Vergeane Martin

MOUNT HOREB-Vergeane Collins Martin, 88, passed away on Friday, March 22, 2019. Born Nov. 15, 1930 to Stacy and Mildred (Thousand) Collins, Vergeane grew up on the Brigham Farm outside of Blue Mounds and was forever a country girl. She had fond memories of helping her father bring in the cows from pasture, land that would become part of the Cave of the Mounds grounds. The cave was a central landmark in her life, and she held tight to her father’s role as one of the first to enter the caverns; she would go on to work there as a tour guide alongside her future husband and many childhood friends. Vergeane attended grade school in Blue Mounds and graduated from Mount Horeb High School in 1948. Following high school, she looked for adventure and opportunity to travel by enlisting in the Women’s Army Corps, serving from 1951-1953. She had a talent for code breaking, which she frequently demonstrated at the breakfast table solving the Cryptoquote puzzles in the daily paper – a skill she embraced during her service to her country. Following her time in the Army, she returned to Mount Horeb and wed Russell W. Martin, her fellow tour guide at the cave, on Jan. 29, 1953 at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa. Vergeane and Russ raised five children on various small farms in the Mount Horeb area. Many of their years were spent in Springdale Township at the farm they purchased in 1970. Every spring, she eagerly looked for the earliest wildflowers in the woods and enjoyed the birdsong that filled the valley – especially that of the whip-poor-will. A love of genealogy and local history allowed Vergeane to serve as the family archivist. She had genealogical records, photographs, and artifacts spanning many generations and again drew on her code-breaking skills to solve mysteries in the family tree. She also spent hours at the microfiche stations at the Mount Horeb Public Library, taking notes on items of interest connected to family and the community from years gone by. She very much enjoyed sharing her knowledge of local history by working as a tour guide at Little Norway and volunteering at the Mount Horeb Historical Museum. Vergeane is survived by her husband of 66 years, Russell; five children, Paige (Craig) Skalet of Littleton, Colo.; Ashley (Gordy) Brunner of Black Earth; Todd (Holly) Martin of Mount Horeb; Elizabeth (John) Eck, of Dacula, Ga.; and Guy (Martha) Martin of Mount Horeb; 12 grandchildren, Nathan, Aaron, Matthew, Paul, Stacey, Josh, Missy, Rachel, Brianna, Christian, Lydia, and Siri; six step-grandchildren, Christopher, Andrew, Jeffrey, Sarah, Ariel, and Ryan; five great-grandchildren, a niece and two nephews, and cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents; her sister, LaVonne Owen; and her brother, Winston Collins. No services will be held. Memorials may be directed to Mount Horeb Area Historical Society or Friends of Mount Horeb Public Library. The family wishes to thank the staff at Girlie’s Manor and Agrace Hospice for their care and compassion in recent months. “Let us not forget our ancestors, for they gave us a heritage to treasure.” Ivar Aasen Gunderson Camacho Mount Horeb 500 N. Eighth Street 608-437-5077