Service:
A private family service will be held.
Funeral home:
Fricke-Calvert-Schrader, Lincoln
Obituary
Dwayne Harold Marten, passed away
peacefully, at OSF Hospital in Bloomington. Dwayne
was born on May 21, 1945 to Harold and Mabel (Eeten)
Marten. He married Sharon Hamer on October 17, 1965
at St. Peter Lutheran Church in Emden.
He is survived by his wife Sharon Marten of Normal,
Brenda (Wayne) Bartley of Lincoln, and Beth (Travis)
Lorance of Normal. Also surviving are two
granddaughters, Lorenda (Gerard) Bolling and their
children, Lincoln and Monroe, and Kayla Lorance.
Step-grandchildren are TJ Lorance (daughter,
Colette), Amanda (daughter, Shaelyn), Kelsey and
Miranda Bartley.
Other survivors include his siblings Doris (Ken)
Klokkenga, Roger (Carolyn), Roberta (Bob), Vernon,
Carol, and Galen. He was preceded in death by his
parents and one sister in-law, Joni Marten.
Starting at the young age of five, Dwayne loved
following his dad around at his gas station, Marten
Motors, in Emden. He loved to visit with the
customers and sweep the floors. He continued to work
in the family’s car dealership through high school
until being drafted by the U.S. Army in August 1965.
He and Sharon married that October. He proudly
served his country in the Vietnam War from November
1966- October 1967.
Upon returning home, he continued working in the
family business until its closing in 2009. At that
time, he and Sharon moved to Normal. For those of
you who knew Dwayne, sitting still and watching TV
was not an option during his retirement years.
Instead, he kept working and loved the opportunities
that both Suds’ Automotive and Menard’s gave him.
Dwayne was a people person and never knew a
stranger.
When his health declined and he could no longer
work, he found enjoyment meeting his friends for
coffee each morning, even if it meant sitting in his
car and chatting with his friends through their car
windows during COVID. |
Above all, Dwayne loved serving his
God at both St. Peter’s Lutheran Church where he had
been a member of the Lutheran Brotherhood and the
church council. He most recently was a member of Our
Saviour Lutheran Church, Normal, where he had served
on the church council and was a member of their
Men’s Group. He was also a member of the Emden
Legion Post #506 and a past member of the Emden
volunteer Fire Department.
A private family service for Dwayne
will be held.
Memorials may be made in Dwayne’s name to Our
Saviour Lutheran Church of Normal, Bethlehem
Lutheran Church in St. Louis, MO, or the Sons of the
American Legion of Emden.
Services are entrusted to Fricke-Calvert-Schrader
Funeral Home in Lincoln.
God truly blessed him with a family he dearly loved
and who proudly called him husband, dad, PaPa, and
friend. His friends and family dearly loved him,
too. He always told his family, “The Lord knew when
I was coming into this world and when I would go
out.” Yes, He did! Dwayne was called to his Eternal
home on February 16 on his mother’s and
sister-in-law Joni’s birthday.
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Harold Marten
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