WANT YOUR SHOT NOW? VOLUNTEER AT A VACCINATION SITE.
The intro to AC/DC’s “Hells Bells” rang, stirring up my emotions and sending a chill down my spine. I confidently thought, “Today, we’re going to win!”
No, it wasn’t 1998 as Trevor Hoffman was racking up 53 saves to help lead the Padres to the World Series. It was a recent morning inside the Wyland Center at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The first cars of the day were rolling in with occupants eager to get either their first or second dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.
We weren’t beating the Dodgers. We were defeating COVID-19, one vaccine at a time. For those of us volunteering, the sounds of “Hells Bells” were for us. The volunteers are the Trevor Hoffmans of the vaccine campaign. Without volunteers, the well-run machines at COVID-19 Vaccine Super Sites do not work.
For myself, being a volunteer wasn’t entirely altruistic. I sought payment for my efforts in the form of receiving a vaccination.
In recent months, my No. 1 life goal was to get a COVID-19 vaccine.
As a healthy stay-at-home dad, I had no priority. That’s fine! For a good reason, the state prioritized others ahead of me.
Nevertheless, I wanted to get vaccinated as soon as possible. While the eligibility to receive the vaccine will quickly open up to all Californians ages 16 and over, I didn’t want to wait. The floodgates for eligibility opening will likely make it even harder to get an appointment to receive a vaccination, and I wanted mine yesterday.
Volunteering at a COVID-19 vaccination center is a legitimate and accepted way to jump the line. Four and half hours of service, more like six, make you eligible to receive a vaccination.
The need for volunteers is great. The fairgrounds site alone requires over 50 volunteers for each shift. When open, they are currently doing one vaccination period a day to administer over 2,000 doses. The goal is to get up to over 11,000 vaccinations daily, which will require over 200 volunteers per day.
To ensure none of the vaccine doses go unused, volunteers receive an opportunity to get vaccinated at the end of their shift from the leftovers.
The Rotary Club of Del Mar organizes the volunteer effort for multiple Rotary and Rotaract clubs. Together these clubs regularly send dependable volunteers to the Del Mar vaccination site. As a Rotarian family member, I was able to sign up and guarantee a specific shift that met my schedule. Rotary is a great place to start if you know a
Rotarian and want to volunteer.
Volunteering does not currently guarantee a vaccination. Priority goes to those who need a second dose, those who previously volunteered and then people oldest to youngest.
Volunteers seeking a vaccination outnumbered the leftover doses on both days that I volunteered.
It was disappointing not to hear my name called at the end of my first volunteer shift. Over 1,000 people received a shot that morning, and I left the fairgrounds not being one of them.
Undeterred, I went home and signed up for another shift. While my motivation for volunteering was to get vaccinated, the truth is volunteering turned out to be a lot of fun.
I enjoyed checking people in and quickly got quite proficient at the process. It became a game of how quickly I could get people through the system while asking all the pertinent questions.
I also knew the chances of receiving my first Pfizer dose were very good if I went back for a second shift. But still, there was no guarantee.
A few months ago, I was a contestant on “Let’s Make a Deal.” That opportunity required two trips to Los Angeles, one to be tested for COVID-19, the second to be one of 10 members of an audience with an excellent chance at being a contestant.
Hearing my name called at the end of the second volunteer shift was by far more exciting than hearing it from “Let’s Make a Deal” host Wayne Brady.
On this day, there would be no Zonks. I had won! I got my vaccination!
You can sign up at scripps.org/coronavirus-covid-19/vaccine-volunteers to volunteer at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.
Volunteering at a COVID-19 vaccination center is a legitimate and accepted way to jump the line. Four and half hours of service, more like six, make you eligible to receive a vaccination.