United for Recovery to COVID-19 Normalcy... Nowon-gu Launches 'Vaccine Volunteer Corps'

April 1st Vaccine Center Officially Opens... Swift and Safe with the 'Vaccine Volunteer Corps'... 'Nowon Mask Volunteer Corps' Passion Ignites Again... 100 Recruited Within 20 Minutes... On the 1st, 43 People Active at Vaccine Center 'Nowon Community Sports Center' and 19 Local Community Centers

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Nowon-gu (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) is operating a ‘Vaccine Volunteer Corps’ in line with vaccination efforts to restore daily life.

Starting April 1, large-scale vaccination of at least 400 people per day will be conducted targeting seniors aged 75 and older, to ensure smooth vaccination.

As of March 19, the district confirmed vaccination consent from 35,227 seniors aged 75 and older, with about 78%, or 27,452 people, agreeing to be vaccinated.

The district plans to swiftly and safely carry out the first dose of vaccination with the Volunteer Corps, laying the foundation for large-scale vaccinations in May and July.

The Volunteer Corps, recruiting a total of 100 members, will operate from April 1 until the end of the vaccination period.

The main roles include ▲ providing information on vaccination dates, times, locations, and precautions before vaccination ▲ assisting with pre-screening form completion and guiding to waiting seats after vaccination at the vaccination center.

At the Nowon Citizen Sports Center in Junggye-dong, the vaccine center, two teams of 12 members each will work in shifts, and at 19 community service centers, volunteers will work alternating 4-hour shifts in the morning and afternoon.

To prevent COVID-19 infection, volunteers will undergo preemptive COVID-19 testing.

Volunteer Corps members will receive recognition for volunteer hours and a daily allowance of 10,000 KRW according to the Nowon-gu Volunteer Activity Support Ordinance.

On the 29th, when the district sent SMS messages to 240,000 residents inviting participation, the response was so enthusiastic that recruitment closed within 20 minutes.

The Nowon Citizen Sports Center, the district’s first vaccination site, has completed installation of booths, chairs, and an ultra-low temperature freezer for managing Pfizer vaccines, and has conducted final simulation training with related agencies such as the fire station and military units.

The district plans to additionally operate the Wolgye Citizen Sports Center as the second vaccination site in the future.

Meanwhile, last year, the ‘Cloth Mask Volunteer Corps,’ formed to help socially vulnerable groups such as elderly living alone and disabled people who had difficulty obtaining masks during the mask shortage, received enthusiastic support from residents. Their voluntary service in the face of national hardship was featured internationally by major news agencies including AFP, UPI, AP, Germany’s Deutsche Welle, and China Central Television, gaining global attention.

Over 21 days, 600 participants in the Cloth Mask Volunteer Corps produced a total of 35,000 cloth masks and distributed them to vulnerable groups, demonstrating the power of care and solidarity.

Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said, “The full operation of the vaccine center to form COVID-19 herd immunity will begin on April 1. Like the heroic efforts of volunteer militias that shone in times of crisis, we hope the ‘Nowon Vaccine Volunteer Corps’ will participate with a sense of mission to overcome COVID-19.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.