Bay County is best in Panhandle at mass COVID-19 vaccination turnout, officials say
Jacqueline Bostick
LYNN HAVEN — After waiting for more than a month, Patrise Chambless finally had her turn at getting the COVID-19 vaccination on Sunday.
"It was very smooth. We had our paperwork already completed online, so we basically walked in," she said. "I feel fine. I feel anybody should get it as a preventative medicine versus not getting it prevented."
The 67-year-old Panama City Beach resident was one of more than 600 people who registered for the vaccination event held at the Lynn Haven Senior Center, 904 Pennsylvania Ave. In a news release Friday, the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis made the announcement of the weekend events, which added to the targeted 70 events held since January that seeks to vaccinate underserved communities. As of Friday, the state had delivered 60,000 doses under those efforts, according to the news release.
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According to Gary Kruschke with the state's incident management team for Northwest Florida, the closed event platform — meaning it is only open to particular populations, in this case those registered through churches and other community-based organizations — has been most successful in Bay County, as other Panhandle areas have failed to register enough people to hold the state-sanctioned event. He said only two of eight counties so far have been able to register at least 600 people.
"I think we've been very effective," Kruschke said, regarding the counties that have grassroots efforts to secure the state vaccine drive. "It seems like the people in the community are very emotionally attached to the fact that they're able to get the shot and that they can do it with the level of trust that the community leaders and the pastors are bringing to the table."
More:Bay County COVID-19 vaccine milestone reached: 50% of seniors vaccinated
He lauded grassroots community organizer Tony Bostick and Lynn Haven City Manager Vickie Gainer for organizing and committing to securing the vaccination event for the Bay County community.
Volunteer George Hines Jr., who is running for Seat 3 in Lynn Haven, stood on the outskirts of the vaccination line, directing traffic as cars pulled in.
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"It's very convenient for people that can't get out and can't get around," said Hines, 68, noting the efforts made to organize the event gave senior citizens a better chance at receiving the life-saving vaccination. "The convenience of the shot itself is enormous because in some parts of the county you can't even get the shot without going online ... but some of us are not astute at using a computer."
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He said hundreds of people registered by phone and "this system we have has been going great for the last month, month and a half."
It's the third time the state has done a COVID-19 mass distribution in the city. The last two events — one for the first dose and the other for the second — delivered Moderna vaccines.
Consent forms were issued as people formed in line, which was where Springfield resident Danielle Bryant, 24, checked-in on Sunday. Both her mother and father contracted COVID-19 — and that is when her family had a conversation about whether the vaccine was right for them.
"It was a tough time with us trying to take care of them," Bryant said behind the orange and hunter green Florida A&M University mask. "My family don't really say much, but ... I was scared on the inside."
She noted that it was a "very risky" decision, as a woman of African descent; but a worthy risk, seeing the impact of the virus on her family and the minority community.
"When it first came out, you don't know what's going to be the side effects, you don't know what's going to happen," she said, recalling points in history where the federal government manipulated and withheld treatment from Black populations, such as the Tuskegee Syphilis Study. "But, you see all of these other people getting it ... I feel pretty good. I feel happy that that risk has kind of lessened a bit.
"If you have any doubts, just ask questions. Come out, get it done if you need to," Bryant said. "At the end of the day, it will be very helpful for not just you, but for the people around you and for the people that you love."
The second of the two Pfizer doses will be administered to the same group on March 28 at the Lynn Haven Senior Center.