Thousands of Naperville residents will get a COVID-19 vaccine today thanks to the City of Naperville, Jewel-Osco, and the Mall of India.
Mass COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic
The three partnered to host a mass COVID-19 vaccination event from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the former Sam’s Club building on Route 59 and Ogden Avenue, which was scheduled to see 2,700 Johnson & Johnson vaccines administered.
“It’s a very uplifting feeling to be to take care of a big part of the community of Naperville,” said Mark Henry, a pharmacy district manager for Jewel-Osco Pharmacies. “It’s just such an incredible feeling to be able to give a life saving vaccine back to the community. Being able to schedule this, have this event set up we look forward to doing many more events in the future.”
How The Event Came Together
After securing the 2,700 vaccines from the federal government, Jewel-Osco contacted the City of Naperville and the event came together in a matter of days.
The Mall of India owners provided space for the event at their vacant building, which will eventually become a sports and entertainment venue just south of Naperville’s first indoor mall.
“I’m very happy, we’re supporting the Naperville community,” said Mall of India co-owner Vinoz Chanamolu. “We’re working to get [vaccines administered] everyday, but because of the limited vaccines we’re not able to do this everyday. We’re still working with Jewel-Osco to get vaccines everyday.”
Chanamolu added that the Mall of India recently hosted a different COVID-19 vaccine clinic, which saw around 350 Pfizer doses administered.
By all accounts today’s mass vaccination event went well. The process, which included consulting with a pharmacist, getting the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, and observation following the vaccination, took about 20 to 25 minutes.
Mayor Steve Chirico was one of the 2,700 Naperville residents who received a vaccine, and said he was proud of all of those who were involved today to help make the event possible.
“Knowing that 2,700 people today, with a single dose of the Johnson & Johnson, are going to be protected against COVID-19 is a big relief to know that many members of our community will get that care,” said Chirico.
As more vaccines become available more mass vaccinations clinics will be hosted in Naperville according to Jewel-Osco, and could be in a couple of weeks.
Naperville News 17’s Christian Canizal reports.
If you have a story idea or news tip you want to share, we want to hear from you!
