Nominations for the Grand Island Senior High School Hall of Honor are accepted throughout each year. The Hall of Honor Committee will review all submitted nominations and honor inductees every other year. We are excited to announce the Hall of Honor Banquet & Celebration will be held again on Tuesday, March 12, 2024.
The Hall of Honor, inaugurated in 1983, recognizes Grand Island Senior High School alumni who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the betterment of society. Nominees must have graduated more than 20 years ago from the high school.
Philip "Mac" Martin, Jr.
Class of 1970
Hall of Honor 2017
Philip Martin, Jr., ‘Mac’, as he is known to friends and family, is a product of the K-8 curriculum at Stolley Park School, which was Hall County District 1 at that time. He attended Barr Junior High and attended Grand Island Senior High, graduating in 1970. While at Senior High, Martin was active in student government, journalism and forensics. Martin is a third generation Islander, with graduates in the family dating back to the early 1900’s.
In 1974, Martin graduated from Hastings College with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He graduated from the University of Nebraska, College of Law in 1977.
Immediately upon graduation, Martin started his career in Grand Island, where he was engaged in private practice until he was appointed by Governor Ben Nelson to the County Court bench in 1990. He served the State of Nebraska and Hall County as a county/juvenile court judge for 26 years until his retirement in 2017.
While on the bench, Martin worked with Hall County Supervisors to establish the Juvenile Diversion Program. This program was tremendously successful and considered a model program for the state of Nebraska. Additionally, Martin was instrumental in the creation of the Hall County Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program to support abused and neglected children in the court system. Colleagues near and far regarded Martin as an informal mentor who could provide expert professional training for both judges and attorneys.
Martin continued to be involved in the community, serving in the leadership of many organizations including the Boy Scouts, Heartland United Way, Citizen Advocacy, and Mid-Plains Mental Health Center. He served as president of the Nebraska County Judges Association and was named the 2016 recipient of the Love of Children Award by a coalition of Hall County childrens’ charities.
Martin and his wife, Ann, reside in Doniphan, Nebraska and are the parents of two grown sons, Paul and James.
