MARTIN RAY GOHLKE, 66, was wrapped in the
arms of Jesus on Dec. 1, 2023 in Abilene, TX with
his family at his bedside following a short battle
with dementia, with burial in Evergreen Cemetery
at Ranger, TX.
Martin was born on Aug. 14, 1957 in Galveston,
TX to Luther Ray Gohlke & Patricia Ann (Broyles)
Gohlke. Martin was the oldest of five children
and the only son. At an early age, Martin and his
family moved to Ranger, TX where his father was
the county doctor and mother was a homemaker. He
grew up loving to hunt, fish, and play sports.
He attended Ranger High School in the Class of
1975. As everyone knows, Martin was a tall
individual, a "gentle giant"! He was recruited
by Abilene Christian University to play basket-
ball. While in college, Martin met the love of
his life, Carla Willis. They married in May of
1978. Together, Martin & Carla had three sons,
Chad, Seth, and Cody. Martin spent the majority
of his adult life working at his lumber yard in
Ranger. He then worked for Sysco Foods in Abilene
as a sales rep. Once all three boys graduated high
school, Martin & Carla moved back to Ranger to
be close to his dad and took over the cattle
ranch where he loved spending time and taking
his grandkids out to see the cows.
In 2018, Martin was voted in as Eastland County
Commissioner for Precinct 2. He had a wonderful
love for Christ and served as a Deacon or Elder
in all four of the churches he was a member of.
To Martin, his wife and children (and cows) were
everything. Martin coached all of his children's
sports teams growing up and was always there to
root them on at their high school and college
games. Martin's life was cut too short with a
diagnosis of Frontal Lobe Dementia in 2020. The
last three years of Martin's life were met with
all of the challenges of dementia which ultimately
led to his passing.
Martin is preceded in death by his father & mother.
Martin is survived by wife Carla; son Chad Gohlke
(RHS-2000) and wife Kasey, son Seth Gohlke (RHS-
2003) and wife Christy, and son Cody Gohlke and
wife Rachel; sisters Carrie Gohlke Teaff (RHS-1977)
and husband Steve, Greta Gohlke Stephens (RHS-1979)
and husband Greg, Amy Gohlke (RHS-1988), and Lori
Gohlke Edgar (RHS-1990) and husband Kenny; grand-
children Brailey, Sadie, Ella, Andi, Addie, Cooper,
Grayson, Remie, Joseph, Maudie, and Chapel Martin;
as well as two aunts, an uncle, and many cousins,
nephews, and nieces.