Moffitt Nurse Surprised with Super Bowl Tickets

Of the 22,000 fans who will be allowed inside Raymond James Stadium for Super Bowl LV, 7,500 of them will be health care workers who’ve bravely stood on the front lines battling COVID-19. Pam Lowry, a registered nurse at Moffitt Cancer Center, is one of them. The 2018 Nurse of the Year shared her thoughts about the opportunity to attend the game and be recognized as a health care hero.

I’m sure this has been a very challenging year for you and all your fellow Moffitt nurses. What does it feel like to be here today with an extraordinary opportunity to attend the Super Bowl?|Through this whole year and leading up to this moment, I think, like everyone, we're all shocked that we're still here moving forward and plugging along. I don't think anybody could have predicted the events of the past year. But to be offered an opportunity like this, it’s mind-boggling.

But to be honest, I am a New England girl and a Tom Brady Patriots fan for more than 20 years. I’ve always cheered him on. But now he’s here and turned our local team around, getting us to the Super Bowl. The fact that I get to be part of it personally because of a job that I love to do is amazing. I keep pinching myself.

Tell us about the moment you found out you won a ticket to the big game.
I was in the clinic on a normal Monday sitting in a very crowded workroom checking email. My little mailbox message popped up, and I clicked on it. I started to read it and started screaming. I was absolutely over the moon; just blown away at the generosity of the entire NFL taking the time to recognize all of us.

Many people think frontline health care workers and only celebrate doctors and nurses, but it’s so many different groups here at Moffitt. Everybody from the kitchen staff to central supply that has made sure we keep getting our personal protective equipment, and the housekeepers doing extra cleaning duty to keep us safe. Let me tell you, we couldn't have done it without everybody else here, helping us keep going.

Any big plans after the Super Bowl?
Currently I'm a registered nurse in the Malignant Hematology Department, but in three weeks I will move to a position as a nurse practitioner in radiation here at Moffitt. I worked full time and went to grad school during the pandemic, so it's amazing to be celebrated for just doing a job I love to do.