Email: martin.henderson at patch.com
Phone: 949-354-1734
Birthday: Feb. 5
In the summer of 2013, Martin Henderson was named Online Journalist of the Year by the Los Angeles Press Club, of which the judges said: His work serves as a model for the future of journalism on the Internet.'
Raised in a rural farming community in Northern California, Martin Henderson won a sports writing contest at the local newspaper during his senior year at Lindhurst High. A few months later he was covering games and getting paid $25, which he used for insurance and gas money while attending Sacramento State. At one point during his junior year, after it was apparent that Major League Baseball had no use for a junk-balling right-handed pitcher, he transitioned from writing weekly at the local paper to working daily at the weekly paper. Both the Marysville Appeal-Democrat and Yuba City Valley-Herald were positive experiences, and after a brief stop in radio as a part-time on-air personality, Martin moved to San Diego where he anchored sports coverage for three weekly papers in the Poway-Rancho Bernardo area. He also made a stop at the Oceanside Blade Tribune, hired as a page designer but also working in editorial. He finally achieved his goal, working at the Los Angeles Times, albeit its San Diego County Edition, in 1990, just six years after graduating college with a degree in communications studies. Because his very early childhood was spent at the dragstrip where his father raced a motorcycle on weekends, Martin wasn’t intimidated like other stick-and-ball reporters when the opportunity to cover the Grand Prix of Del Mar presented itself. That began a long association with auto racing and eventually mentoring from Shav Glick, a member of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. Spending a career primarily as a sportswriter has provided Martin some very cool perks: Meeting most of his childhood heroes (Roman Gabriel, Nolan Ryan), getting the occasional media ride in a race car (176 mph in the backseat of a two-seater Indy car driven by Jimmy Vasser in Long Beach) and filling up a lot of scrapbooks for grandparents. He has covered professional baseball, football, hockey and indoor soccer. He has worked a World Series and a Super Bowl. Now, as media transitions, Martin does too, his days in newsprint replaced by bandwidth, coaches replaced by councilmen, and the pitch replaced by a Patch. His Patch, your Patch.
Call Martin at 949-354-1734, or write him at martin.henderson at patch.com.
At Patch, we promise always to report the facts objectively and adhere to the principles of good journalism. In the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable.
Beliefs: Apart from salvation, if you were to describe the Bible’s contents in two words, it would be this—Be honorable. As long as you do that, you are doing right by people. In the context of my position in the media, it translates to being fair. If I am fair, no one should have any complaints. But fair is not the same as not upsetting people.
Politics: I like team sports, but when it comes to politics, I am a free agent. It is not necessary that I align with one party or another, but instead vote with the common sense I expect our candidates to have. There is no way one party can represent all that I stand for or care about, especially in a nation in which it seems only two parties really matter. In local government, does it really matter if you are a Republican or a Democrat? Not the way I see it. What matters is you have a good head on your shoulders and you have the interests of the community at stake, and not your own. If you are going to be in politics, just be honorable. And don’t lie to me, because if you lie to me you’re lying to the people of the community. The are the ones who I represent.
Religion: I am a Christian, although you probably would not know it by my language whilst driving. I need to do better not only there, but everywhere.
The Never Ever Give Up movement reaches 150,000 Facebook fans and earns money with every click; the next challenge is to reach 155,000 by Sept. 1 to receive another $5,000 gift from a benefactor.
It's a bad week for marriages and a certain wayward deer.
With a name like The Superfreaks, they have to be groovy, right? Bonus points for any fans wearing Angel Flight suits during the Sunday performance.
Chief engineer Dan Ferons is the man who will guide Santa Margarita Water District through its various challenges, including the Cadiz Project, as he succeeds John Schatz.
A local dog was recently euthanized, partly because the owner didn't know which animal shelter had jurisdiction over Rancho Santa Margarita.
One of the featured performers at Relay For Life wasn't a musician, but a painter, who delivered an iconic figure.
Towns throughout the United States are sending athletes and representatives to the Summer Games in London. RSM is no different.
Hundreds of Santa Margarita Catholic students are entering college for the fall semester. We tell you where they're going.
The former gold medalist, a Coto de Caza resident, talks about being an Olympian, failing, and what it takes to succeed. Also, he talks about perspective.
The finished pieces were extraordinary. There were winners and ... well, there were only winners for those who viewed the pieces.
Justin DeBlasio, who played for Santa Margarita in the 1990s, hopes to guide the program to a fourth Southern Section title.
Band brings out the cowboy hats in Rancho Santa Margarita in the second of five summer concerts at Central Park.
Patch decides not to follow the nominations for favorite local celebrity. Here's why.
Let's separate fast casual from the sitdown restaurants that are going to require a tip. Where do you go for those special events?
Californians Aware is asking voters to sign a petition that would protect key provisions of the Brown Act, the state's open-government law.
Rodeo Drive continues the Summer Concert Series at Central Park. Donations are being sought to benefit Rancho Santa Margarita's adopted 2/5 Marines.
Summer concert series gets off to a rousing start with stadium anthem cover band World Tour. The series continues today.
His mother, who witnessed his suicide off the Oso Bridge, said afterward, 'This sermon made it real.' Her son was 22.
Stephen Beckman who leaped off the Oso Parkway Bridge in front of his mother, will be remembered today in Rancho Santa Margarita.
A discussion point since 9/11, will the mayhem at the Batman movie make us rethink security at movie theaters, malls or school events? Join the discussion, vote in the poll.
