Hit me with your best (COVID-19) shot: Rock fans get vaccine, free tickets at Black River Landing

LORAIN — Fans at Wednesday's edition of the Rockin' on the River concert series showed up early for a dose of something more than just classic rock. A special promotion transformed the event — held at Black River Landing in Lorain — into "Vaxxin' on the River" and offered special benefits to attendees who showed their COVID-19 vaccination card or received a shot on-site. Kaitlyn Widener and Alexander Phillips, both of Lorain, were already planning on coming to the concert but chose to get vaccinated before going in. Phillips said he is simply trying to avoid catching the coronavirus. For Widener, she said preventing COVID-19 is important because other health conditions make her immunocompromised. "I've got lupus and arthritis, so I have to be careful," she said. Vaccinated attendees and those who got the shot Wednesday were admitted to the Lita Ford and Michael Weber Show concert for free, while un-vaccinated fans were admitted for a $10 fee. The city of Lorain also offered the first 5,000 vaccinated attendees $10 gift cards, funded with money from the American Rescue Plan. Lorain resident Dave Clark, a fan of Lita Ford's music, said he chose Wednesday to get vaccinated because he was getting paid with the gift card to do so. In addition to being admitted into the concert for free after receiving a Johnson & Johnson shot, he picked up his $10 card on his way in. "If there was a long line, I was going to pay the $10 just to see Lita Ford," he said. Presented by Mercy Health in conjunction with Lorain County Public Health and Rockin' on the River, the promotion is one of several incentives that have been offered locally to encourage residents to get the COVID-19 vaccine. As of Wednesday, about 52.5 percent of Lorain County residents had received at least one dose. Deputy Lorain County Health Commissioner Mark Adams said concert attendees' interest in the vaccine was so high prior to the show that nurses started giving shots 20 minutes ahead of schedule. By the end of the evening, 33 people had been inoculated. Lorain County Public Health brought 60 doses each of the Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines to the event in case interest was even higher. Adams said most people who came to the health department's vaccine station seemed to be there primarily for the concert itself, not just the incentives. "They're not coming specifically for the $10," he said. "They know about it, it's a nice added bonus, but they're coming because the city put on a great event." Adams said now that everyone who urgently wanted the vaccine has gotten it, the strategy is more focused on making sure it is conveniently available for those who are less eager. "You've got to have a clinic with an event attached to it, not an event with a clinic attached to it," he added. "This started as a clinic 2½ months ago during the planning, then adding this piece to it. We picked which concert it was going to be and have been calling it a clinic since the beginning of the planning phase of it." Jim Edwards, of Lorain, said he had procrastinated getting the vaccine and found Vaxxin' on the River to be "a perfect opportunity" to finally get the shot. Edwards said he's had COVID-19 twice and was concerned he'd be at greater risk of worse vaccine side effects if he did not wait for some antibodies to wear off. He took the Johnson & Johnson shot and said he planned to stay for the concert. Contact the reporter Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.