Initiative Aims to Inform Residents About Vaccines, COVID-19 Precautions
as Community Enters Next Phase in Battle Against Pandemic
Leaders of local government, health care, education, business and the faith community across the Big Bend today announced the launch of “Safe and Healthy,” a new collaborative educational initiative to provide the latest information about vaccines, overcome vaccine hesitancy, and encourage residents to continue to observe safe protocols to stop the spread of COVID-19, as the community enters the next phase in the battle against the coronavirus pandemic.
The initiative brings together Leon County government, the City of Tallahassee, Gadsden County government, Leon County Schools, Capital Health Plan, Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, Capital Regional Medical Center, the Florida Department of Health in Leon County, Prime Meridian Bank, faith leaders, and all three local chambers of commerce to share common information and messages about how to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The initiative will run through the summer of 2021.<
Sachs Media has been retained to conceive, create, and conduct the campaign with the partnering organizations.
“In a little less than one year, COVID-19 has claimed more than 400 lives across the Big Bend, forced many local businesses to cut back or close, strained our health care systems, and upended normal routines of life for everyone,” said Rick Minor, chairman of the Leon County Board of County Commissioners. “Vaccines offer promise to get past this, but now is not the time to let down our guard on any front. That’s the common message of this initiative.”
The initiative launched an informational website, SafeAndHeathyBigBend.com, that combines all the community resources about COVID-19, including when, where and how to get tested or access a vaccine; behaviors to stop the spread, the latest information about COVID and schools; and FAQs from local health experts, as well as links to state and national resources.
The initiative seeks to build on the excellent work and positive collaboration of the past year among all key stakeholders in the public, private, and non-profit sectors to keep our region as safe and healthy as possible in this unprecedented and prolonged difficult era.
It will also launch a broadly focused television, radio, and digital advertising and social media campaign to encourage vaccinations and behaviors that stop the spread, with particular messaging, messengers, and channels to reach groups that face barriers to getting vaccinated, including Blacks and Latinos.
“The City of Tallahassee is committed to sharing the most accurate, up-to-date information on the vaccines while we continue to emphasize safe and healthy practices,” said Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey. “Vaccinating everyone in the Big Bend will be a big job. Until we are all vaccinated, let’s show patience and stick to what we know is working – wearing masks, socially distancing, and washing our hands.”
“While many school districts nationwide are only now reopening their schools to on-campus instruction, Leon County Schools began providing parents the option of choosing on-campus or virtual learning last fall,” said Leon County Schools Superintendent Rocky Hanna. “Thanks to the input of key stakeholders and community leaders, we’ve been able to do so while also experiencing relatively few cases of the virus among students, faculty and staff. The Safe and Healthy initiative is another way we are working to keep our schools safe and our students learning.”
The Safe and Healthy Initiative includes:
A website, www.SafeandHealthyBigBend.com, offering accurate, up-to-date localized information from trusted national, state, and local sources on how to get vaccinated; how to follow safe and healthy practices such as wearing a mask, maintaining social distance, washing your hands, and avoiding large gatherings; and how to get tested and keep others safe if you test positive for COVID-19.
A series of public service announcements featuring leaders from local government, business, health care, education, and faith organizations, connecting Big Bend residents to useful information on safe and healthy practices distributed through paid advertising, social media, news media coverage, and sponsor- and partner-owned communications channels.
A social media campaign to put supportive messages in front of specific target audiences utilizing trusted messengers.
Messaging tools available for use by messengers throughout the community, with messaging tailored for different target audiences, especially those hardest to reach.
Promotion of community public education events, including virtual events such as Town Hall meetings to allow Big Bend residents to get their questions answered by trusted leaders and experts.
A public opinion survey measuring attitudes and behaviors involving the coronavirus pandemic among Big Bend residents.
Leaders of the new Safe and Healthy Initiative expect it to run through the summer.
