELIZABETH born in 2000 and KATHERINE born July 2003. They have lived in Florida, Texas, and now, are back in Florida (Winter Haven). Tom works for a warehousing company, Saddle creek, in Lakeland. Pat is a school volunteer.
Growing up, Susie was into flag twirling, played bass clarinet in the symphonic band, bass drum in the marching band, sang in the choir, and helped provide wedding music for her Uncle Bob’s wedding. She graduated from the University of Central Florida, where she got degrees in Elementary Education and Spanish. She married SHAWN JOHNSON June 15, 1996 and they live in Dowling Park near Live Oak in North Florida, where Shawn pastors a growing congregation of the First Baptist Church there. Susie worked for eight years at the Suwannee County Library, and in 2004 changed jobs to become an elementary school teacher, and most recently became a school media specialist.
Debbie (Dee) was chosen by Midwest Talent Search to take the SAT when in the 6th grade, placed in everything in a gymnastics meet in January, played the piano and trumpet in the band, and was always very active in school and church activities. She graduated from the U. of Fla. in April 1999 and wed CHRISTOPHER BRYANT on June 19, 1999. They reside in Tampa, where Chris has a job in computer drafting and she teaches 4th grade. Their son, CHRISTOPHER ANDREW, was born September 3, 2004 during the midst of Hurricane Frances.
Each Christmas Charlotte keeps the family informed of her and her children’s activities, including updated photos. We appreciate these newsy letters so much!
2. ROBERT EARL was born April 21, 1952 in Miami. In January 1953, Gayln moved his family to Bartow. Mother related how affectionate he was with her, always running to her with a big hug and kiss. He was full of life, very mischievous, but very popular.
Since Bobby grew up on the lake-Gayln moved out to his lake property when Bobby was 5-he was like a little duck. His Dad taught him early on how to fish. I have a news clipping dated August 1961 (age 9) showing him with a 7-pound bass. He was throwing breadcrumbs to shiners in Lake Park when one of them jumped into his boat. He put it on a hook, threw it back in the water, and seconds later, landed the bass.
Another news clipping dated Nov. 11, 1962 shows him with three other elementary children, holding a poster he won 3rd place with, for American Education Week.
Bobby played golf from the time he was able to hold a club. He participated in the Junior PGA Tournament (1965), competed in the junior division of the Johnson-Tillman Golf Tournament, narrowly losing to Bruce Weeks (Nov. 1966), was a member of the Lake Wales High Golf Team (undefeated in its first three matches-May 1967), was President of the Lake Wales Jr. Golf Association, leading the group in
a Jr. Tournament at Sebring (1968), was captain of the Lake Wales High Golf Squad, undefeated in its first three matches (February 1970). He was elected President of his sophomore class (June 1967) and was elected a senior representative to the Student Council for 1969-1970.
Bobby graduated from high school on June 5, 1970 after which he entered the University of Florida. After about one year, his love of golf wooed him back home to work at the L.W. Golf and Country Club, where is currently the manager.
At age 36, on June 4, 1988 Bobby married CYNTHIA LEE RICH at Noah’s Ark in Lake Wales. Cindy had a daughter from a previous marriage, and together they have two children: LACY ALISSA (1990), and a SKYLA (1992).
After Gayln’s death in 2002, the place on the lake was vacant for a while. Then Bobby and Cindy took it over and are constantly renovating it, doing much of the work themselves. It is looking great. For several years our family reunions were held there. Charlotte has been host to the most recent ones.
3. PATRICIA LEE was born Nov. 28, 1954 in Bartow. Patsy attends the First Baptist Church where she sings in the choir. Patsy graduated from high school in June 1972, went on to the University of Florida, receiving her degree in Education. She has been an excellent teacher these many years, both in Lake Wales and the surrounding areas, always devotedly planning new projects and activities for her students. Before Marietta died, she was involved in helping to plan and execute some of Patsy’s challenging ideas.
Patsy is buying her own home east of Lake Wales in a community en route to Bobby’s place. She was very close to Marietta-they were always going here and there together, even making several overseas trips with some of her teacher friends. For many years when Gayln and Marietta had their N.C. mountain place, since she was off school in the summers, she spent them up there. When Marietta got cancer, Patsy was beside her right up until the end. It was especially hard on her to lose her Mother and best friend. Now that Charlotte lives alone and near by, and also teaches school, she and Patsy are especially close, doing things and going places together. I think she enjoys Charlotte’s children and grandchildren almost as much as Charlotte does.
Patsy and Charlotte spend hours to make our Easter reunion and egg hunt especially delightful with their over-the-top egg and house decorations, accommodations, and great feast. We truly appreciate their countless efforts.
4. STEVE ALAN was born June 27, 1957 in Bartow. His family moved to Lake Wales in November of this year, so he spent most of his life there. Steve was a robust little fellow and loved tinkering with all sorts of things. He became an excellent carpenter and mechanic.
Steve played football all through high school, graduated in June 1975 and went on to the University of Florida where he also continued in the sport.
Steve married SUSAN JONES PARRISH on Sept. 7, 1980 at the Bok Singing Tower in Lake Wales. Susan was a divorcee with two children: a boy and a girl. They lived in Lake Wales where Steve worked with his Dad doing all manner of things: grove work, rebuilding and repairing Gayln’s properties, rebuilding and repairing antique cars, etc. During the time Reggie had his lawn maintenance business, Steve moved into a mobile home and worked for him, keeping the machinery in order and helping with the lawn maintenance. When the business started failing, Steve cut back his days, working in Lake Wales with his Dad on days off. Then when Reggie went bankrupt, Steve, whose marriage was also failing, moved back to Lake Wales and worked full-time with Gayln. He and Susan got divorced and she married Reggie. He built most of Charlotte’s home after Bob retired from the service, and it is beautiful. He could do anything, and willingly did so, for all the family. He was very strong, with many skills and abilities, and a hard worker.
Steve was out on a date in one of Gayln’s boats on the Kissimmee River the day after Christmas (December 26, 1992). His date was guiding the boat towards the marina when an air boat, not seeing them, swooped down, knocking Steve (sitting on the back) into the boat, killing him instantly. The guy in the airboat said Steve’s running lights were not on (the date said they were) and he didn’t see him. At any rate, it was a tragic accident-Steve was so talented and so kind, and only in his mid-30’s. It was hard for us all to accept, and one Marietta and Gayln never really got over. We all miss him!
B. GAYLN EARL (Born July 23, 1922. Wamego, Kansas)
News articles in Dad’s papers show Dad had a chicken hatchery in 1923 with incubators holding 5,000 eggs. Gayln was born with blonde hair, blue eyes, and clefts chin. Mother and Dad both had black hair and brown eyes. Mother said he looked like her uncle Earl, so made Gayln his namesake.
Mother described Gayln as independent, mischievous, and strong willed. As he got older, he started running off. Once after such an episode, when mother found him, to teach him a lesson, she got a rotten rope and tied him to a tree in the front yard.
Mother recognized his musical talent, so when he was about 10, started him on piano lessons. However, since we had no piano for him to practice on, and he didn’t like going somewhere else to practice, that didn’t last long. In high school, he played bass tuba in the band and helped me get into the band-I played the glockenspiel (bells) when marching, and E flat alto saxophone other times. We both used the school’s instruments.
When Gayln was a baby, Mother and Dad invested in a new invention, the Victrola. It stood about 5’ tall, with the top opening up for the turntable, the middle being enclosed with the speaker, and the lower portion containing slots for the thick records. Dad obtained quite a collection of the ¼” records and we spent many enjoyable hours listening to them. You had to wind a handle at the side to make it play. One of my favorites was “The Frog and the Nightingale”-the frog’s part was real low, and the nightingale’s song, high with whistling.
When we lived at the Wetmore place, Mother discovered that cookies were disappearing from the cookie jar. She questioned each of the boys and they all attested to their innocence. She said she knew who had taken them, and since he did not own up to it, she would have to pack his bag, as we could not tolerate anyone who told lies. He was so frightened at this prospect, he owned up to it.
Gayln was always looking for ways to make money. When just a little fellow, he went to work in a grocery store, but didn’t last long there as the owner told Mom that Gayln ate more than he was worth and he had to let him go. When he got a little older, he worked around Mr. Root’s place, clipping hedges, pruning his palm trees, and doing other yard work. Mr. Root nicknamed him “Tarzan”. He was a real wheeler-dealer, always needing money. I would loan him 50 cents and he would pay me back 75 cents when he got paid-not bad. He didn’t like working at home-no pay.
Because he would not cry when punished, he got punished that much more and longer. Once Dad was spanking him with a board when Gayln cried out, “Dad, that board has a nail in it.” Once when he was swimming in the lake behind our place, he stepped on a sharp piece of glass and came hobbling home, his foot covered with blood. Mom cleaned his foot up with Lysol and Dad bandaged it-we only went to the doctor for emergencies.
