A 92-year-old North Carolina man is proving that serving others has no age limit.
According to original reporting by WECT News 6, Gilbert Martin, affectionately known as “Mr. Gil,” has spent the past six years serving customers as a dining host at a Chick-fil-A in Wilmington. While many people retire decades earlier, Martin continues working full time with a joyful attitude and a heart for people.
Martin said his daily responsibilities are simple, but his greatest priority goes beyond keeping the restaurant clean.
“I make sure the tables are clean, the floor is clean,” he said. “But the main thing is I take care of people out here first.”
Before joining Chick-fil-A, Martin spent decades in the natural gas industry before retiring. He later worked as a greeter at Sam’s Club for more than 12 years until the position was eliminated.
Rather than settling into retirement, Martin said he quickly realized he still wanted to serve.
“After two months, I got bored and put in an application,” he said.
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That decision has become a blessing not only for Martin but also for countless customers who have come to know him.
“If you enjoy what you’re doing, it’s not work, and I look forward to coming in,” Martin said. “It’s crazy, isn’t it?”
His impact has not gone unnoticed.
“He’s a great person, you don’t come across too many people like that,” Chick-fil-A owner and operator Mike Perdue said.
Perdue also recalled the response when Martin missed a couple of days because of a cold.
“People were so concerned, it was crazy, ‘Where’s Mr. Gil? Is he okay?'” Perdue said.
For Martin, however, the most meaningful part of every shift is the opportunity to minister to others.
“I get a lot of people that are coming in, just been to the doctor, and got bad news,” he said. “I’m able to be an encourager; the Lord gave me that.”
Martin said he has no plans to retire and welcomes customers to stop and say hello if they see him at work.
“I don’t know what 92 is supposed to feel like, but I feel great,” he said.
Mr. Gil’s story is a reminder that God can use willing hearts in every season of life. Whether serving in a church, a workplace, a neighborhood or a restaurant dining room, faithfulness is not measured by age but by a life lived in service to God and to others. His joyful example demonstrates that opportunities to encourage, love and reflect Christ never expire.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
