Holyoke Soldiers’ Home resident says COVID vaccine saved his life Updated Feb 28, 2021; Posted Feb 28, 2021 Joe Langland Jr. was one of the last residents to return to the Soldiers' Home in Holyoke after a COVID-19 outbreak there last spring infected about 75% of residents, killing 76. (Submitted photo) Facebook Share HOLYOKE — After seeing dozens of friends die of COVID-19 at the Soldiers’ Home in Holyoke, Joe Langland Jr. thought he was in the clear — until he got the bad news on his 74th birthday. Langland is a longtime Amherst resident, retired postal worker and Vietnam veteran. He was one of about 35 Soldiers’ Home residents moved to Holyoke Medical Center last spring to keep them safe after the deadly coronavirus spread through the Soldiers’ Home.