Streaks Alumni Profile: Robert Martin 1992

Today’s “Streaks Alumni Profile” features Robert Martin from the Galesburg HS Class of 1992.

I had the opportunity to coach Robert in cross county at GHS. He was one of those kids that you enjoyed coaching. He got along with everyone, his questions always showed a thoughtfulness and desire to learn. 

Of all the things that I do with my blog, the “Streaks Alumni Profile” is without a doubt the most enjoyable. There are so many Streaks Alums who are doing great things and it is great to catch up on their lives. 

Robert has lived a life of service to others. His service has taken him to Africa and New York, and back and forth throughout his life. His story is so inspiring, I am very grateful that he took the time to share it. 

Rob in A.F.S.- created interest in other cultures.

Favorite Teachers/Classes at GHS

All my math teachers I had were amazing! Which obviously influenced my career choice:

Pre Calc and Calculus - Mr Kessler

Alg 2 - Ms Eisman

Geometry  - Ms Fulton 

Chemistry - Mr Spencer 

American Studies - Mr Davore and Ms Stewart

Basic Computer Programming - don’t remember her name! 

Art - Ms. Dakolasa

10th grade English - Ms.Black

Streaks Cross Country

Sports/Activities at GHS

Track and field (3 years), Cross Country (2 years) and Golf for (1 year)

Various clubs - the one I remember the most was AFS - American Field Service, where we interacted with some exchange students. This really had an effect on my desire to travel and experience other cultures. 

Best Memories Growing Up in Galesburg/ Attending GHS

The integration of the teachers in daily life  - some examples are: 

Having Mr Fischer as my farm league baseball coach then at GHS for PE and then Cross Country. I remember Mr Fisher loading us up in his pickup truck and taking us 5 to 8 miles outside of Galesburg on these long country roads, dropping us off and having us run back to school. Those times running with my teammates made for some really great memories. 

Mr Albright as my driver's Ed and then Track coach, and I would also see him running his yard maintenance business over the summer. I think this opened my world to being a teacher while having some entrepreneurial endeavors during my free time.

Hickey as my golf coach, then simulator teacher and hurdles coach.

Massey coaching XC but seeing him coach girls basketball. The workouts he gave us running the hills of Lincoln Park are some of the hardest runs I ever had and I feel they really helped me develop my love for running.

Many of my teachers and coaches also showed up for Chrysalis. Going through the Chrysalis weekend is one of those enduring memories I hold dear from my experience living in Galesburg as a teenager. Having so many adults and community members support young people in their search for meaning—God, whatever we were experiencing—provided a comforting feeling knowing so many people were available if needed.

Rob running cross country. 

Education After GHS

BS in Math and Computer technology  - Purdue

MS in Educational computing - New York Insititue of Technology

Career

Peace Corps Malawi 1996-1998 as a Math teacher in Ntchisi, Malawi and then 1999 - extended a  third year as a teacher trainer in Luchenza, Malawi.

This is photo of Rob’s Cross Country team in Malawi

After Malawi, I settled into life in New York City in 2000. During my 2nd year in New York, the terrorist attacks happened (9/11/01) and I worked for my church doing relief work down in the Zone for about a year, supporting those doing the cleanup and recovery, before returning to teaching.

After teaching for a few more years, I started and ran my own moving company, Rob The Mover. I eventually did this full time when it was turning into

more than just a summer job; eventually we had 7 trucks and 25 employees, and an office on 38th street in Manhattan, before I decided I wanted to go back to teaching Math. 

I then joined Peace Corps again as part of a  “Peace Corps Response” team that responded to the repercussions of the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone - 2016. I worked at a university in the northern region - Ernest Bai Koroma University of Science and Technology. Living in New York during COVID felt eerily similar to dealing with the post-Ebola world in West Africa. 

Rob with other teachers in Sierra Leone

What Are You Up To Today

After Sierra Leone I returned to New York and finally found a more permanent home at Xavier High School in Manhattan, teaching Calculus and Alg 2/Trig. I’m also the distance coach / assistant for XC and Indoor and Outdoor track and the head Varsity and JV Bowling coach. One of my biggest challenges is finding places to run and bowl in Manhattan. We often have to take the subway or other trains/busses for 30-60 minutes to find some soft surfaces to run on or a true bowling center that is not just focused on making money from big corportate events. 

In Cross Country, we have finished in the top 5 at the Federation State Championship (2nd twice, 3rd, 4th, and 5th) in FIVE of the last SEVEN years. It has been amazing getting the chance to coach alongside New York legend Pat Dormer who is currently coaching in his 100th season. In 2024 we were the first New York City team to qualify for NXN - Nike Cross Country Nationals. It was a crowning achievement for our program and I was so proud to have been a part of it. Nike really does a great job running the national event by paying for all of the qualifying teams to fly out to Oregon and meet some of the top Nike sponsored athletes at the Nike headquarters, as well as compete on one of the most muddy, challenging XC courses.

NXN Cross Country team at Nike Nationals in Portland

The track team has produced numerous All-Americans.
This is a 4x800 Relay team that took 5th at Nationals. 

I have been running my company Strive Trips as an employee and eventual owner since 2010, which takes me to Kenya most summers and some spring breaks - we organize service trips for athletes to Kenya, Peru and Flagstaff, AZ. Here’s a photo from this summer 2026 in Kenya. This last summer I began working with a startup micro-loan company to secure loans for farmers in East Africa. The work will be similar to that of other funding organizations (One Acre Fund is one of them) but will focus on apiary (bee-keeping), permaculture and composting. We are caling it "Kulima Rising", (Kulima being the word for farming in many Bantu languages).

Rob this past summer in Kenya

 

I run 5km per day and am currently on a 200+ consecutive day streak, and I still average around 200 in bowling. I sometimes get lucky and win my age group in a small community 5km race, but I'm not setting many records. I'm just happy I'm still able to run with some of our athletes or younger coaches on easy runs in Central Park.

My wife, Ani and I live in Long Island, and we commute 
By train to the city. 

 

Advice For Today’s Students/Athletes

Take advantage of all the opportunities GHS and Galesburg have to offer. Talk to and get to know your teachers outside of the subject they teach. Don't get too stressed about your grades, just do your best; focus on learning and experiencing something unique. Try to find ways to travel to new places; go to college further from home than you think is comfortable and make use of study abroad programs. Work jobs you might not like right away and learn how to work with and live with people who are not exactly like you. You never know what new skills you will develop or what lessons you will learn from thinking and doing something outside the box. You are writing your own life story and there is so much in the world for you to experience. 


Thanks again- much appreciated!!