Alexander Milman is an 84-year-old Bensonhurst resident who survived a Nazi concentration camp during World War II. On Thursday, he and his wife got their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine during a one-day pop-up site for survivors.
For Milman and his wife, Agnessa, getting the vaccine wasn’t a question.
Milman’s older brother died last year from COVID-19. His children received doses as essential healthcare workers and urged him to get the shot.
“We don’t want to get sick,” he said in Russian through an interpreter during a 15-minute observation period after the shot. His wife, Agnessa, says they’ll be waiting for their second dose before they do anything differently in their lives, but look forward to feeling more comfortable and safe.
They’re among 330 Holocaust survivors, Nazi victims, and World War II veterans who signed up for a Moderna vaccination at the Edith and Carl Marks Jewish Community House of Bensonhurst, which locals call the “J.” The UJA-Federation of New York, a philanthropy group, teamed with the occupational care provider Mobile Health to set up the pop-up site at the J. Together, they had just days to contact some 800 mostly Russian-speaking survivors to coordinate time slots and transportation for those who needed it.
Zoya Goldovskaya received her first dose of the coronavirus vaccine at a pop-up site in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn for Holocaust survivors on February 11, 2021.
The pop-up arrived after weeks of trying to find vaccine appointments through the normal channels. Alex Budnitsky, the executive director of the J, had tasked his staff with scouring vaccine websites at midnight when most seekers across NYC suspect new windows would appear. That mission was not very successful. In three weeks, they were able to find just three dozen appointments for survivors—all of whom are eligible as older New Yorkers.
The philanthropy group connected Mobile Health to the J and got the site up-and-running in less than a week.
“This is a humongous victory for us,” said Budnitsky. He said around 20 Russian interpreters were on-site to work with the seniors, and some already knew the building due to senior clubs at the center.
During the war, you were able to hide somewhere. But now, there is nowhere to hide so the virus catches you wherever you are.
A 98-year-old concentration camp survivor, who declined to share her name, said she’s avoided stores and even medical visits during the pandemic and has been unable to see her grandson. She tried to book a vaccine appointment elsewhere, but was unable to until she signed up at the J.
“I’ll be more comfortable to move around,” the Midwood resident said. “It’s for my health.”
Ninety-year-old Zoltan Matyash was vaccinated alongside his wife, Mera, who were both feeling happy and inspired about the day. They hope others follow suit because they feel it is a critical way to protect older people like them.
Zoltan Matyash received his first dose of the coronavirus vaccine at a vaccine drive for Holocaust survivors in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn. Zoltan is a survivor of Auschwitz and still has his number tattooed on his arm.
Retrieving enough doses was still a critical challenge. Eighty people were on a waitlist from Thursday’s vaccine drive, including 20 survivors who showed up hoping for a walk-in appointment. Organizers said 318 received a shot on Thursday.
“We just want to make sure that they have a priority because of what they went through,” Budnitsky said. “If they can bring [more doses] again, we’ll host it.”
Other survivors across NYC are expected to get vaccinated, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Wednesday. City Hall is working on an effort to ensure survivors are immunized with the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York City.
In Bensonhurst, obtaining second doses for survivors is the next step, said Rina Cohen, a planning executive at the federation.
Budnitsky says the Bensonhurst organization will also be conducting education outreach to those still feeling reluctant about the COVID-19 vaccines, which he says is common among some Russian speakers in the area.
Many survivors are also homebound, and Budnitsky hopes to reach this group next.
Brooklyn resident Svetlana Danilova who fled the former Soviet Union during WWII received her first dose of the coronavirus vaccine at a pop-up site in Bensonhurst for Holocaust survivors.
Currently, there is no program for homebound seniors to get the shot because of supply shortages with both authorized vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, according to recent statements by city health officials. Councilmember Mark Treyger, who represents Bensonhurst and is the only Russian speaking council member in NYC, introduced a bill Thursday to require the city health department to come up with a vaccine program for homebound seniors, according to the Brooklyn Paper.
A historian and journalist whose family fled Nazis when she was a child, Svetlana Danilova, felt hesitant about the vaccine at first. But her daughter, a psychologist at a hospital, insisted she get the shot.
“We were fearful at first but overcame our fear and came here,” the Borough Park resident said through an interpreter. After her shot, she felt calm and normal.
The moment would mark a new point in the COVID-19 pandemic for her, a year which, in some ways, she said was more difficult than World War II.
“During the war, you were able to hide somewhere. But now, there is nowhere to hide so the virus catches you wherever you are,” Danilova said.
