Walter Dunham, Iv "Marty"

Walter Martin Dunham IV “Marty” was born November 17, 1982 and died unexpectedly on March 24, 2023 at the age of 40. His family is deeply saddened by his sudden death.

Marty was a lifelong resident of Corpus Christi and attended Tuloso-Midway and Calallen schools. He graduated from Calallen High School in 2001 and attended Del Mar College. Marty worked as a legal assistant for both his beloved wife, Michelle Jones Dunham, and for Kyle Hoelscher.

Marty is survived by a large and loving family including his wife, Michelle Jones Dunham; stepdaughter, Amber Jones; parents, Walt and Letha Dunham, and his brother, Ken Smith (Emily). He is also survived by aunt, Elmyra Casner; great aunt, Barbara Hardin; uncles, Paul Powers (Rachelle), Rick Dunham (Debbie), and uncle, Larry Elliott; nephews, Kenny Smith (Missy), Kyle Smith, Nathan Seaman, and Fisher Smith; nieces, Ella and Kensley Smith, and great-niece, Wrenley Smith. Marty loved and appreciated his numerous cousins, and was especially close to cousin Jared Dunham.

Preceding Marty in death were his grandparents, Walter “Bill” and Virginia Dunham; grandparents, Paul “Bill” and Eva Powers, and his aunt, Ramona Elliott.

Marty and Michelle, the love of his life, married on March 22, 2019; and in doing so, he also gained his precious stepdaughter, Amber Jones. Marty happily spent many hours chauffeuring Amber before she received her driver’s license, and he fully realized how instrumental the long conversations and laughter they shared were in cementing their loving relationship.

Marty and Michelle were deeply in love. At the time of his death, they were working very hard to recover from recent illnesses and Marty’s severe shoulder injury, and they were looking forward to the happy, loving future they envisioned.

Marty and his brother Ken were born 10 years apart, but they remained especially close to each other always. They had an unshakable, deeply loving connection. Marty’s “Bubba” always had Marty’s back.

Marty’s family and friends knew him to be an ailurophile extraordinaire. He quite happily went about spoiling and loving, in every way possible, the three family cats. He even had Leto trained to fetch, a very unusual skill for a feline.

Taking time to gather with his friends group for games of darts or Farkle and hosting the Annual Farm Gathering were top priorities for Marty. He loved all of them and always looked forward to their time together. Marty’s especially close longtime friends, Chris Smolik and Kyle Hoelscher meant so much to him. And Kyle’s kindness, generosity, and patience throughout Marty’s life, but especially during his recovery from his shoulder injury, will not be forgotten.

Marty looked forward to spending holidays and dove hunting with family and friends. For him it was not about hunting birds; it was about spending a day filled with laughter and sharing of stories with people he loved deeply and who loved him right back for the good man he was. And it was also about ending the day with that last bear hug accompanied with a parting whisper of, “I love you, man,” from his beloved Uncle Paul.

Being kind, generous, thoughtful, and loving came as easy to gentle Marty as breathing comes to most us. He made the world a better, more beautiful place. His beautiful deep voice may be gone, but memories of Marty will live on in the hearts of his family and friends.

At Marty’s request, there will be no funeral or memorial service.