Martin has also been instrumental in the establishment of a cadets' unit within the Kawakawa Brigade and his whānau approach within the brigade, establishing initiatives such as local kuia caring for brigade members' tamariki while attending incidents, and a proactive team delivering fire safety education in homes and the community.
Martin also introduced a tikanga Māori approach at fatal incidents, now a common practice across the region.
In 2007 he was employed as an iwi liaison officer with Fire and Emergency New Zealand (and before that, the New Zealand Fire Service) which he did until 2018.
It was during his time in that role that Martin built networks through collaboration with the New Zealand Police Iwi Liaison team and is now a Northland group manager and has been an incident controller for several significant wildfire incidents in the region.
When he's not busy fighting fires, Martin can be found coaching the Ngāti Hine Kawakawa/Moerewa Rugby team, which he has coached at a representative level.
Fire and Emergency Board chair Rebecca Keoghan said the honours reflected the commitment and hard mahi (work) the recipients had put into their communities and FENZ.
"They make our communities safer, stronger and more resilient, and we couldn't be prouder of them," Keoghan said.
"I believe I can speak on behalf of everyone in Aotearoa when I thank them for their commitment to keeping New Zealanders safe.
"Congratulations on receiving such a well-deserved honour."
In addition to Martin, Fire and Emergency people from Kumeu, Kawakawa, Murchison, Clinton, and Ruatōria were also presented with Queen's Service Medals at last week's ceremony.
Murray Binning from Kumeu also received a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit at the same ceremony.
