It was an ordinary day. The "Letters to the editor" column began with a letter from Maulik Patel, M.D. He titled his letter - "Thanks for help with vaccinations." For my wife, Carol and I, it all began months ago when we began our search for the COVID vaccination shot. Where can we go...when can we get it...whom do we call...exactly what do we do? Our search began! We have been lucky enough to be able to afford vacations to the Caribbean and Hawaii since my retirement from teaching in 1999. Then along came Miss Virus and all that ended. We had to cancel a trip and reschedule it. Then it became apparent that we weren't going to be able to take that trip on the new date and had to do the same thing all over again. Changes seem easy to make, but it requires quite a bit of time for all the calls and letters to be made. We decided we needed to get our vaccinations in order to be able to fly and be allowed into specific vacations sites. A search began. Calls were made...and made...and made again...and I'm sure you had the same results. Can never find someone to answer the phone or the line is always busy or all you get is a recording. Then our daughter called and asked if we had arranged our vaccinations yet. She happened to have someone whom she worked with who knew someone that had me as a teacher in high school and still lived in the area and was willing to make arrangements for us. Wow! We agreed and before long we had shots scheduled at the nearby Wyndham Resort in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Made a test run to see where we would go and when we arrived at the Resort I went inside to ask about the vaccinations. I was told they were in the large building next to the resort. We were set. We had our time emailed to us and we arrived that Saturday and within an hour were back in the car headed home. Three weeks later we had the same situation and we now have both our vaccinations. I must admit, the people at the vaccine site were amazing. They were very well organized. The entire operations was run by The South Asian Association of Lancaster. The letter to the editor I had just read was a testament to the job that was well done by all involved. I have copied the letter for you to read so you can see what organizations such as The South Asian Association of Lancaster can do when needed to help their community. Read on...
The South Asian Association of Lancaster (sail.us) would like to thank the owners of the Wyndham Resort - Bakul Vakil and Kalpesh Vakil. They have been a great inspiration showing what leadership means in time of need. Graciously, they have donated their facilities and personnel for several months to ensure that more Lancaster County residents have access to COVID-19 vaccines. During a time in which the hostility industry has been hit very hard, there are some who truly support the greater good. This degree of assistance has enabled the administering of over 8,000 vaccine shots thus far, with a goal of 20,000-plus over the next few weeks. In their words, "Let us do our part to serve others." Our vulnerable residents are forever grateful for their generosity. They have demonstrated exemplary corporate charity, for which the township of East Lampeter and Lancaster should be proud. We also would like to thank the following for providing free breakfasts and lunches for the vaccine clinic volunteers: Ram ad Sangita Patel of Dunkin' in Leola; Mani Shama of Taj Mahal; Manuel Torres of El Serrano; and Very Ptel of the Lititz Pike Subway. Signed: Maulik Patel, M.D.; Advisory board member, South Asian Association of Lancater.
My wife and I would also like to thank all those who were so kind and understanding when we entered to have our vaccination. We were greeted warmly, made to feel relaxed at a time that could have been stressful, offered any help we needed and were treated extremely well when we had our shots. For me, the most interesting part of the entire situation was sitting in the chairs along one side of the complex waiting for 15 minutes to expire before we could leave. There were doctors from local hospitals there to check on you and Carol and I enjoyed talking with them. They too were volunteers. One doctor was the mother of children whom I had as students in school. What a wonderful experience we had in a stressful situation. Thank you to all who participated in this event. We both "Thank You" for your service and for being so kind and understanding. It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary day.
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