NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – As the state keeps pushing to vaccinate the elderly, the challenge is finding them if they haven’t registered. Bernalillo County Community Centers are teaming up with senior centers to make sure they get their COVID shots.
“We got our first vaccine shots, it was great,” said Marty Carr. Marty and his wife, Jacquelyn Sheehan. Carr isn’t the only two excited about receiving their vaccines this morning. They are only two of the 300 people who got their first shot at the Vista Grande Community Center in Sandia Park, in the East Mountains.
“It’s a miracle,” said Jacquelyn Carr. What’s really special is all the work going on behind the scenes. “They came and got us basically,” said Carr. To make sure people like the Carrs get their vaccine, with little to no stress, Bernalillo County Parks and Rec is teaming up with senior centers in the area, to contact those who are eligible under the current criteria, but haven’t registered.
“We’re trying to reach those seniors and vulnerable population, who don’t have any access to computers, who maybe don’t have access to wife, and try to reach out to them get them registered,” said Richard Clark, the Director of Emergency Management for Bernalillo County.
Once they track those seniors down, they help them with the registration process. “We are able to talk to them on the phone, we are able to register them on the DOH website,” said Clark. “They don’t have to worry about doing that themselves,” said Clark.
The Carrs say before being contacted by the community center, they were worried they might miss their chance. “I was wondering what was going on,” said Carr, but the outreach put their minds at ease. “I’m extremely thankful for them,” he said.
The county has administered more than 600 shots at that community center over the past couple of weeks.
