Man Dies after Being Hit by Car (this would be a Cumberland Times obituary, although it doesn't say that on the card. Vocke Road is in LaVale, about two miles west of Cumberland. Casualty victims are often taken to Morgantown, about an hour west of Cumberland. Sacred Heart Hospital is a hospital in LaVale, less than 5 miles away from this accident.)
Joseph Carroll Martens, 24, of 20 Wineow Street, who was struck by a car yesterday afternoon on Vocke Road, was pronounced dead on arrival late last night, at the West Virginia Medical Center, Morgantown. He was taken to Sacred Heart Hospital where he underwent surgery, and was transferred to Morgantown in "critical" condition. The accident occurred at 3:50 p.m. on Vocke Road about 1,000 feet west of Braddock Road. State Police said Mr. Martens was struck by an auto operated by Paul Wayne Campbell, 18, of Rawlings, and owned by Lawrence Leidinger, of Cumberland. They said Martens had run out of gas and managed to get the car to the extreme right hand lane of the divided highway. Mr. Martens was attempting to put gas in his car and stepped back into the path of the Leidinger vehicle. Police said young Campbell had observed the car parked along the highway although his visibility was obscured by the bright sunlight, and he struck Mr. Martens who was knocked about 30 feet into the air over the Leidinger car. Trooper R. E. Alderton, who is investigating the accident, said charges are pending. Born in Cumberland, he was a son of Joseph H. and Cleo F. (Steward) Martens. A lifelong resident, he was a machinist in the local B&O Diesel shops, a member of the Brotherhood of Railway Machinists, Local 212, and a member of Central Assembly of God Church. Besides his parents, surviving are his widow, Lois (Shaffer) Martens; one son, Maurice S. Martens, and one daughter, Jody Lynn Martens, at home; and two brothers, Harry D. Martens, Miami, and George R. McCoy, Wolf Lake, Ind.
The body is at the Scarpelli Funeral Home, where friends will be received today from 7 to 9 and tomorrow from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Services will be conducted Monday at 1 p.m. in Central Assembly of God Church by Rev. Vincent E. Beemer. Interment will be in Sunset Memorial Park.
