Archive: Around Town

Marty ChristopherAfter ten years at the helm of the Lansing Athletic Hall of Fame, Marty Christopher is stepping down.  Christopher, who, along with his father and nearly 50 other former Lansing High School athletes, coaches, teams, and contributors, has chaired the Hall of Fame Selection Committee for a decade.  Saturday Christopher was honored during the Hall Of Fame 'Class of 2011' induction ceremony.

"Marty, your leadership and involvement with our school district contributes greatly to our wonderful school culture, and to the lives of our community's children," said School Superintendent Stephen Grimm in a surprise tribute to Christopher.

The ceremony typically occurs between the varsity and junior varsity basketball games.  Individuals and teams are inducted into the Hall of Fame, located in the hallway behind the gymnasium in the high school.  They are presented with plaques that are duplicates of those placed on the Hall of Fame wall.  Athletic Director Adam Heck presented Christopher with a plaque of appreciation and Grimm presented him with a Golden Apple.

"I remember my first meeting with Marty when I first arrived here in Lansing back in January of 2008," Grimm recalls.  "I remember how impressed I was with him as a person and thought, wow, if that's what people in Lansing are like, then I'm going to love it here.  Well, they are, and I do."

Christopher played football, basketball, and baseball when he attended Lansing High School.  He averaged 21 points per game playing on the 1959-1960 basketball team.   He was a pitcher on the baseball team and a .333 lifetime hitter.  He was a quarterback and defensive back on the football team.  In his senior year Christopher captained all three teams, and was named a Tri-County All-Star in football and basketball.


Christopher retired after a career in records management, first at Tompkins Trust Company, and later at NYSEG.  He and his wife Margaret have two grown children, both of whom attended Lansing schools, a son who lives with his wife and 21 year old son in Ithaca, and a daughter in Cincinnati.  This year he retired from the Lansing Town Board after serving two four-year terms.

"On behalf of the faculty, staff, students, and the Board of Education of the Lansing Central School District, Board President Anne Drake and I present to you a Golden Apple, which is a symbol of our thanks and appreciation for everything you have done to honor our past student-athletes;  teaching us all that by honoring their accomplishments, we too can be inspired to look within, and  imagine such excellence for ourselves and each other," Grimm said.

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