Funeral services for Leon F. Martin, 68, retired owner and operator of Martin Apparatus and Equipment in Denton, TX, were held Nov. 8, 2005, at the Brookside Funeral Home in Houston.

Martin, born Nov. 6, 1937, in San Antonio to Leon F. and Bennie Maurine Martin, owned Martin Apparatus and Equipment for 27 years. A distributor for Pierce Manufacturing, Martin Apparatus was responsible for widespread acceptance of the brand by Texas fire departments.

A member of the Westfield Fire Department since 1965, Martin served as fire chief from 1985 to 2002. Westfield bought one of the first Pierce trucks in 1972, sparking Martin's interested in selling them. Martin was responsible for starting the first EMS first responder team in Texas. He was also responsible for Westfield becoming a tax district.

Martin is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Young-Martin; daughter, Maurine Martin-Turrentine and husband Scott; sons, Leon Martin Jr., and wife Cindy; James W. Martin Sr.; sister, Darlene Wood and grandchildren James Martin Jr., Kourtni Martin, Brittney Martin and Brianna Martin.