HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — Nine months after he was hospitalized for Covid-19, Benny Parr, 44, got his second dose of the Pfizer vaccine Tuesday as Guam’s push to meet its 80% adult vaccination goal ended Wednesday.
“It feels good to be alive. I am thankful,” he said. “I never felt stronger since I got Covid. My family told me to wake up and fight. I did.”
Guam’s full vaccination among adults was at 78.49%, or 94,216 people, as of Monday night.
That means Guam still needed 1,815 adults to become fully vaccinated to meet today’s goal of herd immunity against Covid-19. That 80% adult vaccination goal is 96,031 of the island’s estimated 120,039 adults.
The governor’s office said the full vaccination numbers for Tuesday wouldn’t be known until Tuesday night or Wednesday, when Guam marks the 77th anniversary of the island’s liberation from Japanese occupation during World War II; thus the Operation Liberate Guam vaccination target date of July 21.
Once herd immunity is reached, Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero said she will be lifting additional pandemic restrictions such as restoring 100% business occupancy and removing limits to social gatherings.
Whether the goal is met or not, people such as Parr said they are thankful to have survived what they believe was the worst of the pandemic. Guam has endured two lockdowns.
Parr tested positive for Covid-19 twice last year. The second time, he was hospitalized from Oct. 14 to 19.
His story caught the attention of the media and public officials when his health insurance provider initially denied covering his medical bills, which totaled more than $16,000. The provider later reversed its decision and covered the bills.
Parr and his wife, Martha, got their second dose together at the University of Guam Calvo Field House in Mangilao.
Martha Parr said the couple decided to get their second doses a day early so that if they develop fever and chills, they have the July 21 holiday to stay home and then be back to work on Thursday.
“We want to be more protected, especially after what our family went through. Plus, we plan to travel. I will visit my mom. She’s 85 years old and she dislocated her shoulder. I also haven’t seen my kids in the States since the Covid-19 pandemic started,” Martha Parr said.
‘We have to win’
Nancy Franklin, 50, also got her second dose of the Pfizer vaccine on Tuesday, and was happy to be counted toward the island’s herd immunity goal.
“We don’t want Covid-19 to win. We have to win,” the mother said. “This is one thing we could do for our country.”
Her daughter Brianna, 13, got her second dose as well, and is looking forward to the next school year.
“For those still hesitating to get vaccinated or not, this is enough proof that it’s good to be fully vaccinated,” the mother said. “We’re all still standing. Be vaccinated for yourself and your family and the others around you.”
The governor, Department of Public Health and Social Services Director Art San Agustin and other health officials on Monday ramped up their urgent call for people to get fully vaccinated rather than only partially, after presenting data that shows 4,727 individuals have failed to get their second doses of the vaccine.
First doses
The UOG vaccination site, run by the Guam National Guard, looked a bit busier Tuesday than on prior days.
There are many who are just getting their first dose of the double-dose Covid-19 vaccines this week, including Rebecca Quinata, 41, and her brother, Cleyton Jackson, 23, who were both walk-ins at the UOG vaccination clinic.
“I work with children as a preschool teacher and I want to be able to protect the children, myself and other people around me. I also have a small child at home,” Quinata said.
Husband and wife Jay Yanruw, 41, and Iasinta Ambros, 45, walked in together to get their first doses of the Moderna vaccine, and plan to bring four of their seven children to get vaccinated later on. Their children are ages 5 to 17.
The mother said if their children feel some symptoms after getting vaccinated, at least she and her husband can care for them. This won’t be possible, she said, if they all got vaccinated together and all felt side effects at the same time.
“It’s not so much that I am scared of the needles. I was just too busy,” the mother said.
‘It’s to protect loved ones’
Hemrick Namio, 21, said he’s the last in his Yigo household of about 17 to get vaccinated.
“My brother told me to get vaccinated, so I’m here. It’s to protect loved ones from getting sick from Covid,” he said, after getting his first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.
With him at the UOG vaccination clinic was his niece, 13-year-old Jorgette Martin, who received her second dose, just in time for her freshman year at Simon Sanchez High School.
Marleen Pinaula, 58, brought her granddaughter Izabella Pita, 14, to UOG for her first dose of the vaccine.
“I thought it’s time for me to get vaccinated while I’m on vacation so I don’t have to miss school, and my family — like my grandma — would be able to take care of me if I get some symptoms after getting vaccinated,” Pita said.
Pinaula said it was her granddaughter’s first visit to Guam since she was 7 years old.
“And we will make this visit a yearly thing,” the grandmother said. She got her second dose of the Moderna vaccine in February, she said.
Pinaula said long before Guam received its first batch of Covid-19 vaccine last year, she and her husband already planned to get their shots.
“But he passed before we could get vaccinated,” she said. “If he were alive, we would have gotten our first and second dose together.”
Nancy Franklin, 50, and her daughter Brianna, 13, got their second doses of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine at the University of Guam Calvo Field House in Mangilao on Tuesday.
