Obituary of Idell J. Martinez

Idell Jean Martinez of Blair, WI passed away on 3 August 2026 at the home of her daughter in Rochester, NY.

She was born 21 September 1936 to John Montgomery Palmore and Ruth Brown in Detroit, MI.

Idell, “Dell”, joined the Navy after high school and served as a Medic for 3 years. She married Orrin Guy Sumner and, following USN rules, was released from service with an Honorable Discharge. With Orrin, Dell travelled the world. From Guantanamo Bay, during the Castro revolution, to Madrid Spain, until they settled in Barstow, Ca with their 2 daughters.

She was a homemaker for many years and earned an AS in Journalism. When they divorced, she worked a few jobs including Emergency Room clerk, hotel clerk and librarian. She met and married Marcelino “Frank” Martinez and returned to her first love – Reading.  She began teaching adults to read. She believed that if you can read, you can do anything! Another passion was quilting. She joined the local guild and made many lifelong friends.  She was also a member of the Red Hat Society. With them, she travelled from Ireland to Bosnia and returned to Cuba and Spain.

From Barstow to Blair, she made friends, went on many quilting retreats and continued creating a legacy of quilts for her family and friends.

Dell is survived by her daughter, Lee Ann Totzke (John) and Lori Dutille (Martin), her grandchildren John, James, Laura and Stephanie, and her great grandchildren Synthia, Franklin, Gatlin, Kyra, Gabriel, Abagail and Lillian.

She is predeceased by her parents and her siblings, Dorothy Lishin, Dolores Zinziletta, Ruth Douglas and Wesley Smiley and her husband Marcelino “Frank” Martinez.

Per her wishes, Dell will be cremated and a small memorial celebration will be held on 12 August at 1300 in Harris Funeral Home in Rochester, NY. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to your local library or literacy program.