After years of balancing patient care with the weight of student loan debt, registered nurse Emmy McManus from Wynnewood, finally caught a break, writes Aubrey Whelan for the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Thanks to an anonymous $1 million donation made to Lankenau Medical Center, where McManus has worked for 30 years, she’s one of 179 nurses receiving up to #3,600 in student loan relief this year.

Hospital president Katie Galbraith said the gift from a former patient is meant to ‘care for caregivers’. 

McManus earned her degree 17 years ago while caring for her ailing parents. “It took such a burden off,” she said.

Another recipient, Samantha Baldwin-Arroyo, faced cancer during nursing school and continues to support a mother with chronic health issues. Her share of the donation fully covered one of her loans. “I’m so glad I didn’t give up when things were hard,” she said.

Lankenau Medical Center will distribute the remaining funds to a second group of nurses next year. Galbraith says she hopes the gift will inspire other donors to invest in the region’s healthcare heroes.

Read more about how this anonymous gift is changing the lives of Lankenau’s healthcare workers in the Philadelphia Inquirer.