On Sunday, Capitol Heights Pharmacy in Denver’s Congress Park neighborhood hosted its first ever mass vaccination clinic. While anyone who was eligible could get a shot, the event was largely aimed at getting 12 to 15-year-olds vaccinated.
“We’ve done a lot of reaching out to the middle schools around here, talking to the high schools, specifically reaching out to the principals and seeing what we can help them with,” said Dr. Kristin Holmes, owner of the pharmacy.
While the push to get the shot to children 12 and older continues at big mass vaccination sites across the state of Colorado, some smaller local pharmacies are hoping those still hesitant will sign up with a pharmacist they know and trust.
The vaccination event occurred from noon until 6 p.m. According to Holmes, 191 people got their first shot of the Pfizer vaccine, and between 90% and 95% of those patients were between the ages of 12 and 15.
“It’s a lot of kids that are a little tenuous to get their shots, but they’re doing great,” Holmes said. “We have Star Wars Band-Aids. We’re trying to make it as unintimidating as possible, and we have some great vaccinators here that are really good with kids, so that’s really helpful.”
14-year-old Mia Moralez came by to get her first dose after a year of sacrifices. The middle schooler lives just down the road with her parents and grandmother, Patricia Baca.
“We’ve had to make a variety of sacrifices because we are a multi-generational home,” Baca said. “At this point, everyone has at least one, and are scheduled for their second so we’re quite pleased.”
Moralez will be back for dose two in three weeks. She said she’s excited to be more protected for an upcoming school trip and is ready to enjoy the summer activities she missed out on last year.
“I look forward to travelling out of state and seeing my family in New Mexico and Las Vegas,” Moralez said. “I’m also really looking forward to going to amusement parks again because that’s something I’ve definitely missed.”
