17-year-old Ira Marie Omolon (right) gets her 1st dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at the Southwestern University (SWU) on November 8, 2021 | CDN Digital Photo / Morexette Marie B. Erram
CEBU CITY, Philippines – As early as 5 a.m. on Monday, November 8, Ira Marie Omolon started preparing for her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Ira on Sunday, November 7, received a text message from the Cebu City Government, telling her that she was among the first 500 kids, age 12 to 17-years-old, to receive the vaccine.
“I’m really excited to get my vaccine,” Ira told reporters in Cebuano.
On Monday, the city government officially began inoculating minors against COVID-19. They dedicated a vaccination center housed in Southwestern University (SWU) solely for them.
Ira, a resident of BarangayKamputhaw, was the first to be administered with the vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech among the 450 children, accompanied by their parents, who came.
Now vaccinated, the 17-year-old senior high school student said she is looking forward to playing outdoors and returning to face-to-face classes.
“I know getting vaccinated would protect me. Back when we’re (minors) still not allowed to get the vaccine, I am not permitted to go out for fear I may get the virus,” she explained.
Aside from Ira, Kalvin Josh Magallon from Barangay Kalunasan was also upbeat in getting his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
Kalvin, 13, was all smiles when he faced reporters and told them how he was not afraid of needles being punctured onto his skin.
“I did not feel any pain. It just felt like I was bitten by an ant. I think my mother’s slap would have been more painful,” he added.
And just like Ira, the junior high school student is ready to go back to his classroom and play with his friends outside.
Cebu City is targeting to vaccinate a total of 150,000 minors at a rate of 500 individuals per day.
The City Health Department (CHD) is expected to open two more vaccination sites for minors within this week to ramp up the inoculation drive.
RELATED STORIES
Cebu City targets to inoculate 500 kids daily
COVID-19 vaccination: Minors without co-morbidities may get jab by mid-November
/ dcb