Inductees

Never let anyone tell you that you cannot make an impact and be a big deal at a quaint college.

Martha ‘Marty’ Waller proved it at a place called College of the Ozarks near Table Rock Lake. When her husband accepted the head basketball coaching job in 1977, the folks on campus didn’t know they were getting a great tandem.

“She wasn’t a cheerleader in high school,” Al Waller said. “But after my first year, they had a cheerleading team, and the coach quit. Some of the girls came to her and talked her into it. The rest is history.”

Indeed it is. Marty threw herself into just about every volunteer effort she could, especially the cheerleading program and the NAIA Division II men’s basketball tournament. And it’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly inducted her posthumously with the Class of 2025.

Her induction also means she and Al (MSHOF 2003) are only the second husband and wife to be inducted, joining volleyball coaches Wayne and Susan Kreklow (2016).

Marty passed away on Feb. 20, 2025 and left behind quite a legacy.

Marty was the director of C of O’s Child Development Center for 21 years. She also coached the cheer team for 27 years and played a significant role in the success of the NAIA Division II men’s basketball tournament, held in Point Lookout for 18 seasons. She chaired the opening ceremonies, halftime entertainment and the east pass gate for 16 years.

Additionally, she and Al mentored hundreds of students over the years, and continued to serve the athletics department the past 15 years after the passing of their son, Chris, a former basketball player who graduated in 2001.

They established the Chris Waller Memorial Scholarship Fund and blessed the lives of numerous graduates. Marty was inducted into the C of O Sports Hall of Fame in 2015 and was involved with the Branson Booster Club, the American Red Cross, the American Cancer Society and the Branson Believers.

When she passed away, the college posted the sad news on its Facebook page, and the outpouring of support flooded in.

As Kaye Sharp wrote, “She left behind memories of her dedication, integrity and service!! She and Al were a ‘team’ themselves and we will keep him & the entire family in our prayer list for the foreseeable future!!”

Marty had graduated from Ingalls High School in western Kansas and met Al at Saint Mary of the Plains College in Dodge City. They lived in Kansas City for a time before moving to Branson.

“It’s interesting,” Al said. “She never believed in national competitions. She believed the cheer teams should just support the men’s and women’s teams.”

That’s not to say Marty didn’t have high expectations for her cheerleaders. She ran practices from 6 AM to 7:30 AM daily and did so from near the weight room.

That was by design. Whenever her cheerleaders needed lifting, Marty would send two into the weight room to recruit a couple of guys. And then she would recruit the guys to be on the cheer team.

And because C of O’s budget was tight, instead competing nationally, Marty found an affordable and more strategic way of enhancing the cheer program. She would hire a coach from the Universal Cheerleading Association, or UCA, to come in for a few days.

“They spent hours and hours working on routines,” Al said. “Every year at homecoming, they do a routine. And for Parents Night, they do another routine. I don’t know how much time they put in, but she was dedicated.”

Marty also ran a daycare out of their home, but watched only school-age children. That allowed her the time to work with the cheerleaders but also have holidays off to coincide with the local school district calendars.

The NAIA Division II Tournament was always treated by the school and community as a major deal, and it was one thing that sports fans should have had on their to-do list.

Marty enhanced it by coordinating the opening ceremonies, in which she had players walk out on the gym floor and they would spell out NAIA. Halftime entertainment? She made sure it was not only covered but was first class, too.

Along the way, she would cook meals for every C of O team at least once or twice a year.

In other words, Marty was a big reason why C of O Athletics was a success.

As Al put it, “She was just an amazing lady.”