Thursday, September 27, 2007

CHARLES MARTINEZ SENDS GREETINGS FROM THE MARSHALL ISLANDS


Carlos Martinez -- Notre Dame High School -- Class of 1957

Bio info on Charles (Chuck) Martinez...aka Charles Pizarro Martinez, Brother Charles Joseph Martinez, CSC...Carlos Pizarro Martinez.

After graduation from Notre Dame High School, Chuck Martinez joined Holy Cross Brothers with nine of my classmates to form the infamous "big 10". He attended St Edwards University and later the University of Notre Dame where he was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Spanish .
He taught, as Brother Charles, at Saint Anthony's High School in Long Beach, Saint Francis High School in Mountain View, California where he also served as Assistant Principal and Director of studies under the tutelage of Brother Eagan Hunter, CSC of NDHS fame.
In 1967 Charles Martinez was dispensed from his vows as a religious Brother and began working as caseworker for Catholic Big Brothers of Los Angeles. In 1968, he married Barbara Blessington, at Holy Family Church in Long Beach, California.
The Martinez have a son Charles Pizarro V, who was born in 1970. He is currently working as a driver for the motion picture studios, working on the set of Desperate Housewives. Their son is unmarried and serves as a Sacristan at Saint Charles Borromeo in North Hollywood.
Our classmate Chuck Martinez has been actively employed in education or youth work more than 40 years in California, Hawaii and the Marshall Islands, and is in 2007 the Coordinator of the Marshall Island Prep Program at the Maui Job Corps where he has been employed nearly 15 years , 10 of them in the Marshall Islands.
Charles says, "Retirement remains elusive. Although I did begin collecting Social Security at age 66 while still in the Marshalls where I worked tax free and housing and an annual leave to Maui was paid, reality struck when I was transferred back to Maui 18 months ago. I did manage to buy a little condo in Hilo on Hawaii for my "old age" which my sister Cathy is kind enough to "caretake" for me.
Some day, some day...maybe in a year or so...meanwhile I really enjoy the work I do and have no immediate plans of putting myself "out to pasture".
"and that's the way it is."

2 comments:

Kyle said...

Grandpa(Jimma)Carlos. You will always be remembered in our lives no matter what. We want to thank you for your good and excellent works. We know that you've been trying your best to make us Marshallese successful because it's the way you want us to be. I was there at Maui when you passed away. We cried out loud but nothing changed. We wanted to see you one more time just to say THANK YOU and WE LOVE YOU. But it's okay because you already know that you're the best gift that we have ever had at job corps. LOVE YOU AND MISSED YOU SO MUCH..

Unknown said...

Carlos,
I just tried searching for you. I was saddened to find you had passed away. I still talk about our times in Crestline and the time I visited you on Maui. Our trip through the back roads on Maui and our stop to Hamburger Mary's.There was also the many fun nights spent in the Crash Inn in Crestline You were a great friend and I will always cherish your memory.
Jethro aka Jeff Zurett