Parents, students get vaccinated at Waite Middle School clinic

Mia Barragan, 9, received her first dose of the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine at Waite Middle School. (Photo by Vincent Medina)

NORWALK – Waite Middle School provided the COVID-19 vaccine to the public and kids as young as five years old on Saturday.

The site is one of the first in Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District’s next series of free COVID vaccine clinics, in partnership with the LA County Department of Public Health and Albertsons.

The CDC and the FDA authorized Pfizer to distribute the vaccine to children under 11 earlier this month. Many parents in the community took advantage of the free clinic to get their kids vaccinated.

While most kids at the clinic were not eager to get the shot, they understood that getting vaccinated is important.

“It doesn’t hurt that much,” said Fransico Ramierez, nine, fourth-grader at Moffat Elementary. “I know a lot of people are dying because they are not getting the vaccine. Our teachers encourage us to get it.”

(Editor’s note: All interviews with children were consented to by their parents and guardians.)

He and his brother Emiliano Ramierez, 11, sixth-grader at Waite, received their first dose of the vaccine.

Emiliano says most of his friends plan to get the vaccine because it is required to participate in school athletics. He says athletes who do not get vaccinated must be tested every two weeks.

“I think the pandemic will end sooner if people get vaccinated,” said the sixth-grader.

Maria Del Villar brought her daughters Mia, 9, and Nathalie Barragan, 11, to get the vaccine, but stated she never got her kids immunized against the flu.

“COVID is stronger than flu. [Her father and I] are vaccinated, but we could still spread it to them,” said Del Villar. “I think we will get the flu shot after this. I tried it and I didn’t have a reaction to it.”

Public information officer Chris Hargraves said it was important for the district to help get kids vaccinated before winter.

“We wanted to give the community another chance to get vaccinated, especially with the holidays coming up,” said Hargraves.

Doctors predict that COVID cases may rise November and December due to holiday travel.

While he reiterated that the vaccine was voluntary for students, Governor Gavin Newsom announced in October that COVID-19 vaccines will be required for all students in the state after it receives full FDA approval.

“The governor’s order probably won’t take effect until July. We are just offering the vaccine to people if they wish,” said Hargraves. “These clinics are not tied to any mandate, it’s completely voluntary.”

NLMUSD hosted a physicians session webinar last week to give the community a chance to ask doctors questions about the vaccine.

Another vaccine site was held the same day at Benton Middle School. Both vaccine clinics will return on Dec. 4, so people can receive their second dose.

Corvallis, Los Alisos, and Hutchinson Middle Schools will host vaccine clinics on Dec. 11.