A.T. (Bebee) Martinez, retired logging contractor and businessman, died following a single-vehicle crash in Shreveport early November 2. Mr. Martinez, 68, was pronounced dead at Willis-Knighton South where he was transported after his F-250 pickup truck went off the road and struck a fence while turning off Interstate 49 in Shreveport. He apparently suffered a major heart attack or blood clot, causing him to lose control and leave the roadway. Mr. Martinez was one of the recipients of the Louisiana Loggers Hall of Fame award held in Dodson in September, and was the recipient of the first Logger of the Year award by the Louisiana Logging Council in 1987. Funeral services were conducted November 5 at the St. Joseph church in Zwolle, with burial is in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery. Mr. Martinez is survived by his wife, Nannette; two daughters, Sherry Rivers and Missy Ezernack; three sons, Mark, Kevin, and Jeffrey, all loggers in the western Louisiana region. Both A.T. Martinez and his son Mark have been named as Loggers of the Year by the Louisiana Logging Council. His brother, G.J. (Pie) Martinez, was named in the first class of the Louisiana Loggers Hall of Fame in 2007. |