When Gayln was in high school, he ran around with the elite-going out camping, fishing, hunting, caddying at the golf course, etc. He sometimes spent most of his summer out camping at Lake Walk-in-the-water or other nearby lakes with his friends, only coming in to town for supplies and ice. We sometimes visited them taking ice, and going fishing or swimming. Often there were wild hogs roaming around their camp, so they had to nail boxes with food in them, in the trees. Gayln told us alligators would line the shores, or lay along the fallen trees on hot sunny days, sunning themselves, or basking in the moonlight when the moon was full. They ate the heart of the swamp cabbages, caught fish, hunted, and roasted potatoes in their hot coals.
Gayln was always very sociable, both with his peers, their parents, and the town leaders, principal, teachers, etc. He and his friends were always cooking up something, and sometimes it involved activities as a game of golf or fishing, during class time. When my folks were informed of Gayln’s absence from school, they questioned him. He always had an excuse, whereupon Dad would get stern and bring him back into line for a while.
In order to get a little extra money, Mom and Dad fixed up efficiency rooms for rent to itinerant fruit workers. One such room was rented to Mr. and Mrs. Saunders and their little toddler, Joanna. Mr. Saunders, who worked at the packinghouse, liked hunting and so went out with my brothers on a cold, damp misting day in the fall. He came home, chilled to the bone, developed a bad cold which went into pneumonia, and died shortly thereafter in our home. He had a Model A Ford, but his wife Hazel, did not know how to drive it. Dad bought it for the boys for $75. The folks helped Hazel with the necessary arrangements to return her husband’s body, her belongings, and put her and Joanna on a bus to Alabama. At this time, Gayln was in high school and he and his friends and Merrill were always out there cranking the Ford and taking off.
When about 15, Gayln joined the First Baptist church and we all went to his baptism. In high school he and his friends started a new fad-shaving all their hair off. (When he came home, Mom was really upset.) He also went out for football and became a star quarterback for the team in 1941. When school was over that year, he and many of his buddies went into the service, he joining the Navy. He was sent to Norfolk to boot camp and later to a radio school in Indianapolis. In December 1941, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and sank many of our ships, the U.S. joined World War II, which had been going on since 1939 in Europe.
When Mom learned Gayln would be around Chicago, she asked that he look up her long-lost brother, Beverly, whom A. Leona had tracked down. Gayln found him in a bad section of town, and when he identified himself, received a cool reception. Beverly, who played trumpet and sang with a band at night, sleeping by day, was summoned and probably embarrassed at his disheveled appearance and also the appearance of those in the apartment with him. (In 1955, Beverly went through Florida on his honeymoon and saw Mom for the first time in 34 years. He had married a very sweet nurse, Ann. He implicitly told Mom to keep her mouth shut about his past.) In September 1964, he and Ann retired and moved to the Lake Okeechobee area. After this, they visited Mom quite often, helping her with repairs, yard work, cleaning, etc. Beverly died on Nov. 14, 1969, approximately one year after Mom’s death, which he took very hard (he called Mom “Babe”.)
In 1942, Gayln was on a tramp steamer in the North Atlantic making the Murmansk Run to Murmansk, Russia, which, on its return, was sunk by a German submarine. He was picked up by a British Corvette and taken to Rjakevick, Iceland.
He returned to Norfolk for more training and sailed in and out of here often. In Norfolk, he met his future wife, MARIETTA ELEANOR NUHN (born 27 Dec., 1925 in Norfolk, Va.). Gayln’s Naval career included duty in the Atlantic and Pacific (Manila, P.I., the island of Leyte, etc.) He transferred into the air corps and after completing flight training at Natchitoches, La., was sent to the Middleton Flying School at Ark. Polytechnic College as a student pilot. While here, he married Marietta in a beautiful ceremony at 8:00 P.M. July 3, 1944, at the college’s Little Theatre, with a Presbyterian minister officiating. Her sister, Dorothy Nuhn was her only attendant, the ushers were all servicemen in full dress uniforms, and Merrill got leave from Rice University in Houston, to be best man. Mom went from Florida by train, to attend.
A few days after his marriage, Gayln’s plane crashed when it took a nosedive into some woods. It seems he was playing follow-the-leader with another school plane, but couldn’t pull his plane out of a low dive, as the other guy had done. In the Navy’s investigation, they pressed him for details, but he would not squeal on the other cadet, so he was flunked out of the school. He received a cut over his right eye that took twelve stitches to close. He was admitted to an Arkansas hospital and later transferred to a New Orleans Hospital.
Gayln was injured another time when fishing off a minesweeper that hit a mine and he was blown into the sea. We only found out about this when he came home on leave and Mom happened to see stitches across his back. Some time after his accidents, while in California, he started having severe headaches and was admitted to a San Francisco hospital for corrective surgery for exposed nerves. He had a gash from the middle of his forehead down across his right eye.
a. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California, on March 29, 1947, weighing in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces.
After a 6-year stint, Gayln was discharged from the Navy as a radioman lst class, and then entered the Arkansas School of Technology in Russellville, Ark. where he studied for two years. He transferred to the U. of Florida at Gainesville, and received his BSA and Masters Degrees in Entomology, the study of bugs, particularly how they affect the citrus trees.
Upon completion of his education in August 1951, he moved his family in with the Nuhn’s, who had relocated from Norfolk upon Mr. Nuhn’s retirement from the railroad, to a small lake outside Lake Wales. Since jobs were scarce, Gayln temporarily took a job tending groves @ 90 cents an hour. In December 1951 he took a job at the Hunt Brothers in Lake Wales. Then he found a better job with Swift & Co. in Miami where they relocated.
b. ROBERT EARL was born in Miami on April 21, 1952. We visited Gayln and family in Miami and Gayln took us all out deep-sea fishing.
In January 1953, Gayln was transferred to Bartow as the field representative for Swift, covering the Ridge district. He bought into half-ownership of 40 acres of lake property ten miles east of Lake Wales, surrounded by mostly woods and some groves, with a man in his 70’s. This was the property our family had camped on every summer when growing up-we all loved it.
c. PATRICIA LEE was born 28 November 1954 in Lake Wales.
d. STEVEN ALAN MARTIN was born 27 June 1957 in Lake Wales.
In November 1957, Gayln sold his Bartow home and moved out to his lake property, which he had now totally owned. He began building his home there, and this is where the entire Martin clan has its annual Easter and Christmas reunions.
Being the great outdoorsman of the family, Gayln bought a houseboat in May 1965, which his family enjoyed using. He also purchased a marina on the river that housed about seven boats.
In 1964, Gayln and Marietta bought the Tam O’Shanter gift fruit business on N. Scenic Highway (Alt. 27), naming it Martin Citrus, and operating it in conjunction with Martin’s G.M. Fruit Company. This kept him and Marietta busy day and night during the fruit season. This was sold in about 1970.
Besides enjoying fishing and hunting (sometimes traveling out of state to hunt deer and other game), Gayln was an avid Univ. of Florida gator fan, following the games around the country; was a great golfer (In 1961, he scored a hole-in-one in golf, and in 1964 was the winner of the Johnson-Tillman championship tournament at the L.W. Golf and Country Club), spending several days each week at the sport. For many years, he bought and restored old junked cars, putting them in mint condition and selling them for a nice profit. (He interested his son Steve, in this and Steve became an excellent mechanic.) Also, Gayln had a beautiful vegetable garden and raised much of his own produce.
His occupation consisted mainly of advising and working with grove owners on the care and sale of their fruit-also buying property and planting and tending groves of his own. In about 1988, he bought a motel consisting of about seven efficiency apartments in the heart of Lake Wales near the post office. These were completely remodeled, landscaped, and rented out.
In early 1968 Gayln had his first light heart attack (age 48) and was in the hospital a week. The doctor told him to eat no fried foods and to stop smoking, which he did immediately. From May 1974 he had several more attacks, until Feb. 23, 1989, when he had quadruple by-pass.
Gayln and family traveled to N.C. every summer on vacation and as time went on, he managed to buy about 40 acres of beautiful mountain property near Grandmother Mountain and Boone, at Banner Elk, N.C. They sold some of the acreage to their friends and Merrill’s son, Larry, and Larry’s in-laws (who bought about 15 acres.) Gayln at first built a cabin halfway up the mountain, which they used for several years, until about 1980 when he had property cleared all the way to the mountaintop. He built a beautiful house up there in the shape of a barn with decks and glass panels most of the way around, so you could enjoy the view from many angles. They spent their summers there in the cool mountains and their winters in Florida, for many years, until their health started declining. They eventually sold the property, and then resided only in Florida until their deaths.
In September 1997 Marietta discovered a lump behind her ear, went to the doctor, and after tests, was told she had inoperable cancer of the liver and head. Even though she underwent many radiation and chemotherapy treatments, the cancer spread very quickly and she died at home Dec. 12, 1997.
Gayln seemed to lose his zest for life after Marietta’s death. She was such a great wife, always dropping everything to do things and go places with Gayln. He continued meeting his friends for coffee, taking his walks, doing chores, etc., but when he came home, particularly in the evenings, he got very lonely and blue. He made no more hunting trips, did less fishing and gardening, and his health steadily declined. He lived with Charlotte for a while, and was finally put in a nursing home to live out his last days. He died of heart and other complications on February 13, 2002. We miss him very much! He kept the tradition of the Martins meeting at his place on the lake semi-annually going until his last days, and now his daughters and
son Bobby (who took over his home place) carry on the tradition. How fortunate for us that they have so graciously consented to do this-it means so much to us all!
