Seeing no future for himself in the small mining town where he grew up, at the age of seventeen Martinez left Arizona for Southern California.

[1] He found a job at the massive Bethlehem Steel plant in Maywood, East Los Angeles, attended night school at Santa Ana College, married and began raising a family.

He quit Bethlehem Steel to explore a series of other jobs in Southern California until finally in the late 1970s he used his savings to open a barbershop in downtown Santa Ana and proceeded to cut hair full-time for over twenty years.

[5] Librería Martinez Books & Art Gallery and Libros Para Niños, a children’s bookstore, are recognized nationwide for showcasing Latino authors and artists.

The selection committee cited Martinez for "fusing the roles of marketplace and community center to inspire appreciation of literature and preserve Latino literary heritage.