What Local Leaders Are Saying About the Safe and Healthy Big Bend Initiative
Superintendent Rocky Hanna, Leon County Schools
“While many school districts nationwide are only now reopening their schools to on-campus instruction, Leon County Schools began providing parents the option of choosing on-campus or virtual learning last fall,” said Leon County Schools Superintendent Rocky Hanna. “Thanks to the input of key stakeholders and community leaders, we’ve been able to do so while also experiencing relatively few cases of the virus among students, faculty and staff. The Safe and Healthy initiative is another way we are working to keep our schools safe and our students learning.”
Joy Bowen, Chair, Leon County School Board
“I am so proud of the Leon County teachers. This is really making me tear up and I will tell you why, because these people, these wonderful servants, these wonderful frontline workers leave their homes, come to their jobs and stand in front of the community’s precious resources, the children. And they are doing what we’ve asked them to do. They’re masking up. They are assisting with making certain that the distancing happens. They are all really dedicated to making sure that our children continue to learn, and that they do so in a safe environment, as safe as we can provide. I just admire them so.”
Darryl Jones, Vice-Chair and District 3 School Board Member, Leon County School Board
“Our children ascribed to wearing masks without complaint because we taught them that it was a part of their own social responsibility to protect themselves, and their classmates, and their teachers. And I think that type of purposeful messaging to our community is what has made the difference in Leon County. The school board and our superintendent were purposeful in making certain that we engaged with all stakeholders in our community. First of all, we convened a task force that included community experts, including the heads of our hospitals, our federally qualified health centers, educators, the Florida State and Florida A&M Universities brought their respective perspective to bears. And that type of community engagement helped to prepare the district to roll out a safe, smart program that we were then able to distill down to parents, faculty, and our students.”
Board of County Commissioners of Gadsden County, Brenda Holt, Chair
“The Black community in the Big Bend, and nationwide, has been hit harder by the pandemic than any other racial or ethnic group,” said Brenda Holt, chair of the Gadsden County Board of County Commissioners. “On behalf of Florida’s only majority-minority county, I welcome this initiative. It will help us overcome some of the barriers that are holding back vaccinations in the Black community.”
Florida Department of Health in Leon County, Director Claudia Blackburn
“I would love to be the good news bearer and say that the pandemic’s almost over and our rates are dropping and you can just go about your business as normal, if you can even remember what that looked like. But the truth is, it’s not over. We have a very long way to go to get 80 percent of the population vaccinated or whatever percentage we’re going to need to reach herd immunity. And we’ve got some variants out there that we’re watching closely. You have to pay attention to the science, you have to pay attention to the new information and you have to stay vigilant. Continue to protect yourself, because people are still getting infected and people are still dying. I would absolutely recommend getting vaccinated.”
Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, President and CEO Mark O’Bryant
“In this community, I think we’ve done extremely well. Actually, the best testament of that is to talk to people in other communities. Just in general, how we provided care and how we communicated, you couldn’t ask for a better response from a complete community. And that’s just a part of being in our cosmopolitan Mayberry. We all know each other. We all know how to get a hold of each other. We interact extremely well in this community.
Capital Regional Medical Center, Dr. Bill Geers, CRMC Medical Director of Hospitalists
“With any type of communicable disease, hand-washing by far is the most important thing you can do. I think we’re going to have to keep fist bumping for the next foreseeable future here instead of shaking hands. We should be just taking every precaution that we can to keep the virus from spreading.”
The Florida State University, President John Thrasher
“As the COVID-19 vaccine becomes more widely available across the Big Bend, now is not the time to let our guard down. Please get the vaccine when it becomes available to you and continue to wear a face mask, practice social distancing, and wash your hands frequently. Let’s all do our part to keep ourselves and others in our community healthy and safe!”
