Memorial services are May 9 for one of Corrales’ scions and giants.
Rafael J. “Ralph” Martinez, died April 6 at age 91. He was born into one of the village’s founding families, and was known across Sandoval County as a longtime public servant. Martinez was a local poll worker for 47 years and served on village and county planning and zoning commissions, including 18 years at the county level.
Jeff Radford, founder of the Corrales Comment, told the newspaper that Martinez was an important voice for the entrenched Hispanic community in the village as newcomers began moving in, drawn by its rural charm.
“A lot of Hispanics were reluctant to talk about what was going on in the community,” he said. “Ralph was not. He explained to the rest of us how the community was feeling.”
Radford recalled that in around 1982, village leaders were considering starting up trash service. Residents had been collecting their own garbage and taking it to the dump. Radford said Martinez raised concerns about the affordability of the service, leading the village to establish a voluntary system. “He regularly spoke for a population who didn’t have a lot of money,” Radford said.
Martinez was born April 28, 1934. He was the valedictorian and basketball captain of Bernalillo High School’s first graduating class in 1953, He met his wife, Erlinda while a student at BHS. Martinez later worked at Sandia National Laboratories. A self-taught musician, he played the harmonica with local Spanish church choirs
Martinez was preceded in death by his wife Erlinda, daughter Annabel, and siblings Mayta and Richard. He is survived by his children, Annette Sanchez and her husband Ronald, Jonathan Martinez and his wife Nelly, and Valerie Juarez and her husband David Hosick; as well as 12 grandchildren, and 13 great-grandchildren.
Memorial services at San Ysidro Catholic Church, 5015 Corrales Rd, will begin May 9 with a eulogy at 10:45 a.m., followed by Mass at 11, with a reception in the hall behind the church immediately afterward. Those wishing to plant trees in Martinez’s memory may do so through the Sympathy Store.