‘For the greater good’: DeKalb County law enforcement receives first COVID-19 vaccine doses

DeKalb County Sheriff’s Deputy Jillian Kness, who is an emergency dispatcher for the county, said 2020 was the only year she hadn’t gone to Wrigley Field to see a Cubs game in person in about two decades.

Kness said it was hard not to go to a game in person this summer because of the COVID-19 pandemic. As she looks ahead to the upcoming season, she said she was all the more excited to get her first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

“If having a vaccine card helps me get into Wrigley Field, I’m doing it,” Kness said.

DeKalb County first responders received their first doses of Moderna’s vaccine from county health officials and Northern Illinois University nursing students Wednesday and Friday. The Moderna vaccine is given in two doses 28 days apart.

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DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott receives the first of two scheduled injections of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine from Northern Illinois University nursing student Christian Blessing Wednesday in DeKalb. (Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.com/Mark Busch - mbusch@shawmedia.co)

Kness said she thought it was a very easy, organized and fluid process, and she didn’t experience pain or any side effects personally. She said she elected to get the vaccine, as did her husband, Sycamore Police Sgt. Justin Kness, because she is trying to keep her home as safe as possible, and her two teenage stepsons want to get back to their activities and go back to school.

“I personally got it because I crave normalcy and our regular lifestyle back,” Kness said.

DeKalb County Sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Dave Aranda said his experience getting the vaccine about 3 p.m. Wednesday was a smooth one as well. He said his wife, who is a nurse and also received the vaccine, advised him to go through with it.

Aranda said he believes the science of vaccines and that they’re safe and effective. He said he’s personally in favor of getting them to keep the community safe after everything the world experienced in 2020.

“So it’s our belief that it’s worth getting if it can prevent the spread of disease and help each other,” Aranda said.

Vaccine distribution in DeKalb County moved to its next phase, 1b, this week. That phase allows vaccinations to be received by a myriad of trades and workers, including first responders, day care workers, corrections officers and inmates, food and agriculture workers, postal service workers, manufacturing workers, grocery store workers, public transit workers, educators – including teachers and support staff – and people age 65 and older.

DeKalb County received its first shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine Dec. 29. The initial shipment of 800 doses was used to provide vaccines to local health care personnel, including those at Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital in DeKalb and Northwestern Medicine Valley West Hospital in Sandwich.

Sycamore police officer Ryan Hooper, who is the school resource officer for Sycamore High School, said his experience getting the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine was relatively quick and painless. He said his wife works in health care and already received both doses of the vaccine, and they decided to get the vaccine after they discussed it together.

“We both feel that there are more pros to it than possible cons,” Hooper said. “It was more beneficial to get it than to get [COVID-19].”

Hooper said he’s hopeful more vaccine availability will help curb the number of cases in the community and get life closer to where it was before the pandemic – with more awareness toward viruses. He said he’s looking forward to a time when businesses that have struggled during the pandemic can come back and flourish again.

“We can go to grocery store without wearing a mask, kids can go back to school, and we can be with family and the elderly without spreading a potentially deadly virus,” Hooper said.

Hooper said he urges those who are hesitant to receive the vaccine but are healthy enough to receive it with minimal risk to look at what science has been able to do for the world thus far. He said the vaccine came in a relatively short amount of time after the virus spread worldwide and, so far, people are seeing the vaccine is safe.

Receiving it still is better than contracting the virus, Hooper added.

“Put your faith and trust in the professionals to do the research and that they do it right for benefit of all of us,” Hooper said.

Kness said she was excited to get her first dose, and she felt encouraged that it means progress in getting out of the thick of the pandemic. She said she urges those who may be on the fence to strongly consider getting it as long as they are healthy, since everybody benefits from it.

“Everybody’s affected, from getting a haircut to going to the grocery store,” Kness said. “I feel like everybody should do their part to get back to normal, for the greater good.”

• Daily Chronicle reporter Katrina J.E. Milton contributed to this report.