William Martinez

William ""Bill"" Martinez, of Denver, Colorado passed away on August 20, 2013. Bill was born and grew up in Trinidad, CO. Known as ""Rookie"" to his nine older siblings, Bill attended Santa Fe Grade School and loved visiting his family in Cokedale to go fishing and hunting. At the age of 11, Bill moved with his mother to Denver, CO where he attended Morey Middle School and West High School. He graduated in 1963 and voluntarily enlisted in the Marine Corps that same year. Stationed at Camp Pendleton, CA and Rota, Spain and based on the USS Holland, Bill served two tours in Vietnam. He was honorably discharged on December 27, 1968. The next year, working for Armored Motors, Bill would meet the love of his life, Linda. She worked for First National Bank of Denver where he delivered the payroll accounts she worked on. Showing his playful side, Bill first got her attention by shooting rubber bands at her daily until she noticed him. They were married in January 1971, an event Bill would later describe to his youngest daughter as his greatest accomplishment. Bill worked briefly delivering cookies for Nabisco and for the US Postal Service. He then spent nearly two decades working as a carpenter for many small companies and later as his own business owner. Bill liked to say the only thing he couldn't fix was a broken heart. Bill's successful carpentry career led him to work for the City and County of Denver as a Building Inspector, where he has worked for the past twenty-two years. Bill's impact on the city of Denver can be seen in the countless buildings throughout the city with certificates of occupancy bearing his signature hanging inside. This includes major landmarks such as Coors Field, the Pepsi Center, Elitch Gardens and Bass Pro Shop. Bill was known as the ""walking code book"", having served on several Building Code Committees that led to major changes to Denver's code book. With his great dedication to his job, strong knowledge base, and great sense of humor, Bill was well respected with his colleagues at the City, as well as many construction workers, engineers, fire safety officials, security companies, and contractors throughout Denver and the west. Bill always found time to have lunch with his buddies and entertain the ladies in the permit office. While Bill took great pride in all aspects of his career life, what made him most proud was his role as a family man. A father of four, grandfather of five, and uncle to many more, Bill was affectionately known as ""Papa"". He loved to pinch cheeks and had silly nicknames for all of those he loved most. Bill taught his sons and many of his nieces and nephews how to fish and taught his grandsons how to tie a tie. As he did with his friends, he loved to make his family laugh. Recently, Bill found great happiness spending Saturday's reading the encyclopedia with his sister Mary, on his prized iPad. Bill enjoyed fishing, camping, reading, watching old movies (especially westerns), and driving in and working on his new truck. He always enjoyed keeping up with the latest technology. From a Commodore 64 in early 80s and the first Atari in the neighborhood, to Palm Pilots and HAM radios, to his most recent iPad mini, Bill was always up for trying out something new. He was also a connoisseur of food. Bill always knew about the newest restaurant in town and had a particular fondness for pie. He often said he never met a pie he didn't like. Service is on Wednesday, August 28, 2013, at 10:00 AM at Horan & McConaty Family Chapel, 3101 South Wadsworth Boulevard, Lakewood, Colorado 80227. Interment following at Fort Logan National Cemetery. Please share memories of Bill and condolences with his family by signing the online guestbook below.