Firefighters from Pasadena Fire Station 31 help deliver lunch from Wahlburgers Restaurant during the "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
Firefighters from Pasadena Fire Station 31 help deliver lunch and water from Wahlburgers Restaurant during the "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
Chris Dougherty the Administrator at Shriners for Children Medical Center, thanks Wahlburgers Restaurant and Crescent Capital, commenting: "this lifts the spirit and brings back the normalcy a very uplifting experience" during the "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
A patient from Shriners for Children Medical Center walks out in crutches to thank the firefighters from Pasadena Fire Engine 31 during the "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders sponsored by Crescent Capital and Wahlburgers Restaurant at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
First responders from Shriners for Children Medical Center have lunch served by Wahlburgers Restaurant during the "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
Firefighters from Pasadena Fire Station 31 are screened for their temperature before the start of "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
Firefighters from Pasadena Fire Station 31 pose for a picture during "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
Joseph T. Viola from Crescent Capital Group, left, Chris Dougherty the Administrator at Shriners for Children Medical Center and Pasadena Interim Fire Chief Bryan Frieders during "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
First responders from Shriners for Children Medical Center and firefighters from Pasadena Station 31 pose for pictures during the "Whatever You Need" campaign bringing warm meals to first responders at the Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena, on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. (Photo by James Carbone)
Nurses, doctors and other frontline workers at Shriners for Children Medical Center in Pasadena were treated to burgers and fries from Wahlburgers.
It’s part of the Boston-based fast-food chain’s #WhateverYouNeed campaign, which provides warm meals to people battling the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pasadena firefighters helped hand out the 150 meals. “We work 24 hours a day and we eat when we can,” Interim Fire Chief Bryan Frieders told Pasadena Now.
“There is no set mealtime when you’re a first responder. There’s sort of a funny term that goes ‘Eat it now, taste it later’ because oftentimes we get whatever we can, when we can eat it as fast as we can so that we can move onto the next response. So for us to be able to get a meal like this and for us to provide that meal to other folks that are experiencing the same kind of craziness is just gratifying. It really represents the good in the community. It represents the importance of being together.”
Frieders praised hospital workers as the real heroes. “They’re the ones that have the long term exposure, they have the long term care responsibilities to make sure that people are going to become well and are given every chance they possibly can be given to deal with and survive this terrible pandemic.”
“Not being able to be fully operational these past several weeks has been heartbreaking for our entire organization. But that hasn’t stopped our commitment to supporting the communities we serve however we can,” said actor and Wahlburgers co-owner Mark Wahlberg.