Marty Strayer grew up in Manheim, Pennsylvania, and played basketball, until eventual Hall of Fame wrestling coach Clyde “Red” Witman, pulled him aside in the ninth grade and said, “Martin, I’ve seen you play basketball, and I think you should come out for wrestling!” 

Marty has frequently repeated the significance of that 15-word conversation with Coach Witman, and how it changed and molded his being for the rest of his life.

That was the start of Marty’s lifelong love affair with Wrestling! He was a District Runner-Up at Manheim Central, but then he really found himself wrestling at the collegiate level.  

Marty was recruited by Hall of Fame coach John Reese at Wilkes College. In his freshman year of 1960-61, Marty was undefeated and the MAC conference champ. That Wilkes squad was very talented, but in those days, there was no national tournament to which Wilkes could advance. 

Marty believed he had already reached the highest goal at Wilkes he could achieve. So he approached Hall of Fame coach Charlie Speidel at Penn State, telling him that he thought he could be a national champion. Coach Speidel invited Marty and his family for a visit, and then he walked on at Penn State in the following year.

Marty redshirted in 1961-62, then was a starter from 1963 to 1965, forging a career record of 43-8-2. He placed second in EIWA in 1963, and qualified for the NCAA tournament. He was the EIWA champion the next two years, and placed fifth and earned All-America honors as a senior at the 1965 NCAA Championships. That year Marty was coached by first-year coach and later Hall of Famer, Bill Koll. Marty was named Penn State's most valuable wrestler in 1964 and 1965.

Marty went on to be a PIAA and NCAA wrestling official for 15 years, and worked many state tournaments along with being invited to referee in five NCAA Division I Championships. 

Marty is currently the Chief Financial Officer at Central Penn Nursing Care. He is a contributor to the Manheim Central, Wilkes College and Penn State Wrestling Teams. In 2008 he endowed a scholarship at Penn State. 

Marty served on the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's Board of Governors for 14 years, and currently serves as a Governor’s Associate for the Hall of Fame. Marty also served on Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's board for five years, including four as the president. 

Marty is a member of the Manheim Central Hall of Fame and the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Officials Hall of Fame. 

Marty lives in Lititz, with his wife Eleanor. They have two children, Marty, IV and Gretchen.

Marty received the Lifetime Service to Wrestling award from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2021.