Multiple tents are in place for the drive-thru vaccination center at Gary Roosevelt High School on Wednesday, April 7. Photo by Post-Tribune.

Carrie Napoleon
Post-Tribune

GARY – Anna Harris was prepared to drive to Springfield, Illinois to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Harris, 57, of Calumet Park, Illinois, had been trying to book an appointment for a couple weeks once her age group became eligible in her home state. Because Chicago was not providing vaccines to anyone outside of the city limits, the nearest appointment she could find was at a downstate clinic, she said.

“In my little township, appointments go right like that,” Harris said, snapping her fingers. “All my surrounding little suburbs were out. I kept checking.”

When she found the appointment in Springfield, she booked it right away and was fully prepared to make the trip, which would take more than three hours each way, she said. Instead, after learning about the FEMA-run drive-thru COVID-19 mass vaccination clinic in Gary, she hopped on the website and made an appointment.

Harris was among the first to use the clinic Wednesday at Gary Roosevelt High School. The fully federally funded clinic is intended to provide access to people who do not have the ability to travel to a clinic, but it is also open to anyone regardless of where they live.

As the Gary site opened, state officials said Wednesday that nearly a quarter of Indiana residents age 16 and older are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

A total of 1,291,190 Hoosiers — 23.7% of Indiana’s residents who are at least 16 — have been fully vaccinated, while 1,827,696 first doses of vaccine have been administered statewide, according to the Indiana Department of Health’s COVID-19 vaccination dashboard.

In Gary, officials said they plan to vaccinate 2,000 people a day during the eight-week clinic and another 1,000 a day through mobile clinics that will go out into communities including Gary, East Chicago and Hammond to bring the vaccinations to the people where they live including public housing and homeless shelters.

People can drive or walk up to be vaccinated. Those interested in getting vaccinated can schedule a time at ourshot.in.gov or call 211 to schedule an appointment. Indiana Health Commissioner Dr. Kristina Box said the vaccinations would also be availability for people who do not have an appointment to get their shot.

Box was at the clinic Wednesday. She said a large number of the registrants have been from Illinois, and said the clinic is working to vaccinate as many people as possible. If doses start running low, she said she can call downstate and quickly get more of the state’s allocation directed to the Gary clinic.

Cars snaked around the school’s parking lots in a configuration designed to maximize the number of vehicles coming through. After registering, vehicles were directed to individual tents where the Army National Guard administered the vaccine. After vaccinations, vehicles were directed to another parking lot for the 15-minute post-vaccination monitoring period. About one in every four vehicles observed Wednesday morning had Illinois license plates.

Javier Rodriguez, of Chicago, brought his twin daughters, Elaine and Alexa, 16, to the Gary clinic. In Illinois, local health agencies have had the ability to provide vaccines to those 16 and up since March 26.

Javier Rodriguez and his wife, Maria, have both been vaccinated and wanted the girls to receive the vaccine so the family could travel together.

“We are planning on making a trip in about a month,” he said. They plan to visit family in Mexico. Being vaccinated means the family will be a little bit safer and can have a little peace of mind to do some other things, he said.

“The pandemic was really hard on us. We take the quarantine very seriously. It’s exciting to get to see family,” Elaine Rodriguez said, adding she also is looking forward to seeing her 93-year-old grandmother in person.

Eric and Nicole Kozak, of Highland, said they took advantage of the Gary clinic so they could get their vaccinations sooner. The pair, both 35, secured appointments at the end of April before the Gary site opened.

Eric Kozak said they wanted to get the vaccine for the safety of those around them.

“We have family members who are older and have more health concerns,” Erik Kozak said, adding they also wanted to be protected for their young children.

Martin Graham, of Chicago, was dropped off at the site’s walk-in clinic. He has been eligible for a vaccine in Illinois for a while but has been unable to secure a shot, he said.

“There are no appointments anywhere,” he said.

Graham said he wanted to get vaccinated as soon as possible because he was diagnosed with COVID-19 once and does not want to get sick again. Graham said he experienced flu-like symptoms and was concerned about reports of those infected a second time experiencing more severe symptoms.

“I was pretty worried. This makes me a lot more comfortable to go out,’ Graham said. “I’m glad to got it.”