GAYLN’s CHILDREN:
1. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California on March 29, 1947. I didn’t see Charlotte until she was about 4 years old, so I didn’t know her as a baby, but from the baby picture I received, she looked a great deal like Gayln. I was told that as she became a toddler, she would bring all sorts of bugs to Daddy for his examination (he was studying Entomology—the study of bugs), after which she would play with some of them.
Mother wrote that Charlotte often stayed with her and she became very attached to her. I know as the other children came along, she was a tremendous help with them.
Charlotte was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales and sang in the choir, was member of the Young Girl’s Club (received the Friendship Cup in December 1963). She was also into many school activities: co-captain of the cheer leaders in Sept. 1964, President of the Honor Society, a member of the Latin Club, Glee Club (went to Jamaica Apr. 66), was in the operetta “South Pacific” May 65, wrote the teen column “Teen Talk” in the Lake Wales News 64-65, etc. She was an honor speaker at her graduation, one of the four having the highest scholastic rankings through high school. Based on her scholastic records, she received a $2,000 4-year nursing scholarship to the University of Florida, a Gov. Hayden Burns $250 educational grant (one of four Polk Countians receiving such grants), and a commendation award (one of five) given by U. of Fla. to entering freshmen. She was just as active at the U. of Fla., being in the University Glee Club and Choral Union, as well as maintaining high marks in her subjects. She graduated cum laude with a B.S. in nursing in June 1969. (During the summer of 1968, she worked at the Lake Wales hospital.)
On July 5, 1969 Charlotte became the bride of ROBERT MICHAEL WEIS at the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales. “Bob” graduated from Clearwater high school, St. Petersburg Junior College, and received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Florida in March. He was Vice President of Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity and was accepted in the Officers Candidate School of the Air Force. Among her attendants were Patsy, bridesmaid; Bob, groomsman; Steve, Junior usher, and Susan Bond, flower girl. After their honeymoon, they went to San Antonio, Texas, where Bob was stationed at Randolph AFB. They were then stationed many places over the years: Macon, Ga. AFB, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio; Grand Forks AFB, N.D.; Beavercreek, Ohio; and Prattville, Ala. Charlotte finished schooling to become a certified teacher and substituted in the Beavercreek elementary school, taught Sunday school, sang in the church choir, chaperoned band trips, was gymnastics groupie and an amateur judge in 1989.
When their daughters were growing up, Bob chaperoned the high school band trips, enjoyed computering and playing the stock market. Bob retired in 1991 and they moved to Lake Wales where he got a job as Director of Computer Services at Webber College. They built a beautiful home in the Country Oaks development outside Lake Wales, and Charlotte got a job substitute teaching. In about 2000 Charlotte and Bob divorced. Charlotte continues to reside in her home, for a while was the Network Manager for her charter school, teaches two gifted classes and a reading class, plays in her church’s bell choir, and enjoys her grandma time.
Charlotte and Bob were blessed with three daughters: PATRICIA ANN born March 30, 1971; SUSAN MICHELLE born July 12, 1973, and DEBORAH LEIGH born April 13, 1976. All three girls were sweet,
polite, thoughtful, and a delight to be around. Pat was a keyboardist, studied jazz, played the flute and the piano, played in the bell choir, was drum majorette for a marching band, was a member of the school orchestra, received all A’s and B’s, was picked for a delegation of high school students to be ambassadors to six European nations (W. Germany, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy) traveling to Washington to meet the president during the summer of 1989. Pat went to the Wright State University and transferred to Florida State University, from which she graduated in 1996. On June 15, 1997 she wed TOM NEPUTE and they have two daughters: ELIZABETH born in 2000 and KATHERINE born July 2003. They have lived in Florida, Texas, and now, are back in Florida (Winter Haven). Tom works for a warehousing company, Saddle creek, in Lakeland. Pat is a school volunteer.
Growing up, Susie was into flag twirling, played bass clarinet in the symphonic band, bass drum in the marching band, sang in the choir, and helped provide wedding music for her Uncle Bob’s wedding. She graduated from the University of Central Florida, where she got degrees in Elementary Education and Spanish. She married SHAWN JOHNSON June 15, 1996 and they live in Dowling Park near Live Oak in North Florida, where Shawn pastors a growing congregation of the First Baptist Church there. Susie worked for eight years at the Suwannee County Library, and in 2004 changed jobs to become an elementary school teacher, and most recently became a school media specialist.
Debbie (Dee) was chosen by Midwest Talent Search to take the SAT when in the 6th grade, placed in everything in a gymnastics meet in January, played the piano and trumpet in the band, and was always very active in school and church activities. She graduated from the U. of Fla. in April 1999 and wed CHRISTOPHER BRYANT on June 19, 1999. They reside in Tampa, where Chris has a job in computer drafting and she teaches 4th grade. Their son, CHRISTOPHER ANDREW, was born September 3, 2004 during the midst of Hurricane Frances.
Each Christmas Charlotte keeps the family informed of her and her children’s activities, including updated photos. We appreciate these newsy letters so much!
2. ROBERT EARL was born April 21, 1952 in Miami. In January 1953, Gayln moved his family to Bartow. Mother related how affectionate he was with her, always running to her with a big hug and kiss. He was full of life, very mischievous, but very popular.
Since Bobby grew up on the lake-Gayln moved out to his lake property when Bobby was 5-he was like a little duck. His Dad taught him early on how to fish. I have a news clipping dated August 1961 (age 9) showing him with a 7-pound bass. He was throwing breadcrumbs to shiners in Lake Park when one of them jumped into his boat. He put it on a hook, threw it back in the water, and seconds later, landed the bass.
Another news clipping dated Nov. 11, 1962 shows him with three other elementary children, holding a poster he won 3rd place with, for American Education Week.
Bobby played golf from the time he was able to hold a club. He participated in the Junior PGA Tournament (1965), competed in the junior division of the Johnson-Tillman Golf Tournament, narrowly losing to Bruce Weeks (Nov. 1966), was a member of the Lake Wales High Golf Team (undefeated in its first three matches-May 1967), was President of the Lake Wales Jr. Golf Association, leading the group in
a Jr. Tournament at Sebring (1968), was captain of the Lake Wales High Golf Squad, undefeated in its first three matches (February 1970). He was elected President of his sophomore class (June 1967) and was elected a senior representative to the Student Council for 1969-1970.
Bobby graduated from high school on June 5, 1970 after which he entered the University of Florida. After about one year, his love of golf wooed him back home to work at the L.W. Golf and Country Club, where is currently the manager.
At age 36, on June 4, 1988 Bobby married CYNTHIA LEE RICH at Noah’s Ark in Lake Wales. Cindy had a daughter from a previous marriage, and together they have two children: LACY ALISSA (1990), and a SKYLA (1992).
After Gayln’s death in 2002, the place on the lake was vacant for a while. Then Bobby and Cindy took it over and are constantly renovating it, doing much of the work themselves. It is looking great. For several years our family reunions were held there. Charlotte has been host to the most recent ones.
3. PATRICIA LEE was born Nov. 28, 1954 in Bartow. Patsy attends the First Baptist Church where she sings in the choir. Patsy graduated from high school in June 1972, went on to the University of Florida, receiving her degree in Education. She has been an excellent teacher these many years, both in Lake Wales and the surrounding areas, always devotedly planning new projects and activities for her students. Before Marietta died, she was involved in helping to plan and execute some of Patsy’s challenging ideas.
Patsy is buying her own home east of Lake Wales in a community en route to Bobby’s place. She was very close to Marietta-they were always going here and there together, even making several overseas trips with some of her teacher friends. For many years when Gayln and Marietta had their N.C. mountain place, since she was off school in the summers, she spent them up there. When Marietta got cancer, Patsy was beside her right up until the end. It was especially hard on her to lose her Mother and best friend. Now that Charlotte lives alone and near by, and also teaches school, she and Patsy are especially close, doing things and going places together. I think she enjoys Charlotte’s children and grandchildren almost as much as Charlotte does.
Patsy and Charlotte spend hours to make our Easter reunion and egg hunt especially delightful with their over-the-top egg and house decorations, accommodations, and great feast. We truly appreciate their countless efforts.
4. STEVE ALAN was born June 27, 1957 in Bartow. His family moved to Lake Wales in November of this year, so he spent most of his life there. Steve was a robust little fellow and loved tinkering with all sorts of things. He became an excellent carpenter and mechanic.
Steve played football all through high school, graduated in June 1975 and went on to the University of Florida where he also continued in the sport.
