Martin Joseph Chilton

Martin Joseph Chilton, 89, Rapid City, was born February 23, 1931 in Tracy City, Tennessee to James and Elsie (Marugg) Chilton. He died Saturday, July 11, 2020 at Avantara St Cloud. After Martin’s dad passed away, Elsie searched for a place that Martin could receive specialized training due to his disability. Her search first took her to Denver, CO but she was not satisfied with the training Martin received there. She heard of the Black Hills workshop and the great reputation of their programs in assisting/training disabled people.
Martin worked at the Black Hills Workshop starting in early 1980’s until he retired in 2015. Martin enjoyed going to the retirement/elderly center at Black Hills Works until he could no longer physically attend. Martin moved to Bella Vista nursing home, now Avantara St Cloud, in 2019. He enjoyed living at Avantara and the staff enjoyed his presence and the joy he brought to them.
Martin loved his cookies and looking at books or magazines. It was rare to no see him without a book in his hands. Martin is the last of the Chilton family and he had special friends who were present in his life after his mother passed away and accepted his as a family member. Martin was always in a joyful mood that would make others around him to also be joyful. Martin will be missed by all those that he touched.