Business graduate leaves Liberty with lessons in life and industry to help grow his family business

Editor’s Note: Throughout the summer, Liberty News will shine the spotlight on members of the Class of 2020 leading up to Liberty’s 47th Commencement on Sept. 11-12. As seniors, this class had the exciting privilege of leading Liberty into a new decade — and then met the challenge of completing their degree during a pandemic. Through it all, they have made us proud. They are marching onward as true Champions for Christ, entering their chosen fields equipped to be world-changers with a renewed hope for the future.

Congratulations Class of 2020!  #LU2020 #LUGrads

Chase Martin (’20) was born in Chambersburg, Pa., in 1999 into a family business that has been in existence for over 50 years. His great grandfather founded David H. Martin Excavating Inc. in 1968 and has watched it grow into one of the state’s most successful construction companies.

At first, Martin’s great grandfather manned the company alone, using only a dump truck and a backhoe. Over the years, the company has expanded to over 200 employees — and a variety of machinery. The business is equipped to handle jobs costing up to $10 million but it also services local homeowners. When the namesake retired, he passed the company’s management off to his three sons who then passed it off to Martin’s father, who will similarly hand the reins off to Chase and his older brother Hunter upon his own retirement.

Martin worked for his father in the summers throughout his teenage years but was also an athlete in high school. He excelled at basketball and helped lead his school to a baseball championship during his senior season. After contemplating whether or not he would pursue playing basketball for a small college, he gave up on having a collegiate athletic career and decided to join several of his high school friends who had committed to attend Liberty.

Knowing that he would return to work in the family business after graduation, Martin was intentional in his degree program, pursuing a Business Administration degree with a cognate in Project Management.

“My degree is really going to help me in the future with running a business,” Martin said, adding that he learned valuable leadership skills that he will use to help the business continue to prosper.

“Some of the most beneficial things that I learned at Liberty were not directly part of my degree program,” he said. “I learned things such as how to encourage others in a way that is tailored specifically to them, how to deliver constructive criticism in the best manner, and how to receive criticism and learn from my own mistakes. But one of the biggest things that I took from my interactions with others is how to listen and show that you care about them.”

He said Liberty has helped him to grow in his pursuit of the Lord, too.

“Liberty has been such a blessing,” Martin said. “It has presented so many opportunities for me since I arrived, and I’ve grown so much. My second semester I became a community group leader (a member of Liberty’s student leadership team under the Office of Spiritual Development). Then, my sophomore year, I became a resident shepherd (another team member) before becoming a resident assistant for my final year of college.”

Martin said that he placed his trust in the Lord when he was young and has relied on Him ever since.

“When I was 6, my faith really became my own,” he said. “My parents may have led me to the decision, but from that time on, it was mine and I have grown from there.”

Martin condensed his four-year degree plan into three years, allowing for him to return sooner to the family business. He and his wife, Lexy, were married in June.

“I’d love to settle down in my hometown and raise a family someday with her,” Martin said. “I’ll probably go into the workforce at the company for a few years before hopefully moving up to an estimating position, which would be the next step.”