Florida A&M University, President Dr. Larry Robinson
“We’re very, very concerned about the disparity that the pandemic has shown. The impacts on communities of color — African-American, Hispanic, and others — have been tremendous. At the same time, there’s a great deal of vaccine hesitancy within those communities. One of the reliefs is the ability to have people go to places that they trust, places that they love. So we’re really, really proud of the fact that we’ve been able to serve as a community asset during this COVID-19 pandemic by offering a community-based COVID-19 testing site at which over 250,000 individuals have been tested. That has been a tremendous asset to the community as a whole. Now we’re moving on to the next thing — providing a community-based vaccination site.”
Dr. Jim Murdaugh, President, Tallahassee Community College
“The message I would like to deliver to students — who sometimes do feel that even if they get COVID, that it won’t be as severe for them — would be this. It’s not about you. It’s about the possibility that you could bring it to your mother and your father or others in the community who may not fare quite as well. So I would just ask our young folks in particular to just continue to be vigilant on the behalf of others.”
Greater Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce, President & CEO Sue Dick
“I am truly proud of our community’s response and how we have all worked together throughout this crisis. Our local businesses have been faced with many challenges with some unfortunately, not able to remain open. We are a resilient community and will continue to work together. A special thank you to our front line workers, healthcare providers and local government partners for their tireless work and for supporting our local businesses. We encourage everyone to practice safety protocols and to visit your favorite business, whether it’s curbside or by going inside. Supporting local matters.”
Sean Pittman, Big Bend Minority Chamber of Commerce Founder and Chair
“Get vaccinated. Do it for yourself, do it for your family, do it for the people that you come in
contact with every day, do it for the seniors who, they want to continue, they want to get back to life as soon as possible. If you can’t muster up what it takes for you to go out and just do it for you, do it for everybody else. Do it for somebody that you love.”
Katrina Tuggerson, president, Capital City Chamber of Commerce
“At the Capital City Chamber of Commerce, we recognize the interconnectivity of human health and economic prosperity. So when COVID hit, we jumped into action ordering and delivering face masks to our community, while encouraging hand washing, social distancing and avoidance of mass gatherings. Simultaneously, we endeavored to think outside of the box and find new ways to keep economic activity moving forward, both online and in person. Whether Facebook LIVES, Zooms, Virtual Ribbon Cuttings, or carefully orchestrated events, we helped keep our community moving forward. Paramount was getting PPP and other assistance out to the community as efficiently as possible. Now, as availability of the vaccine improves, we will do all in our power to get “shots in arms” and protect the well being of those we serve. We encourage all to be proactive in getting the vaccine. In doing so, we all will have played an important role in getting the health of ourselves and economy back and better than ever before.”
Leon County Sheriff Walt McNeil
“In the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, we talk about being all in. All in means that we are all working in this together. It makes sense that we all pitch in and do what we can where we are, and wearing the mask is a simple way of first saying that I believe in keeping myself safe, but it also sends a message that I believe in keeping this community safe. Perhaps the best way we can fight this virus is to wear our mask.”
Leon County Commission Chairman Rick Minor
“In a little less than one year, COVID-19 has claimed more than 400 lives across the Big Bend, forced many local businesses to cut back or close, strained our health care systems, and disrupted the normal routines of our lives,” said Leon County Commission Chairman Rick Minor. “Vaccines offer promise to get past this, but now is not the time to let our guard down, on any front. That’s the common message of this initiative.”
County Commissioner Brian Welch
“Teaching is a real service calling to begin with. And I can tell you, from my perspective as a classroom teacher, the first two weeks of going back to school in August were very difficult, very stressful, a whole new way of work, and a lot of unknowns. In this pandemic with our local schools being open pretty much at half capacity or in some cases, more than half capacity while also teaching the other half of the students in a virtual environment simultaneously, I think you’ve seen the grit of a teacher, the ability to really rise up above the adversity to deliver something that’s crucial to our society. If schools don’t function, society has a hard time functioning. And we’ve been successful in Leon County. We’re doing the best we can and it’s not easy. And I think it just speaks to the servant’s heart of a teacher, to really just dig in and do what’s needed for society. And I think teachers don’t get enough credit and deserve far more.”
