Hundreds of valley school children get first vaccine dose at crowded PSUSD clinic

There was so much demand Wednesday night for the new pediatric dose of Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine, Nisha Henson and her son 4th grader Jeremiah Holt were turned away from getting his first dose.

"I'm actually excited because I really didn't expect anybody to show up," Henson said. "I guess we're not the only ones wanting to keep our kids safe."

Hundreds of parents and their kids came out to the Palm Springs Unified School district's clinic, far exceeding what district officials were expecting.

Juliana Rivera overcame her fears – even at her young age, she sees benefits to getting the shot. "I'm a little scared but I'm really excited," she said. "Sometimes you can't go in stores unless you're vaccinated. You can do more things when you're vaccinated."

District officials closed the line after a few hours due to so much demand, but 300 doses were available to vaccinate kids and all doses were expected to be used before the night was done.

PSUSD added additional vaccination stations late in the day to counter the high volume as some parents grew frustrated, but most said immunity for their kids was worth the wait.

"I think the good news about that – its a long wait – but that shows how many people in our community are really looking to protect their children," said parent Ruby Rivera. "I'm really proud of to be a part of Palm Springs Unified, where so many families care about this."

Parents who were turned away can make another appointment with the district as the supply of children's doses continues to increase.

The next PSUSD clinic will be Monday at Desert Hot Springs High School theater from 3 to 7 p.m.