Augustine Emilio Marin

Emilio was born on July 21, 1947, the youngest child born to Augustine and Jessie Marin in Escalon, CA. He moved to Woodlake, CA in the mid-to-late 50’s and attended Woodlake Public Schools.

In 1967 Emilio was drafted into the United States Army to serve his country during the Vietnam War. Although he was ready to go to Vietnam, his superiors found him to be more valuable and a major necessity in the shaping and preparing of new soldiers. He was part of Company C, 5th Battalion, 2nd BCT Brigade, USATC Infantry Ft. Lewis, stationed in Ft. Lewis, Washington. In 1968 he was promoted to the rank of SSG E-6 and earned military recognition for being a superior marksman. Emilio was honorably discharged in 1973 with the rank of Drill Sergeant.

On October 18, 1969 Emilio married, the late, Mary Patricia Perez they went on to have four children: Christopher, Jennifer, Benjamin and Tabitha. They established their forever home in Woodlake, CA and raised their family in the home that Emilio built for them.

After being discharged from the Army, Emilio began working in the agricultural field. This would prove to be his life long career. He worked for some time for John Knight out of Woodlake. He later gained employment with Orange Belt Supply in Woodlake as a retail salesman and deliverer of agricultural fertilizer, pesticides and other agricultural necessities. His time working at Orange Belt wasn’t just work, he and his coworkers often went on company trips. Some of those trips were to Reno, Laughlin, Vegas, deep sea fishing and on one occasion they went to Houston to see the Astros play. The friends he made at Orange Belt would prove to be lifelong friendships. He retired in 2020 from Wilbur Ellis, formerly Orange Belt, after 48 years of service.

During his employment with Orange Belt, Emilio was also a self-employed fertilizer sprayer. He acquired the business from Dutch Parmenter and maintained good relations and a strong work ethic with all his clients. Emilio’s life was one of a hard-working husband, father, family provider and self-motivator. While working at Orange Belt and running his own business he decided to further his education at College of the Sequoias. He earned his EMT certification and completed several vocational courses related to construction.

Emilio was an EMT and Volunteer Firefighter for the city of Woodlake for many years. He cared about his community and wanted to be of service and fill a need that he saw was lacking. He attended St. Francis Cabrini Catholic Church and was a member of St. Francis Cabrini Bingo. More recently he was also an active member of the Woodlake Veterans Association.

Beyond being of service, Emilio loved to go deep-sea fishing and making fish fry’s with his haul. He enjoyed traveling with his family to historical places, he once drove with his nephew Jeffrey Bennett to Navel Academy Preparatory school in Newport, Rhode Island and on another occasion while his son Chris was in the Navy they drove to Pensacola, FL. Emilio also enjoyed chaperoning school trips, supporting his children’s passions and working through his bucket list. He could also be found in the crowd of his children’s and grandchildren’s events. Emilio loved wood working and could build just about anything, like his home. He was very proud of the home he built for his family. He also enjoyed curing olives and then giving them away to family and friends. Emilio’s greatest joy was making and seeing his family happy.

Emilio was predeceased by his parents Jessie and Augustine and his wife Patricia. He leaves behind his four children Christopher (Mona) Marin, Jennifer Marin, Benjamin Marin and Tabitha Marin. His grandchildren Vincent Marin, Savannah Marin and Maddie Sanchez-Marin. He also leaves his siblings Rosalie, Rey, Richard and Nancy and half sisters Gloria and Tina. Emilio will be greatly missed by numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.