Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021 | Greenbrook residents Michelle Bente and Tara Poulton, best friends since eighth grade, stand with their kids, Madelynn Bente, 7, Mary Anne Poulton, 6, and Mason Bente, 7, at the entrance to their tent.Buy this Photo
Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021 | Lakewood Ranch employee Antonio Hernandez tends to the bonfire. He said Lakewood Ranch wasn t providing a communal s mores table this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but plenty of families brought their own supplies.Buy this Photo
Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021 | Lakewood Ranch resident Adriana Nazario, 10, lights a spark using a rod made of ferrocerium, a synthetic alloy made from iron and cerium.Buy this Photo
Manatee began setting appointments Tuesday to provide COVID-19 vaccinations for 900 people who’d registered using the county’s new lottery system.
This on a day when DeSoto County exhausted its vaccine supply and when the federal government announced that it was releasing its stockpile of vaccine to states and expanding who qualifies to get vaccinated.
Manatee’s operation will be the first major test of the new system approved by the County Commission last week.
A spokesman said Tuesday that the county’s 311 operators would be calling people all day in order to set appointments for Thursday.
People who are randomly chosen get a phone call notifying them of their appointment. If they don’t answer, they get a second call. Someone who misses both calls is put back on the list.