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There are plenty of good reasons not to delay getting vaccinated for COVID-19.

The vaccine is now readily available, and you can get yours at local pharmacies or special events that are happening. Don’t delay just because it seems like the pandemic is getting better or because you don’t hear much about COVID-19 anymore — because the very reason there are fewer cases is because of the vaccine. Getting vaccinated will protect you as well as the community, and it’s still important, as variants are still out there.

Local organizations that serve many people are also getting in the game. Suffolk Public Schools has been on the forefront of the effort here in Suffolk, having held a clinic for SPS staff back in January and February that allowed nearly 1,000 employees to get vaccinated. This effort not only helped protect staff and students when schools returned to in-person learning, but also it benefited the staff members themselves, their families and the community at large.

Now, Suffolk Public Schools is having a clinic open to students ages 12 and up, as well as to staff who did not take the shot the first go-round.

Lakeland High School will host a clinic June 22, King’s Fork High School June 23 and Nansemond River High School June 24. Each clinic will run from 7 a.m. until noon.

These clinics will give out the first dose of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, and the second doses will be scheduled about 21 days following.

You can learn more information in the story that begins on the front page.