Martha Valliant McLain

First and foremost, Marti McLain was a teacher. Though she taught speech, drama, and English as a professional, she also excelled in teaching history, citizenship, grammar, and common sense to all who came into her presence. She was deeply proud of her students and many credited her with a significant impact.

Marti was born on the family ranch in Sutton County during the Great Depression. She always thought it a supreme act of courage that her parents chose to have children during this difficult time. Her early years on the ranch and in school in Sonora were happy times. Her father, Lee Roy Valliant was 44 years old at her birth, a veteran of World War I, and a genuine Texas rancher who spent much of his early life in the saddle. The roughness of ranch life was softened by the presence of her mother, Lotia Lorene Cozby, class poet for Mary Hardin Baylor in 1923 who nurtured Marti's love of literature, education, and the arts. Her brother Lee Roy Valliant, Jr. was her primary playmate, closest confidant, and most beloved friend. Lee Roy died in 2010.

She began her love affair with the theater through her high school speech teacher, Dan Blocker, who later starred on "Bonanza". Marti majored in speech and drama at the University of Texas at Austin and loved college life living at Scottish Rite Dormitory. She first taught speech and drama at Perryton High School at the top of the Texas panhandle, then English at Perryton Junior High and English as a Second Language at Midland High in Midland, TX. She was particularly skilled at cutting plays for one-act play competitions and her students brought home many trophies from UIL contests and debate tournaments.

When Marti married Delbert Dean McLain in 1961, she found a partner in life and theater. Together they produced, directed, acted, and even wrote plays and musicals for community theater in Perryton, Midland, Sonora, and San Antonio with most of her original work focused on Texas history. Marti was delighted that her daughter Melinda continues this family tradition through her latest work, an opera libretto about Dean's family during the Dust Bowl entitled, "The Broken Land". Dean and Marti also loved travel, parties, and a wide circle of friends.

After Dean's death in 1999, Marti moved to Austin where she enjoyed being near Lee Roy's granddaughter Tavia Valliant Conkling, her husband John, and their two children Julia and Jack. In recent years, she devoted herself to duplicate bridge, nearly achieving Life Master while making many wonderful friends. She was active in a variety of organizations and loved presenting humorous programs including her raucous and humorous salute to Texas history entitled "Wild Women of the Old West".

Her survivors include her only daughter Rev. Dr. Melinda Valliant McLain and her wife Colleen Rodger of El Sobrante, CA; Lee Roy's wife Beverly Valliant; and their son Tom E. and Brenda Valliant of Sonora, TX; their children: Tavia Valliant Conkling, John, Julia, and Jack Conkling of Austin, TX; Victoria Valliant Powers, Houston and Sam Powers of Sonora, TX; Tom "Trapper" Valliant of Oroville, CA; and Travis Cozby Valliant of San Antonio, TX.

A celebration of the life of Martha Valliant McLain will be held at Westwood Country Club, Austin on Sunday May 15 at 3:30-6p with light food, drinks, and live music by the Melancholy Ramblers. Come in casual dress prepared to share your favorite Marti stories. A smaller gathering for family and childhood friends will be held in Sonora, TX at a later time.

Marti was a very generous person and she would be greatly honored by donations to your favorite charity or to the development of your own art or education.