COVID has hit hard in Rubonia area. Residents line up to get their vaccine shots Jessica De Leon, The Bradenton Herald
Feb. 10 RUBONIA Seniors were elated on Wednesday morning as they arrived at the Rubonia Community Center to get their first dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.
Among the smiling faces was 71-year-old Sharon Thomas. We were very anxious to get ours done. We wanted to make sure that we are protected and we are just blessed to be able to do this today. So grateful, she said as she and her husband, Pastor Danny Thomas, Sr., 74, of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, waited to be monitored for any potential reactions to the vaccine.
Several community vaccination events, running parallel to New Hanover County’s by-phone appointments, have led to more than 600 vaccinations among members of minority communities. (Port City Daily/Courtesy New Hanover County)
NEW HANOVER COUNTY With New Hanover County deep into the process of vaccinating people 65 and older, officials are proactively reaching out to minority residents, going beyond the call-center system that schedules the bulk of vaccine appointments.
“We began immediately when we noticed that the number of minorities in that 75-and-older group were not getting through on our phone lines,” Linda Thompson, chief diversity and equity officer for New Hanover County, said.
Former New Hanover County Health Director Philip Tarte signs a beam at the now-finished Department of Health and Human Services headquarters. The reasons for Tarte’s departure are unclear. (Port City Daily/Courtesy New Hanover County)
NEW HANOVER COUNTY Phillip Tarte, the director of the New Hanover County Health Department, is no longer employed with the agency, a county spokesperson confirmed Friday. The county’s website lists David Howard previously Tarte’s deputy as interim health director.
Commissioner Rob Zapple said Friday that County Manager Chris Coudriet told commissioners Tarte is no longer employed by New Hanover County.
Tarte was hired in 2016 to lead an agency with 120 employees and a budget of nearly $11.6 million, according to a report at the time by StarNews Media. His starting salary was $130,000. Tarte is from Whiteville and worked as health director of Union County prior to coming to New Hanover.
As some Wilmington-area healthcare workers queued up for their second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, people 65 and older were receiving a first dose as the…