One of the warmest and friendliest of classmates, one of my favorites. I would liked to have had another visit with Marty at our 65th. Rest in peace, my friend.
Marty was a wonderful guy. Our hearts are saddened. I'm glad I got to speak with him at our last reunion. May his memory be a blessing for all who knew and loved him.
This is very sad. Marty and I were good friends in high school and poker buddies, as well as aspiring physicians, which of course we both became. Also college rivals, Princeton vs Rutgers. We had a nice chat at the 60th. He was fine then.
When I was 4, we moved to 23 South Mountain Road. A boy was sitting on the curb on the other side of the street, so I sat on our curb, facing him. He called out "Hey!", and I responded "Hay is for horses!". That scintillating dialogue ping-ponged back and forth for maybe half an hour. With our voices growing hoarse (or should I say "horse"?) he said "want some lemonade?" After guzzling several cups, we instinctively returned to our curbs and resumed our brilliant exchange.
Cut to a few years later, 8 year old Marty organized a neighborhood "dirt bomb" war (dried mud balls) , hurling "harmless" dirt bombs at each other. Marty, the "Say Hey Kid", fired one that hit me in the eye, but unbeknownst to him, it contained a sharp rock. I nearly lost my left eye.
In 2013, at our 50th Class reunion, he spotted me across the room and shouted "Hey!", and I yelled back "Hay is for horses!" I confessed "there's something, which I call 'my youthful indiscretion', that I want to appologize for..." he broke in, responding "we all had our youthful indiscretions (pointing to my left eye) and we're all better off forgiving each other".
Marty was a "Mensch", a Yiddish word which figuratively means, among other things, a decent, kind, responsible, admirable person. That was, and always will be, Martin Ganek. "Hey!" Marty, it was a blessing knowing you. Lorre Wyatt
Dear Friends- I am truely saddened to hear of Marty's passing. My friendship with Marty began before the 1st year we had at the South Mountain Elementary School. We lived about 3 weeks away from Marty's home in South Mountain. I was a neebie having just moved in. I had no friends and Marty was the first member of the " South Mtn. Gang" to say high & shake my hand. Our friendship continued through all the years in the Millburn System, college,med school, army service 72-74, medical practices until the present.
When I think of Marty I see a kind, thoughtful, and friendly person. I never heard him say an unkind thing to anyone. I think he loved the times he spent running the show for all the audiovisual equipment he had to coordinate for the various events in middle & high school.
I will miss Marty & extend my deepest sympathy to his family.
Rest in Peace my friend.
Al ( Cooker ) Lotman Class of 1963 Millburn High School
Dear Friends- I am truely saddened to hear of Marty's passing. My friendship with Marty began before the 1st year we had at the South Mountain Elementary School. We lived about 3 weeks away from Marty's home in South Mountain. I was a neebie having just moved in. I had no friends and Marty was the first member of the " South Mtn. Gang" to say high & shake my hand. Our friendship continued through all the years in the Millburn System, college,med school, army service 72-74, medical practices until the present.
When I think of Marty I see a kind, thoughtful, and friendly person. I never heard him say an unkind thing to anyone. I think he loved the times he spent running the show for all the audiovisual equipment he had to coordinate for the various events in middle & high school.
I will miss Marty & extend my deepest sympathy to his family.
Rest in Peace my friend.
Al ( Cooker ) Lotman Class of 1963 Millburn High School
I found the below obituary. Marty was a good person.
Dr. Martin E. Ganek, 79, of Stratford, Connecticut died Friday, August 22, 2025 at the Bridgeport Hospital after a 15-year battle with prostate cancer.
Born in Newark, NJ on October 2, 1945, Marty grew up in the South Mountain area of Millburn, NJ. He graduated from Millburn High School in 1963 and attended as many reunions as he possibly could over the years. Marty loved his friends from Millburn, several of whom were his best friends his entire life.
After graduating from Rutgers University in 1967, Marty attended Georgetown University Medical School and later became the Chief Resident of Pediatrics at Georgetown University Hospital. It was in Washington, D.C. that he met the love of his life, Patricia Davis-Ganek, whom he adored.
Marty served in the U.S. Air Force as a doctor and later became a partner at the Pediatric Associates of West Essex where he was a beloved pediatrician for the North Caldwell and Morris Plains/Randolph communities. His favorite thing in life was being a doctor and helping to keep babies and children safe and healthy and watching them thrive. His next favorite thing in life was being a father to his daughters, Carrie and Jill, and grandfather to his grandchildren, Eva Vergara (18) and Samuel Vergara (15).
A lover of tennis, the Giants, the Yankees, good food, scootering around Newport, RI, his dogs Ulie and Ozzie, his wife Patti’s paintings, antique cars, and his friends and family; Marty was an all-around good guy, the best listener in the universe, and the most loyal friend one could hope for.
George Gilbert Engler
One of the warmest and friendliest of classmates, one of my favorites. I would liked to have had another visit with Marty at our 65th. Rest in peace, my friend.
