Newly-wed Mansfield couple aged 90 and 86 among first to be vaccinated at new centre

A recently married Mansfield couple were among the first to receive their Covid 19 jab at their town’s new large scale vaccination centre.
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The NHS is delivering the lifesaving vaccine at a new centre on the former Wickes site, as part of the biggest immunisation programme in health service history.

The Mansfield centre joins 31 other new sites opening across the country. People aged 75 and over who live within a 45 minute drive of the centre are invited to book. They can also be jabbed at one of eleven local vaccination sites or hospital hubs.

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Among the first to receive their jabs in Mansfield were 90-year-old Geoff and 86-year-old Jenny Holland.

Newlyweds Geoff Holland, 90, and Jenny Holland, 86, from Town View independent living scheme getting their vaccination.Newlyweds Geoff Holland, 90, and Jenny Holland, 86, from Town View independent living scheme getting their vaccination.
Newlyweds Geoff Holland, 90, and Jenny Holland, 86, from Town View independent living scheme getting their vaccination.

The couple met whilst living at Town View, Mansfield District Council’s independent living scheme for the over 55s. They had been due to be married on Jenny’s birthday, in April, 2020, but their special day was postponed due to COVID-19.

Engaged on New Year’s Eve, 2019, Jenny said: “We had a fight on our hands to get married. We eventually went ahead on the only available date August 22 - with just two witnesses.

“We’re really excited to be getting the vaccine - hopefully one day soon we’ll be able to have a get together and celebrate with our family and friends who couldn’t be there on the day.”

Mansfield Vaccination Centre opens. Geoff Holland 90 and Jenny Holland 86 from Town View independent living scheme getting their vaccination.Mansfield Vaccination Centre opens. Geoff Holland 90 and Jenny Holland 86 from Town View independent living scheme getting their vaccination.
Mansfield Vaccination Centre opens. Geoff Holland 90 and Jenny Holland 86 from Town View independent living scheme getting their vaccination.
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After their ceremony, the couple went out for a meal with four guests but were unable to have the music and dancing that they had planned, or share a wedding cake with residents of Town View.

Throughout the pandemic, Geoff’s daughter, Kathryn Turner and her husband Roger, of Mansfield Woodhouse, have only seen the couple briefly when they drop shopping off at the main door.

Kathryn said: “We have missed them so much. They are so in love and such lovely people. It’s fantastic that they are getting the vaccine so their love story can continue. They are so independent and do everything together. Hopefully this will help us all get back to some sort of normality.”

Mrs Turner said that her father’s life had changed completely as a result of meeting Jenny in the summer of 2019.

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She said: “He needed either a walking frame or a mobility scooter, meeting Jenny has taken years off him – he looks 20 years younger!”