County Commissioner Jimbo Jackson
“I know people are frustrated and are tired with all of the guidelines and the mandates that we have asked you to follow for these months. I can understand that. I too, myself, feel the frustration. It’s not always easy to wear a mask for hours upon hours every single day. It’s not easy to be cognizant of are you too close to someone in public. It’s not always an easy task to frequently wash your hands and practice good hygiene. But we have seen just recently here in Leon County a significant decline in cases. I think is directly attributed to us continuing to focus on safe behaviors. And that to me is a true testament that we aren’t quite out of the woods yet. And I would say to people that are watching this, let’s continue to be safe. And there’ll be a brighter day ahead as the vaccine begins to come into our community.”
County Commissioner Carolyn D. Cummings, Esq.
“I think it’s vitally important that every segment of our population become educated about the vaccines. And I believe it’s more important to have the vaccine than to resist and not receive the vaccine. We have more individuals that have died that have not had the benefit of the vaccine than we have individuals that have had adverse effects from the vaccine. I believe if some of those individuals, who unfortunately lost their lives, would grasp the opportunity to have the vaccines right now. They don’t have that opportunity, but thank God we do. So I just believe the population should step up to the plate, accept the vaccine. At this point, it’s no cost to anybody. It’s been made available and we should take advantage of it.”
County Commissioner Kristin Dozier
“It has been nearly a year since we went on the first lockdown. We missed Spring Break and everything since. I know everyone’s fatigued. I am feeling it. Our families are feeling it. But now is the time to double down on masks, on hand washing, on keeping each other safe, so that we can make sure when everyone is vaccinated, we are in the best position. Then we can hit the ground running and get back to normal. This is when we need to be the most vigilant because we can see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Chad Abrams, Director of Public Safety and Chief of Emergency Medical Services, Leon County
“The COVID pandemic has put a lot of stress on our members, but they’re extremely resilient. They’ve really stepped up and done a great job of providing services for our community, not only the expert health care, but also just the caring, extra touch of taking care of people . . . And the thing is, we always have to remember that the pandemic impacts them at work and at home. I think members of the community can support our healthcare workers, and our first responders, by following the public health guidance. . . . I think people that can see the end in sight should just think that there’s still a long way to go. If we let our guard down, and stop doing all the public health recommendations, we’re never going to get to the end.”
Kevin Peters, Director of the Division of Emergency Management
“When we talk about hurricanes, there tends to be more of a lifecycle to it. There’s the pre-landfall where you’re watching the formation of the storm and the approach, all the way through landfall. Then there’s an immediate response, clearing the streets of debris, restoring power, getting people the disaster supplies they may need in those first few days to weeks following a hurricane, and then it kind of transitions to the recovery where life returns back to normal. COVID-19 has been one long response with different phases that last months at a time.
This being a public health emergency, the state department of health and their associated county health departments, they’re definitely in the lead. We’re going to support the decisions of the health department to get the vaccines distributed in as efficient a manner as possible.
We have an excellent working relationship.”
Mayor John Dailey
“The City of Tallahassee is committed to sharing the most accurate, up-to-date information on the vaccines while we continue to emphasize safe and healthy practices,” said Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey. “Vaccinating everyone in the Big Bend will be a big job. Until we are all vaccinated, let’s show patience and stick to what we know is working – wearing masks, socially distancing, and washing our hands.”
Mayor Pro Tem and City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow
“We’ve seen our doctors, our nurses, our medical professionals all really step up and go the extra mile and we need to make sure we’re supporting them as well. What we do in our personal lives has a direct impact on their ability to do their job and to do it safely. So when we’re thinking about our whole community and how this impacts all of us, we can’t forget those frontline workers have shown up every day going on a year now, for our safety and our benefit. So we’re thankful for the work that they’ve been doing in Tallahassee. I mean, I think the heroes are across our community. We’re seeing that our firefighters who have stepped up to help administer vaccines, our teachers who are still going into classrooms, our retail professionals are making sure we can still get groceries, our delivery food drivers, our restaurant employees, everybody’s working overtime to make sure we can have some sense of normalcy and we can continue our lives.”
