Physicians Regional nurse uses stimulus money to cook food for co-workers

Reporter: Andrea Guerrero
Published: Updated:
Carlos Martinez (Provided to WINK News)

One nurse at Physicians Regional Pine Ridge is paying his stimulus check forward.

He’s using his money to show appreciation for other nurses by donating plates of food to healthcare workers.

Carlos Martinez has dedicated his life to helping people. So when he got his stimulus check, he knew he wouldn’t spend the money on himself.

“I decided with my son, let’s do something nice,” he said.

Instead, Martinez, who’s spent the last 15 years working at Physicians Regional Pine Ridge, decided to use the money to show his appreciation of his co-workers, those who work on the front lines of the coronavirus battle.

“The Lord put in my heart, ‘Hey, let’s use some of this money and cook for staff,'” he said,

Martinez and his 11-year-old son got to work. They spent six hours cooking more than 100 meals from scratch.

“Nicest thing ever, that’s what came to my mind,” said Vanna Galler, a fellow nurse at Physicians Regional. “They just called us, was like, ‘Carlos brought food’ and I was like, ‘Really?’ Yeah, we came down and it was great. Not only was it food, it was really good food.”

Martinez says the nurses and staff members are more like family to him.

“Oh my God, the reaction of gratitude,” he said, “the look on their face brought tears to eyes, it brought tears to my eyes.”

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