Obituary of Martha D. Rouin

Martha Rouin, long time resident of Hammondsport NY, passed away peacefully on Memorial Day, 29 May 2023 at Cayuga Medical Center. She was a World War II veteran, as well as a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. Born in 1920 in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts (Boston area) to Dr. Raymond Titus and Mary Titus, she attended Beaver Country Day School in Chestnut Hill and went on to study at Smith College in North Hampton, where she received a Bachelors in Art History in 1943. Following college, she entered the Woman's Army Corps and was stationed at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. She was in charge of setting up and managing a nursing unit at Fort Monmouth, where she served until the end of the war effort. After the war, she met and married Marcel "Bud" Rouin in New York City. Bud, a Hammondsport native, also served in the war, as a half-track gunner with the Third Armored Division, landing in France following the D-Day invasion, and fighting the Germans in the Battle of the Bulge. Martha and Bud moved to Hammondsport, New York in 1966, where they raised their two sons, both Navy Veterans. Martha worked as a social worker for Steuben County – in which capacity she served hundreds of children and families – and Bud was a portrait, landscape and wildlife artist. Martha was also a talented artist in her own right, best known for her clever, and often humorous, sketches and caricatures. Additionally, her photographic submissions at the annual Hammondsport Art show garnered her several awards. She and Bud were members of the Penn Yan Art Guild. She also was a long-time lector at St. Gabriel’s church in Hammondsport and enjoyed singing in the Finger Lakes Chorus. In retirement Martha served as a volunteer for numerous organizations, including the Glenn Curtiss Museum, Hammondsport Library and as a nursing ombudsman. She also expanded her artistic interests, learning pottery while continuing to hone her photography skills. Favorite subjects to photograph were her grandchildren, still life and nature scenes around Hammondsport and Keuka Lake. Martha was pre-deceased by her husband, Bud, as well as her parents and sisters, Mary Swift and Ruth Godden. Martha is survived by her sons Phil (Jennifer) and Chris (Darleen), her grandchildren: Brittany (Paul) Mederos, Patrick, Kaileen, Geoffrey, Alexandra and Maggie, and two great-grandchildren, Lucie and Leo, as well as many valued nieces and nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews. Later in life, Martha moved from Hammondsport to Penn Yan and then to Ithaca. Martha’s family would like to thank the doctors, nurses and staff for the excellent care and attention she received at Cayuga Medical Center in her final days. They would also like to express their sincere gratitude to staff at Clinton Crest Manor in Penn Yan and Longview in Ithaca. Their care and friendship continued to enrich the quality her life over the last five years. A memorial service in celebration of her life will be held on Saturday, July 1st, 2023 at 2:00 pm at the First Presbyterian Church of Penn Yan, 211 Main St., Penn Yan, NY 14527. Later, in the Fall, Martha will be buried in the family plot in North Haverhill, New Hampshire. Memorial donations may be made in Martha Rouin’s memory to the Hammondsport Library (21 William St, Hammondsport, NY 14840) or Glenn Curtiss Museum (8419 NY-54, Hammondsport, NY 14840). Memories of Martha may be shared with her family and friends at townsendwoodzinger.com.