It was 1978, almost the start of the Go-Go '80s,  and I was a young idealist who finally figured out she had to get a better paying job to be able to pay her bills. When I started a new job at a corporate cash management consulting firm as events manager, I was introduced to Marty-- warm, bright, and funny --the one who made all the logistics in this complex business work! You might not understand how demanding this was since Marty cultivated a sense of lightness and always made time to give his full attention to you when you needed something. I knew in my bones that I could trust this man with my life: he was good people!

When our small company was bought by a competitor and almost everyone was fired, I was the first to go the very day they announced the takeover,  and I lost track of Marty. It was a total surprise and great delight to discover 11 years later when we moved to Homewood that he and JoAnn were our backyard neighbors, and that we both had sons who loved baseball and played in Homewood's Little League! Yes, Marty loved sports indeed, enough to umpire little league games for the boys as well as sit with us in the stands watching so many games for hours and hours over the years. Meeting JoAnn and Marty's families, you could feel their genuine love and delight in simply being together, cheering our young players on!

Through all the ups and downs life sent their way, Marty and JoAnn always shared that love and zest for life with everyone who had the good fortune to spend time with them. Even the hard times were made better by experiencing their love for their family and friends, and especially for each other, in action.

We celebrate Marty as one who lived the very best kind of life, lighting up our time together with love and laughter and a genuine helping hand for all. I'm happy to share these memories in the tradition of releasing butterflies to the sky in honor of their daughter Stacy, releasing these memories to rise into the sky like a miracle so ordinary it may not be noticed until we see how many beautiful memories there are rising together and lift our eyes skyward once again!