Joe E. Martinez Jr.

Joe Eusebio Martinez, 92 (also known to most as Junior, Brother Junior or Uncle Junior) went to be with our Lord on February 11, 2020. He was preceded in death by his wife Orpha Marquez- Martinez, his father, Jose Eusebio Martinez Sr., his mother, Rebecca Manzaneres-Herrera, his step-father, Felix Herrera, his father-in-law, Silverio Marquez, his mother-in-law, Donna (Adonisa) Marquez, and his son-in-law, Larry Castro. He and Orpha have six children: Kathy Perez, Phyllis (John) Valdez, Rebecca Maryann Castro, Donna (Ernest) Herrera, Deborah (Larry) Cox and Sharon (Rick) Aguero; 15 grandchildren, 29 great grandchildren, and 8 great-great grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister Eileen (Danny) Padilla, nieces, Daneen Padilla, Tammy Padilla, Liz Padilla, Makayela Padilla; Nephews, Joe (Alice) Padilla, Daniel Padilla, and many more on Orpha’s side of the family.

As a teenager, Joe worked managing a gas station in Walsenburg, Colorado for a number of years. He also worked in the mines with his uncle Ruben who was like a father to him after losing his own father at the age of 17. He managed to get both jobs because he could grow a full beard at a very young age, so they assumed he was older than he was. He met his wife, Orpha, who was a sister to his Uncle Ruben’s wife Rita and his best friend Al Marquez. They were marred January 19, 1945 and remained married for 61 years until her death in 2008. He and Al became best friends and remained best friends for the rest of their lives. He and Orpha lived in Walsenburg after being married and he managed another gas station named Lenzini’s. They then moved to Colorado Springs, then to Denver for a short time where he worked in construction, building houses. They returned to live in Walsenburg where he became employed by the CF&I Steel Corporation. After commuting to Pueblo for some time, they moved to Pueblo where he worked at the CF&I Corporation until retirement.

Joe turned his life over to our Lord and Savior in 1956 and became a minister in the Apostolic Church of Jesus in Pueblo. He later became a member, then Pastor of the Apostolic Church of Jesus of Colorado Springs. Joe loved fellowshipping with his sisters and brothers in Christ, reading and studying his bible, working out sermons and learning and singing hymns. He loved to build all different types of projects and working on cars/trucks etc. He built the family home which he added the mail level to the basement and remodeled the basement of the home. He loved his children and spent a lot of time with them, driving to all the sights in Colorado and other places in the surrounding states. It was not unusual for him to wake up and tell his girls to get in the car and say “we’re going for a ride.” He was always there for his children in every way and was the best father any girl could wish for. He was a wonderful role model for his grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. He loved having all of them around him. Joe had a wonderful and gentle soul, he loved people and was liked by all who knew him. He will be greatly miss by all those who knew and loved him.