Martha Becker passed away on April 24. She was 80 years old. She died peacefully at home surrounded by family and friends. A child of Ridgewood, Queens, she went on to graduate from Grasslands Nursing School in 1956. Becker became a nurse for Winthrop University Hospital and the school nurse for Saint Aidan’s in Williston Park. Her career spanned over 50 years. Much of her life was dedicated to helping heal and comfort the sick. She described her long nursing career as her “calling.”
She was a member of the Rosary Society of Corpus Christi Church and a Eucharistic Minister there. 
In addition to her passion for nursing and dedication to the church, Becker was also an intrepid traveler, having visited all seven continents. She was drawn to traveling because she wanted to meet people and see how they lived. She had an insatiable curiosity about life and easily connected with people.
Her fondness for arts and crafts was expanded when she became active in the 4-H. She had a special talent for knitting and crocheting; making christening and prayer blankets as well as socks, for friends and family.
Becker was a supporter of the arts, having held a subscription to the Metropolitan Opera for more than 36 years. Later in life she became an avid bridge player.
She and Paul, her husband of 59 years, have been Mineola residents for 56 years. She is a first generation American, as both her parents emigrated from Europe during the late 1920s. She maintained strong family ties to relatives in Germany and Slovakia.
She is predeceased by her parents, Michael and Josephine Mattmann, and her sister Linda Polhill. She is survived by her husband, Paul; their four children Michael, Barbara, John and Andrew; and their spouses, Karen Lumley, Chrissy Becker, and Frank Fontana; and two beloved grandchildren, Nicole and Jacqueline. She is also survived by her sister, Betty Amico, her brother, John Mattmann and his wife Patricia; and 16 nieces and nephews.
–Submitted by the Becker family
