ST. AUGUSTINE BEACH, Fla — This week’s first responder being honored for First Responder Friday is Officer Ed Martinez from the St. Augustine Beach Police Department.
Officer Martinez was nominated by Lisa who works at a business that Officer Martinez regularly patrols. Lisa says Martinez will come into businesses to ensure everything is alright. “He genuinely is concerned about you. So if you’re not there for a couple of days, he comes in and says, ‘Hey how’re you doing? Are you okay?’ which is unusual in an officer,” says Lisa.
Officer Martinez has been with the St. Augustine Beach Police Department for over 17 years and was the 2015-2016 Officer of the Year. “He’s a big part of our community-oriented events, like Bowling with a Cop, Coffee with a Cop, our big National Night Out event that we just had recently, events like that. He also bounces around a lot of the schools in the area just to hang out with the kids, say hey, and be a part of whatever they have going on in their organizations,” says Lieutenant Frankie Hammonds of St. Augustine Beach PD.
Hammonds adds that Martinez is a hoot around the office. “Everybody loves him, he’s the life of the party when he shows up. Half the time you see him at National Night Out stuff, he’s dancing with the kids and stuff. He’s one of those guys, so wherever he goes, people smile and light up when he’s around.”
If you’d like to nominate a first responder who deserves recognition, police, firefighters, doctors, nurses, or EMTs, head over to our First Responder Friday page.