TIM BERTRAND
SOUTHWICK – With the first COVID-19 vaccines rolling out to frontline workers this week, the general population likely has a few months to decide if vaccination is right for them.
For Southwick residents Tim Bertrand and Jim Putnam II, it’s not even a question.
Bertrand has been participating in a Johnson & Johnson vaccine trial since last summer and said after learning directly from the scientists creating the vaccine, he has no hesitation about getting immunized.
“I was one of the first 25 people in the United States to be injected with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine,” said Bertrand, a computer software salesperson.
Bertrand’s job takes him around the world and he sometimes brings his family along. He said last year they were in Milan at the start of the outbreak in Italy.
“We had to leave quickly, and I wasn’t sure we would get out,” he recalled.
As the shutdown reached the United States and prolonged around the world, Bertrand knew he wanted to do something. When he heard about the Jonson & Johnson vaccine trial, he found his opportunity.
“They were looking for healthy people to participate,” he said. “I did my research and decided this was something I could do.”
Bertrand is in good physical shape, eats well and exercises. He figured that as a healthy person, he could take the risk of early vaccination and save a compromised person from the risks later.
He began the double-blind trial over the summer and said he has not had adverse effects, however he does not know if he received a placebo or a dose of the vaccine and won’t know until vaccines are released to the public. Some trial participants had cold-like symptoms for 24-hours following injection, according to Bertrand.
“This trial was not just about whether the vaccine works, but about dosage, so I don’t know if I was given the vaccine and at what dosage level,” he said.
Meeting directly with the scientists creating the vaccine reassured Bertrand that it was safe. He spent many hours with them, learning and asking questions.
“The Johnson & Johnson vaccine is based on existing vaccines that have been altered to target COVID,” he said. “There will be many vaccines developed and people will have to talk with their doctor about which one is right for them.”
The trial includes a series of shots followed by blood tests. Bertrand received the first injection in August, then again in October. He just completed his follow-up bloodwork and said he will have more tests in the coming year.
Bertrand said it was an “amazing experience” and he is now confident that COVID vaccines should be taken by those able to get vaccinated.
“Every person has to make a decision for themselves,” he said. “There have already been over a million people globally that have been vaccinated and going through trials, from age 18-80.”
He said he believes the trials have been well done and believes that better days are coming. His company has survived, although there were layoffs followed by uncertainty in the first few months of the pandemic.
“Things really improved over the summer, but people are getting scared now,” Bertrand said. “It’s been a roller coaster.”
Bertrand said personally, the silver lining of the pandemic has been spending more time at home.
“For my family, it’s been a really good thing,” he said. “As a traveling software salesman, I’ve traveled three or four days a week for 20 years. Now, I’m home.”
Bertrand said the trial has allowed him to “do his part” and he has passed on the education he received to family, friends, and his social network, which includes the New England car racing circuit. He said one of his Facebook posts about his experience went viral and many people have told him his experience swayed them to be open to the vaccine.
“I urge people to do their research,” he said. “I think that the virus is a lot more risky than getting the shot.”
Jim Putnam II poses with the Robert L. Miller Award, presented to him Dec. 12, 2020. (HOPE E. TREMBLAY/THE WESTFIELD NEWS)
Putnam is also encouraging people to get vaccinated when they can.
“We have two nurses in our family who are caring for COVID-19 patients – one is an ICU nurse at a Boston hospital and the other is on a geriatric floor at a Springfield hospital. I am incredibly proud and grateful to them,” said Putnam. “The least I can do for them and all other frontline health care providers is to be vaccinated as my share in reducing the spread of this horrible virus, and thereby beginning the process of reducing COVID-19 patient load.”
Putnam said so many people speak out in support of frontline works on social media, which is great, but not enough.
“Platitudes on Facebook comes cheap, but it’s not enough. Masking, hand sanitation, avoiding group get-togethers, and now getting vaccinated are the least I can do. At an earlier time in my life, my Marine son was deployed in Afghanistan and then twice in Iraq. I supported he and his comrades as best I could during those times. This is no different in exercising one’s personal responsibility,” he said.
Putnam said he believes we owe it to all Americans to get immunized so businesses can grow and the economy can improve, thus improving the lives of those affected financially by COVID.
“I am saddened and deeply concerned about the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs and/or are struggling to keep their businesses afloat due to the disruption of this pandemic,” said Putnam. “Not to speak of the anxiety suffered by all those who are working with increased exposure to COVID while taking care of families. The only ‘cure’ for our economy is to bring an end to the pandemic, as soon as possible. Government relief, when made available, is at best a band-aid. I owe it to the hard-working folks to do my part in stopping the spread and getting everyone back to work.”
Putnam said his last reason for getting vaccinated, and encouraging others to do so, is “selfish.”
“I feel robbed of not being there for a major portion of our grandchildren’s lives. I miss going out to dinner with friends, having singing in Church, traveling to new places, and so much more of our lives that we took for granted,” said Putnam. “I hate seeing our grandchildren miss out on a normal school/college experience as they are required to learn virtually.”
He added that vaccines have eradicated disease for many years.
“I am blessed to be part of the first generation of Americans to have been vaccinated against polio. I recall children just a few years older who were polio survivors. It was scarry,” he said. “I am profoundly thankful to Jonas Salk and his team of scientists, our government and my Ma and Dad for making sure that I was in line for that shot from Dr. Kellogg at the Consolidated School.”
