That little boy with all the tubes and wires is my second son, kiddo number three out of five.

In that picture, he is three years old and finally on the road to recovery after several days in the PICU at Denver Children's Hospital.

He ended up there after a crazy combination of events that no one could have predicted put him into severe respiratory distress.

He was life-flighted alone with the flight nurses on a helicopter from Cheyenne, Wyoming to Denver while my husband and I and our 6-month-old son frantically followed below in our truck.

Thanks to phenomenal doctors and prayers from our community of friends and family across the nation our son eventually recovered.

Cathy Holman
Cathy Holman
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When he was released from the hospital we began the long journey of finding out what caused the problem...in the hopes that we could prevent it from happening again.

As we spoke with specialists at Denver Children's Hospital we asked them what kind of things we could do as a family to keep him safe in the future.

The number one thing they told us to do was receive the flu vaccination every single year, our entire family, even his siblings.

And so, to keep our son safe, we get our flu vaccinations every single year.

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The Casper Natrona County Health Department is asking that Casperites make an effort to get a flu vaccination this year, and have emphasized that it is more important than ever this year.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that anyone 6 months and older gets an annual influenza vaccination. Because of the global COVID-19 health threat, hospital space, personal protective equipment and medical professionals are already in short supply. It’s imperative for Casper to effectively manage and mitigate flu cases this year.

To help make it easier for Casper Residents to receive a flu vaccine there will be a drive-through flu vaccination clinic at the Casper College Firehouse (800 College Drive).

The remaining dates for these drive-through clinics are:

Thursday, October 22: 1:00 - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 24: 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Flu vaccines will be available at $25 for a regular dose or $75 for a high dose for those over the age of sixty-five.

If you have an insurance card please bring it, there may be potential for a reduced cost.

NOTE: If you are experiencing flu-like symptoms or have had direct contact with a known positive case, please seek testing through the Casper-Natrona County Health Department by calling 307-577- 9892 or the Wyoming Medical Center by calling 307-233-7288.

KEEP READING: 50 community resources supporting Americans financially impacted by COVID-19

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