ANGEL & FRANKIE MARTINEZ

Scholarship Fund of Concord and Carlisle Donors,
The Scholarship Fund of Concord and Carlisle Adrian A. Martinez Memorial Scholarship

We established the Adrian A. Martinez Memorial Scholarship Fund to honor the life of our son, Adrian, CCHS Class of 2002. Adrian had been a beloved member of the CCHS community whose humility, gentle and caring nature, and love of learning inspired the lives of all he met. He selflessly gave to all who sought his help, whether academically as a gifted math student or athletically as a champion distance runner. He cherished his friends and family and was loved universally. He led quietly and by example, both at CCHS and at Williams College, where he graduated with the class of 2006.

Adrian died suddenly, shortly after graduating from Williams, and in the aftermath of our devastating loss, we really wanted to do something that honored his memory and project the things he was all about. His generosity of spirit had made him help people at every opportunity. Everyone said that about him. Our goal was to create a way, through the scholarship, both to honor his values and to inspire other young people to behave in a way consistent with those values. The scholarship emerged from that desire and our need to share Adrian’s spirit and everything that he stood for.

We have asked that the scholarship be given to students with that same generosity of spirit – unselfish, loving life, celebrating others’ success as they would their own, humble, and team players. In short, we wanted to select those who are always there for others and to recognize these qualities and inspire these traits in future generations of young people. 

Over the years, we have received beautiful letters from all of the recipients. Each recipient says the same thing – they admire what Adrian stood for and are committed to living life in a way consistent with that standard. That is our very fitting reward. We are Facebook friends with some, and we follow their progress. It is very validating, but not surprising, to watch them evolve, develop, and grow as people, to witness from afar their courage in taking on challenges and doing new things. For example, Caitlin Moss, one of the first Adrian Martinez scholars, traveled to teach in rural China, which we found very inspiring.

Recipients like Caitlin inspire not only us but a lot of other people as well, just as we hoped. We are sure that Adrian is proud of the annual Adrian Martinez Classic Track Meet, the scholarship in his name, and all the scholars who have benefited from it. It has allowed our family to watch his spirit live on through the lives of all of the wonderful recipients. Our goal in establishing a named fund through The Scholarship Fund of Concord and Carlisle is to have the scholarship preserve Adrian’s memory for many years to come.