Rosemary Alpert, contributing author

It’s mid-June, summer is right around the corner. Time for sunshine and enjoying the beauty of our vibrant Skagit County, and the state of Washington. Are you ready? Have you started to make plans? First on the list, if you haven’t already, should be to get vaccinated! There are plenty of opportunities to receive your vaccine…you just have to decide to do it! 

As Skagit County Public Health’s COVID-19 vaccination site at the Skagit County Fairgrounds winds down, “Pop-Up” vaccination clinics have begun and are scheduled across Skagit County. The last day to receive a Pfizer or J&J vaccination at the fairgrounds will be Saturday, June 26, 2021. Anyone 12 or over can still receive a first or second dose Pfizer vaccine at the fairgrounds. If receiving a first dose Pfizer, you will be given information for options where to receive the second dose.  Johnson and Johnson vaccine is one dose and available for anyone 18 years and older. Remember you are considered fully vaccinated fourteen days post second dose Pfizer or one dose J&J. 

Over the past few weeks, Skagit County Public Health has held “Pop-Up” vaccination clinics at a variety of locations across the county. To name a few: Skagit Speedway, Mount Baker Presbyterian Church in Concrete, Skagit Transit, Mount Vernon and Sedro Woolley Farmer’s Markets, Terramar Brewstillery in Edison, and the Marblemount Community Center.  There are even more to come as we transition away from our mass vaccination site to fully mobile this summer. Please see our schedule for listing of mobile clinics on our website.

Skagit County Public Health’s vaccination team will be coming to you. In addition to the “Pop-Up” clinics, we’ve started canvassing local businesses, reaching out to homebound community members, and even vaccinating crews’ onboard ships coming into the local ports. All this outreach is to ensure that we are reaching those who may not have had an opportunity to get their vaccination otherwise.

Last week while visiting local businesses, our mobile team was able to vaccinate community members who couldn’t get to the fairgrounds or had been “on the fence” about getting vaccinated. Each individual vaccinated was grateful that we had come to them. Many of these individuals were also also waiting for the one dose J&J vaccine, because of their busy work schedules.  

Here are some of the responses from our “Pop-Ups” and community canvassing: 

• “With my work schedule, I was never able to get to the Fairgrounds.” 
• “I was waiting for the J&J vaccine. One dose vaccine is perfect for me.” 
• “So happy; I’ll be able to see my new granddaughter!” 
• “Your timing is perfect. I’ve been hesitant about getting the vaccine. Now I’m ready.” 
• “My mom is going to be so happy!”
• “Thank you for coming to us.”
• “This was so easy!”

If you have a business with employees needing to receive the vaccine or know of anyone that is homebound, please reach out to Skagit County Public Health at (360) 416-1500. As we move into summer, Public Health is here for you. We know that the COVID-19 vaccines are the best way to ensure that people are protected from becoming seriously ill. We know that the vaccines will keep people out of the ICU. Working together, we can see the light at the end of this tunnel.

We look forward to seeing you out in the community!