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Meridith Godinez Carrillo stands at a nursing station in front of a computer.Growing up, Meridith Godinez Carrillo participated in high school plays and planned to be an actor. After graduation, she ended up following in her mother’s footsteps — and honoring her memory — by becoming a registered nurse. Meridith, who cares for patients in the fast-paced environment of the Beaufort Memorial emergency room (ER), also finds time in her busy schedule to teach Zumba® classes at Beaufort Memorial LifeFit Wellness Center.

“I wear many hats in the ER because that’s the life of an ER nurse,” Meridith says. “I try to bring people a little joy with my fitness classes, to make them see the best of themselves. That goes for both jobs.”

Read More: Safe Care at the ER

A Helper at Heart

A close-up photo of Meridith and her son, OssyA mother of two, Meridith draws motivation from her children. She wants to show her 16-year-old daughter and 6-year-old son that they too can accomplish great things, like becoming a nurse. At first, Meridith didn’t think she was capable enough to go into nursing, but she was inspired to pursue the profession by her mother, a nurse herself who never fulfilled her dream of earning a bachelor’s degree after passing away from cervical cancer.

“I decided, OK, I’m going to become a nurse and try my best to make my mom proud,” she says. “Who knew I would actually be great at it?”

Meridith will work toward earning her BSN, which she hopes to complete in 2024. She believes her purpose is to help others, whether they’re patients or co-workers, and even wants to help shape the next generation of nurses as a clinical instructor.

She approaches work every day with her own take on the Golden Rule: to be the type of co-worker she would want to work with.

“In the ER, you have to work as one because you could get busy with a very sick patient but still have three to four other patients you’re responsible for,” Meridith says. “That’s where your co-workers come in and help provide support, and I do the same. We’re a really good unit.”

Read More: Calling Beaufort Home: Chayanne Celiant

Wellness in Motion

Meridith and Ossy stretch in front of a wall of mirrors at the Beaufort Memorial LifeFit Wellness Center.Passionate about exercise, Meridith doesn’t just help heal patients as a nurse. She also guides people to better fitness as a certified Zumba® instructor at LifeFit Wellness Center. She’s grateful to the center for giving her the opportunity to scale up her fitness instruction.

“Teaching at LifeFit Wellness Center allows me to help more people,” Meridith says. “I love helping people do things they didn’t think they could do.”

Meridith works hard to develop fitness classes that can accommodate patients of all ages and abilities. She finds it gratifying when people overcome their feelings of intimidation or self-declared lack of rhythm, commit to a class, and discover a fun way to stay in shape. Those successes reflect one of her personal mottos, not to mention her professional journey.

“Do what scares you,” Meridith says. “And then you’ll do a lot of things.”

Join Meridith at one of her group fitness classes. She teaches Dance Cardio on Mondays at 6:15 p.m. and Zumba on Wednesdays at 6:15 p.m.

Want to join a team where your passion for helping others will fit right in? Check out career opportunities at Beaufort Memorial.