Joseph Dolores Martinez

Joseph (Joe) Dolores Martinez was born on April 14, 1944, in Denver, Colorado, to Dolores and Catherine Martinez. They resided in Downtown Denver at 31st and Lawrence. Joe is the oldest of 13 children. Joe attended Annunciation school in Denver but unfortunately had to drop out because he could no longer afford his books, and his mom told him that she needed his help at home. Before dropping out, he worked at Sacred Heart Catholic Church for the nuns and priests, helping with maintenance at the church and the homes in which the priests and nuns lived to pay for his books. Joe was an altar boy at that Church. Joe and his friend Leroy Borrego were walking downtown one afternoon and decided to join the United States Navy. He was only 17 and needed his dad’s permission to go. His dad, of course, said no; however, Joe explained that he would go no matter what when he turned 18. So his dad signed. Going into the Navy was the best thing that could have happened to him. His ship was the USS Ponchatoula. He traveled to Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Okinawa, amongst other destinations. He was stationed in Hawaii. While in the Navy, Joe took the GED test and passed on the first attempt. He wanted to make a career in the Navy; however, his mom said NO. It’s time to come home, son. So he did. He was honorably discharged on February 11, 1968. From there, he got a job with Frederick Printing. He worked his way up to the head pressman. He wanted to attend college, and his boss at Frederick told him he would not give him time off to go to school, so he quit. If you know Joe, you know that he did not like to take orders from anyone other than his mom, so he decided to get his real estate license. During this time, he attended Metropolitan State College and pursued computers. He constantly bragged about his 4.0 GPA. He started his lifelong career in 1975. He initially worked for a company called Forum Real Estate. A few years later, he joined RE/MAX Northwest and stayed with this company for almost all his career. He joined his daughter Lisa and son Tom three years ago, and they owned Martinez Realty together. Lisa and Joe worked side by side for 37 years. She tried to get him to join her at Martinez Realty for 23 years, but Joe didn’t like change! He has touched so many of his client’s lives throughout those years. He made the American Dream come true for thousands of people and treated them like family. In 1967, Joe met his wife, Rosemary. They married on May 24, 1969, and have been married for 54 years. They met at the Cowboy. Rosemary did not like to go to bars; however, her sisters drug her out (but we all know she loves to dance. It made my dad crazy because he was not a dancer). They then went to the Aurora Lounge, and he asked her to dance. They have been together since that first dance! They have two children, Thomas (Tom) and Lisa Martinez, and the rest is history. Joe loved his kids and his wife with all of his heart! He was overprotective of all three of them and passed that trait down to them. Joe and our family lived in Southwest Denver until 1980, and then Joe decided to move our family to Thornton for a better lifestyle. Joe was very proud of Tom. He put him in baseball, basketball, and football. Tom grew up playing these sports; Dad always attended every game. Tom was an excellent athlete, and Dad was so proud. He then sent Tom to Regis High School, where Joe wanted to attend but couldn’t afford it. He wanted to give Tom every opportunity that he never had. Joe taught Tom the responsibility of money and hard work. Joe was also very proud of his daughter Lisa. He would do anything for her! Lisa wanted to do everything possible also to make dad happy. The one thing she wanted to do more than anything for her dad was to finish college. She graduated from Metropolitan State College of Denver. Lisa was Daddy’s little girl. She was right by his side at all times. She took care of him as much as he took care of her. They had many adventures together, working, going out to lunch, shopping, and just hanging out at home with Mom. Joe would have given Lisa the world if he could, but in reality, he did give it to her. He was her entire world! No one will ever be able to replace her dad. In 1994, Joe was diagnosed with diabetes. He tried so hard to fight this disease for 39 years. He had his ups and downs because he loved his Mexican food. His mom, Katie, was the most amazing cook. Everyone and anyone who had the opportunity to eat her food knew this. Even after marriage, he still went to his mom’s house, and she packed his lunch. He would then go over after work to visit his mom, and she would feed him again. He always felt bad because when he got home, Mom had dinner ready, and he was not hungry. The diabetes took a toll on his body over the years, but he had just gone to several doctors and had gotten a clean bill of health. He got weak and tired as he got older. We all still tried to push him, especially his golf friends. He played golf in a league every Monday morning and loved to golf with his kids. As we have found out, after our dad's passing, his heart was weak. He had a heart disease that we did not know about. We think it must have been so weak and tired because it was so full of love for everyone he knew. He was known for loving his hot chili, his firm handshake, & his passion and drive to work. Joe was always a good, strong Catholic, but as he and Mom got older, they decided to make church a more significant part of their life. They tried to attend mass every day. They would always attend a Sunday mass. Joe joined a catholic men’s prayer group that met monthly in the evenings. He enjoyed this group so much and met some great friends. Unfortunately, he stopped going because he was having difficulty driving at night. He didn’t want to put his family out to keep taking him. But those friendships never ended. They would also stay after church weekly and have coffee with the other parishioners and the Priests. Over the years, these people became very close friends. Joe also joined the Knights of Columbus. The Knights of Columbus is a global Catholic fraternal service order group. Joe was a 4th degree Knight. His wife, always by his side, joined the Ladies Auxiliary Club. Together, these organizations were a considerable part of their lives. Joe is survived by his wife, Rosemary Martinez, his Son, Tom (Brenda) Martinez, and his daughter, Lisa (Johnny Garza) Martinez-Garza. Joe had 5 step grand-children and 4 step-great-grandchildren. He was the oldest of 13 kids. He had an older brother, Baby Castaneda, who had died at birth. One of his life goals was to purchase a stone for his brother, and he had finally done it this year. Joe is also survived by his Sisters Janette “Theresa” Lucero, Leonard (Pam) Martinez, Doris Hodge, Veronica (Steve) Lovato, Pete Martinez, Joann Myers (Duane), Violet Ramirez, Connie Martinez, and Chris Martinez. Numerous nieces and nephews also survive him. He is preceded in death by his parents, Dolores and Catherine Martinez, and his brothers, Patrick Martinez, Jackie “Johnny” Martinez, and Earnestine “Tina” Martinez. Services are being prepared by Romero’s funeral home in Denver, Colorado. A viewing of Joe will be on January 3, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., with a Rosary starting at 7:00 p.m. at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Northglenn. Thursday, January 4, 2023, there will be a public viewing at 10:00 a.m. at Immaculate Heart of Mary. The funeral will promptly start at 11:00 a.m. The burial will take place at 1:00 p.m. at Mount Olivet Cemetery. We will have a procession to Mount Olivet. We are expecting a large crowd, as Joe has many family and friends who are close to him. We are asking people to carpool together to the cemetery. A reception will be immediately followed at Immaculate Heart of Mary. Everyone is welcome to attend and share some of your favorite stories and memories of Joe. Immaculate Heart of Mary 11385 Grant Drive, Northglenn, CO 80233 Mount Olivet Catholic Cemetery 12801 W 44th Ave, Wheatridge, CO 80033