SPOKANE, Wash. — The Spokane Arena opened Wednesday as a mass vaccination site. That day, KREM captured a sweet moment of a Washington National Guardsman helping a woman into the arena.
The National Guard helped us track him down. His name is Specialist Martin Torres and he grew up in Chehalis.
Torres and his fellow guardsmen are helping with operations at the site.
"I've really enjoyed being on these orders the whole time,” Torres said. “I've been around different parts of the state. I've enjoyed seeing these different communities and just how grateful people are."
When asked about the woman he helped on Wednesday, Torres said he was happy to do it.
"She didn't need a wheelchair or anything, but just an arm would have helped out,” Torres said. “So, that's what I did. I came out here and assisted her. She was such a sweet woman. She was talking to me about her day and we just talked about each other's day as I walked into the entrance."
It's his mission in Spokane to help people, but Torres said there's more to it.
"I'm a small piece of a bigger picture," Torres said.
He told KREM 2’s Amanda Roley even the simple gesture of lending an arm is the kind of positively we all need right now.
"I think that's what we have to do in these times,” Torres said. “Help each other out instead of working against each other. We have to come together. And that's what I've seen out here and I think that's an awesome thing."
The guard continues to help all patients who need it at the Spokane Arena. If you need help when you arrive, just flag them down when you near the entrance of the Arena.