Steve married SUSAN JONES PARRISH on Sept. 7, 1980 at the Bok Singing Tower in Lake Wales. Susan was a divorcee with two children: a boy and a girl. They lived in Lake Wales where Steve worked with his Dad doing all manner of things: grove work, rebuilding and repairing Gayln’s properties, rebuilding and repairing antique cars, etc. During the time Reggie had his lawn maintenance business, Steve moved into a mobile home and worked for him, keeping the machinery in order and helping with the lawn maintenance. When the business started failing, Steve cut back his days, working in Lake Wales with his Dad on days off. Then when Reggie went bankrupt, Steve, whose marriage was also failing, moved back to Lake Wales and worked full-time with Gayln. He and Susan got divorced and she married Reggie. He built most of Charlotte’s home after Bob retired from the service, and it is beautiful. He could do anything, and willingly did so, for all the family. He was very strong, with many skills and abilities, and a hard worker.
Steve was out on a date in one of Gayln’s boats on the Kissimmee River the day after Christmas (December 26, 1992). His date was guiding the boat towards the marina when an air boat, not seeing them, swooped down, knocking Steve (sitting on the back) into the boat, killing him instantly. The guy in the airboat said Steve’s running lights were not on (the date said they were) and he didn’t see him. At any rate, it was a tragic accident-Steve was so talented and so kind, and only in his mid-30’s. It was hard for us all to accept, and one Marietta and Gayln never really got over. We all miss him!
Taken from Doris Martin Welch bio, "My Saga" published in 2007:
B. GAYLN EARL (Born July 23, 1922. Wamego, Kansas)
News articles in Dad’s papers show Dad had a chicken hatchery in 1923 with incubators holding 5,000 eggs. Gayln was born with blonde hair, blue eyes, and clefts chin. Mother and Dad both had black hair and brown eyes. Mother said he looked like her uncle Earl, so made Gayln his namesake.
Mother described Gayln as independent, mischievous, and strong willed. As he got older, he started running off. Once after such an episode, when mother found him, to teach him a lesson, she got a rotten rope and tied him to a tree in the front yard.
Mother recognized his musical talent, so when he was about 10, started him on piano lessons. However, since we had no piano for him to practice on, and he didn’t like going somewhere else to practice, that didn’t last long. In high school, he played bass tuba in the band and helped me get into the band-I played the glockenspiel (bells) when marching, and E flat alto saxophone other times. We both used the school’s instruments.
When Gayln was a baby, Mother and Dad invested in a new invention, the Victrola. It stood about 5’ tall, with the top opening up for the turntable, the middle being enclosed with the speaker, and the lower portion containing slots for the thick records. Dad obtained quite a collection of the ¼” records and we spent many enjoyable hours listening to them. You had to wind a handle at the side to make it play. One of my favorites was “The Frog and the Nightingale”-the frog’s part was real low, and the nightingale’s song, high with whistling.
When we lived at the Wetmore place, Mother discovered that cookies were disappearing from the cookie jar. She questioned each of the boys and they all attested to their innocence. She said she knew who had taken them, and since he did not own up to it, she would have to pack his bag, as we could not tolerate anyone who told lies. He was so frightened at this prospect, he owned up to it.
Gayln was always looking for ways to make money. When just a little fellow, he went to work in a grocery store, but didn’t last long there as the owner told Mom that Gayln ate more than he was worth and he had to let him go. When he got a little older, he worked around Mr. Root’s place, clipping hedges, pruning his palm trees, and doing other yard work. Mr. Root nicknamed him “Tarzan”. He was a real wheeler-dealer, always needing money. I would loan him 50 cents and he would pay me back 75 cents when he got paid-not bad. He didn’t like working at home-no pay.
Because he would not cry when punished, he got punished that much more and longer. Once Dad was spanking him with a board when Gayln cried out, “Dad, that board has a nail in it.” Once when he was swimming in the lake behind our place, he stepped on a sharp piece of glass and came hobbling home, his foot covered with blood. Mom cleaned his foot up with Lysol and Dad bandaged it-we only went to the doctor for emergencies.
When Gayln was in high school, he ran around with the elite-going out camping, fishing, hunting, caddying at the golf course, etc. He sometimes spent most of his summer out camping at Lake Walk-in-the-water or other nearby lakes with his friends, only coming in to town for supplies and ice. We sometimes visited them taking ice, and going fishing or swimming. Often there were wild hogs roaming around their camp, so they had to nail boxes with food in them, in the trees. Gayln told us alligators would line the shores, or lay along the fallen trees on hot sunny days, sunning themselves, or basking in the moonlight when the moon was full. They ate the heart of the swamp cabbages, caught fish, hunted, and roasted potatoes in their hot coals.
Gayln was always very sociable, both with his peers, their parents, and the town leaders, principal, teachers, etc. He and his friends were always cooking up something, and sometimes it involved activities as a game of golf or fishing, during class time. When my folks were informed of Gayln’s absence from school, they questioned him. He always had an excuse, whereupon Dad would get stern and bring him back into line for a while.
In order to get a little extra money, Mom and Dad fixed up efficiency rooms for rent to itinerant fruit workers. One such room was rented to Mr. and Mrs. Saunders and their little toddler, Joanna. Mr. Saunders, who worked at the packinghouse, liked hunting and so went out with my brothers on a cold, damp misting day in the fall. He came home, chilled to the bone, developed a bad cold which went into pneumonia, and died shortly thereafter in our home. He had a Model A Ford, but his wife Hazel, did not know how to drive it. Dad bought it for the boys for $75. The folks helped Hazel with the necessary arrangements to return her husband’s body, her belongings, and put her and Joanna on a bus to Alabama. At this time, Gayln was in high school and he and his friends and Merrill were always out there cranking the Ford and taking off.
When about 15, Gayln joined the First Baptist church and we all went to his baptism. In high school he and his friends started a new fad-shaving all their hair off. (When he came home, Mom was really upset.) He also went out for football and became a star quarterback for the team in 1941. When school was over that year, he and many of his buddies went into the service, he joining the Navy. He was sent to Norfolk to boot camp and later to a radio school in Indianapolis. In December 1941, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and sank many of our ships, the U.S. joined World War II, which had been going on since 1939 in Europe.
When Mom learned Gayln would be around Chicago, she asked that he look up her long-lost brother, Beverly, whom A. Leona had tracked down. Gayln found him in a bad section of town, and when he identified himself, received a cool reception. Beverly, who played trumpet and sang with a band at night, sleeping by day, was summoned and probably embarrassed at his disheveled appearance and also the appearance of those in the apartment with him. (In 1955, Beverly went through Florida on his honeymoon and saw Mom for the first time in 34 years. He had married a very sweet nurse, Ann. He implicitly told Mom to keep her mouth shut about his past.) In September 1964, he and Ann retired and moved to the Lake Okeechobee area. After this, they visited Mom quite often, helping her with repairs, yard work, cleaning, etc. Beverly died on Nov. 14, 1969, approximately one year after Mom’s death, which he took very hard (he called Mom “Babe”.)
In 1942, Gayln was on a tramp steamer in the North Atlantic making the Murmansk Run to Murmansk, Russia, which, on its return, was sunk by a German submarine. He was picked up by a British Corvette and taken to Rjakevick, Iceland.
He returned to Norfolk for more training and sailed in and out of here often. In Norfolk, he met his future wife, MARIETTA ELEANOR NUHN (born 27 Dec., 1925 in Norfolk, Va.). Gayln’s Naval career included duty in the Atlantic and Pacific (Manila, P.I., the island of Leyte, etc.) He transferred into the air corps and after completing flight training at Natchitoches, La., was sent to the Middleton Flying School at Ark. Polytechnic College as a student pilot. While here, he married Marietta in a beautiful ceremony at 8:00 P.M. July 3, 1944, at the college’s Little Theatre, with a Presbyterian minister officiating. Her sister, Dorothy Nuhn was her only attendant, the ushers were all servicemen in full dress uniforms, and Merrill got leave from Rice University in Houston, to be best man. Mom went from Florida by train, to attend.
A few days after his marriage, Gayln’s plane crashed when it took a nosedive into some woods. It seems he was playing follow-the-leader with another school plane, but couldn’t pull his plane out of a low dive, as the other guy had done. In the Navy’s investigation, they pressed him for details, but he would not squeal on the other cadet, so he was flunked out of the school. He received a cut over his right eye that took twelve stitches to close. He was admitted to an Arkansas hospital and later transferred to a New Orleans Hospital.
Gayln was injured another time when fishing off a minesweeper that hit a mine and he was blown into the sea. We only found out about this when he came home on leave and Mom happened to see stitches across his back. Some time after his accidents, while in California, he started having severe headaches and was admitted to a San Francisco hospital for corrective surgery for exposed nerves. He had a gash from the middle of his forehead down across his right eye.
a. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California, on March 29, 1947, weighing in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces.
After a 6-year stint, Gayln was discharged from the Navy as a radioman lst class, and then entered the Arkansas School of Technology in Russellville, Ark. where he studied for two years. He transferred to the U. of Florida at Gainesville, and received his BSA and Masters Degrees in Entomology, the study of bugs, particularly how they affect the citrus trees.
