Edgar done with baseball, but rest is not part of retirement
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SEATTLE -- In the history of Seattle sports, there may not have been a more beloved figure than Edgar Martinez. But if you are wondering what he has been up to lately, the answer is "plenty."
Edgar's not the guy that retires and just plays a lot of golf. He is a worker -- he worked hard at being a great hitter, and he's working just as hard now, using his name to help make some positive changes.
"I played baseball for so many years, that I miss just being around baseball," Edgar said. "It's a game that I love... and yeah, I miss it."
But Edgar hasn't struggled at all with chapter two. These days he's in the business of being a dad to his 3 kids, and the business of having a business.
His company Branded Solutions has really taken off, and now Edgar is in the business of making a difference.
Two years ago, he and his wife Holly started the Edgar Martinez Foundation. The mission here is very specific.
"After talking to some people in the community, we found out it's a big need for teachers of color in the schools," Edgar said.
The immediate goal is to get more minorities, especially Latinos, to go to college, and the dream is to get them to become teachers.
"We have 7 percent teachers of color in Washington state," Holly Martinez said. "And a student population of different races is close to 40 percent. The achievement gap is very stark; it's drastic."
But in just two years, they've made a drastic difference. So far, $725,000 in scholarships have been awarded and more is on the way. It's 3/4th of a million more reasons to love Edgar.
"This is a great thing that we're doing," Edgar Martinez said. "And I think an important one too."
He and Holly say there's a lot of work to be done, kids to motivate, and problems to fix. But there's very little doubt how Edgar will do with the foundation that he and Holly have poured their passion into.
He'll very quietly hit it out of the park.
Edgar's not the guy that retires and just plays a lot of golf. He is a worker -- he worked hard at being a great hitter, and he's working just as hard now, using his name to help make some positive changes.
"I played baseball for so many years, that I miss just being around baseball," Edgar said. "It's a game that I love... and yeah, I miss it."
But Edgar hasn't struggled at all with chapter two. These days he's in the business of being a dad to his 3 kids, and the business of having a business.
His company Branded Solutions has really taken off, and now Edgar is in the business of making a difference.
Two years ago, he and his wife Holly started the Edgar Martinez Foundation. The mission here is very specific.
"After talking to some people in the community, we found out it's a big need for teachers of color in the schools," Edgar said.
The immediate goal is to get more minorities, especially Latinos, to go to college, and the dream is to get them to become teachers.
"We have 7 percent teachers of color in Washington state," Holly Martinez said. "And a student population of different races is close to 40 percent. The achievement gap is very stark; it's drastic."
But in just two years, they've made a drastic difference. So far, $725,000 in scholarships have been awarded and more is on the way. It's 3/4th of a million more reasons to love Edgar.
"This is a great thing that we're doing," Edgar Martinez said. "And I think an important one too."
He and Holly say there's a lot of work to be done, kids to motivate, and problems to fix. But there's very little doubt how Edgar will do with the foundation that he and Holly have poured their passion into.
He'll very quietly hit it out of the park.
