Hit the jump for Saturday’s vaccine clinic in Little Rock’s most diverse neighborhood to prepare and experience. Southwest Community Center staff have practiced here, having hosted similar events at least three times before. And serving both young and old, English-speaking and Spanish, is part of their day-to-day life.
On a related note: The 15th COVID-19 shooting clinic was held on Saturday Joan Adcock, Little Rock City Manager helped plan and execute. Adcock made steady, steady rounds of the community center to supervise, going from the check-in desk to the processing station, to the medical plant set up in the gym, then down the back hallway to a room where had central arkansas water. helping their customers connect with a federal program to keep their water on despite delinquent payments.
About 10 people signed up for federal funding assistance for water bills in the first hour of the four-hour event. With the end of the pandemic-related moratorium on water shutoffs, customers who fell behind on their bills in recent years can tap into this pot of federal funding to plug the hole. Chelsea Boozer, director of government affairs for Central Arkansas Water explained Each household can get up to $2,000.
A vaccine clinic at the Southwest Community Center last month drew 382 people, facility manager Lee Couch III said Any first hitter in this event had to take the second shot. And the 1,000 flyers about the event posted in the neighborhood, in addition to some of the social networks, the organizers expected about 500 this time. “There’s a huge demand. That’s why we’re doing it again,” Couch said.
The high demand makes sense, given the steady increase in infection rates in the summer and the first day of school for most of the city’s students coming up in a couple of weeks. Anyone unaffected by the health threat might have been enticed by the $50 gift cards that came with each shot, paid for by federal pandemic relief funds.
CHI San Vicente led the clinical parts of the shooting clinic and a representative of the Central Arkansas Library System staved off boredom during the required 15-minute waiting period after pictures with a resource table full of coloring books, stickers and brochures about SNAP benefits and library programming. Another featured offered neat packets of information about the city’s millage election, but no pressure.
Stationed throughout, a team of 30 volunteers in matching T-shirts directed the heavy foot traffic calmly and precisely. Translators waited around every corner seemingly, ready to overcome language barriers. A group of returning volunteerssome of them young people from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, provided such friendly and smooth customer service that I was surprised we didn’t get Chick-fil-A sandwiches at the end.
COVID is still around and everyone is tired of it, but it’s nice to ditch the panic and disorganization of the early days of the pandemic for well-thought-out clinics with tried-and-true systems.
The next big event at the Southwest Community Center comes on August 20, when the intriguing name Big Homie Foundation will lead a walk of love at 10:15am, followed by Southwest Day at 11am. Love walkers are invited to bring positive and friendly signs for the short walk. “We want to show unity and togetherness” Derick Wilson, member of the Big Homie Foundation explained Visit the Southwest Community Center at 6401 Baseline Rd. on Aug. 20 for a free pool party, haircuts, food and bounce houses.
