Mary Kristine “Kris” Martin Aldrich

Mary Kristine “Kris” Martin Aldrich, age 86, of Asheville, NC passed away on December 17, 2025.  Kris was born on February 26, 1939 in Ogden, UT to the late Leslie Resa Martin and Garnet Iva Brown Martin.

Kris received her Master’s Degree in Bacteriology from the University of Kansas.  She worked at the National Institutes of Health where she retired in 2007, after 20 years in a research group doing groundbreaking work on HIV.  Throughout her life, she enjoyed sewing, embroidery and other needlecrafts, cooking, reading, and getting together with her friends from church. Kris was affiliated with Groce United Methodist Church. She treasured living with her daughter’s family and watching her grandson grow from a toddler to a teenager.

Kris is preceded in death by her spouse, Charles DeLos Aldrich.  She is also preceded in death by her brother, Robert Leslie Martin and her sister-in-law, Henrietta Montgomery Martin.  She is survived by her daughter, Susan Westcott (Stevin), of Asheville, NC; her brother-in-laws, John Aldrich, of Emporia, KS and Larry Aldrich (Patty), of Derby, KS; her grandson, Zachary Westcott, of Asheville, NC; her son-in-law, Stevin Westcott, of Asheville, NC; her nephews, Christopher Martin (Linda), of Bracey, VA, Randall Martin (Charlene), of Carrboro, NC, Bradley Aldrich (Bailey), of Baton Rouge, LA, Heath Knolla (Amber), of Anthony, KS, and her nieces, Lacey Hatfield (Dan), of Haysville, KS, Arleigh McCormick (Kyle), of Tucson, AZ, and Ashley Jantz (Ryan), of Omaha, NE.

The family would like to thank the staff of Swannanoa Valley Nursing and Rehab and Four Seasons Hospice for their care.  Please consider a donation to the American Cancer Society in Kris’s memory.

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