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Ileen Boechler is hoping for an unusual 95th birthday present.
She is joining thousands of others across the province booking COVID-19 second dose vaccinations.
“I am elated,” Boechler said. “I’m so, so excited about it because I think that’s how we’re all going to escape from this, finally.”
The province opened up second dose appointments to the general public Monday in its quest to have all adults vaccinated this summer and keep its Re-Opening Roadmap on schedule.
Anyone 85 and older as well as anyone who received a first dose before Feb. 15 is currently eligible.
With a week until her birthday, Boechler is now preparing for a fully vaccinated summer, something she didn’t think was going to happen so soon when she got her first dose in early March.
“It gives you a bit of a high because you do feel as though you’re kind of on another plateau and you’re headed in the right direction,” she said. “It doesn’t really give you a licence to live much differently, but there is a bit of security. It’s kind of like a celebration.”
Boechler isn’t one to keep idle for too long, usually fitting in an hour-long walk each morning, a round of golf during the summer months and the occasional glass of wine with friends.
Like many people, she has struggled with the isolating effects of the pandemic.
“It’s a little bit insidious,” she said. “You think you’re doing OK, and then one day you’re crying because you just suddenly come to grips with how lonely you are.
“You have to pull yourself together and count your blessings, and then you get back on your feet.”
Boechler occupies her time by quilting, writing and painting, and she can hardly wait until those activities are replaced with something a little more lively.
“Maybe have a couple glasses of wine with a friend,” Boechler said with a chuckle. “I don’t want to sound too bad.”
According to the province’s vaccine dashboard, 45,477 first doses have been administered in the 80-plus age category as of Monday. So far, 13,249 residents in that age group are fully vaccinated.
Eligibility is expected to mimic first dose rollout, with the age being lowered as supply allows.
“Second doses will be available in the same sequencing as first doses were and we will move as quickly as possible down through the age groups just like the first dose, based on our supply of vaccines,” Health Minister Paul Merriman said during a media conference when the second dose rollout was announced earlier this month.
Boechler is pleased to see the rollout move at such a quick pace, with 57 per cent of all adults jabbed with a first dose and the first phase of the province’s reopening plan slated to begin May 30.
Boechler hopes her second dose will get her one step closer to seeing her two daughters in Ontario for the first time in more than a year.
“It is a huge hurdle, and it will give me some peace of mind. I don’t think it will change my lifestyle much until we’re allowed to be a little more outgoing,” she said, waiting for restrictions to be eased before booking a flight.
While Boechler was hoping to celebrate her milestone birthday surrounded by friends and family, her solo celebration won’t be muted one bit.
After this many years of ups and downs, she’s learned to appreciate the smallest of details in her life.
“That’s life,” she said. “You have to celebrate the small things, because there aren’t always big things happening.”