‘I got my shot! Woohoo!’ SLO County town holds first coronavirus vaccine clinic
San Simeon resident Bartolo Garcia almost missed on out getting his first COVID-19 vaccination on Saturday.
The maintenance operator drove down as soon as he got off from his job at Ragged Point. Even though Garcia dashed into a vaccination site run by Community Health Centers’ Cambria clinic about 10 minutes after it technically closed, he had phoned ahead — so he still got his shot.
About 100 people got shots in arms Saturday after CHC leadership made a high-speed, concerted effort earlier in the week to get coronavirus vaccines for eligible patients in the small town near the northwest corner of San Luis Obispo County.
Nurse practitioner CeCe Lomeli and registered nurse Corrine Ratliff, who also is associate director of nursing for the CHC organization, were at the forefront of that effort.
The duo had just three days between receiving confirmation that they were actually getting the Moderna vaccines for Cambria and administering them there.
The allocation came from a supply funded by a grant received by CHC’s administration, and Ratliff requested the vaccines for Cambria.
Lomeli and Ratliff pulled together a volunteer team that included five people from their office and three Cambria Community Healthcare District paramedics. Also chipping in were 25 members of the Community Emergency Response Team.
Saturday’s vaccination clinic at the Cambria Grammar School lasted close to eight hours and ran like clockwork, according to some of the grateful patients who were able to get their vaccinations on their own home turf, rather than at out-of-town centers at least 25 miles away.
The school donated the use of the site, which worked quite well, Lomeli said.
At least 60% of North Coast residents are age 65 and older; Cambria also has a high percentage of Latinx families. Both groups are at higher risk for the virus.
Cambria coronavirus vaccine clinic
At the Cambria vaccine clinic, gratitude was the emotion of the day.
One person cried with relief after getting the shot. When another got close to his vehicle afterwards, he threw arms in the air and shouted “I got my shot! Wahooo!”
After Cambria Community Healthcare District paramedic Tim Benes administered the vaccine to Garcia, Garcia’s eyes crinkled up, reflecting the smile that was undoubtedly spreading under his mask.
“Right now, I feel really good,” Garcia said in Spanish through a translator. “I’m so thankful to get my vaccination. I know it’s very important for everybody to get theirs. If everybody would do it, we’ll be in a much better place.”
He told Lomeli, “I’m going to tell everybody at work that I got my shot, and now it’s their turn.”
Garcia’s wife also received a COVID-19 vaccine.
Mary Ett Brown, 67, likewise got a shot.
She said she was extremely impressed at how well the volunteers had organized everything, “from guiding us up the hill and into the multipurpose room to helping us with paperwork, giving us the shots and making sure we were OK afterwards. They made me feel so well cared for.”
Brown, whose physical condition restricts her ability to go very far from home, said, “CeCe and everybody else really took such good care of me, and I’m really thankful. It was the personal touch from people who know me.”
Lomeli couldn’t confirm when the next Cambria vaccination clinic would be until she knows what her vaccine allocation will be and when it will arrive. Check The Cambrian’s Facebook page, facebook.com/cambrianews, for the latest updates or call 805-927-9252 for details.
This story was originally published March 7, 2021 at 10:19 AM.
