Berrien County Health Department now taking appointments for COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5-11

Following the recent authorization and recommendation by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the Berrien County Health Department began vaccinating children ages 5 to 11 years old with the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine Monday, Nov. 8.

The Berrien County Health Department is currently taking appointments for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for this age group.

The following clinics will be for children ages 5 to 11 only. Adults can continue to schedule appointments at clinics not designated for children only. Residents who need assistance in scheduling an appointment can call 1-800-815-5485. • Benton Harbor -Wednesday,

Nov. 17, from 3 to 6 p.m. • Benton Harbor - Tuesday,

Nov. 23, from 3 to 6 p.m.

Parents and guardians wishing to protect their children over the age of 5 from COVID-19 may schedule an appointment online at bchdmi.org/covid19. A parent or guardian must provide consent before any minor under the age of 18 may receive their vaccination.

“We urge families to consider vaccinating their children 5 years and older,” said Guy Miller, interim health officer for the Berrien County Health Department, in a press release. “Researchers have found the COVID-19 vaccination for this age group to be safe, effective and beneficial to reducing COVID-19 transmission in our community.”

Similar to the adult vaccine, it is a two-part series given at least three weeks apart. The dose for children is approximately a third of what adults receive. Doses for children will also be packaged differently and use smaller needles to protect against mix-ups.

The vaccine safety was studied in over 3,000 children ages 5 to 11, with no serious side effects detected in the ongoing study. Currently, the only vaccine approved for use in children ages 5 to 11 is the Pfizer vaccine.

BCHD continues to offer open scheduling for both first and second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, as well as Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine with appointment availability found at www.bchdmi.

org/COVID19. — STAFF REPORTS

New Buffalo Middle/High School student advocate is always there for the students

Gerri Lucas is always on the move.

“I’m a high energy person - I’m not one to sit behind a desk, I’d be too bored,” she said.

Which is why her role as student advocate/graduation coach at New Buffalo Middle/ High School, a new position that was created this school year, is the perfect fit for her.

Lucas obtained her Bachelor of Science with an English major and a Spanish minor from Indiana UniversityBloomington and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with a concentration in poetry (she’s a published poet and is currently working on a book of poetry) at Sierra Nevada University.

For 16 years, Lucas taught high school Spanish and English in Harvey, Illinois. Before that, she taught special education out of Chicago Heights, Illinois. There, she taught emotional and behavioral impairment students in middle and high school.

In Harvey, she ran a spoken word club with at-risk students, where they competed in downtown Chicago, in the competition, “Louder Than a Bomb,” the largest spoken word competition in the world.

“Occasionally, it takes a decade for a team to move up in that particular competition because it’s 1,000 teams and in four years we made quarter finals – I had some amazing students with some truths to share that the world needs to hear,” she said.

BY FRANCESCA SAGALA

Gerri Lucas stands in her office in her new position as student advocate

Helping students share theses truths and succeed in life – once they get past the struggles, big and small, that may plague their lives – is Lucas’ goal at New Buffalo.

“I tell them, ‘I’m called a student advocate, so really, I work for you,’” she said.

In middle school this means helping them succeed academically as well as socially, which means helping them deal with “little mini battles” over topics varying from clothing to boyfriends to friends in general – whatever is “getting in the way of them focusing on school and schoolwork.”

For the older set, this means giving students some space to breathe and work on their academics – whether they just need a quiet spot to come in and do some work or they’re making up a credit through an online class and need to get that done. “I created groups during their guided academics, so they’ll come in here (her office) and complete those courses in here, so they don’t slide by the wayside,” she said.

“I just see the needs and I create something to help the students take that time and have that time in school – because a lot of these kids have adult responsibilities, so they need to be able to do school in school as much as possible, so I create the time and space to get things done at school,” Lucas added.

Another initiative Lucas implemented is grade sheets. Every week, she gives the sheets for students who are on her list in the middle and high school. She gives rewards, such as a certificate, when their grades have improved. Recently, she accompanied a group of juniors and seniors on a college trip.

Lucas said that her office is more than a place to get work done – it’s also a soft place for students to land. She’s strived to make it look as comfortable as possible – a chair with a throw pillow on it in one corner, a basket with a nerf designed to make downtown LaPorte more of a destination. extended the boundaries of an economic development zone to a tapas planned at 816 Lincolnway. basketball in the other one. “Maybe you’re just stressed out and want to shoot baskets and get something off your chest, if a peer’s getting on your nerves old LaPorte Sporting Goods building you can talk to me about it or do vacant for about the past 10 years.whatever it is that works for you to calm you down…if you got more to do, more restaurants, more into something with someone availability. So, we’re excited to see on bus, I can just be that buffer where this is going to go moving zone, so we can get you back to forward,” said Mayor Tom Dermody.class and be successful,” she said.

Lucas said the initiatives appetizers and other small dishes that are already in place at will also provide a gathering place on the middle/high school have the second floor. certainly helped her with her position. She’s impressed with sometime in the fall of 2022. the focus on being “character strong” on certain days of the and other specifics will be released at week. some point in the future.

