“It could help end the pandemic quicker and help us get back to normal,” Evie Spengler said.
For now, the Spengler family doesn’t know if Evie was given the actual vaccine or a placebo. But since she had mild side-effects, her mother feels it’s likely she got the vaccine.
“I know I felt much better allowing her to play soccer or allowing her to ride her bike in the neighborhood where I know it’s a pack of kids, and not being so worried that A), could she get sick? Or B) Could she share the virus with someone not knowing if she had it or not?” said Jen, who is a writer for Sharp Health News.
“When I went to dinner that night, literally at the dinner table I said, I can’t do it anymore, ” Jennifer says. “ They’re only taking kids 12-15, and Evie immediately said, Well then, I can do it. ”
Evie is your typical 12-year-old kid. She loves to play video games, hang out with her dogs, and be with family. She’s a competitive soccer player, but she’s proving to be a champion off the field, by seizing this opportunity aware she is experiencing a vaccine before it has been widely released to her age group.
“It’s been hard just from like having to stay home and do things like that,” Evie says. “But every minute of every day we’re getting closer and smaller bits getting back to normal life.”