Despite living in the state with the lowest vaccination rate, retiree Dorothy Oliver has gotten 97% of her rural, Black community of Panola, AL vaccinated. She deserves recognition for her tireless work and the wildly effective community vaccination campaign she organized. Her story has already inspired others to do the hard work of protecting their communities from the pandemic.

Dorothy had nearly everything working against her. Alabama has the lowest vaccination rate in the country. Her rural, Black town has seen decades of disinvestment and Sumter County is the poorest county in one of the poorest states. The closest place to get the vaccine is about a 40 minute drive each way in a town where many people don't have cars. Dorothy, along with Sumter County Commissioner Drucilla Russ-Jackson, went door-to-door, calling neighbors and friends, and organizing pop-up vaccination clinics. When interacting with people who were hesitant, she never talked down to her neighbors. She would instead meet them where they were and patiently and earnestly answer their questions. Her campaign of compassion and persistence paid off—with nearly every eligible adult in her town now vaccinated. Like so many Black women who step up to keep their communities safe, Dorothy has done this work without any resources and without expecting anything in return. It's past time we recognize the extraordinary efforts of women like Dorothy.

By honoring Dorothy with a Presidential Medal, the Biden-Harris Administration will live into their commitment to support community outreach vaccination efforts in underserved communities. It will also help amplify her story and inspire thousands of others to reach out to their neighbors, families, and friends so we can work together to end this pandemic.