Honoring Marty Cheek: Support His Final Farewell

Update Saturday 9/21/2024:

Hello Morgan Hill, Gilroy, and friends of Marty Cheek. There has been a huge outpouring of generosity and expression of grief with the recent loss of our friend and business partner, Marty. Along with that came the questions about the right time to gather and express our love, appreciation, and respect for Marty.

We have now established a time and place for a Celebration of Life for our beloved friend.

Marty loved to tell the story about Morgan Hill so we are pleased to announce the place of his Celebration of Life is the Villa Mira Monte Historical House. It will take place from 1 to 4 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 12.

We hope you can attend to show your respects and we will try to create an opportunity for members of the community to share their stories of Marty and how he impacted each of us.

Please drop in any time during the event.

Celebration of Life:

Martin Gerhardt Raymond Cheek

Date: Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024

Time: 1 to 4 p.m.

Location:

Villa Miramonte

17860 Monterey Road

Morgan Hill

UPDATE 9/13/24:

Thank you Morgan Hill, Gilroy and beyond! Thank you for being everything Marty believed in, a caring, giving community that comes together in times of need. We’ve exceeded our original goal to take care of Marty’s services and a modest celebration of life for the community. We cannot thank you enough, our emotions have turned to the joy of knowing you care. At this time we feel comfortable that we have the basic costs of Marty’s funeral and memorial services covered but we are not done finalizing all the details. In light of the likely possibility that your generous donations have exceeded the necessary basic costs we would like to share with you that the current plan is to use any excess funds to support the Morgan Hill Life and Gilroy Life newspapers during this difficult time. The newspapers will likely fall off schedule a bit as the difficult work of continuing the complex operation of a newspaper, missing its publisher, will take a little time and great effort to get right back on track. We thank you for your generosity, and if you are not comfortable with our planned use of excess funds please reach out to us and we will work with you to meet your comfort level with your donation. -Robert

Dear friends and community,

It is with a heavy heart that I announce the unexpected passing of Marty Cheek, Morgan Hill Life & Gilroy Life publisher, my dear friend and business partner, and a beloved member of our community. He passed away unexpectedly on September 9th, a few months shy of his 58th birthday.

As we come to terms with Marty's passing, we are faced with the difficult task of arranging his final farewell. We want to give him the dignified and heartfelt send-off he deserves, and we're reaching out to our community for support in honoring Marty's memory.

Marty always considered Morgan Hill his family, and he loved this community with all his heart. He leaves behind a legacy of kindness, humor, and optimism for a better world. Any contribution, no matter the amount, will help alleviate the financial strain and allow us to focus on remembering him fondly.

Funds raised will go towards Marty's wish for cremation. Your generosity will make a meaningful difference in ensuring our friend is laid to rest with the dignity and respect he deserves.

The outpouring of love, prayers, and messages of support during this difficult time is overwhelming. Your kindness means the world to me and the community as we navigate through our grief.

Thank you for your compassion and generosity. Together, we can give Marty the farewell he deserves.

With heartfelt gratitude,

- Robert Airoldi