Cornelio Martinez

“I have tried to live my life so that my family would love me and my friends respect me. The others can do whatever the hell they please.” – John Wayne

In loving memory of Cornelio Garibay Martinez who passed peacefully on August 17, 2022.

Cornelio lived a long and good life. He was born September 16, 1927 and this year would have been his 95th birthday. He grew up in the small town of Durango, Durango, Mexico where roads are still unpaved and running water is a commodity. He began working at the age of six to help support his family. Around 1955, he brought his children to the United States for a better life and more opportunities. A great feat that will be appreciated for generations to come.

To describe Cornelio would take years. He was a very hard working, intelligent, funny and charismatic man. He was a strong man. He worked cotton farms in the West Texas heat and paved the roads of Van Horn. He was a tough man. The inhumane living conditions he endured would have broken anyone; sleeping on cardboard, fed scraps and sprayed with lye on a daily basis. He was a hard man. A macho vaquero in the Wild West days of the Chihuahuan Desert, finishing fights he never started. He was a smart man. His knowledge of random subject was endless and he spread his wealth to his children. He was a passionate man. Farming and gardening were his livelihood. He could grow just about anything in his gardens and he did. His yearly bounty was his gift to the world.

Cornelio lived his life the way he wanted. Sometimes wrong, sometimes right, a little rough around the edges but always unapologetically himself. He was truly himself until the day he died; dancing, drinking and singing his way to the pearly gates. He was surely greeted in Heaven by friends, family, saints and sinners. Now he is watching over his loved ones the way he did in life. He will never be forgotten and will forever live in the hearts of his family and friends.

Cornelio is survived by his children, Ruben Martinez Sr. (sp. Josefina), Lourdes Munoz, Enrique Martinez (sp. Teresa), Cornelio “Naniz” Garibay (sp. Carmen), and Carmen Downing (sp. John Downing). He had 25 grandchildren, many great-grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren. He is proceeded in death by his mother, Maria Ibarra, his wife, Ursula Batres, his brother, Ricardo Martinez, his son, Domingo B. Martinez, his daughter Teresa “Tita” Lopez, and grandsons, Javier Martinez, Luis Lopez, and Marcus Ray Garibay.

His viewing will be held Thursday, September 1st, from 1pm-9pm at Templo de Dios in Van Horn. On Friday, September 2nd, viewing will be from 1pm-2pm, church services 2pm-3pm, followed by burial services at the Van Horn Cemetery. A Celebration of Life with dinner will be held at the Van Horn Convention Center.

Services have been entrusted to Heritage Funeral Home in Van Horn, Texas.