Upon completion of his education in August 1951, he moved his family in with the Nuhn’s, who had relocated from Norfolk upon Mr. Nuhn’s retirement from the railroad, to a small lake outside Lake Wales. Since jobs were scarce, Gayln temporarily took a job tending groves @ 90 cents an hour. In December 1951 he took a job at the Hunt Brothers in Lake Wales. Then he found a better job with Swift & Co. in Miami where they relocated.
b. ROBERT EARL was born in Miami on April 21, 1952. We visited Gayln and family in Miami and Gayln took us all out deep-sea fishing.
In January 1953, Gayln was transferred to Bartow as the field representative for Swift, covering the Ridge district. He bought into half-ownership of 40 acres of lake property ten miles east of Lake Wales, surrounded by mostly woods and some groves, with a man in his 70’s. This was the property our family had camped on every summer when growing up-we all loved it.
c. PATRICIA LEE was born 28 November 1954 in Lake Wales.
d. STEVEN ALAN MARTIN was born 27 June 1957 in Lake Wales.
In November 1957, Gayln sold his Bartow home and moved out to his lake property, which he had now totally owned. He began building his home there, and this is where the entire Martin clan has its annual Easter and Christmas reunions.
Being the great outdoorsman of the family, Gayln bought a houseboat in May 1965, which his family enjoyed using. He also purchased a marina on the river that housed about seven boats.
In 1964, Gayln and Marietta bought the Tam O’Shanter gift fruit business on N. Scenic Highway (Alt. 27), naming it Martin Citrus, and operating it in conjunction with Martin’s G.M. Fruit Company. This kept him and Marietta busy day and night during the fruit season. This was sold in about 1970.
Besides enjoying fishing and hunting (sometimes traveling out of state to hunt deer and other game), Gayln was an avid Univ. of Florida gator fan, following the games around the country; was a great golfer (In 1961, he scored a hole-in-one in golf, and in 1964 was the winner of the Johnson-Tillman championship tournament at the L.W. Golf and Country Club), spending several days each week at the sport. For many years, he bought and restored old junked cars, putting them in mint condition and selling them for a nice profit. (He interested his son Steve, in this and Steve became an excellent mechanic.) Also, Gayln had a beautiful vegetable garden and raised much of his own produce.
His occupation consisted mainly of advising and working with grove owners on the care and sale of their fruit-also buying property and planting and tending groves of his own. In about 1988, he bought a motel consisting of about seven efficiency apartments in the heart of Lake Wales near the post office. These were completely remodeled, landscaped, and rented out.
In early 1968 Gayln had his first light heart attack (age 48) and was in the hospital a week. The doctor told him to eat no fried foods and to stop smoking, which he did immediately. From May 1974 he had several more attacks, until Feb. 23, 1989, when he had quadruple by-pass.
Gayln and family traveled to N.C. every summer on vacation and as time went on, he managed to buy about 40 acres of beautiful mountain property near Grandmother Mountain and Boone, at Banner Elk, N.C. They sold some of the acreage to their friends and Merrill’s son, Larry, and Larry’s in-laws (who bought about 15 acres.) Gayln at first built a cabin halfway up the mountain, which they used for several years, until about 1980 when he had property cleared all the way to the mountaintop. He built a beautiful house up there in the shape of a barn with decks and glass panels most of the way around, so you could enjoy the view from many angles. They spent their summers there in the cool mountains and their winters in Florida, for many years, until their health started declining. They eventually sold the property, and then resided only in Florida until their deaths.
In September 1997 Marietta discovered a lump behind her ear, went to the doctor, and after tests, was told she had inoperable cancer of the liver and head. Even though she underwent many radiation and chemotherapy treatments, the cancer spread very quickly and she died at home Dec. 12, 1997.
Gayln seemed to lose his zest for life after Marietta’s death. She was such a great wife, always dropping everything to do things and go places with Gayln. He continued meeting his friends for coffee, taking his walks, doing chores, etc., but when he came home, particularly in the evenings, he got very lonely and blue. He made no more hunting trips, did less fishing and gardening, and his health steadily declined. He lived with Charlotte for a while, and was finally put in a nursing home to live out his last days. He died of heart and other complications on February 13, 2002. We miss him very much! He kept the tradition of the Martins meeting at his place on the lake semi-annually going until his last days, and now his daughters and
son Bobby (who took over his home place) carry on the tradition. How fortunate for us that they have so graciously consented to do this-it means so much to us all!
GAYLN’s CHILDREN:
1. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California on March 29, 1947. I didn’t see Charlotte until she was about 4 years old, so I didn’t know her as a baby, but from the baby picture I received, she looked a great deal like Gayln. I was told that as she became a toddler, she would bring all sorts of bugs to Daddy for his examination (he was studying Entomology—the study of bugs), after which she would play with some of them.
Mother wrote that Charlotte often stayed with her and she became very attached to her. I know as the other children came along, she was a tremendous help with them.
Charlotte was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales and sang in the choir, was member of the Young Girl’s Club (received the Friendship Cup in December 1963). She was also into many school activities: co-captain of the cheer leaders in Sept. 1964, President of the Honor Society, a member of the Latin Club, Glee Club (went to Jamaica Apr. 66), was in the operetta “South Pacific” May 65, wrote the teen column “Teen Talk” in the Lake Wales News 64-65, etc. She was an honor speaker at her graduation, one of the four having the highest scholastic rankings through high school. Based on her scholastic records, she received a $2,000 4-year nursing scholarship to the University of Florida, a Gov. Hayden Burns $250 educational grant (one of four Polk Countians receiving such grants), and a commendation award (one of five) given by U. of Fla. to entering freshmen. She was just as active at the U. of Fla., being in the University Glee Club and Choral Union, as well as maintaining high marks in her subjects. She graduated cum laude with a B.S. in nursing in June 1969. (During the summer of 1968, she worked at the Lake Wales hospital.)
On July 5, 1969 Charlotte became the bride of ROBERT MICHAEL WEIS at the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales. “Bob” graduated from Clearwater high school, St. Petersburg Junior College, and received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Florida in March. He was Vice President of Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity and was accepted in the Officers Candidate School of the Air Force. Among her attendants were Patsy, bridesmaid; Bob, groomsman; Steve, Junior usher, and Susan Bond, flower girl. After their honeymoon, they went to San Antonio, Texas, where Bob was stationed at Randolph AFB. They were then stationed many places over the years: Macon, Ga. AFB, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio; Grand Forks AFB, N.D.; Beavercreek, Ohio; and Prattville, Ala. Charlotte finished schooling to become a certified teacher and substituted in the Beavercreek elementary school, taught Sunday school, sang in the church choir, chaperoned band trips, was gymnastics groupie and an amateur judge in 1989.
When their daughters were growing up, Bob chaperoned the high school band trips, enjoyed computering and playing the stock market. Bob retired in 1991 and they moved to Lake Wales where he got a job as Director of Computer Services at Webber College. They built a beautiful home in the Country Oaks development outside Lake Wales, and Charlotte got a job substitute teaching. In about 2000 Charlotte and Bob divorced. Charlotte continues to reside in her home, for a while was the Network Manager for her charter school, teaches two gifted classes and a reading class, plays in her church’s bell choir, and enjoys her grandma time.
Charlotte and Bob were blessed with three daughters: PATRICIA ANN born March 30, 1971; SUSAN MICHELLE born July 12, 1973, and DEBORAH LEIGH born April 13, 1976. All three girls were sweet,
polite, thoughtful, and a delight to be around. Pat was a keyboardist, studied jazz, played the flute and the piano, played in the bell choir, was drum majorette for a marching band, was a member of the school orchestra, received all A’s and B’s, was picked for a delegation of high school students to be ambassadors to six European nations (W. Germany, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy) traveling to Washington to meet the president during the summer of 1989. Pat went to the Wright State University and transferred to Florida State University, from which she graduated in 1996. On June 15, 1997 she wed TOM NEPUTE and they have two daughters: ELIZABETH born in 2000 and KATHERINE born July 2003. They have lived in Florida, Texas, and now, are back in Florida (Winter Haven). Tom works for a warehousing company, Saddle creek, in Lakeland. Pat is a school volunteer.
Growing up, Susie was into flag twirling, played bass clarinet in the symphonic band, bass drum in the marching band, sang in the choir, and helped provide wedding music for her Uncle Bob’s wedding. She graduated from the University of Central Florida, where she got degrees in Elementary Education and Spanish. She married SHAWN JOHNSON June 15, 1996 and they live in Dowling Park near Live Oak in North Florida, where Shawn pastors a growing congregation of the First Baptist Church there. Susie worked for eight years at the Suwannee County Library, and in 2004 changed jobs to become an elementary school teacher, and most recently became a school media specialist.
Debbie (Dee) was chosen by Midwest Talent Search to take the SAT when in the 6th grade, placed in everything in a gymnastics meet in January, played the piano and trumpet in the band, and was always very active in school and church activities. She graduated from the U. of Fla. in April 1999 and wed CHRISTOPHER BRYANT on June 19, 1999. They reside in Tampa, where Chris has a job in computer drafting and she teaches 4th grade. Their son, CHRISTOPHER ANDREW, was born September 3, 2004 during the midst of Hurricane Frances.
