Martin R. Gutches, 69, a resident of Bellevue, died Dec. 22, 2007, at the Shoshone Rehabilitation and Living Center.
He was born March 13, 1938, at the Triumph Mines near Hailey, Idaho. His parents were Russell S. and Jewel E. (Keplinger) Gutches. They moved to Bellevue, where he attended school. In 1955, he joined the U. S. Air Force, where he earned his GED, and served in Okinawa, Japan, until 1959, when he was assigned to the Orlando Air Base in Orlando, Fla. He finished his service in the Reserves in 1963.
Martin married Sharon June Smith on July 15, 1961, at Elko, Nev. In 1963, they moved to Malad for a time, then returned to Bellevue for the remainder of his life.
Martin was a heavy-equipment owner and operator locally and also for Hood Corp. all around the United States. He also worked for Morton Thiokol in Malad, where the company manufactured solid rocket propellant, and at INEL in Arco with the atomic submarines project. For the past nine years, he drove a ski bus for Sun Valley Co., which he really enjoyed.
Martin was an avid hunter and fisherman, and loved to go boating and camping with family and friends. He also really enjoyed the family cabin at Hyndman. He was active in the Sawtooth Snowmobile Club, Blaine County Search and Rescue and Bellevue Volunteer Fire Department. He also belonged to the Gary Boushele American Legion Post of Bellevue, and most recently to the Fairfield American Legion Post 19.
Surviving family members include his daughter, Lisa (Jack) Gray of Gooding; son, Mitchell (Carolyn) Gutches of Bellevue; sister Carol (Harold) Drussell of Twin Falls, brother Steve Gutches of Bellevue and sister Shirley (Gary) Givens of Fairfield; grandchildren Ethan, Melissa, April and Dallas; great-grandchildren Alexis and Neaveh; and several nieces and nephews. Preceding him in death were his parents and his wife, Sharon.
Funeral services will be at 1 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 5, 2008, at the Community Campus in Hailey. Interment will follow in the Bellevue Cemetery. Friends may call at the Wood River Chapel in Hailey from 1 p.m. until 8 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 4. Condolences may also be left at www.woodriverchapel.com. Memorial contributions are suggested to the American Cancer Society or the Veterans Home in Boise.
