By: Follow South Jersey Staff

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, N.J. – Camden High School basketball standout, DJ Wagner, his coach and former NBA player, Rick Brunson, and teammate, Cian Medley, have participated in a public service announcement in partnership with the Camden County Board of Commissioners with the message: “This is Your Shot – Make it Count.”

“The city and the county have made a lot of progress when it comes to administering the COVID-19 vaccine since the first PSA went out in August, but we have a lot more work to do with the booster dose,” Commissioner Al Dyer said in a press release from the county. “I want to applaud the kids and Rick for stepping up and promoting the booster shot because we know it is vital to keep residents healthy from Omicron and this virus which has created so much chaos in our community and hurt so many people.”

Former Camden High School Basketball coach and current Camden City Mayor, Vic Carstarphen, said the need is great to get city residents vaccinated.

“We are moving our objectives and focusing our energy on getting more than 80% of the city vaccinated and getting boosters out to everyone,” Carstarphen said. “I want to thank Coach Brunson and the kids at Camden High for stepping up to the plate and assisting this effort. Lord knows, these kids are delivering on the basketball court this year and we don’t want anything to happen to undermine this magical season. This special team needs all of us to play a role and get the booster, so they can have a historic season and we can be there in person to see it.”

Congressman Donald Norcross said that getting the vaccine is vital to community health.

“To protect ourselves and our loved ones, and to keep our communities safe from COVID, we need every eligible person to get boosted,” Norcross said. “The science and data are clear: being vaccinated and boosted dramatically reduces risk of hospitalization and death. I applaud these local stars for spreading the word that booster shots are safe, effective, and free. The frustration over the pandemic is real and the quicker we can all come together to look out for our health, the quicker we can get back to our new normal.”

Mayor Carstarphen stressed the importance of increasing vaccinations and booster doses for all Camden residents. The city has had 20,103 infections since the start of the pandemic and has also lost 235 residents to COVID-19. While 70% of Camden residents are fully vaccinated, the mayor and commissioners are committed to getting all of those eligible residents’ booster shots. 

There have been 897,985 doses of the vaccine administered throughout Camden County with more than 398,687 residents with at least one dose in them. In addition, 158,953 booster doses have been administered throughout the county. In Camden City, more than 81% of the population 18 and over has had one dose of the vaccine and that number continues to grow week to week.

To view the public service announcement, click www.camdencounty.com/vaccine. For updates on the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccination locations, please visit Camden County at www.camdencounty.com and the City of Camden at ci.camden.nj.us.

Follow South Jersey provides local journalism which highlights our diverse communities; fosters transparency through robust, localized, and vital reporting that holds leaders and institutions accountable; addresses critical information needs; supports people in navigating civic life; and equips people with the information necessary to partake in effective community engagement. If there is a story or event you think we should cover, please send your tips to news@followsouthjersey.com with “NEWS” in the subject line.

The original text of this article may be found at: https://followsouthjersey.com/2022/02/09/camden-high-basketball-star-dj-wagner-push-for-boosters-in-new-psa/