ST. CROIX — Martin (Marty) Merrick, a longtime weather forecaster who devoted most of his time with News Channel 8 and the Caribbean Community Theater while here, was found dead in a condominium located in Estate St. John, a press release VIPD Public Information Officer Kevin Jackson issued this morning has revealed.
According to Mr. Jackson, Mr. Merrick, 77, was discovered dead at his home located in Sea Condominiums in Frenchman’s Hill on Monday morning by VIPD officers. The release states that a couple notified the 911 emergency call center about the incident at 9:50 a.m. on Monday, after they had not seen Mr. Merrick since Friday, December 18, when he was collecting his mail.
Mr. Jackson said that at the behest of another resident of the complex, a welfare check was made on the individual and unable to gain access through the front door, the maintenance representative climbed onto a balcony through an adjoining unit and saw the still body of the individual.
A Sea Condominiums staff member then contacted the 911 emergency call center as well as the emergency medical technicians, who examined the body and found no signs of life.
Mr. Merrick had for years gave weather forecast updates as part of News Channel 8’s nightly news broadcast. He was an iconic figure synonymous with weather in the the territory, and many recalled growing up with Mr. Merrick, including this reporter, in the mid 1990s all the way into the early 2000s.
His first job at Channel 8 was scheduling commercials and programming, according to Glen Dratte, who became general manger of Channel 8 in 2005, just when Mr. Merrick was getting ready to retire. According to Mr. Dratte, current marketing director at The Consortium and ubiquitous radio personality on Isle 95, WJKC, Mr. Merrick learned weather during his Navy years.
“Marty flew planes in the Navy for years. He was also involved in a lot of plays and was a very good actor,” Mr. Dratte said. “He was very knowledgeable, very talented and smart. He was also a regiment man because of his years in the Navy.”
Speaking of being involved in plays, a great portion of Mr. Merrick’s life was built around theater.
In 1983, after 27 years in the U.S. Navy and 45 years of music and theater all over the mainland, Mr. Merrick retired to St Croix, according to information found on the Caribbean Community Theater’s website. Within a week he had auditioned for and was cast in a David Richards-directed show at the old Airport Inn. He was part of a small group that created Caribbean Community Theatre in 1985, and for the first ten years he was Vice President of Operations. Mr. Merrick also worked with almost every theatrical venue on the island as well as Pistarckle Theater on St Thomas, serving in every position from gofer to producer/director.
He was involved in more than 100 shows — and had the T-shirts to prove it, the description added. He directed CCT’s productions of No Sex Please, We’re British in 2003, and What the Butler Saw in 2004, as well as The Fantasticks at the Sidney Lee Theater in 2001.
“Marty was dedicated, kind, generous and multi-disciplined. He was a renaissance man,” said Charles Jaquays, who replaced Mr. Merrick as technical director at CCT. “He gave his time willingly and selflessly until his body could not keep up with the physical demands of the job. It’s hard work climbing ladders and hanging lights, building and tearing down sets.
“Even if I had a page I’d be hardpressed to summarize his life in one page. He will be sorely missed,” Mr. Jaquays concluded.
Feature Image: Martin “Marty” Merrick, courtesy CCT.
Share On Facebook
Tweet It
