By NAN Staff Writer
News Americas, STAMFORD, Connecticut, Mon. Mar. 15, 2021: A non-profit organization on Sunday helped several Caribbean immigrants in Connecticut, some undocumented, receive the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.
The non-profit Building One Community organized the event to administer the first dose of the Moderna vaccine to more than 350 legal and undocumented immigrants age 55 and over in Stamford, Connecticut.
Among those receiving shots Sunday was Haitian immigrant Anaida Jean-Pierre, 92. Also in line was a woman from the Virgin Islands.
The vaccines were supplied by the federal Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and injected by Community Health Center workers. Vaccine recipients are due to return in April for their second dose.
Anka Badurina, executive director of immigrant support Central, said the organization is aiming to provide an easy process for local immigrants to get vaccinated in a place they trust and feel comfortable. Badurina, noting turnout from the Latinx, Haitian and Montenegrin communities among others, said the non-profit will continue to hold vaccination clinics as more age groups become eligible.
Across the country, many Caribbean Americans are making appointments or lining up to get the vaccines. In North Carolina, Marina Nostrand received her first shot in Angier. Her son, Alexander Sahadeo, 38, said he also showed up at one of the vaccination sites in the area and was able to get a shot. His wife, he said, has already gotten both doses of the vaccine as she is a nurse practitioner in a nursing home.
In Illinois, Guyanese national Rawle Persaud, a school worker, said he was able to get the first shot so far because of rules there that allow school employees to get the shot.
In New York, many are getting their shots already, including Caribbean immigrant advocate, Irwine Clare, Sr. OD, while in Florida, Jamaican-born newspaper publisher, Peter Webley said he is now fully vaccinated after getting both shots.
Most report pain in the arm for a day but no other side effects from the shot.
