AMHERST — COVID-19 vaccine clinics, running at the Bangs Community Center since early winter, are welcoming any Massachusetts resident age 12 and over to either schedule appointments or drop by as walk-ins.
With ample supply of both the two-dose Pfizer vaccine, which can be administered to any eligible person, and the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine, available to those 18 and over, town officials are continuing to promote the clinics.
Communications Manager Brianna Sunryd said the drop-in times are Mondays from 3 to 5 p.m., Thursdays from 9 a.m. to noon, and May 29 and June 19, both dates from 10 a.m. to noon.
The Health Department, which runs the clinics, also partnered with the public schools to have a dedicated vaccine clinic at the Amherst Regional Middle and High schools.
Health Director Emma Dragon said the May 14 clinic at the middle school provided first doses for 176 students, supplementing the 162 people who came that same day to the Bangs. Of those at the Bangs, 40 were teenagers, meaning more than 200 students are part of the way to full inoculation.
“Just incredible work,” Dragon said.
In a memo to the Town Council, Paul Bockelman wrote that the town clinic will be winding down and remaining vaccinations will be done this summer at local pharmacies and other regional sites.
The risk of residents losing access to child day care is causing the Town Council to call on Mount Holyoke College to preserve The Gorse Children’s Center in South Hadley.
Joining the Hadley Select Board, the council voted 9-0, with three abstentions, to request Gorse stay open, coming after appeals made by an action group.
“I consider The Gorse Children’s Center the perfect prelude to entering the Amherst school system,” said resident Jessica Maier, parent of three children and an academic scholar at the college.
Robert Samet, a member of the Gorse action group, said, “It’s an incredibly important resource, not just for South Hadley, but for the larger Pioneer Valley community.”
There is a dearth of infant care and wait lists for other extended care sites for young children, said Katia Vavova, an Amherst resident.
District 5 Councilor Shalini Bahl-Milne said the resolution was about supporting residents who are impacted by the decision to close. District 3 Councilor Dorothy Pam said it was important to give a platform to people supporting an essential service.
After a year of online orders and porch-side pickup, Simple Gifts Farm on North Pleasant Street resumed in-person shopping this week.
“We have been conservative for the protection of our customers and our farm store staff,” farmer Jeremy Barker-Plotkin said in a statement. “With our staff now all fully vaccinated, we feel we can safely have people back in to shop.”
To celebrate the reopening, a daylong party will be held from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, including a cake, hourly prize drawings and hayrides from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Guest vendors will include Diana Polizi, reading Tarot cards for people, and Clark Designs with jewelry and gifts.
A violin concert at the Hadley Commons Friday at noon, though being offered by the Hadley Senior Center in celebration of Older Americans Month, is open to anyone to attend.
Lynn’s Violin Studio of Florence will bring together young people and adults to perform an eclectic variety of music, including classical music, jazz, and rock and fiddle styles.
People should bring their own lawn chairs and lunches.
The Community Development Block Grant Committee is holding a virtual hearing May 27 at 7 p.m. to review activities being funded this year and priorities for the next application process.
People can go to https://amherstma.zoom.us/j/87375471713 to join.
The hearing is required for Amherst being a mini-entitlement community that can access money for housing, community development projects and social service activities benefiting low- and moderate-income citizens.
The meeting will cover topics including a microenterprise assistance program and food pantry, non-social services such as housing and public infrastructure, and target areas and neighborhoods where non-social services can take place.
MONDAY: Town Council, 6:30 p.m.
TUESDAY: Community Resources Committee, 2 p.m.
WEDNESDAY: Design Review Board, 5 p.m.
THURSDAY: Zoning Board of Appeals, 6 p.m.