City Commissioner Curtis Richardson
“We have to make sure that we take care of our health first and foremost. That’s why I’m leading by example. My message would be to the community, particularly to the African-American community that’s been so hard hit by it and has so many health disparities, that it’s incumbent upon all of us to get the vaccine as soon as possible, so that we can reach that herd immunity and battle this pandemic in our community.”
City Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox
“We’re all tired of COVID and we really want COVID to go away, but there’s only one way we’re going to be able to get COVID to go away. We’re going to have to continue to wash our hands. We’re going to have to continue to wear our masks. We’re going to have to continue to social distance. And when available, we need to take the vaccine. That’s the only way we’re going to be able to get COVID to go away and we return to some sense of normalcy. So it’s incumbent upon everyone to do their part. I’m willing to do my part to protect my community, to protect my family and friends and I want them to do the same for me. So we’ve got to stay the course and keep COVID out together.”
City Commissioner Jack Porter
“I encourage young people, people in my generation, if you’re watching to do your part and to think of others. I’m proud of the way our universities have really stepped up to lead and those who have set an example for our students.”
Lawrence Revell, Chief, Tallahassee Police Department
“I heard a story yesterday about a family that was upset because another family on their block had left their Christmas lights up. And they actually wrote them a note saying, “You’re embarrassing the neighborhood. Take down the lights.” And the neighbor with the lights wrote back and said, “Well we were affected with COVID through the holidays. And the dad actually died due to COVID. And dad always put up the lights. So we’re having a really hard time taking them down.” And that community, much like our community, rallied around that family and all the other families in the neighborhood put back up their Christmas lights in a show of support.
So those are the things that we can do for our community. We can be loving and understanding and compassionate for those that are going through this and rally around each other, to lift each other up.”
Jerome Gaines, Chief, Tallahassee Fire Department
“Honestly, it was never my intent to get the vaccine because I believe that my wife and I had had COVID. But while I was out of town on vacation, thinking about it and being the chief of the department, I decided you have to lead by example. And so I made the decision to get the vaccine to lead by example not only for the men and women that work in the department but also as the community as well, to say that it’s the right thing to do. And so I got the vaccine, both doses. For those people that think it’s over, it’s not. We have to remain vigilant. And we have to understand that the only way we’re going to get through this is by working together and taking the necessary precautions. And even after the vaccine has been delivered to every American, those that choose to get it, that we still have to maintain the recommendations that have come forth from the CDC.”
Jeanne Freeman, CEO, Neighborhood Medical Center
“I try to make sure that our team at Neighborhood Medical Center educates our patients about what’s best for their overall health outcomes. That’s important. And once you establish that relationship with your patients, it makes it a lot easier. I tell people, you should trust your healthcare providers. If you trusted them about making healthcare decisions before COVID-19, you should trust them at this point. Nothing has changed.”
Dr. Temple Robinson, CEO, Bond Community Health Center
“We’ve heard some pushback saying, ‘Well, I don’t know if I want the Johnson and Johnson vaccine. They say it’s only 72 or 82 percent effective, where the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines are in the 90 percent range.’ And I want to encourage people that if we get the Johnson and Johnson vaccine, to please take it. The Johnson and Johnson vaccine clinical trials included tests against a wider variety of the COVID variants. And so that’s why you’re seeing a different percentage of efficacy with Johnson and Johnson. So I don’t want anyone to think this is some kind of discount vaccine or a dummied down vaccine. It was tested against a wider span of COVID variants than Moderna and Pfizer, initially.
So please, whatever vaccine your healthcare provider has in their toolbox on the day that you show up, roll your sleeve up and get vaccinated.”
