The final vaccine was administered at Cobb County’s mass vaccination site at Jim Miller Park last week.

The shutdown is a sign of success in the widespread availability of the vaccine, as a large centralized distribution site is no longer needed.

The pavilion at the park was used first as a testing site, and as vaccinations became available, it was converted to use as one of the state’s first mass vaccination sites.

Gov. Brian Kemp toured the facility in February, while supplies of the vaccine were still scarce, and held a press conference there along with Dr. Kathleen Toomey, the commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Health, and Dr. Janet Memark, the District Health Director for Cobb & Douglas Public Health.

Once the vaccine became widely available, Cobb & Douglas Public Health began planning for the shutdown of the facility and regularly announced the impending shutdown in its reports to the Cobb County Board of Commissioners and in Dr. Memarks regular update letters.

A ceremony was held to mark the last vaccine at Jim Miller Park that according to the county website attracted hundreds of attendees.

The Cobb County website described the ceremony in these excerpts from their news release reprinted below:

Tears were shed as health care workers mingled with other groups involved in this unprecedented effort that helped Cobb County stay above the state average for both testing and vaccinations.

Before helping unveil a plaque that will be permanently placed at the center, Cobb Chairwoman Lisa Cupid thanked all of those at their event for their efforts and commended the spirit of cooperation between a host of governmental entities to help combat the unprecedented pandemic.

Cobb & Douglas Public Health will continue to administer the vaccine at their clinics, and details can be found by following this link to their website.

Read the Courier’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic by following this link.