Each Christmas Charlotte keeps the family informed of her and her children’s activities, including updated photos. We appreciate these newsy letters so much!
2. ROBERT EARL was born April 21, 1952 in Miami. In January 1953, Gayln moved his family to Bartow. Mother related how affectionate he was with her, always running to her with a big hug and kiss. He was full of life, very mischievous, but very popular.
Since Bobby grew up on the lake-Gayln moved out to his lake property when Bobby was 5-he was like a little duck. His Dad taught him early on how to fish. I have a news clipping dated August 1961 (age 9) showing him with a 7-pound bass. He was throwing breadcrumbs to shiners in Lake Park when one of them jumped into his boat. He put it on a hook, threw it back in the water, and seconds later, landed the bass.
Another news clipping dated Nov. 11, 1962 shows him with three other elementary children, holding a poster he won 3rd place with, for American Education Week.
Bobby played golf from the time he was able to hold a club. He participated in the Junior PGA Tournament (1965), competed in the junior division of the Johnson-Tillman Golf Tournament, narrowly losing to Bruce Weeks (Nov. 1966), was a member of the Lake Wales High Golf Team (undefeated in its first three matches-May 1967), was President of the Lake Wales Jr. Golf Association, leading the group in
a Jr. Tournament at Sebring (1968), was captain of the Lake Wales High Golf Squad, undefeated in its first three matches (February 1970). He was elected President of his sophomore class (June 1967) and was elected a senior representative to the Student Council for 1969-1970.
Bobby graduated from high school on June 5, 1970 after which he entered the University of Florida. After about one year, his love of golf wooed him back home to work at the L.W. Golf and Country Club, where is currently the manager.
At age 36, on June 4, 1988 Bobby married CYNTHIA LEE RICH at Noah’s Ark in Lake Wales. Cindy had a daughter from a previous marriage, and together they have two children: LACY ALISSA (1990), and a SKYLA (1992).
After Gayln’s death in 2002, the place on the lake was vacant for a while. Then Bobby and Cindy took it over and are constantly renovating it, doing much of the work themselves. It is looking great. For several years our family reunions were held there. Charlotte has been host to the most recent ones.
3. PATRICIA LEE was born Nov. 28, 1954 in Bartow. Patsy attends the First Baptist Church where she sings in the choir. Patsy graduated from high school in June 1972, went on to the University of Florida, receiving her degree in Education. She has been an excellent teacher these many years, both in Lake Wales and the surrounding areas, always devotedly planning new projects and activities for her students. Before Marietta died, she was involved in helping to plan and execute some of Patsy’s challenging ideas.
Patsy is buying her own home east of Lake Wales in a community en route to Bobby’s place. She was very close to Marietta-they were always going here and there together, even making several overseas trips with some of her teacher friends. For many years when Gayln and Marietta had their N.C. mountain place, since she was off school in the summers, she spent them up there. When Marietta got cancer, Patsy was beside her right up until the end. It was especially hard on her to lose her Mother and best friend. Now that Charlotte lives alone and near by, and also teaches school, she and Patsy are especially close, doing things and going places together. I think she enjoys Charlotte’s children and grandchildren almost as much as Charlotte does.
Patsy and Charlotte spend hours to make our Easter reunion and egg hunt especially delightful with their over-the-top egg and house decorations, accommodations, and great feast. We truly appreciate their countless efforts.
4. STEVE ALAN was born June 27, 1957 in Bartow. His family moved to Lake Wales in November of this year, so he spent most of his life there. Steve was a robust little fellow and loved tinkering with all sorts of things. He became an excellent carpenter and mechanic.
Steve played football all through high school, graduated in June 1975 and went on to the University of Florida where he also continued in the sport.
Steve married SUSAN JONES PARRISH on Sept. 7, 1980 at the Bok Singing Tower in Lake Wales. Susan was a divorcee with two children: a boy and a girl. They lived in Lake Wales where Steve worked with his Dad doing all manner of things: grove work, rebuilding and repairing Gayln’s properties, rebuilding and repairing antique cars, etc. During the time Reggie had his lawn maintenance business, Steve moved into a mobile home and worked for him, keeping the machinery in order and helping with the lawn maintenance. When the business started failing, Steve cut back his days, working in Lake Wales with his Dad on days off. Then when Reggie went bankrupt, Steve, whose marriage was also failing, moved back to Lake Wales and worked full-time with Gayln. He and Susan got divorced and she married Reggie. He built most of Charlotte’s home after Bob retired from the service, and it is beautiful. He could do anything, and willingly did so, for all the family. He was very strong, with many skills and abilities, and a hard worker.
Steve was out on a date in one of Gayln’s boats on the Kissimmee River the day after Christmas (December 26, 1992). His date was guiding the boat towards the marina when an air boat, not seeing them, swooped down, knocking Steve (sitting on the back) into the boat, killing him instantly. The guy in the airboat said Steve’s running lights were not on (the date said they were) and he didn’t see him. At any rate, it was a tragic accident-Steve was so talented and so kind, and only in his mid-30’s. It was hard for us all to accept, and one Marietta and Gayln never really got over. We all miss him!
B. GAYLN EARL (Born July 23, 1922. Wamego, Kansas)
News articles in Dad’s papers show Dad had a chicken hatchery in 1923 with incubators holding 5,000 eggs. Gayln was born with blonde hair, blue eyes, and clefts chin. Mother and Dad both had black hair and brown eyes. Mother said he looked like her uncle Earl, so made Gayln his namesake.
Mother described Gayln as independent, mischievous, and strong willed. As he got older, he started running off. Once after such an episode, when mother found him, to teach him a lesson, she got a rotten rope and tied him to a tree in the front yard.
Mother recognized his musical talent, so when he was about 10, started him on piano lessons. However, since we had no piano for him to practice on, and he didn’t like going somewhere else to practice, that didn’t last long. In high school, he played bass tuba in the band and helped me get into the band-I played the glockenspiel (bells) when marching, and E flat alto saxophone other times. We both used the school’s instruments.
When Gayln was a baby, Mother and Dad invested in a new invention, the Victrola. It stood about 5’ tall, with the top opening up for the turntable, the middle being enclosed with the speaker, and the lower portion containing slots for the thick records. Dad obtained quite a collection of the ¼” records and we spent many enjoyable hours listening to them. You had to wind a handle at the side to make it play. One of my favorites was “The Frog and the Nightingale”-the frog’s part was real low, and the nightingale’s song, high with whistling.
When we lived at the Wetmore place, Mother discovered that cookies were disappearing from the cookie jar. She questioned each of the boys and they all attested to their innocence. She said she knew who had taken them, and since he did not own up to it, she would have to pack his bag, as we could not tolerate anyone who told lies. He was so frightened at this prospect, he owned up to it.
Gayln was always looking for ways to make money. When just a little fellow, he went to work in a grocery store, but didn’t last long there as the owner told Mom that Gayln ate more than he was worth and he had to let him go. When he got a little older, he worked around Mr. Root’s place, clipping hedges, pruning his palm trees, and doing other yard work. Mr. Root nicknamed him “Tarzan”. He was a real wheeler-dealer, always needing money. I would loan him 50 cents and he would pay me back 75 cents when he got paid-not bad. He didn’t like working at home-no pay.
Because he would not cry when punished, he got punished that much more and longer. Once Dad was spanking him with a board when Gayln cried out, “Dad, that board has a nail in it.” Once when he was swimming in the lake behind our place, he stepped on a sharp piece of glass and came hobbling home, his foot covered with blood. Mom cleaned his foot up with Lysol and Dad bandaged it-we only went to the doctor for emergencies.
When Gayln was in high school, he ran around with the elite-going out camping, fishing, hunting, caddying at the golf course, etc. He sometimes spent most of his summer out camping at Lake Walk-in-the-water or other nearby lakes with his friends, only coming in to town for supplies and ice. We sometimes visited them taking ice, and going fishing or swimming. Often there were wild hogs roaming around their camp, so they had to nail boxes with food in them, in the trees. Gayln told us alligators would line the shores, or lay along the fallen trees on hot sunny days, sunning themselves, or basking in the moonlight when the moon was full. They ate the heart of the swamp cabbages, caught fish, hunted, and roasted potatoes in their hot coals.
Gayln was always very sociable, both with his peers, their parents, and the town leaders, principal, teachers, etc. He and his friends were always cooking up something, and sometimes it involved activities as a game of golf or fishing, during class time. When my folks were informed of Gayln’s absence from school, they questioned him. He always had an excuse, whereupon Dad would get stern and bring him back into line for a while.
In order to get a little extra money, Mom and Dad fixed up efficiency rooms for rent to itinerant fruit workers. One such room was rented to Mr. and Mrs. Saunders and their little toddler, Joanna. Mr. Saunders, who worked at the packinghouse, liked hunting and so went out with my brothers on a cold, damp misting day in the fall. He came home, chilled to the bone, developed a bad cold which went into pneumonia, and died shortly thereafter in our home. He had a Model A Ford, but his wife Hazel, did not know how to drive it. Dad bought it for the boys for $75. The folks helped Hazel with the necessary arrangements to return her husband’s body, her belongings, and put her and Joanna on a bus to Alabama. At this time, Gayln was in high school and he and his friends and Merrill were always out there cranking the Ford and taking off.
