I spent the past month trying my best to give Gail Martin one of his final wishes – for me to buy his company. We had some wonderful sit down conversations with him sharing everything from broadhead designs, his days fighting in the Battle of the Bulge, the perfect marriage and to starting Martin Archery as a string manufacturing company with two young boys completely different in personality. While I thought I made a good case and fought hard with lenders in the end I failed to give Gail his wish. I let him know I had failed on Thursday and was notified by the family Sunday that he had passed away. He was 90 years old and in rapidly declining health, but I can’t help carry a burden of guilt. Not sure my failures and shortcomings have ever stung this hard before.
Gail was an amazing man! He was kind to a fault with a love for his wife I’m not sure I have ever witnessed before. My last visit with him was during one of her good days where she remembered who all the kids and grandkids were, remembered the shop and was running around looking at all the new stuff like a young girl on Christmas morning. Our conversation delayed multiple times as Gail broke down in tears reminiscing about the life they had spent together. His biggest breakdown was after telling me, “You probably won’t believe this, but in all those years of marriage we have never had a serious fight. We had our disagreements on how to raise boys with such different personalities, but in the end I would always realize she was right.”
I am really going to miss this wonderful man! I have been truly blessed by the moments we shared.
