VIEWPOINT MAGAZINE Volume 5.4 May 2017 | Page 5

Story of My Life Scott’s Steps Mr. Martin: Story of My Life By Mr. Martin By: Scott Martin 1969 Hot dry summer of , in the desert of southeastern Colorado, in a tiny village of Lamar, was born Scott Ray Martin. The first-born son of Pastor Ray and his wife Nina, Scott grew up in Colorado, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Indiana until the age of 11 when his family moved to Africa. He lived on the Serengeti plains of Tanzania and Kenya. 1981 In January of , a blond headed boy, tall for his age, stood on a dusty road near a beat-up Landrover on the escarpment of the Great Rift Valley. As he looked down on the plains, he witnessed the wildebeest migration. Animals, in millions, were spread across the grassland as though this was God's dining table and the Creator had spilled all the black pepper from its container. Those ugly beasts, the countless gazelles, impalas, zebras, elephants, baboons stood between that little blond boy and the language school which was the family’s destination. For the next eight years, Africa was home to the Martin clan, and Scott continued to grow. 1987 In April of , that young man stood on the foul line in the midst of a battle. His team was to be named Kenyan Secondary School National Champions. Nearly 40°C at noon, the game was played on an outdoor court paved with blacktop. The backboard stood 15 ft away; the fans crowded the court with a constant chorus of cheers and jeers. Over the three days of the tournament, Scott faced off against five different players who would go on to play for the Kenyan National team. 1990 In March of , now a young man, Scott stood in front of a crowd of nearly 3000 at Anderson University. Scott had been on this stage before, as an MC for a talent night, as a member of the Homecoming Court, and as an actor in skits. He had even danced here as Kid n Play in a lip-sync competition. However, on this day, he would give a speech as one of the final two candidates for the Student Body President. On this day, his long blond hair was pulled into a neat ponytail. He had served three years as an RA, two years in MUN, advancing all the way to nationals at Harvard, two years as President of Agathos social club, as a fellow in the center for public service, and as a student council representative, but on this day, he would lose to his good friend Rudy Pyle, who is currently a judge on the Indiana Court of Appeals in the fourth district. 1992 In May of , the Kenyan national anthem was played by a brass quartet, and a young man dressed in a tuxedo walked into a church in West Virginia, his hair still long and tied back. This day, he married the most beautiful, smartest, kindest, and most talented girl he had ever met. 2000 In May of , Director Scott Martin received the Morrison Award for Staff Person of the Year at Anderson University on the same stage where he, as a student, had lost a battle. Scott shook the hand of the Student body president as she handed him his award. 2001 On September 11, , it was Mr. Martin who was asked by the President of the University to address the student body in response to the shocking events in New York and D.C. that very morning. 2010 On October 15th, , Scott skyped with Mountainview students about college types and the process of getting into Ameri- can colleges. Later that day, he spoke with the superintendent who told him about a staffing crisis at MICS. November 7, 2010. Less than three weeks later, Scott stood on the basketball court with his college friend Bill Webb for tryouts for basketball season at MICS. On February Wesley. 2017 , Mr. Martin ended his final live broadcast of Mountainview basketball with a win of the boys’ team over Layout by James Kwak 4