JACOB B. MARTENS

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JACOB B. MARTENS Courageously, on December 14, 2006, with his family and cat Tatiana by his side, Jake passed away at Tri-Lake Health Centre, Killarney, MB. Jake is survived by his loving wife Gertie; daughter Marilyn and her husband Rob and their two sons Jared and Ben; daughter Marci and her husband Roy and his two sons Jason (fiancé Dawn and daughters Michelle and Baby Girl) and Owen. Also, four brothers, Henry (Mary), Peter (Agnes), Walter (Margaret) and Art (Brigitte) and their families; brothers-in-law Art (Rita), Jack (Elise), Peter (Margaret) and their families, as well as much extended family. He was predeceased by his parents, Peter and Margaret Martens, nephew Larry Martens, parents-in-law John and Gertrude Klassen, his sister-in-law Ann Wiens (Klassen) and brother-in-law John Klassen. Jacob B. Martens was born on Palm Sunday, April 10, 1938 in his Grandpa's little farmhouse South East of Killarney in the Rural Municipality of Turtle Mountain. His life as a young boy was spent working on the farm with his parents and attending Rose Valley School. From this very young age Jake attained the love of farm life and education and continued to aspire both. He attended high school in Winkler, MB followed by two years at Mennonite Brethren Bible College in Winnipeg. It was during this time that he also pursued his desire in Agriculture and he began his farming career with the purchase of his first farm in 1960. It was in Winnipeg in 1963 Jake and Gertie (Klassen) met, fell in love and were married the same year. Jake and Gertie continued farming while she taught school and he worked on construction in the winter months. The arrival of their first daughter Marilyn in 1966 inspired a move to a newer house in Killarney where they enjoyed their neighbours and town life and in 1970, the arrival of their second daughter Marci made their family complete. As Jake built up his farm he included a new house in 1972 and they moved to the farm on the Holmfield Road where Jake and Gertie lived and farmed for 25 more years. It was during this time that he also was employed in Killarney in setting up new machinery, driving a school bus and he also gave many hours as a volunteer Ambulance Driver for Killarney Hospital. In addition to this in 1978, they bought Killarney Music Centre/Radio Shack and enjoyed this business venture and the friends they made through this. Jake spent his leisure time hunting, camping, snowmobiling, fishing and spending time with friends. Jake and Gertie were able to enjoy travelling also at this time, taking their girls to South America and spending vacations with each other in Hawaii, Florida, Europe and on the ski slopes in Alberta. In 1997 the family farm was ready for the next generation and Jake and Gertie moved to town. Unfortunately, in September of that same year, Jake fell ill with Meningitis and the health difficulties that followed led to Jake's early retirement. He continued to custom combine as much as possible and it was during this time that Jake and Gertie took Jake's mother and their two daughters with their husbands and their four grandsons to Disney World. Also during these years, Jake spent many hours with his two younger grandsons and the mark he has made on their lives will be evident always. Ill health continued to plague Jake and in 2000, he was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. Jake bravely started chemotherapy and when offered a stem cell transplant in 2001, trusted God's will in his life and fought his cancer with everything he had, including extensive spinal surgery in 2003. Despite his continuous pain and discomfort he persevered to live life to the fullest. Fishing and camping trips with family, and deer hunting with his grandsons were what he lived for. Jake's unconditional love for his family was evident in his life, beginning with his deep love for his wife, his daughters, sons-in-law and four grandsons. The caring and love from family and friends through their visits and emails were so important to him. Killarney was the place Jake called home and he was proud to be part of the community. The friends that he had good times with were so valuable to him as they later supported him with visits and phone calls which were such a big part of what sustained him, the biggest probably being his morning coffee friends. For Jake, everything in life was based on his strong faith in God, it was a part of everything he did. He relied on his faith in God during hard times and was so grateful to God for the many blessings he was bestowed. He was active and gave of himself in both the Lakeview MB Church and the Killarney Mennonite Church and this became especially meaningful to him as the support of these congregations helped him through difficult days. Rest in peace and comfort. Till we meet again, We Love You. Viewing will be held at Wheatland Chapel Killarney on Tuesday, December 19, 2006 at 11:00 a.m. followed by burial and lunch. Memorial service to follow at 2:00 p.m. at the Lakeview Community Church in Killarney on Tuesday. Killarney Boissevain Funeral Home in care of arrangements.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Dec 16, 2006