A pop-up vaccine clinic will be held in Port Colborne, offering residents a hot meal, groceries, and a COVID vaccine.
Port Cares and Boggio Pharmacy are teaming up to host the clinic on Wednesday, August 25 from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Port Cares Reach Out Centre located outdoors in the Food Bank parking lot at 61 Nickel Street, Port Colborne.
Port Cares Reach Out Centre will be running its food bank and its hot meal service during the clinic in the hopes that low-income residents who haven’t received their vaccination will be able to get groceries or a hot meal while they are there.
Community members coming for a vaccination are encouraged to bring a non-perishable food donation as the number of people needing assistance from the food bank has increased by more than 30 per cent since the pandemic started 17 months ago.
Health cards are not mandatory at the clinic, and a rib and potato wedge dinner will be offered to registered clients served from 1:30 to 5:00, gift card and prize draws will also be held for people who receive their first or second shot.
“This pop-up clinic is open to the entire community for residents who require first or second doses. No appointment is necessary as we want to make it as easy as possible for people who haven’t received their vaccinations,” explains Aaron Boggio of Boggio Pharmacies.
“We are currently assisting more than 1,700 people in-need at our food bank and have 740 low-income residents registered for our hot meal program which we provide three nights a week in a take-out format,” explains Christine Clark Lafleur, Executive Director of Port Cares. “We are not able to re-open our dining hall for clients who attend the meal program until we have assurance that participants are fully vaccinated. It’s really important, that as an agency assisting vulnerable people, we do everything we can to help keep them safe,” says Clark Lafleur.