The Equality Health Foundation in partnership with the HeroZona Foundation, Travis L. Williams American Legion Post 65, African American Christian Clergy Coalition and more are excited to announce that a permanent micro-Point of Dispensing (POD) vaccine site will launch at the Gymnasium Fitness Center of community partner South Mountain Community College (7050 S. 24th St.) on Saturday, April 10 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. During the event, individuals of color disproportionately affected by COVID-19 in one of Arizona’s most underserved zip codes, 85040, will have free access to the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine administered by Walgreens, coronavirus nasal swab testing by Sonora Quest Laboratories and food boxes provided by a variety of community partners.

“Last July, thanks to our partnership with South Mountain Community College and other public and private organizations, we were able to launch the largest coronavirus testing location in the country and saw how much pain and suffering the pandemic brought to African-Americans in our community,” said Alan “AP” Powell, Chairman of AP & Associates – Strategic Alliances, U.S. Army Desert-Storm Veteran, and founder of HeroZona. “It was then that we vowed to do everything possible to help them survive. Now, we’re making a full circle to provide them with a better chance of fighting this virus and finding normalcy again.”

This is the third event to launch under the One Community Initiative, which targets diverse, underserved neighborhoods and aims to track demographic data to identify disparity gaps and ensure that Arizona distributes the vaccine fairly and equitably. The first event launched at Cortez Park on March 13, and the second at Isaac Middle School on April 3. An additional announcement will be made about the days and hours of operation for this permanent micro-POD site at South Mountain Community College, among other locations.

“We have seen that for a variety of reasons, including lack of communication, resources and access, many Black and Hispanic people in Phoenix are not receiving their vaccine,” said Tomás León, interim CEO of the Equality Health Foundation. “Our goal is to address the mistrust that people of color have regarding immunizations and healthcare by providing relevant education that dispels these perceptions and myths, and staff our sites with volunteers and employees who reflect the communities we are serving.”

One thousand vaccines will be available by appointment on a first-come first-serve basis based on need for those 18 and older, including frontline and essential workers. For more information and to register, those interested can call the bilingual service line at 888-587-3647.

The community event is supported in part by Arizona Department of Health Services, Maricopa County, City of Phoenix Fire Department, City of Phoenix Police Department, United States Representative for Arizona’s 7th District Ruben Gallego, Arizona State District 27 Senator Rebecca Rios, Arizona State District 27 Representative Reginald Bolding, Arizona State District 27 Representative Diego Rodriguez, Maricopa County District 5 Supervisor Steve Gallardo, City of Phoenix District 8 Councilmember Carlos Garcia, the NAACP Arizona State Conference, Grand Canyon University, Roosevelt Elementary School District, Arizona Latin-American Medical Association, the Greater Phoenix Urban League, the Black Chamber of Arizona, 100 Back Men of Phoenix, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women Phoenix Chapter, the Black Philanthropy Initiative, the Arizona Coalition for Change, Forty-Eight Foundation, National Pan-Hellenic Council Phoenix Metro Chapter and many more public and private stakeholders.

AZFamily.com Channel 3 / CBS 5 4/3/21

Different groups came together on Saturday to vaccinate a thousand people in a west Phoenix community hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Equality Health Foundation teamed up with Herozona Foundation, Walgreen’s and more for the walk-through event at Issac Middle School at 35th Avenue and McDowell Road. Patients didn’t need a car to go through the vaccination process. It was also held inside, which was nice with the above-average temperatures. Patients received the Johnson and Johnson dose, which only requires one shot so there’s no need to come back for a second one. It’s easier to store than Pfizer or Moderna.

“I feel a big sigh of relief is happening. The more people we vaccine the more I feel the weight is being lifted and it feels so good,” said Stephanie OOhs with Walgreen’s.

There were also COVID-19 tests and food boxes for families. Organizers say the event was part of an effort to bring COVID-19 testing and vaccines to underserved communities in south and west Phoenix that often have frontline workers who have been devastated by the pandemic.

“It’s important we create fair and equitable distribution to communities that have been hardest so that they’re able to get protected, protect themselves and their families, their community. This is home we’re going to get to community-wide immunity together,” said Tomas Leon, interim CEO of the Equality Health Foundation.

He also encourages people to share their stories as to why they got the vaccine.

“Why is it important? Share it with your neighbors, your friends, your family, your coworkers. This is how we’re going to educate the community that the vaccine is safe, it’s effective and it’s free,” said Leon.

KJZZ 91.5 3/18/21

The HeroZona Foundation and Equality Health Foundation began distributing vaccines to community members in west Phoenix on Saturday.

Tomás León, Equality Health Foundation interim CEO, says opening sites in underserved communities helps remove some stigmas associated with the vaccine.

“The volunteers, and the vaccinators, and the COVID testers reflect the communities that we serve, they look like the community they serve, so that creates a bridge of trust, and we have people who are bilingual as well,” said León.

León says the location was chosen to try to bring vaccines to areas struggling with COVID-19.

“The whole idea is to remove the barriers and create multiple access points for communities on the south side and the west side, who have been hit the hardest by this pandemic,” said León.

Equality Health Foundation plans to keep vaccinating in west Phoenix, as well as trying to expand testing and vaccination efforts throughout the city.

Arizona Republic 3/13/21

Margaret Covington, a former nurse educator from Mesa, said she wasn’t planning on getting the vaccine until a year from now.

“I was very hesitant. I don’t trust a lot because of the history of people of color, especially Black people,” she said.

But on Friday, when she heard about a Johnson & Johnson vaccination site opening up, she was one of the 330 people who got appointments to get a shot in west Phoenix the next day.

