McHenry County kids, parents excited to get vaccine after expansion to ages 12 and older

Emily Kershner, a freshman at Crystal Lake South High School, has worked hard to be safe this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, so she was excited to get her COVID-19 vaccine Thursday.

“Many of my friends have been getting vaccinated who are a little bit older than me, so I just wanted to get that as soon as possible,” Kershner said.

“[To] enjoy the summer,” said her mother, Debbie.

But Emily Kershner isn’t just getting the vaccine for herself.

“I love hanging out with my grandma,” said the teen, whose friends’ siblings also have weakened immune systems. “She’s amazing, and I want to keep her safe too.”

Administration of the Pfizer vaccine to those 12 years and older by the McHenry County Department of Health started about a week

“We’re absolutely trying to work on getting this population vaccinated,” said Lindsey Salvatelli, spokesperson for the McHenry County health department. “We have a pretty good amount of people fully vaccinated in McHenry County, but we want to continue that progress.”

As of Thursday, about 36.59% of the county’s population had been fully vaccinated, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Those ages 12 to 15 make up about 6% of McHenry County’s population.

The McHenry County health department operates free vaccination clinics in the cities of Crystal Lake, Harvard and McHenry, although not all clinics use the Pfizer vaccine, the only one currently available to those 12 to 17 years old.

Anyone who is age 12 or older is eligible to receive the Pfizer vaccine. Anyone younger than 18 must have a parent or guardian accompany them through the clinic. Parents must bring photo identification or guardians must bring documentation of custody that verifies they are the parent or legal guardian.

Salvatelli said the McHenry County health department is going to try to work with schools to reach the 12-to-18 crowd, although declined to comment on how.

Whether it was to keep their friends and family protected or to feel safe in school or while on vacation, kids and parents who talked to the Northwest Herald were excited those younger than 16 now are able to get the vaccine.

Cole Palese, a 14-year-old from Crystal Lake, wanted to get vaccinated to avoid getting quarantined from school.

“That’s always a possibility,” he said. “I know kids in my class have gotten quarantined because of [COVID-19].”

His mother, Erin Palese, who had both doses of the Moderna vaccine, called Cole’s pediatrician before he got his shot. Both Cole and his brother have food allergies and get viral asthma when they get sick.

“For children with viral asthma, [the vaccine] is going to benefit them because it will help them protect their lungs,” Erin Palese said.

Erin Palese, who teaches at Prairie Ridge High School in Crystal Lake, said it makes her feel more comfortable being in the classroom knowing older kids now can get vaccinated.

“You don’t want it to spread, and you don’t want your child to get it,” Erin Palese said. “My friends who have had children get it, they’ve had a really rough experience with it. It’s very scary. And so from a parent’s standpoint, if I can protect him from getting [COVID-19], I’m going to do that.”

More than a quarter of mothers reported that they are “extremely unlikely” to vaccinate their children while about 11 % fathers said the same, according to a May report jointly produced by Northeastern University, Harvard University, Rutgers University and Northwestern University. Parents of teenagers are also less resistant to having their children vaccinated than parents of small children.

Lesly Salazar, of Woodstock, said while she’s gotten vaccinated, she wanted to get the vaccine after seeing other students from school get it, as well as her parents.

“I’ve been looking at the news, and they said that some places are open [with] no masks if you’re vaccinated, which is pretty good,” she said. “But still, I think that we should all wear masks because no one ever knows.”

Dan Dacy, whose son, Jack, a 14-year-old freshman at Crystal Lake South High School, received his first dose Thursday, said he, his wife and daughter, a junior at South, are all vaccinated.

“We figure [it’s] the easiest way to get back to life as normal,” Dan Dacy said.

Suzanne Licona, of McHenry, who came with her mother, Julie, has family members with heart conditions, which means they are at a high risk for having complications if they catch COVID-19.

“I wanted to be able to go out and still have fun, while being safe with them, not getting them sick,” she said.

Her mother, Julie Licona, said she was happy to hear Suzanne wanted to get the vaccine. While Julie Licona was able to work from home, Suzanne Licona has been working at Culver’s.

“She was really interested getting it done, so that was good to hear,” Julie Licona said. “It was good news.”