RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) - When the City of Rancho Cordova was asked by Coordinator Nancy Bui-Thompson of the Del Paso Heights Vaccination Clinic (DPHVC) about setting up a free pop-up clinic with doses of the Moderna vaccine, the answer was yes, or an emphatic drawn out “YES!” as declared by City Communications and Public Affairs Director Maria Kniestedt with obvious gladness at the actual event Friday, April 23 held only a few days later at City Hall.

“It was awesome! We had a great turnout especially how fast we turned it around,” said Bui Thompson, a Rancho Cordova resident who also is President of the SMUD Board of Directors

Kniedstedt called the coming together of the city and the clinic “serendipitous” as the City Council had previously directed staff to find a partner like DPHVC.

Aimed at providing first and eventually second doses to Rancho Cordovans and those working in the city, the partnership also hoped to reach communities hit hardest by COVID-19 and “giving access”, in the words of DPHVC Director Dr. Kawanaa Carter, to those less able or likely to receive the vaccine: the uninsured, the under-insured and minorities.

Getting the vaccine at the afternoon event was a relatively quick affair. Greeted warmly by volunteers, residents checked in in front of City Hall then were escorted inside the lobby for final registration and ultimately into a conference room for the administering of the vaccine at one of many stations. The 15-minute waiting period to see if any immediate side-effects arose after one received the shot was actually the longest part of the entire process (I know because I got one).

One of the recipients, Michael Morris, 69, had formerly been hesitant about vaccination but some acquaintances had “changed his mind” and now he was happy to get his. Literally echoing Morris’ sentiments was a father who cheered “Thank you, beautiful people!” as he and his family rode off on their bicycles away from City Hall.

With only an hour to go before closing, Bui-Thompson reported a steady flow of eager residents during the clinic’s four hours. Both she and Kniestedt were heartened by not only those looking to get vaccinated but those who helped set up and run the event-a mixture of city staff, the Community Engagement and Communications departments along with DPHVC volunteers which includes those in the medical field as well as civilians.

Bui-Thompson proudly stated some of the volunteers started off as recipients at earlier vaccinations clinics DPHVC conducted and were so moved by the experience they signed up to help others like themselves.

Started by Dr. Carter, a neurosurgeon with Dignity Health, the DPHVC has been giving vaccines to communities hardest hit by COVID-19 since February although the county had threatened at one point to shut them down - a threat the county later called just a miscommunication.

Appointments for the April 23 clinic could be made either online or in person. Free rides through the Sacramento Regional Transit District and Lyft were made available. These amenities will also be in place at the follow-up clinic for the second and final vaccine shot which takes places again at City Hall on Friday, May 21. DPHVC notes those who have not received any shot can still come to this event to be vaccinated.