H eadlines
Vaccines Continued from Page 1
made appointments for about
65 people and have at least that
many on their waiting list.

Otero, a mother of three,
formerly provided her exper-
tise in international pandemic
preparedness to the Department
of Defense. Though she’s not
employed now, she’s bringing
that strategic thinking to this
community vaccine project.

“Not a lot of sleep is
happening, but we’re getting a
lot of appointments for people,”
she said. “People are very, very
thankful, and I’m happy to help.”
She stressed that the work
they do is intended for members
of their community only.

Otero, Levin and Klinger have
been inundated with stories from
immunocompromised cancer
survivors, transplant survivors
and others with complex medical
histories “who really should be
the first in line for the vaccine,”
Otero said. Helping them out is
not just pointing and clicking:
The choices inherent in the
process can be overwhelming,
and Pennsylvania is far behind
other states in terms of vaccine
distribution, making appoint-
ments hard to get.

“It feels like a ‘Hunger
Games’ situation,” said Klinger.

Dan Shmilovich, who has
known Otero for years through
their synagogue, praised her
efforts in pursuing appoint-
ments for his older parents and
immunocompromised brother.

“She’s kind of like a hawk,”
Shmilovich said.

“She’s checking the websites early
morning, at night, around the
clock, as far as I know.” She
ended up finding appointments
for them — but two hours away.

Such stories are common
on social media, where groups
offering emotional support
alongside blink-and-you’ll-
miss-it appointment leads have
cropped up nationwide. Some
groups focus on cities and
counties, while others tackle
whole regions.

“PA CoVID Vaccine Match
Maker,” a Facebook group
covering the southeastern part
of the state, has more than
27,000 members. Posters are
either “#Finders” or “#Seekers.”
There’s a sidebar with PDFs,
Word documents and a
spreadsheet with names like
“DELCO_VACCINE_LINKS. xlsx” and “weis_pharmacies_
with_vaccine_by_city_0.pdf.” Members post frequently;
some express frustration with
Neil Klinger, Rebecca Klinger’s father-in-law, receives his sought-after shot.
Courtesy of Rebecca Klinger
Cheryl Shmilovich receives a vaccine. Danielle Otero helped her to secure an elusive appointment.

Courtesy of Dan Shmilovich
their lack of success, and others
their gratitude for the help
they’ve received. Notifications
that appointments are available
come with the tone of a breath-
less courier: “Lake Ariel, PA
RITE AID!!!!!”
Lafayette Hill’s Ilene Schafer
and her husband Marshall have
medical conditions that qualify
them for the vaccine, but getting
an appointment has been like
trying to get Springsteen tickets
in the old days of Ticketmaster,
16 FEBRUARY 25, 2021
JEWISH EXPONENT
Ilene Schafer said. They’ve
had no luck using “PA CoVID
Vaccine Match Maker.”
“It feels totally patchwork,”
she said. “Everybody’s doing
their own thing. There’s no
coordination. There’s no central
database. There’s no central
anything. It’s like the Wild West
trying to get an appointment.”
About 44 million Americans
are at least partially vaccinated,
according to the New York
Times. At the current pace,
90% of the population will have
received at least one dose of the
vaccine by Christmas. Some of
those people will have a trio of
friends in Elkins Park to thank
— and they’re not stopping
their work anytime soon.

“Until we stop getting
names from the community,
I’m not really putting a limit on
it,” Otero said. l
jbernstein@jewishexponent.com; 215-832-0740
JEWISHEXPONENT.COM