Bowie County Life writer, Andie Martin, dies
Everyone has a story; It’s a journalistic truth.
Former Bowie County Life writer Andie Martin, who died Oct. 10, enthusiastically found and wrote those stories as she traversed the highway, byways and back roads of the county’s west end.
Andie, 62, had her own truths to guide her, she loved people and she loved writing.
By freelancing for the Texarkana Gazette, she was able to fuse her love of both.
“It was meant to be,” she said often about writing feature stories for the Bowie County Life section from 2013 to 2017.
She derived joy from making others happy. She wanted to make people feel special by highlighting and featuring their stories.
“I want them to feel like a king or a queen for a day,” she said as she flashed that megawatt smile, eyes sparkling.
According to those she wrote about, she certainly accomplished her goal.
A 2014 story she wrote about Maud, Texas, resident Jay Launius told of his many roles at the Oaklawn Opry, his lay minister duties at Maud Church of Christ and his work at Red River Army Depot. Andie even covered the Oaklawn Opry’s last show in February 2017.
He remembers Andie fondly.
“I’m so sorry to hear about Andie’s passing, she was such a delight and was always so supportive of the many things I’m involved in. Her stories reflected her zeal and enthusiasm for life and the people she featured in her articles. She made you feel special and important,” Jay wrote recently. “I especially appreciated the attention she gave you while answering her questions during an interview. She was ‘all in’ and she made you feel that she was genuinely intrigued by the things you were saying. I’m sure there are countless people who feel the same way about Ms. Andie.”
Perhaps the story Andie covered that generated the most follow-up reports was the Seals family of Maud, Texas. The family of three, Michelle and Steven Seals and son Brady, quickly became a family of eight when quintuplets were born on March 18, 2014.
Andie travelled to Dallas hours after the the births of Seals quintuplets Mia Danielle, Tessa Suzanne, Brant Lee, Gracie Lou and Rayleigh Ann. She chronicled their progress in the hospital, their arrivals in Maud and several of their birthday parties.
“I’m so saddened to hear about Ms. Andie’s passing. She was such a sweet lady. She wrote many stories about our family, from my pregnancy with the quints and several after the quints were born. I loved her kind spirit and her sweet smile. She wrote the most beautiful stories about my family and I will treasure them forever,” Michelle wrote recently.
Andie loved gardening and plants, saying a day in the flower bed brought her solace and cleared her mind.
She was captivated by people and organizations helping beauty grow for everyone to see.
Andie covered many plant sales and the New Boston Dogwood Garden Club’s work to beautify New Boston.
“She was very thorough, she was very accurate. She always reported what the facts were,” said Dr. Jane Morris, a club member.
She said Andie was very good working with people and being a reporter for western Bowie County.
“She loved putting our news in the paper and knew it meant a lot to us,” Jane said.
As much as Andie loved people and writing, they appreciated and loved her and her craft.
In 2015, she received the Marvin Pynes Committee for the Class of 1965 Award. Marvin Pynes School was an all-black school in the small Northeast Texas town of DeKalb. It closed in the mid-’60s amidst the Civil Rights Movement. Decades later, Andie covered Marvin Pynes classmates’ reunions, gatherings and observations.
“We, the class of 1965, would like to let you know how grateful we are for your excellent article. Your professionalism is magnified by the attention to detail you show in every word. You are greatly appreciated,” the plaque she received stated. She was touched.
“I could not believe (they) would do such a wonderful and thoughtful thing. I still find it hard to believe … The inscription just melts me,” Andie wrote when informing of the award.
Andie was a lover of words, she chose them carefully and spent a great deal of time on a story to get it just right.
Though a freelancer, she still referred to her Gazette writing gig as a “job” and approached it with the heart and dedication of a full-time staffer.