Henry Nerenberg
Marty was a wonderful guy. Our hearts are saddened. I'm glad I got to speak with him at our last reunion. May his memory be a blessing for all who knew and loved him.
Kenneth Schwartz
This is very sad. Marty and I were good friends in high school and poker buddies, as well as aspiring physicians, which of course we both became. Also college rivals, Princeton vs Rutgers. We had a nice chat at the 60th. He was fine then.
Lorre Wyatt
When I was 4, we moved to 23 South Mountain Road. A boy was sitting on the curb on the other side of the street, so I sat on our curb, facing him. He called out "Hey!", and I responded "Hay is for horses!". That scintillating dialogue ping-ponged back and forth for maybe half an hour. With our voices growing hoarse (or should I say "horse"?) he said "want some lemonade?" After guzzling several cups, we instinctively returned to our curbs and resumed our brilliant exchange.
Cut to a few years later, 8 year old Marty organized a neighborhood "dirt bomb" war (dried mud balls) , hurling "harmless" dirt bombs at each other. Marty, the "Say Hey Kid", fired one that hit me in the eye, but unbeknownst to him, it contained a sharp rock. I nearly lost my left eye.
In 2013, at our 50th Class reunion, he spotted me across the room and shouted "Hey!", and I yelled back "Hay is for horses!" I confessed "there's something, which I call 'my youthful indiscretion', that I want to appologize for..." he broke in, responding "we all had our youthful indiscretions (pointing to my left eye) and we're all better off forgiving each other".
Marty was a "Mensch", a Yiddish word which figuratively means, among other things, a decent, kind, responsible, admirable person. That was, and always will be, Martin Ganek. "Hey!" Marty, it was a blessing knowing you. Lorre Wyatt
Alfred 'Cooker' Lotman
Dear Friends- I am truely saddened to hear of Marty's passing. My friendship with Marty began before the 1st year we had at the South Mountain Elementary School. We lived about 3 weeks away from Marty's home in South Mountain. I was a neebie having just moved in. I had no friends and Marty was the first member of the " South Mtn. Gang" to say high & shake my hand. Our friendship continued through all the years in the Millburn System, college,med school, army service 72-74, medical practices until the present.
When I think of Marty I see a kind, thoughtful, and friendly person. I never heard him say an unkind thing to anyone. I think he loved the times he spent running the show for all the audiovisual equipment he had to coordinate for the various events in middle & high school.
I will miss Marty & extend my deepest sympathy to his family.
Rest in Peace my friend.
Al ( Cooker ) Lotman Class of 1963 Millburn High School
.
Alfred 'Cooker' Lotman
Dear Friends- I am truely saddened to hear of Marty's passing. My friendship with Marty began before the 1st year we had at the South Mountain Elementary School. We lived about 3 weeks away from Marty's home in South Mountain. I was a neebie having just moved in. I had no friends and Marty was the first member of the " South Mtn. Gang" to say high & shake my hand. Our friendship continued through all the years in the Millburn System, college,med school, army service 72-74, medical practices until the present.
When I think of Marty I see a kind, thoughtful, and friendly person. I never heard him say an unkind thing to anyone. I think he loved the times he spent running the show for all the audiovisual equipment he had to coordinate for the various events in middle & high school.
I will miss Marty & extend my deepest sympathy to his family.
Rest in Peace my friend.
Al ( Cooker ) Lotman Class of 1963 Millburn High School
.
Mark Batshaw
I found the below obituary. Marty was a good person.
Dr. Martin E. Ganek, 79, of Stratford, Connecticut died Friday, August 22, 2025 at the Bridgeport Hospital after a 15-year battle with prostate cancer.
Born in Newark, NJ on October 2, 1945, Marty grew up in the South Mountain area of Millburn, NJ. He graduated from Millburn High School in 1963 and attended as many reunions as he possibly could over the years. Marty loved his friends from Millburn, several of whom were his best friends his entire life.
After graduating from Rutgers University in 1967, Marty attended Georgetown University Medical School and later became the Chief Resident of Pediatrics at Georgetown University Hospital. It was in Washington, D.C. that he met the love of his life, Patricia Davis-Ganek, whom he adored.
Marty served in the U.S. Air Force as a doctor and later became a partner at the Pediatric Associates of West Essex where he was a beloved pediatrician for the North Caldwell and Morris Plains/Randolph communities. His favorite thing in life was being a doctor and helping to keep babies and children safe and healthy and watching them thrive. His next favorite thing in life was being a father to his daughters, Carrie and Jill, and grandfather to his grandchildren, Eva Vergara (18) and Samuel Vergara (15).
A lover of tennis, the Giants, the Yankees, good food, scootering around Newport, RI, his dogs Ulie and Ozzie, his wife Patti’s paintings, antique cars, and his friends and family; Marty was an all-around good guy, the best listener in the universe, and the most loyal friend one could hope for.