“As time went by and my family was getting it, I thought, ‘OK, I need to do this,'” she said.

The one-day vaccination event was held at Cortez Park Saturday morning and was the first vaccine site for a community initiative to immunize underserved populations in metro Phoenix, according to organizers.

“The goal is to ensure fair and equitable distribution of the vaccine into the communities that have been hit the hardest,” said Tomas Leon, interim CEO at Equality Health Foundation.

The vaccines were offered in addition to masks, food boxes and on-going COVID-19 testing. It was hosted by several community organizations including Equality, HeroZona Foundation, Walgreens and the City of Phoenix and the Phoenix Fire Department.

More white people in Arizona have received the COVID-19 vaccines than people of color, according to Arizona Department of Health Services data. Experts attribute this to additional barriers that seniors of color face such as language barriers, medical conditions and lack of transportation options.

“We’re basically bringing the vaccine into the neighborhood to eliminate a lot of barriers that people were having trying to get to these large state-run and large POD sites,” Leon said.

Because of higher rates of medical conditions, experts also say it’s critical for low-income seniors of color to receive a vaccination since they are especially vulnerable to the virus.

The one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine is convenient for underserved communities and future vaccine events that will move around since people can’t always afford to take additional time off work, Leon said.

“We bring (events) right into the heart of the community and we make it convenient, accessible and it’s a familiar place and location and we do it with trusted organizations and volunteers and staff that reflect the communities we’re serving,” Leon said.

Organization ‘flooded’ with calls for first vaccine event

Leon said the City of Phoenix let them know about the additional 330 vaccines, which had to be used by Saturday, two days ago. When they started advertising the event on Thursday in English and Spanish, Leon said all the available slots were filled in one day through a bilingual call center.

But not everyone who called got an appointment for Saturday. Leon said nearly 1,000 people called to get a vaccine.

“Our call center got flooded,” Leon said. “It just shows the demand and the interest.”

Eligible people who didn’t get an appointment will be contacted by the group for a vaccine appointment at a Walgreens location or future event, Leon said.

People receiving the vaccine provide their demographic information and phone number while on the phone and then show their ID and are screened while at the event.

Although the event was held in west Phoenix, eligible residents from Glendale and other cities signed up for an appointment and traveled to the park to get the vaccine.

May Lee, a childcare worker from Glendale, said she heard about the issues with trying to sign up for vaccines online and was grateful she was able to get an appointment.

“As soon as we could get a vaccine we wanted one,” Lee said. “The opportunity opened up and we wanted to get one as soon as possible.”

Lee and others at the vaccine site said they encourage everyone to get the vaccine when they can and to continue being cautious of COVID-19.

“It’s a load off my mind when it comes to protecting others, not just myself,” Lee said.

Covington said her children and grandchildren all live on the East Coast and she wants to travel and see them without worrying about COVID-19.

“I won’t have to worry that I might be transmitting something to them,” she said. “I’ll feel better, it’s safer for them.”

ABC 15 – 3/13/21

In less than a week, with the direction of the Phoenix Fire Department, agencies promoting the COVID-19 vaccine were able to vaccinate 330 west Phoenix residents Saturday morning.

“In this case, people were able to register by calling a 1-800 number as opposed to having to register through the state website. We had bilingual volunteers here to assist and answer questions,” said Thomas Leon of Equality Health Foundation.

Captain Rob McDade with the Phoenix Fire Department told ABC15 the vaccine shipment received put them, as logistical and operational masterminds, at the forefront of getting those vaccinated to wait for 15 minutes to assure that they didn’t have any adverse reaction to the vaccine.

“They (residents) were waiting in line an hour ago before this even started to make sure they were here to get the vaccination,” said Captain McDade.

That was the case for essential worker Maria Martinez and her husband Hermelindo Sanchez who works in construction. When asked how it went for him, Hermelindo gave a thumbs up and said “excellente!”

The couple lives not a mile away from the vaccination pod at Cortez Park near 35th and Dunlap avenues. Each of the 330 appointments that showed up Saturday morning, received the single-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine.

Maria Martinez says, “One time only, we are done. I think it’s better to get the one-shot only and get it over with.”

The spots filled up fast, as the vaccine is still limited for distribution. Leon admits that the important message aside from those seeing fellow Hispanics and African-Americans participating in Saturday’s event, is the fact that the volunteers are carrying the message onto others to get vaccinated.

Volunteers like Camila Hernandez had to convince her mother to get the vaccine.

Camila Hernandez says, “My mom did take a bit of convincing cause she had this opportunity, she was hesitant, she had heard a lot of stories about people getting sick. I”m like ‘mom you have to do this teaching kids protect yourself and those around you.’”

AP Powell, Founder of HEROZONA, a non-profit which focused heavily on getting COVID-19 testing in minority communities, is once again, helping the community not only by putting together today’s event but by bringing other African-American leaders to the forefront.

“We got the Black Chamber, 100 Black Men, 100 Black women, African-American clergy with Pastor Stuart, the fraternities and sororities we want to make sure we unify ourselves so people see we come together. We believe that our community should take this so man up to protect yourself and your family,” said Powell.

National coverage on ABC Good Morning America (GMA) of the COVID-19 testing in the community in Phoenix, Arizona.

News coverage of the largest free COVID-19 testing site expanding to impact more in the community.

Coverage from KPNX NBC 12 of the expansion of free COVID-19 testing in the community.

Helping the community with access to free COVID-19 testing. KPNX NBC 12 Arizona Midday