honored posthumously
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said that enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. For Marty Hendin, the spirit of enthusiasm was the accelerator of accomplishment in everything he did – from transforming athletics as a student and alum at the University of Missouri–St. Louis to serving as the ambassador of baseball in front office leadership roles with the St. Louis Cardinals.
His impact on UMSL continued long after graduation. Marty served as president of the UMSL Alumni Association Board of Directors, where he helped promote the benefits of athletics to the future of the university and its long-term promotion. He also served on the executive committee as vice president and chair of the Red and Gold Club and played a significant role in re-introducing homecoming activities, including the Alumni Family Day, the Tip-Off Luncheon and the creation of the UMSL Sports Hall of Fame.
Marty was a prolific "doer" at UMSL, forming the university’s first spirit club, "The Steamers," organizing road trips for fans to support the basketball team. He was one of the first sportswriters on the staff of the university’s student newspaper, The Current, where he later served as sports editor.
As a baseball executive, Marty worked in various marketing, public relations and community relations posts for the St. Louis Cardinals, beginning his career in 1973 and continuing until his passing in 2008. During that time, he became known for the unique collection of Cardinals and baseball memorabilia in his office at Busch Memorial Stadium that was dubbed "Trinket City."
Marty was known for an innovative focus on capturing the attention of younger baseball fans and is credited with helping spur the popularity of team mascot, Fredbird. But Marty always downplayed the connection to the founding of the Cardinals’ mascot.
"Everyone wants to credit me with inventing him, and I didn’t," Marty once said. "He was sort of put under my wing, so to speak – basically the idea had been broached by many different people, since that was the heyday of the San Diego Chicken."
Marty was inducted into the UMSL Sports Hall of Fame in 2003 and the St. Louis Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.
