Martha Jean Dodge

Martha Jean (Davis) Dodge passed from this life to the next peacefully in her beloved Rawlins, WY on March 7, 2024, after a wonderful life spanning over 88 years. Born in 1935, to the Reverend Eaden and Willard Davis, Marti grew up in Michigan as her father was assigned to various Methodist congregations around the state. Following high school graduation in Lansing, Michigan, she went on to college earning a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University, where she met the love of her life, Lewie.

Following their 1960 wedding, Marti and Lewie had six boys and finally gave up trying for a girl! She is preceded in death by two sons who passed unexpectedly in their first few days of life - Michael (1962) and Morgan (1966). As the only child of parents who were each the youngest of large families, we are certain she is enjoying a huge family reunion with those two sons, her parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and many loved ones who preceded her.

Marti is survived by her husband Lewie Dodge and sons Matthew, Mark, Marvin (Lesle), and Marshall (Tiffany). Always filled with an abiding love for her sons, mom welcomed daughters to the family over the years as each son married. From these growing families, eleven wonderful grandchildren and six great-grandchildren have followed.
 

Marti’s life was filled with love, travel adventures, and music. Mom shared countless stories about the annual summer vacations she enjoyed growing up. Since ministers are on call 24/7 her "Papa" would accumulate his five weeks of leave for the year and take it all at once. The little family of three would pack their old car - including some spare tires and extra water for the radiator - and head out on an adventure. Vacations were always centered on visiting family members and loved ones spread across the country from Walla Walla, Washington to upstate New York, and many locations in-between. Mom always dreamed of writing a book to chronicle the adventures of these vacations which was to be titled, "Coast to Coast in a Paper Sack." While the book was unfortunately never written, we are forever grateful for the stories she shared with us over the years while sitting around the kitchen table and during many cross-country trips with family. Mom never lost the sense of adventure and always preferred driving to flying - with her arm outstretched through the open car window catching the wind - while dad had his window up with the air conditioner running full blast! 

Piano lessons began very early in mom’s life. These were made possible by a baby grand piano purchased by her parents that graced our homes throughout much of her life. Mom became an accomplished pianist and organist which led to a sixty-one-year music ministry blessing the lives of her family and thousands who all enjoyed her talents. She was an organist and choir director for dozens of church congregations, including three years internationally at a Lutheran Church in Freeport, Grand Bahama, and she played for more weddings and funerals than anyone could count. The conclusion of her ministry was at the Rawlins Cooperative Parish in Rawlins Wyoming. 

Long are the memories of annual Dodge family vacations to Florida to visit her parents. Mom, Dad, and the boys would load up the family station wagon in snowy Vermont and head south on Interstate 95 each February. These two-week journeys included many miles and bathroom stops, along with visits to historic civil war sites (one of mom's great loves), South of the Border, SC (to buy fireworks), Disneyworld, Cape Canaveral, Busch Gardens, countless popular tourist spots, and the warm sunny beaches of the Gulf of Mexico.

Mom always had a dream to be a nurse but was discouraged by her folks out of a fear that she would lose her life prematurely like a young relative who passed during the great pandemic of 1918. Ever determined to chart her own course, we were proud when mom graduated from nursing school at 45 while still raising four kids at home. She enjoyed years of providing tender healthcare to those in need.

In addition to music and nursing mom worked for the U.S. Census Bureau conducting labor statistics surveys in Vermont, New York, and Wyoming where mom and dad lived over the years. She was a gifted interviewer and proud of the fact that her success rate was consistently higher than most of her colleagues. This was the result of her gift to easily communicate with people in all walks of life.

We will miss her love, laughter, and compassion - particularly for the underdog and downtrodden. But we will long remember the reunions in Wyoming, Utah, and other occasions we had to gather as family and share the stories and love only a mother could provide.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at 11:00 AM at the Rawlins Cooperative Parish. A gathering of family and friends will be from 10-11, prior to the service. The service will be live-streamed and available online for 90 days. Please use the following link to view the service. https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/8305662433

Arrangements have been entrusted to Casada Funeral Home & Crematory in Rawlins, WY.