Zane Andrew Martin, 36, of Warren, RI passed away suddenly on Monday, December 1, 2025, as the only occupant in a single car crash. Born in Providence, on October 7, 1989, he was the beloved son of John and Jan (Trounson) Martin.

Zane lived the first five years of his life in downtown Bristol, RI before the family moved to the Touisset neighborhood of Warren, RI. He was educated in the Bristol/Warren Regional Public School system attending public schools in the Bristol-Warren regional school system.

Zane enjoyed many summertime activities in Touisset including swimming, sailing, tennis, and Family Fun/Youth Activity nights (often run by his dad) with the Touissett Point Community Club; as well as clamming, kayaking, and hiking in and around the Touissett Wildlife refuge.

Zane loved to read and was an astute student with a love for English—both reading and writing— History, and Geography, winning the Kickemuit Middle School Geography Bee in 7th Grade. Once in elementary school, he also became involved in town sports with the Warren/Swansea Redskins pop warner football team and Warren Little League baseball, which he loved above the rest. He graduated from Mount Hope High School in 2007 in the National Honors Society, but began to show a bit of his rebellious streak and sense of humor by pulling a senior prank of removing and hiding the school mission statement plaques from each classroom and office, one by one—for which he and two friends were threatened with arrest. The plaques were returned, no harm done.

Zane’s interests were many and varied, and he was always active. Aside from town sports, he took up skateboarding; he was a writer, an avid music lover, and played bass guitar in a pop-punk style band called “Molotov Monday.” Their biggest hit was titled “Weebles Wobble but They Don’t Fall Down,” which they performed in a high school Battle of the Bands.

Zane was intelligent and lighthearted. Though his great sense of humor could be dark and sardonic at times, it was complimented by his warm nature and genuine concern for others. He would try to make any situation better and would help friends in need at any time of day or night if he was in town.

After graduating Mt. Hope High School in 2007, Zane attended URI, but found that conventional education was not for him. While still a student and living off campus, he took a position where he started to learn welding, which he fell in love with and continued for the rest of his life. He transitioned from URI to training at Ocean State Technical Services, where he worked and received on-the-job training and certifications to begin his career as a welder/fabricator. He worked in various local shipyards and fabrication/repair shops until joining the Boilermakers Union, Local 29 Chapter.

As an apprentice for the Boilermakers, Zane won the 2019 Northeast Regional Apprentice of the Year Competition and was the runner-up for the 2019 National Apprentice Competition, a testament to his hard work and perseverance. During his years of work with the Boilermakers, Zane helped build and maintain power plants across the Eastern US, from Maine to Michigan to Arkansas and Georgia. He loved the technical and physical challenges of the work—taking great satisfaction in getting the job done well and quickly. He made many fast friendships travelling among his fellow Boilermakers.

Zane had recently opened his own metal fabrication/repair business out of his shop in Pawtucket, RI, Martin Welding. He was having a lot of success with word-of-mouth recommendations of his work as a welder and mechanic and his reliable nature. He loved all things mechanical, and coveted the axles of many pick-up trucks, wanting to swap them into his own trucks for fun. One of his favorite pastimes was buying old beater cars and keeping them on their last legs as long and as cheaply as possible. This lent itself to Zane’s ability to help a friend, acquaintance, or stranger who found themselves in a tight spot in need of repairs to older vehicles for whatever they could afford. Beyond this, he would rather teach a person how to do the repairs themselves, how to weld, or anything else he had experience with.

He was a fun, lively, loving “Uncle Zane” to many of his friends’ children as well as to his actual niece Lily and nephew Isaac Jr. He was particularly supportive of young, single moms that he knew from school and beyond. The funny thing is that many of his ex-girlfriends have wonderful things to share with Zane’s mother, about how important he was in their lives.

One of the key factors in his starting Martin Welding was to stop travelling with the Boilermakers so much - to be home with his daughter Callie, who was born Nov. 10, 2024, and stole his heart completely.

Zane is survived by his daughter Callie, her mother Gabriel Evans of Bristol, RI; his parents, John and Jan Martin; his brother Isaac Martin Sr. of Warren, RI; his niece and nephew Lily Martin and Isaac Martin Jr. and their mother Amanda Michaud of Cranston, RI; as well as and many aunts, uncles, and cousins both across this country, and in Germany.

Services are with Smith Funeral & Memorial Services, 8 Schoolhouse Rd. Warren, RI 02885, where the family will receive relatives and guests for Visitation on Sunday, December 21, 2025, from 11AM-3PM.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Zane’s name may be made to: the family, directly in support of his daughter, Callie, or to her GoFundMe at https://gofund.me/b21dea794.

For tributes, please visit: www.wjsmithfh.com.