Mary Martin

Visitation will be from 6:00 P.M. until 8:00 P.M. on Monday (September 29, 2008) at Brintlinger and Earl Funeral Home, Decatur, IL. Memorial services will be at 2:00 P.M. on Tuesday (September 30, 2008) at 1st United Methidist Church, Decatur, IL. Brintlinger and Earl Funeral Home are handling the arrangements.Memorials may be made to: First United Methodist Church Scholarship Fund.Mary Ellen Martin was born on October 2, 1919 in Shelbyville Illinois to Ray and Pearl Tucker. As a school girl, she met her husband-to-be, Leslie Martin. She graduated from Indiana University. In 1942, she married Leslie in Texas where he was stationed in the Army Air Force.Following the war, Mary Ellen taught in Henning, Indiana while Leslie completed his engineering degree at Purdue. In 1951, Mary Ellen and Leslie moved to Decatur into the house on Sunset Avenue where they would live for over 50 years. Daughter Debbie was born in 1951 and son Randy was born in 1955. Both attended MacArthur High School.As Debbie and Randy entered grade school, Mary Ellen found the lure of going back to teaching too great to resist. She began teaching English at Millikin University where she earned a Masters Degree in Guidance and Counseling. Eisenhower High School soon provided an opportunity for Mary Ellen to return to her first love of teaching Latin. She taught Latin and English at Eisenhower with a final move to the combination of guidance counselor and Latin teacher. She continued that combination until her retirement.During the years that she taught, Mary Ellen and Leslie quenched their thirst for travel by taking groups of high school students to Europe with the AIFS travel company. Students were able to see the countries and places they learned about in their Latin and English classes. They also visited Randy while he was posted in Egypt and Pakistan.After more than 50 years of marriage, Leslie passed away in 1994. Debbie married Jim Haberkorn in 1974. They have two married children. Debbie is a guidance counselor in Iowa. Randy married Luz DeJess in 1989. They have a 10 year old daughter. Randy lives with his family in Washington DC where he directs disaster response programs for an international humanitarian organization. Mary Ellen remained active in the Decatur community after her retirement. She continued her involvement in the First United Methodist church that she and Leslie joined soon after they moved to Decatur. She was an active member of AAUW as well as Home Extension. Her love of reading was an impetus for her to belong to a book club where she enjoyed sharing reviews of the books she read.At eighty eight years old, Mary Ellen Martin had friends of all ages and former students who often returned to visit her. She touched the lives of many people in many ways. She will be dearly missed.She is survived by her son: Randy Martin and wife Luz Celenia DeJesus of Washington, D.C. daughter: Debbie Haberkorn and husband Jim of Rock Rapids, Iowa; three grandchildren: Allison Kohlhaas and husband Tim of Des Moines, Iowa, Ben Haberkorn and wife Colene of Glendale, Arizona, Mia DeJesus-Martin of Washington, D.C.; one great-grandchild: Zack Haberkorn of Glendale, Arizona; and one sister: Martha Mildred Sedgwick of Worcester, MA.She was preceded in death by her parents and husband.Condolences may be left to the family at www.brintlingerandearl.com "
}