When about 15, Gayln joined the First Baptist church and we all went to his baptism. In high school he and his friends started a new fad-shaving all their hair off. (When he came home, Mom was really upset.) He also went out for football and became a star quarterback for the team in 1941. When school was over that year, he and many of his buddies went into the service, he joining the Navy. He was sent to Norfolk to boot camp and later to a radio school in Indianapolis. In December 1941, when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor and sank many of our ships, the U.S. joined World War II, which had been going on since 1939 in Europe.
When Mom learned Gayln would be around Chicago, she asked that he look up her long-lost brother, Beverly, whom A. Leona had tracked down. Gayln found him in a bad section of town, and when he identified himself, received a cool reception. Beverly, who played trumpet and sang with a band at night, sleeping by day, was summoned and probably embarrassed at his disheveled appearance and also the appearance of those in the apartment with him. (In 1955, Beverly went through Florida on his honeymoon and saw Mom for the first time in 34 years. He had married a very sweet nurse, Ann. He implicitly told Mom to keep her mouth shut about his past.) In September 1964, he and Ann retired and moved to the Lake Okeechobee area. After this, they visited Mom quite often, helping her with repairs, yard work, cleaning, etc. Beverly died on Nov. 14, 1969, approximately one year after Mom’s death, which he took very hard (he called Mom “Babe”.)
In 1942, Gayln was on a tramp steamer in the North Atlantic making the Murmansk Run to Murmansk, Russia, which, on its return, was sunk by a German submarine. He was picked up by a British Corvette and taken to Rjakevick, Iceland.
He returned to Norfolk for more training and sailed in and out of here often. In Norfolk, he met his future wife, MARIETTA ELEANOR NUHN (born 27 Dec., 1925 in Norfolk, Va.). Gayln’s Naval career included duty in the Atlantic and Pacific (Manila, P.I., the island of Leyte, etc.) He transferred into the air corps and after completing flight training at Natchitoches, La., was sent to the Middleton Flying School at Ark. Polytechnic College as a student pilot. While here, he married Marietta in a beautiful ceremony at 8:00 P.M. July 3, 1944, at the college’s Little Theatre, with a Presbyterian minister officiating. Her sister, Dorothy Nuhn was her only attendant, the ushers were all servicemen in full dress uniforms, and Merrill got leave from Rice University in Houston, to be best man. Mom went from Florida by train, to attend.
A few days after his marriage, Gayln’s plane crashed when it took a nosedive into some woods. It seems he was playing follow-the-leader with another school plane, but couldn’t pull his plane out of a low dive, as the other guy had done. In the Navy’s investigation, they pressed him for details, but he would not squeal on the other cadet, so he was flunked out of the school. He received a cut over his right eye that took twelve stitches to close. He was admitted to an Arkansas hospital and later transferred to a New Orleans Hospital.
Gayln was injured another time when fishing off a minesweeper that hit a mine and he was blown into the sea. We only found out about this when he came home on leave and Mom happened to see stitches across his back. Some time after his accidents, while in California, he started having severe headaches and was admitted to a San Francisco hospital for corrective surgery for exposed nerves. He had a gash from the middle of his forehead down across his right eye.
a. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California, on March 29, 1947, weighing in at 6 pounds, 5 ounces.
After a 6-year stint, Gayln was discharged from the Navy as a radioman lst class, and then entered the Arkansas School of Technology in Russellville, Ark. where he studied for two years. He transferred to the U. of Florida at Gainesville, and received his BSA and Masters Degrees in Entomology, the study of bugs, particularly how they affect the citrus trees.
Upon completion of his education in August 1951, he moved his family in with the Nuhn’s, who had relocated from Norfolk upon Mr. Nuhn’s retirement from the railroad, to a small lake outside Lake Wales. Since jobs were scarce, Gayln temporarily took a job tending groves @ 90 cents an hour. In December 1951 he took a job at the Hunt Brothers in Lake Wales. Then he found a better job with Swift & Co. in Miami where they relocated.
b. ROBERT EARL was born in Miami on April 21, 1952. We visited Gayln and family in Miami and Gayln took us all out deep-sea fishing.
In January 1953, Gayln was transferred to Bartow as the field representative for Swift, covering the Ridge district. He bought into half-ownership of 40 acres of lake property ten miles east of Lake Wales, surrounded by mostly woods and some groves, with a man in his 70’s. This was the property our family had camped on every summer when growing up-we all loved it.
c. PATRICIA LEE was born 28 November 1954 in Lake Wales.
d. STEVEN ALAN MARTIN was born 27 June 1957 in Lake Wales.
In November 1957, Gayln sold his Bartow home and moved out to his lake property, which he had now totally owned. He began building his home there, and this is where the entire Martin clan has its annual Easter and Christmas reunions.
Being the great outdoorsman of the family, Gayln bought a houseboat in May 1965, which his family enjoyed using. He also purchased a marina on the river that housed about seven boats.
In 1964, Gayln and Marietta bought the Tam O’Shanter gift fruit business on N. Scenic Highway (Alt. 27), naming it Martin Citrus, and operating it in conjunction with Martin’s G.M. Fruit Company. This kept him and Marietta busy day and night during the fruit season. This was sold in about 1970.
Besides enjoying fishing and hunting (sometimes traveling out of state to hunt deer and other game), Gayln was an avid Univ. of Florida gator fan, following the games around the country; was a great golfer (In 1961, he scored a hole-in-one in golf, and in 1964 was the winner of the Johnson-Tillman championship tournament at the L.W. Golf and Country Club), spending several days each week at the sport. For many years, he bought and restored old junked cars, putting them in mint condition and selling them for a nice profit. (He interested his son Steve, in this and Steve became an excellent mechanic.) Also, Gayln had a beautiful vegetable garden and raised much of his own produce.
His occupation consisted mainly of advising and working with grove owners on the care and sale of their fruit-also buying property and planting and tending groves of his own. In about 1988, he bought a motel consisting of about seven efficiency apartments in the heart of Lake Wales near the post office. These were completely remodeled, landscaped, and rented out.
In early 1968 Gayln had his first light heart attack (age 48) and was in the hospital a week. The doctor told him to eat no fried foods and to stop smoking, which he did immediately. From May 1974 he had several more attacks, until Feb. 23, 1989, when he had quadruple by-pass.
Gayln and family traveled to N.C. every summer on vacation and as time went on, he managed to buy about 40 acres of beautiful mountain property near Grandmother Mountain and Boone, at Banner Elk, N.C. They sold some of the acreage to their friends and Merrill’s son, Larry, and Larry’s in-laws (who bought about 15 acres.) Gayln at first built a cabin halfway up the mountain, which they used for several years, until about 1980 when he had property cleared all the way to the mountaintop. He built a beautiful house up there in the shape of a barn with decks and glass panels most of the way around, so you could enjoy the view from many angles. They spent their summers there in the cool mountains and their winters in Florida, for many years, until their health started declining. They eventually sold the property, and then resided only in Florida until their deaths.
In September 1997 Marietta discovered a lump behind her ear, went to the doctor, and after tests, was told she had inoperable cancer of the liver and head. Even though she underwent many radiation and chemotherapy treatments, the cancer spread very quickly and she died at home Dec. 12, 1997.
Gayln seemed to lose his zest for life after Marietta’s death. She was such a great wife, always dropping everything to do things and go places with Gayln. He continued meeting his friends for coffee, taking his walks, doing chores, etc., but when he came home, particularly in the evenings, he got very lonely and blue. He made no more hunting trips, did less fishing and gardening, and his health steadily declined. He lived with Charlotte for a while, and was finally put in a nursing home to live out his last days. He died of heart and other complications on February 13, 2002. We miss him very much! He kept the tradition of the Martins meeting at his place on the lake semi-annually going until his last days, and now his daughters and
son Bobby (who took over his home place) carry on the tradition. How fortunate for us that they have so graciously consented to do this-it means so much to us all!
GAYLN’s CHILDREN:
1. CHARLOTTE ANNE was born in National City, California on March 29, 1947. I didn’t see Charlotte until she was about 4 years old, so I didn’t know her as a baby, but from the baby picture I received, she looked a great deal like Gayln. I was told that as she became a toddler, she would bring all sorts of bugs to Daddy for his examination (he was studying Entomology—the study of bugs), after which she would play with some of them.
Mother wrote that Charlotte often stayed with her and she became very attached to her. I know as the other children came along, she was a tremendous help with them.
