Ernest Dale Martin

Ernest "Dale" Martin, 82, of rural Robinson, IL, passed away on Monday, April 3, 2023, in the comfort of his home, surrounded by his beloved family. He was born on July 7, 1940, in Grandville Township, near Yale, IL, the son of Lloyd Ernest Martin & Neva Maude (Cullums) Martin. He grew up on the 147-acre family farm, where a young Dale did his part by feeding and watering the chickens, gathering the eggs, getting the cows to the barn, milking, pumping water by hand, slopping the hogs, cleaning out manure from the stalls, among many other daily chores. These ingrained in him a tireless work ethic that would serve him well for the rest of his life. He attended a number of small country schools growing up, including Yale Grade School. Its principal, Bernie Warren, also ran the Western Auto store in Newton, IL. When he needed extra help, he would call on Dale, who was paid fifty cents an hour to do all sorts of odd jobs, including bicycle repair. This was how he bought his first (used) bicycle, though it took him twenty-eight hours to pay for it!

Throughout his years at Newton High School, Dale worked on a hog farm, earning seventy-five cents an hour, a rate hardly worth the hard work he put into it! However, not long after his graduation from NHS in 1958, this hog farmer found a job working for the State of Illinois in the shipping department for the Secretary of State, sending out driver's licenses, license plates, and blue books, as well as daily correspondence from the office. Every weekend, he and a friend would drive back home, and on one such weekend in the spring of 1959, he came across the most beautiful girl he had ever seen skating at the Blue Moon roller rink. Her name was Nina Meek, and the couple would marry on August 1, 1959, a union that brought two sons into the world: Ernest Dale Martin, Jr. and Gregory Harold Martin.

By mid-1963, Dale's sister, Edna Mae had become very ill, and he wanted to find a job closer to home so that he could help take care of her. That job ended up being with Marathon Oil Company in Robinson, where he would work from October 1963-February 1997. In 1965, he saw an ad in the paper offering guitar lessons, and for the next few years, he attended those lessons and practiced faithfully. All of that practice paid off in the form of a long and fruitful musical career. Over the years, Dale played in numerous regional venues with the Wabash Valley Boys, the Kountry Kousins, the Driftwoods, and the New Driftwoods. His bass playing rattled the seats at every show and laid a firm foundation on the New Driftwood's album, the recording of which was a highlight of Dale's life.

Once that chapter of his life had come to a close, Dale and Nina decided to travel. These adventures found them enjoying numerous country music shows and visiting historic sites like Graceland. The Martins became snowbirds following Dale's retirement and even owned a trailer in Lakeland, FL, where they spent many a winter. Back home in Illinois, Dale was known as a handyman and was able to repair and restore just about anything that needed fixing. He would do this on his own farm and for anyone he knew who needed help, often without being asked. By using his natural intelligence and skill to benefit the world around him, he made it a better place, and we with it, for through him, we learned that real life is found in serving others.

He also taught us what it looks like to persevere in the face of hardship and tragedy. In his youth, his family lost their home to a housefire, and as a young man, he suffered the losses of his brother, Burl, both of his parents, and his sister, Edna Mae. Over the years, his body was battered with many ailments, from deep vein thrombosis and prostate cancer to chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy, which has confined him to a chair throughout the twilight of his life. And yet, he refused to let poor health rob him of his dignity. In fact, he could still be found mowing yards and power washing his house right up to the end! It was this tenacity of spirit, as well as his wise-cracking and ever-present sense of humor, that endeared Dale to us all. His 82 years with us serve as a reminder that, in the end, life is what you make it. Thank you, Dale, for making yours a good one.

He married Kathy (Sloan) Knight on March 8, 2022, and she survives. He is also survived by his two sons, Ernest D. Martin, Jr. & his significant other, Rita Tracy (Sumner, IL) and Gregory H. & Cheryl Martin (Robinson, IL); by his step-children, Billy & Sarah Burke (Oblong, IL), Brent & Debra Anderson (Porterville, IL), and Amy Carter & David Fancil (Oblong, IL); by five grandchildren, Jeanee (Schmidt) & Larry Berry, Levi D. & Chelsea Martin, Erica D. (Martin) & Nicholas Wirey, Barbara “Bobbi Jo” (Schmidt) & Darren Ault, and Maisie Martin & her significant other, Brittanie Kirchoff; by nine step-grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren; by his brother & sister-in-law, Calvin & Joyce Martin (Robinson, IL); by his sister & brother-in-law, Anna Lee & Lloyd Baker (Portland, TN); as well as several nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Lloyd & Neva Martin; his brothers, Burl Martin and Wayne Martin; his sisters, Ella Belle Chaney, Edna Mae Roberts, Helen Harris, and Mildred Yockey; and his wife of 57 years, Nina Martin.

A time of visitation will be held from 1:00-3:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 8th, at the Goodwine Funeral Home in Robinson. Funeral services will immediately follow and will be held at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday with Pastor Chris DeWitt officiating. Burial will be in the Mound Cemetery, rural Jasper County. Memorial contributions may be made to his church family at "South Side Christian Church", with envelopes available at the funeral home.