Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation FBI Crime News (b)
Today, family members of fallen FBI Special Agent Martha Dixon stopped at the FBI Pittsburgh Field Office on their 330 mile bicycle ride from her engraved name in Washington, D.C. to her engraved name here in Pittsburgh. Martha’s Ride calls attention to her heroic sacrifice. The ride started in Washington, D.C. on October 4th and ended at the field office named after her on October 8th.
“We all walk into this building named after Ms. Dixon every day and remember the sacrifice she made,” said FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Mike Nordwall. “We are thankful to her family for continuing to honor her legacy.”
“Martha’s Ride honors the enduring legacy of a true American hero,” said Kevin Dixon, Martha Dixon’s brother. “Martha was unfortunately called upon to make the supreme sacrifice for her fellow Americans. Aside from a devoted agent, she was known for her love of her young nieces and nephews and for athletics. To keep her memory alive, the Martha Fund conducts the ‘Martha’s Ride,’ as well as a run in her name each spring as an homage to her athleticism. It also honors her love for kids by helping build playgrounds in the Pittsburgh area.”
Money raised from the ride will go to the Martha Fund, which has been building playgrounds in the Greater Pittsburgh area for more than 20 years. Martha Fund will make a meaningful donation to renovate this playground in Martha’s name.
Special Agents Martha Dixon Martinez and Michael John Miller, as well as Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Sergeant Hank Daly, were shot and killed inside the District’s police headquarters building on November 22, 1994. The gunman entered the “cold case” squad room, to which the agents were assigned, and opened fire with an assault weapon. Special Agent Martha Dixon Martinez was born in January 1959 in Pittsburgh. Several years after receiving her Bachelor of Sciences Degree in Biology from the University of Pittsburgh, Special Agent Martinez entered on duty with the FBI. Her first office of assignment was Knoxville, where she was the first female agent in the field office to be certified as a SWAT team member. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Pittsburgh Field Office was named in honor of Martha Dixon Martinez on November 20, 2001.
For additional information on Martha Dixon Martinez, please check out the following site: https://www.fbi.gov/history/wall-of-honor/martha-dixon-martinez.
For media inquiries please call (412) 396-9504 or e-mail cpolicicchio@fbi.gov.