Now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, Saltillo mayor urges others to take advantage of 'this blessing'

Saltillo Mayor Larry Lowery gets his second dose of the Moderna vaccine.

(Ed. note: This story was first published in the April 1 print edition.) Saltillo Mayor Larry Lowery took advantage of a local visit by the Hardin County Health Department to get his second dose of COVID-19 vaccination Friday.

“I’m one of those who is very much a believer that it’s very important. I try to encourage everyone to get it, even though I know many people have mixed feelings or opinions about it,” Lowery said Tuesday.

Three days after his second shot – which means he is now fully vaccinated – Lowery said he is feeling fine, and more importantly, protected against the virus which causes COVID-19.

“My wife, my whole family has been vaccinated – everybody. None of them have had any bad effects or symptoms, and I didn’t get any either,” the mayor said.

Lowery said he understands why people may feel apprehensive, because they may worry that the vaccination is new and untested.

For him, however, he trusts the medical professionals and the process, especially in the face of a pandemic which so little is known about and has already proven so harmful and even deadly.

“With this disease, we just don’t know how it’s going to affect one individual to the next. If we knew, it would be easier to make a decision – but we don’t. One person could get COVID and be completely fine, and the next could end up on a ventilator or worse,” Lowery said.

“David Byrd is a prime example. He’s healthy, he was a basketball coach, active in athletics, in good shape. No one wants to go through what he went through,” he added.

State Rep. David Byrd was hospitalized due to complications from COVID-19 in early December, and spent nearly a month and a half on ventilator.

The survival rate in the U.S. for those who have severe enough symptoms to be placed on a ventilator has been about 40%. As of press time, Byrd has spent over three months in the hospital, and his family was hoping he would be able to go home Tuesday, according to Byrd’s Facebook page.

“That’s why I think it’s so important for everybody to get vaccinated – because we really don’t know how it’s going to affect any of us. If there is something available to keep us from getting it in the first place, that’s the way to go,” Lowery reasoned.

He added, “I just want to say that here in Saltillo we’re real grateful to the Hardin County Health Department for coming down and giving us shots. I hope everyone in the Saltillo community – and everyone in Hardin County – takes advantage of this blessing and gets vaccinated.”