Residents, staff of Village Green receive COVID-19 vaccinations

After a lonely year of uncertainty, 186 residents and staff members of Village Green Retirement Campus received COVID-19 vaccinations.

First doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination were provided and administered by CVS Pharmacy at the retirement community on Jan. 26. Many residents and staff members expressed anticipation — and relief — about this step toward “something good.”

“I almost get a little emotional,” said Village Green Executive Director Kim Salas. “It’s one more step to safeguard our residents, and safeguard our staff.”

Village Green is home to about 170 people in both independent cottages and apartments or in assisted living. The facility, owned by Monte Powell of PowellsWood Gardens, went into a full lockdown in March 2020. Since then, all visitation has stopped, and staff have worked hard to provide safer alternatives of dining, entertainment and socialization — including daily bingo.

Village Green’s dining room was transformed into a vaccination site with three stations, followed by a 15- or 30-minute waiting period to watch for adverse side effects. In total, 136 residents and 50 staff members were vaccinated on Tuesday.

“This is the most people I’ve seen in months,” said 97-year-old resident Esther Vine while in line for her shot. After her vaccination, she added that “this is a happy day. I’m just delighted.”

Five-year resident Alma Anderson, 91, said she was a bit worried prior to her vaccination.

“You don’t know what to expect,” she said. “It’s kind of scary, but then again, so is the virus. You know you have to do it … I’m very relieved now.”

She misses seeing her family, her grandchildren, and her great-granddaughter. Thankfully, Anderson said, her tablet serves as a portal into their worlds and allows her to keep connection with loved ones.

Ninety-year-old Billy Baxter, a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Korean War, said he was anxious leading up to his vaccination day.

Aside from the occasional distanced wave and brief chat outside, Baxter said he misses being with friends and neighbors, playing cards, and participating in the exercise programs.

“We’ve been looking forward to [the vaccinations] for a while and it was really nice to find out it is actually going to happen,” he said.

Almost 10 months with no cases

Village Green went almost 10 months without any COVID-19 on the campus, Salas said.

The first cases were found on Jan. 7 when two residents tested positive. On Jan. 11, a third resident tested positive as a result of the other cases, Salas said.

Because of this, Village Green launched all systems and trainings in place to protect the campus, she said. This included strict quarantine procedures, self-isolation of all residents, full PPE and infection control protocols, and restricted visitation on campus.

Residents were monitored twice daily for signs or symptoms, and each staff person was screened upon entering the building, she said. Testing was also completed on all residents and staff every 4-5 days for over two weeks.

One of the three residents has recovered completely, and another resident of the three is hospitalized for a condition unrelated to her COVID-19 diagnosis, Salas said, adding that both remain at a local hospital for COVID-19 and the unrelated diagnosis.

One of the residents with the virus died, but Village Green has not received notification of the actual cause of death, Salas said. The resident, who was in their late 90s, had suffered a “catastrophic medical event several weeks prior,” Salas said. “Their health had been rapidly declining prior to their COVID-19 diagnosis.”

Watching the line of residents and staff trickle into the dining room on Tuesday, Salas said her daughter recently got married — a monumental day worth celebrating. Her daughter had texted her that morning, congratulating Salas on her own “big day.”

“She recognizes that it is,” Salas said. “It is a big day for us here.”

Remi Frederick, a Village Green employee, receives her first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on Jan. 26 in Federal Way. Olivia Sullivan/the Mirror