‘Hope is what is driving us’: Regional vaccination clinic opens in Uxbridge March 22

Rows of black cubicles, each set up with vaccination materials, line the gymnasium wall at the McCloskey Middle School in Uxbridge, beneath basketball nets and the slogan “Spartan Pride.”

Starting March 22, the former school will be the home of the Southern Worcester County Covid-19 Vaccination Clinic, a regional clinic made possible by a cross-section of Democrat and Republican legislators and officials who came together to bring a convenient location for the towns of Bellingham, Blackstone, Douglas, Grafton, Hopedale, Mendon, Milford, Millville, Northbridge, Oxford, Sutton, Upton, and Uxbridge.

Twenty-five percent of the dosages allocated to the site are designated solely for residents of those communities.

“When I walked into this building, I could feel hope,” state Rep. David Muradian said during a visit to the site. “Hope is what is driving us.”

During its first week, the site will receive 1,170 doses of the Pfizer Covid vaccine. The clinic will be open 3-4 days a week, depending on vaccine availability, during the hours of 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. A satellite site at Upton’s Nipmuc Regional High School will be available once a week.

As a bonus, each town’s senior center will be providing transportation to the clinic. This is especially critical given the high population of residents over the age of 70 who were having difficulty traveling to mass vaccination sites.

“We’ve kind of been a desert for vaccinations,” state Sen. Ryan Fattman said.

Looking around the gym after the speakers were finished, state Sen. Michael Moore recalled playing basketball games there.

“It seemed so big back then and now it seems so small,” Moore said. “But it’s big enough for us. There’s going to be a lot of lives saved here.”

Appointments will be available through the state’s vaccination website www.maimmunizations.org later this week.

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