Martin (Marty) Edward Metras, 77

Martin (Marty) Edward Metras, 77, of Woodstock, passed away peacefully on Jan. 13, 2024. 

Marty was born in Watervliet, Mich., in December of 1946, to Lawrence (Tom) and Esther (Jansen) Metras. He moved to Woodstock as a 7-year-old and never considered leaving.

Marty was “The Doer of Things,” meaning if he conceived it, he’d do it no matter how unconventional, odd, or weird it may seem to others. He owned the first 1970s electric car, grew a mobile garden in his pickup truck bed, loved computers, technology, and trains. He worked at the Die Cast in Woodstock and at Knaack in Crystal Lake for years.

Marty started getting in shape by walking to the local Starbucks to get his grande blonde almond milk latte and would spend hours talking to friends and strangers. Marty was encouraged to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain by his older brother, Mike. He walked the over 500-mile path and wrote a book about the experience. He loved the experience and was working hard to make it back to The Camino.

Marty loved talking to strangers so much that he might randomly sit next to a person in a café and have a conversation. In fact, that was how he met his best friend, Michelle Collen-Bidwell, of Woodstock’s Elite Warrior Training. Her personal training, dedication, and friendship helped prepare Marty for this trek across Spain and for health challenges later in life. “Everybody needs a Marty in their life,” was her well-known response when explaining their friendship.

Marty is preceded in death by parents, Tom and Esther Metras, and brothers, Micheal (Mike) and Matthew (Jake) Metras.

He is survived by sister, Marie Klapperich (Metras); brother, Maurice (Cork) Metras; and sisters, Marcia Grubb (Metras) and Madeline (Edie) Metras.