“There’s so much going on here that I’ve never seen before the LaPorte Economic Advancement that I really love - building who Partnership, said the tapas was they are as a person and giving made possible by a tool used in positive feedback for them other communities like Valparaiso being unique, that’s really hard and Michigan City to attract more restaurants serving alcohol.in middle and high school to be unique when it’s all about being whatever everyone wants you the state legislature is a Riverfront to be,” Lucas said. Liquor License District giving cities

Hearing positive feedback an unlimited number of liquor from those who are in the licenses for issuing strictly to school building also helps – restaurants wanting to serve alcohol. particularly when it comes from the students. adjacent to bodies of water but the

“When kids are saying ‘thank boundaries can be expanded over you’ to me, that means the half mile away from the water. most…They don’t always see beside Lily Lake. what you’re doing is helping, so when they can see that – that’s a lot.” costing about $2,500 with a $1,000

Casual dining with alcohol on menu for evolving downtown LaPorte

BY STAN MADDUX

Aplace for casual dining serving alcoholic beverages is adding to the growing menu of trendy restaurants annual renewal fee must be returned if the businesses close. In comparison, more traditional liquor licenses costing upwards of $100,000 are very limited in supply. designed to make downtown LaPorte more of a destination.

The LaPorte City Council has extended the boundaries of an economic development zone to a tapas planned at 816 Lincolnway.

The establishment is going into the old LaPorte Sporting Goods building vacant for about the past 10 years.

“Everybody talks about we need more to do, more restaurants, more availability. So, we’re excited to see where this is going to go moving forward,” said Mayor Tom Dermody.

Dermody said the tapas serving appetizers and other small dishes will also provide a gathering place on the second floor.

The restaurant should open sometime in the fall of 2022.

He said the name of the restaurant and other specifics will be released at some point in the future.

Bert Cook, executive director of the LaPorte Economic Advancement Partnership, said the tapas was made possible by a tool used in other communities like Valparaiso and Michigan City to attract more restaurants serving alcohol.

The tool approved years ago by the state legislature is a Riverfront Liquor License District giving cities an unlimited number of liquor licenses for issuing strictly to restaurants wanting to serve alcohol.

Cook said the district must be adjacent to bodies of water but the boundaries can be expanded over half mile away from the water.

The district in LaPorte starts beside Lily Lake.

Cook said the liquor licenses costing about $2,500 with a $1,000 Traditional licenses can be kept and used later or sold by the owners if they go out of business. “We have a pretty regular number of businesses saying they’d like to start a restaurant but can’t get access to any kind of liquor licenses either because they’re scarce and not available or they’re cost prohibitive,” he said. The RLLD in LaPorte was created in 2019. It was used just once previously to help with the opening of El Cantarito, a Mexican restaurant at the Pine Lake Shopping Center.

The city council Monday, Nov. 1, expanded the district to include the tapas and a much larger area of the downtown.

Cook said there’s a good chance at least three more licenses will be issued next year to other restaurants serving alcohol wanting to locate downtown.

“We believe the geographic expansion will help open up other opportunities,” he said.

Among the restaurants opening recently downtown include Melt Kitchen at 810 Lincolnway, Maple & Rye at 708 Michigan Ave. and Bare Bones, a gastropub at 518 Lincolnway.

Cook said the idea is providing more options to keep residents from going elsewhere for dining and attract people from surrounding communities.

“It’ll just further the path that we’re on to be a downtown destination in Northwest Indiana,” he said.

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Bison defeated by Titans in volleyball semi-Finals

BY STAN MADDUX

An upset appeared in the making early for the New Buffalo High School girls’ volleyball team, which was ousted from the District 4 tournament.

The Lady Bison were defeated in four sets on Nov. 4 by Michigan Lutheran in the district tournament semi-finals at Michigan Lutheran.

New Buffalo (14-16-2) won the first set 25-21.

However, the Titans dominated the next three sets 25-13, 25-13 and 25-12.

New Buffalo head coach Bruce Molineaux said his team seemed more ready to play at the start of the match but couldn’t keep up when Michigan Lutheran became more focused.

“I think that talent took over,” he said.

Michigan Lutheran went on to win the District 4 championship over River Valley.

Jane Funk led all servers for the Lady Bison with five kills while Shannon Dewit contributed four kills.

Amanda Jones and Ava Johnson contributed three kills apiece.

Johnson also dished out a team leading 12 assists.

Jones led all New Buffalo defenders with 19 digs, which are successful returns of a ball spiked by the opposition.

Dewit and Liz Schrock each recorded nine and eight digs, respectively, for the Lady Bison.

“The kids played hard. There wasn’t any giving up in them. Even though we were behind, they were hustling to the ball. We just couldn’t get any real offense to turn the tide,” he said.

Molineaux said the team had a good season considering two strong players from last year’s District championship squad, Kelsey Corkran and Eva Mullen, transferred to other schools prior to the start of the season.

He also had just one returning player.

Molineaux said the prospects next year look promising, with almost every player expected to return and several freshmen on the junior varsity squad expected to compete for starting positions.

“Hopefully, the kids will do some work in the offseason. I think I have five or six kids who are going to play club ball. I just got to get more production out of my outside hitters, that’s all,” he said.

The longer I live, the more I observe that carrying around anger is the most debilitating to the person who bears it. — Katharine Graham