Obituary of Donald B. Martin

Donald B. Martin, 82, of Bloomville, passed away at his home on June 27, 2019 surrounded by his loving family.  Born on October 11, 1936, he was the son of the late Wendell and Elisabeth (Sackett) Martin.  Mr. Martin was married to his wife of 62 years, Juanita Graig Martin on October 7, 1956.

Donald owned and operated Prairie Hill Farm for over 30 years, retiring from farming in 1986. He spent his entire life on the farm, even passing in the very room he was born in. He served two terms as President of the Farm Bureau in the 80s and remained active in local politics that represented the rural farms and farmers on both the local and national level. Mr. Martin traveled to Washington DC to meet with Agriculture committee members of the House and Senate to present his plan, “The Martin Plan” and was a founding member of The Atlantic Dairymen, a dairy advocate group.

He served as Highway Superintendent for the Town of Kortright, building strong friendships with the men he worked with. He was always first to serve his community by helping a neighbor in need and always opening his doors to the stream of friends brought home by his children. He and his wife created a fun, welcoming place for all.

He was a member of the Bloomville Fire Department in his younger years and spent his evenings gathering with cousins, uncles and friends to play Pinochle. He spent his retirement years roaming the farm on his Gator and working on his Oliver 1650, OC-6 Crawler, and Super88 Industrial.

Besides his parents, Donald was predeceased by his siblings: Betty, Frank, James, David, Stan, and Jerry.

He is survived by his wife: Juanita Martin of Bloomville; six children: Wendy (John) Every of Wisconsin, Cheri (Tom) Vroman  of Hamden, Robin (Thomas) Magnan of Bloomville, Meg (Timothy) Donahue of Hartwick, Amanda Martin of Bloomville and Donald (Bridget) Martin of Bloomville; 22 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren; a brother: Wendell Martin; sister: Jeanne Pittenger; many nieces, nephews and cousins.

A memorial service will be held at the Bloomville United Methodist Church, 35 Church Street, Bloomville at 3:30PM on Friday, July 19, 2019.

Contributions in memory of Donald may be made to Catskill Area Hospice and Palliative Care 297 River Street Service Road, Oneonta, NY 13820 www.cahpc.org

Please visit www.macarthurfh.com to share a condolence with the Martin family.