In July, U.S. Army Reserve Chief Warrant Officer 3 James Ring, a retired Lakeland Police sergeant and president of the Republican Club of Lakeland, thought he was going to die from COVID-19.
Now, he is hoping to prevent others from suffering what he endured and maybe even save their lives.
On Saturday morning, the Lakeland Republican Club is partnering with the Florida Department of Health Polk County to host a COVID-19 pop-up vaccination clinic from 8 a.m. until noon at Cleveland Heights Country Club at the corner of Edgewood Drive and Buckingham Avenue. The vaccine will be made available to anyone who wishes to receive it. Booster shots will also be available for those who qualify. No appointment is necessary.
“I’ve experienced the severity of the virus,” Ring said in a text to The Ledger. “Additionally, I’ve seen the benefits for those who were vaccinated, as compared to those who were not.”
He said he is hoping to tear down the stigma associated with the shot and encourage more individuals to get it – particularly those most at risk.
Ring pointed out that not only did President Donald Trump push drug companies to deliver a vaccine in under a year, the commander-in-chief eventually got the vaccine himself after waiting 90 days following his bout with COVID-19 in October.
“The Trump administration successfully delivered the vaccine in record time and it’s now saving lives around the world,” Ring said. “Unfortunately, misinformation has created hesitancy to get the vaccine. However, I feel the Republican Party platform has always been protective of individual rights. Despite rhetoric, we are not anti-vaccine or anti-mask, we are advocates for personal freedom.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis has also encouraged those who want it to get the vaccine.
“If you are fully vaccinated, the chance of you getting seriously ill or dying from COVID is effectively zero,” DeSantis said in July. “These vaccines are saving lives.”
Throughout the week, ambulances were backed up at Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center’s emergency room doors, with paramedics wheeling COVID patients inside.
Dr. Daniel Haight, an infectious disease specialist and vice president of LRHMC’s community health, posted on Facebook on Monday evening that “there are 411 COVID-19 patients in the hospital and 49 on ventilators; 65 on high flow oxygen, with 95% of ICU patients unvaccinated.”