Three more African American UM churches in the Philadelphia area have joined the ranks of church COVID-19 vaccination sites. Eastwick UMC hosted a vaccination clinic, partnering with Rite Aid pharmacy; and it will host its follow-up clinic May 15. 

Janes Memorial UMC in Philadelphia will be a vaccination site May 8. And Camphor UMC in Philadelphia hosted an initial clinic April 3 and another for second-shot returnees on Saturday, April 24.

Camphor partnered with Sunray Drug Store in Philadelphia, thanks to a friend who is a deacon at First Korean Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia. The two churches have had a 25-plus year friendship, marked by their annual joint worship and celebration event. 

“Due to COVID-19, we have been unable to host the large fellowship of over 400 persons the past two years at our respective churches,” said Camphor member Carol Black, “but God found this way to further our friendship and save lives.” Black sent us photos of her church’s vaccination experience.

We would like to report on more churches that are hosting COVID vaccination clinics. Please send us information and photos if your church has participated in this important ministry to its community. Write to us at communications@epaumc.org.  Or use our website’s Submit News page.

A number of other UM churches have hosted vaccination clinics in partnership with nearby hospitals and pharmacies. They are providing a much-needed resource to getting the vaccines disseminated, especially among under-served residents in their communities. (And some churches also served as critically needed COVID testing sites in the early months of the pandemic.)

Swarthmore UMC, Union UMC in Darby and Wharton-Wesley UMC in Philadelphia have all hosted COVID -19 vaccine clinics. Christ UMC Fairless Hills hosted a clinic April 10. (See photos). And African Zoar UMC in Philadelphia will host one on Saturday, April 17, to distribute the Moderna vaccine in partnership with the Broad and Snyder Pharmacy, from 10 AM to 2 PM or until they run out of doses. They will return May 15 for second-shot returnees. 

View recording and slides from Vaccines and Variants webinar

Our Zoom recording from Monday’s “Vaccines, variants and the road ahead” webinar, led by clinical pharmacologists Dr. Elsen Jacob and Dr. Susan Jacob, is available on our website and well-worth viewing and sharing. The two presenters’ PowerPoint slides are also there. The webinar was richly informative, with clear, helpful explanations and answers to questions. Learn more…