Charlotte was an active member of the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales and sang in the choir, was member of the Young Girl’s Club (received the Friendship Cup in December 1963). She was also into many school activities: co-captain of the cheer leaders in Sept. 1964, President of the Honor Society, a member of the Latin Club, Glee Club (went to Jamaica Apr. 66), was in the operetta “South Pacific” May 65, wrote the teen column “Teen Talk” in the Lake Wales News 64-65, etc. She was an honor speaker at her graduation, one of the four having the highest scholastic rankings through high school. Based on her scholastic records, she received a $2,000 4-year nursing scholarship to the University of Florida, a Gov. Hayden Burns $250 educational grant (one of four Polk Countians receiving such grants), and a commendation award (one of five) given by U. of Fla. to entering freshmen. She was just as active at the U. of Fla., being in the University Glee Club and Choral Union, as well as maintaining high marks in her subjects. She graduated cum laude with a B.S. in nursing in June 1969. (During the summer of 1968, she worked at the Lake Wales hospital.)
On July 5, 1969 Charlotte became the bride of ROBERT MICHAEL WEIS at the First Baptist Church in Lake Wales. “Bob” graduated from Clearwater high school, St. Petersburg Junior College, and received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Florida in March. He was Vice President of Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity and was accepted in the Officers Candidate School of the Air Force. Among her attendants were Patsy, bridesmaid; Bob, groomsman; Steve, Junior usher, and Susan Bond, flower girl. After their honeymoon, they went to San Antonio, Texas, where Bob was stationed at Randolph AFB. They were then stationed many places over the years: Macon, Ga. AFB, Wright Patterson AFB, Ohio; Grand Forks AFB, N.D.; Beavercreek, Ohio; and Prattville, Ala. Charlotte finished schooling to become a certified teacher and substituted in the Beavercreek elementary school, taught Sunday school, sang in the church choir, chaperoned band trips, was gymnastics groupie and an amateur judge in 1989.
When their daughters were growing up, Bob chaperoned the high school band trips, enjoyed computering and playing the stock market. Bob retired in 1991 and they moved to Lake Wales where he got a job as Director of Computer Services at Webber College. They built a beautiful home in the Country Oaks development outside Lake Wales, and Charlotte got a job substitute teaching. In about 2000 Charlotte and Bob divorced. Charlotte continues to reside in her home, for a while was the Network Manager for her charter school, teaches two gifted classes and a reading class, plays in her church’s bell choir, and enjoys her grandma time.
Charlotte and Bob were blessed with three daughters: PATRICIA ANN born March 30, 1971; SUSAN MICHELLE born July 12, 1973, and DEBORAH LEIGH born April 13, 1976. All three girls were sweet,
polite, thoughtful, and a delight to be around. Pat was a keyboardist, studied jazz, played the flute and the piano, played in the bell choir, was drum majorette for a marching band, was a member of the school orchestra, received all A’s and B’s, was picked for a delegation of high school students to be ambassadors to six European nations (W. Germany, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Greece and Italy) traveling to Washington to meet the president during the summer of 1989. Pat went to the Wright State University and transferred to Florida State University, from which she graduated in 1996. On June 15, 1997 she wed TOM NEPUTE and they have two daughters: ELIZABETH born in 2000 and KATHERINE born July 2003. They have lived in Florida, Texas, and now, are back in Florida (Winter Haven). Tom works for a warehousing company, Saddle creek, in Lakeland. Pat is a school volunteer.
Growing up, Susie was into flag twirling, played bass clarinet in the symphonic band, bass drum in the marching band, sang in the choir, and helped provide wedding music for her Uncle Bob’s wedding. She graduated from the University of Central Florida, where she got degrees in Elementary Education and Spanish. She married SHAWN JOHNSON June 15, 1996 and they live in Dowling Park near Live Oak in North Florida, where Shawn pastors a growing congregation of the First Baptist Church there. Susie worked for eight years at the Suwannee County Library, and in 2004 changed jobs to become an elementary school teacher, and most recently became a school media specialist.
Debbie (Dee) was chosen by Midwest Talent Search to take the SAT when in the 6th grade, placed in everything in a gymnastics meet in January, played the piano and trumpet in the band, and was always very active in school and church activities. She graduated from the U. of Fla. in April 1999 and wed CHRISTOPHER BRYANT on June 19, 1999. They reside in Tampa, where Chris has a job in computer drafting and she teaches 4th grade. Their son, CHRISTOPHER ANDREW, was born September 3, 2004 during the midst of Hurricane Frances.
Each Christmas Charlotte keeps the family informed of her and her children’s activities, including updated photos. We appreciate these newsy letters so much!
2. ROBERT EARL was born April 21, 1952 in Miami. In January 1953, Gayln moved his family to Bartow. Mother related how affectionate he was with her, always running to her with a big hug and kiss. He was full of life, very mischievous, but very popular.
Since Bobby grew up on the lake-Gayln moved out to his lake property when Bobby was 5-he was like a little duck. His Dad taught him early on how to fish. I have a news clipping dated August 1961 (age 9) showing him with a 7-pound bass. He was throwing breadcrumbs to shiners in Lake Park when one of them jumped into his boat. He put it on a hook, threw it back in the water, and seconds later, landed the bass.
Another news clipping dated Nov. 11, 1962 shows him with three other elementary children, holding a poster he won 3rd place with, for American Education Week.
Bobby played golf from the time he was able to hold a club. He participated in the Junior PGA Tournament (1965), competed in the junior division of the Johnson-Tillman Golf Tournament, narrowly losing to Bruce Weeks (Nov. 1966), was a member of the Lake Wales High Golf Team (undefeated in its first three matches-May 1967), was President of the Lake Wales Jr. Golf Association, leading the group in
a Jr. Tournament at Sebring (1968), was captain of the Lake Wales High Golf Squad, undefeated in its first three matches (February 1970). He was elected President of his sophomore class (June 1967) and was elected a senior representative to the Student Council for 1969-1970.
Bobby graduated from high school on June 5, 1970 after which he entered the University of Florida. After about one year, his love of golf wooed him back home to work at the L.W. Golf and Country Club, where is currently the manager.
At age 36, on June 4, 1988 Bobby married CYNTHIA LEE RICH at Noah’s Ark in Lake Wales. Cindy had a daughter from a previous marriage, and together they have two children: LACY ALISSA (1990), and a SKYLA (1992).
After Gayln’s death in 2002, the place on the lake was vacant for a while. Then Bobby and Cindy took it over and are constantly renovating it, doing much of the work themselves. It is looking great. For several years our family reunions were held there. Charlotte has been host to the most recent ones.
3. PATRICIA LEE was born Nov. 28, 1954 in Bartow. Patsy attends the First Baptist Church where she sings in the choir. Patsy graduated from high school in June 1972, went on to the University of Florida, receiving her degree in Education. She has been an excellent teacher these many years, both in Lake Wales and the surrounding areas, always devotedly planning new projects and activities for her students. Before Marietta died, she was involved in helping to plan and execute some of Patsy’s challenging ideas.
Patsy is buying her own home east of Lake Wales in a community en route to Bobby’s place. She was very close to Marietta-they were always going here and there together, even making several overseas trips with some of her teacher friends. For many years when Gayln and Marietta had their N.C. mountain place, since she was off school in the summers, she spent them up there. When Marietta got cancer, Patsy was beside her right up until the end. It was especially hard on her to lose her Mother and best friend. Now that Charlotte lives alone and near by, and also teaches school, she and Patsy are especially close, doing things and going places together. I think she enjoys Charlotte’s children and grandchildren almost as much as Charlotte does.
Patsy and Charlotte spend hours to make our Easter reunion and egg hunt especially delightful with their over-the-top egg and house decorations, accommodations, and great feast. We truly appreciate their countless efforts.
4. STEVE ALAN was born June 27, 1957 in Bartow. His family moved to Lake Wales in November of this year, so he spent most of his life there. Steve was a robust little fellow and loved tinkering with all sorts of things. He became an excellent carpenter and mechanic.
Steve played football all through high school, graduated in June 1975 and went on to the University of Florida where he also continued in the sport.
Steve married SUSAN JONES PARRISH on Sept. 7, 1980 at the Bok Singing Tower in Lake Wales. Susan was a divorcee with two children: a boy and a girl. They lived in Lake Wales where Steve worked with his Dad doing all manner of things: grove work, rebuilding and repairing Gayln’s properties, rebuilding and repairing antique cars, etc. During the time Reggie had his lawn maintenance business, Steve moved into a mobile home and worked for him, keeping the machinery in order and helping with the lawn maintenance. When the business started failing, Steve cut back his days, working in Lake Wales with his Dad on days off. Then when Reggie went bankrupt, Steve, whose marriage was also failing, moved back to Lake Wales and worked full-time with Gayln. He and Susan got divorced and she married Reggie. He built most of Charlotte’s home after Bob retired from the service, and it is beautiful. He could do anything, and willingly did so, for all the family. He was very strong, with many skills and abilities, and a hard worker.
Steve was out on a date in one of Gayln’s boats on the Kissimmee River the day after Christmas (December 26, 1992). His date was guiding the boat towards the marina when an air boat, not seeing them, swooped down, knocking Steve (sitting on the back) into the boat, killing him instantly. The guy in the airboat said Steve’s running lights were not on (the date said they were) and he didn’t see him. At any rate, it was a tragic accident-Steve was so talented and so kind, and only in his mid-30’s. It was hard for us all to accept, and one Marietta and Gayln never really got over. We all miss him!
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