Concordia crowns relatives of 1995 Homecoming King and Queen as Homecoming royalty during 2026 festivities

Nathan Selle and Lisa (Jacobitz) Martens are crowned Homecoming King and Queen in 1995 (left), and Timothy Baker and Reagan Martens receive the same honors in 2026.

Photo credit: Lisa Martens

By Michaela Gibbs

Nathan Selle and Lisa (Jacobitz) Martens were crowned Homecoming King and Queen in 1995, and 29 years later, Selle’s cousin and Martens’ daughter were crowned the 2026 Homecoming royalty.

Senior Timothy Baker of Khovd, Mongolia, is the first cousin once removed of former king Nathan Selle.

Baker said that while being crowned took him by surprise, it was exciting to have so many students rooting for him.

“I was pleasantly surprised, but it kind of hit me out of left field,” he said. “It was cool to everybody rooting for me on this.”

Selle also said that his coronation as Homecoming King took him by surprise.

“I’m pretty sure I never thought I would actually win, but from what I recall, the other guys seemed pretty confident that I would,” said Selle. “It was quite a surprise to me when I was crowned.”

Senior Reagan Martens of Kansas City, Missouri, found the experience very special not simply because of the chance to be on court, but also because of the new connection it gave her with her mom.

“We [the court] got very close and bonded over some of the events that were going on around campus,” said Reagan Martens. “I just felt very loved and very blessed, and I had such a fun time, and obviously I felt even more special because of my mom winning 29 years ago.”

Lisa Martens was very excited to be able to share this piece of life with her daughter. She reflected on the differences between when she was crowned and this year when her daughter won.

The court had more activities to participate in the year the Selle and Lisa Martins were crowned, and the process was more formal than the celebrations today.

Some of the activities included the official announcement, when the king and queen were escorted out, and the announcement was followed by a formal dance. The announcement and dance happened on the Sunday before homecoming, so throughout the week leading up to the game the court participated in games and a parade.

“I just remember walking around campus, and the atmosphere was so much fun and it was really cool and just such an honor,” said Lisa Martens.

Selle specifically recalled the crown he was presented with in 1995.

“It was a well decorated ice cream pail!”

Selle’s cousin, Rachel (Selle) Baker, Timothy Baker’s mother, was the first to realize the connection between Timothy and Selle’s coronations.

Selle then saw through Lisa Martens’ Facebook that her daughter had also been crowned. This prompted him to reach out to her and the two reconnected.

“It was such a fun and unexpected connection to discover, and it brought back some great college memories and even a phone conversation with Lisa, whom I haven’t connected with since college days,” said Selle.

Lisa Martens and her husband attended the game and were able to see Reagan’s coronation.

Her mother convinced her to take her crown from 1995 to the game “just in case.”

“She convinced me, and so I just kind of put it in the back seat of my car, and then when Reagan got it, we were able to take a picture of us in our crowns together,” said Lisa Martens.

The experience and the full-circle moment were very meaningful to both Lisa and Reagan Martens.

Lisa Martens said that being able to share a piece of her story with Reagan and sharing those emotions about being on court and sharing it with friends is an incredible feeling.

“It means so much to me, getting to share a piece of my story with her,” she said. “Just being part of the court and with those friends, the bonds and memories that you form, just sharing that with Reagan and having it come full circle is hard to put into words, but it is an incredible feeling.”