LIBERTY — The Town of Liberty, in partnership with the Medicine Shoppe in the Colonial Square Mall on Route 52, administered over 200 vaccines at the Senior Center last Thursday. Supervisor Frank DeMayo said it's a partnership he'd like to see become a regular event.

“I got a sense that a lot of these seniors may have not even been out for an extended period of time due to COVID,” DeMayo told The Democrat. “The seniors felt some sense of relief, like there may be some end in sight to this pandemic. It was a good day.”

DeMayo thanked Abhishek and Mayur Patel of the Medicine Shoppe for securing the vaccines as well as the nurses who helped administer them.

“The hope is that a significant amount of additional vaccines will be secured over the next few months so the program can continue,” DeMayo said.

In a scene that looked like a makeshift medical ward, vaccines were administered in a safe and efficient flow of people as they went from station to station.

DeMayo gave credit to Lynn Berry and the Village of Liberty Highway Department for keeping the curbs clear of snow and keeping the lot plowed and free of ice, as well as the Village of Liberty Police Department for permission to provide a drop off area in front of the Center.

Parks & Recreation Working Supervisor Kevin Delaney, Assistant Recreation Director, James Guara and Confidential Secretary, Nick Rusin, spent the day along with Carol Laciaga, Rita DeMayo and Supervisor DeMayo to guide the seniors through the process and help fill out forms.

Mayur Patel said they've been overwhelmed by the response they've seen for vaccines and will be giving second COVID shots next week. Further vaccine inquiries can be made at liberty.medicineshoppe.com.

Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther said that anyone trying to get more information on vaccines can reach out to her office either online at nyassembly.gov/mem/Aileen-M-Gunther or by calling her district office at (845) 794-5807.

“There's different places to call and we really have to coordinate,” said Gunther.

In a letter this week to State Senator Gustavo Rivera, Chair of the Senate Health Committee, Senator Mike Martucci urged his colleagues to move forward with bipartisan efforts to repeal the Governor's emergency powers and insert language in this year's state budget to equally distribute the vaccine by population percentage.

“Once this is done, counties will have predictability in terms of the number of doses they will receive and can then form partnerships with hospitals and healthcare providers to maximize these resources,” Martucci said.

Sullivan County Public Health Services is continuing its efforts to build a volunteer reserve corps to assist with upcoming vaccination clinics, but some potential volunteers may find the sign-up process intimidating.

“We don't want anything getting in the way of good people looking to do good things,” Public Health Director, Nancy McGraw, said in a press release on Wednesday. “But it is necessary for everyone to sign up through the ServNY system, which allows us to quickly organize, contact and track volunteers who want to help during this pandemic.”

Medical professionals likely already are familiar with the process. But for those who aren't healthcare professionals, Public Health offers an easy-to-follow step-by-step guide at www.sullivanny.us/departments/publichealth/COVIDvaccines.

“Please take the time to become a volunteer if you can commit to even just a few hours a week or a month,” McGraw encourages. “If you have any questions, feel free to contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Linda Squires, at VolunteerMRC@sullivanny.us or (845) 513-2186.”