Lloyd Martens

Lloyd Martens
March 28, 1927 Jan. 3, 2017
Lloyd Ernest Martens of Chadron, a long-time Dawes County rancher, died Tuesday, Jan. 3 at the Chadron Community Hospital at age 89. Cremation has taken place and a memorial service will be at 10 a.m. May 12, 2017 at Chamberlain Chapel in Chadron.
He was widely known for his friendliness, positive outlook, willingness to assist neighbors and leadership in solving problems.
Martens was born in Chadron on March 28, 1927 to Ernest and Louise (Staddon) Martens. The family lived nine miles northeast of Chadron on a ranch that was homesteaded by his grandfather, Wilhelm Martens, in 1888. The family received the Ak-Sar-Ben Pioneer Farm Award at the Dawes County Fair a century later.
After attending a rural school near the ranch, Martens was a member of the Class of 1945 at Chadron High School, but he dropped out at the end of his sophomore year to join the Navy, even though he had to wait several months until he was 17 to enlist. After going through basic training, he was assigned to the Seabees and spent about a year serving primarily as a truck driver in the South Pacific on Okinawa and Ie Shima, a small island nearby.
Just two days after he had returned to Chadron following his discharge from the Navy in May 1946, he was invited to attend a graduation party at Chadron Prep. There he met one of the graduates, Glendene Wallingford, a native of Cherry County who had come with her sister to attend Prep. They were married 13 months later on June 7, 1947 at the Chadron Congregational Church.
The newlyweds joined his parents on the family ranch and assumed the management five years later. Lloyd and Glendene lived on the ranch until retiring in 1993 and moving to 545 Beech Street in Chadron. In 2014, they "downsized" and moved to Prairie Pines.
In the mid-1950s, Jarvis Peddicord of Hobart, Ind., purchased a ranch that joined the Martens ranch. For the next 25 years, the men were partners. Peddicord owned or leased the land, including the Martens property, and owned the cattle while Lloyd provided the management and labor.
For nearly 20 years, the late Jack Milligan also was involved in the operation. He was a cowboy who primarily worked with the cattle while Lloyd preferred running machinery and did most of the farming.
Martens served on the Alpha School board, the Dawes County Fair board, the Chadron Rural Fire District board and the board that was involved with laying water pipelines to homes and pastures in northern Dawes County.
Both Lloyd and Glendene were project leaders about 10 years when their daughters, Linda and Patty, were members of the Eager Beavers 4-H Club. After retiring, the couple traveled quite extensively and enjoyed fishing wherever they lived or visited. Another favorite pastime for many years has been watching University of Nebraska volleyball on television.
In July 2016, the Martenses were inducted into the Dawes County Agricultural Hall of Fame.
Besides his wife, survivors include daughters Linda (Michael) Maglione of Casper, Wyo., and Patty (Jerry) Howell of Vail, Ariz., and grandsons Rodney (Paula) Mongold and Samuel (Brenda) Mongold, and two great-grandchildren, all of Casper.
A memorial has been established for the Dawes County Fire District. Contributions may be sent to Chamberlain Chapel, PO Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337.
Online condolences can made at www.chamberlainchapel.com
Chamberlain Chapel is in charge of arrangements.

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