Vivian Rose Martinez

Services to be held Friday Aug. 12th, 12:00 p. m., Rivera Family Funeral Homes, 417 East Rodeo Rd, Santa Fe. Born in Cody Wyoming on August 7, 1921 to William George and Ella Rose Blendt, Vivian was the third of four siblings (Norman, Ruth, and Wilma). Vivian and her family went to Delaware during the Depression where she spent her formative years. In 1939, Vivian won a working scholarship to Dubuque University in Iowa where she met the love her life, Marcelino (Marty) J. Martinez. At the advent of WWII, Vivian followed Marty to San Diego, CA where he had found work in the aircraft industry. Vivian and Marty were married in Yuma, AZ in 1942. Vivian spent the remainder of the war years in San Diego, while Marty divided his time between defense work and the U. S. Army. In 1947, the couple began a five-year stint as dairy farmers in Longmont, CO. In 1950, their first child, Martin William was born. 1952 found them relocated to San Diego, where their second son, Matthew Norman, was born in 1954. Vivian spent much of her life raising her family in San Diego, where she was a mother, homemaker, and a community volunteer... During this time Vivian's Christian faith deepened and became the guiding force directing the remainder of her life. In 1985, Marty was stricken with Guillain-Barre' syndrome from which he partially recovered. In 1991, Vivian escorted her wheelchair bound husband to Santa Fe, NM where she remained for the rest of her life. Vivian was a source of faith and inspiration to many as she served as a witness to her Lord Jesus Christ. She was the last survivor of her birth family, and a member of the “Greatest Generation.” She passed just short of her 95th birthday on July 23, 2016. Vivian is survived by her son Martin (granddaughters Stephanie and Marla), and by her son Matthew (Diana) and grandchildren Catherine and Matthew David,