Only 7 Western Kentucky Businesses are Participating in the COVID Stops Here Campaign
BY LEVI BRANDENBURG and ASHLI CRAIG
Two months after the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce launched the COVID Stops Here campaign, only seven far western Kentucky businesses have chosen to participate.
The Kentucky Chamber of Commerce (KCOC) launched their vaccine-incentive campaign on Aug. 4, and by the first of October, approximately 313 businesses across the state have participated. The campaign recognizes businesses in the state that have achieved a certain percentage of employees being vaccinated against COVID-19. The chamber sent out approximately 2,000 emails, as well as pushing messaging on social media.
Coffey said the Kentucky Chamber got the idea after hearing about a similar program in Missouri.
“We’re a membership organization,” said Sawyer Coffey, a senior manager of communications for the Kentucky Chamber. “So we have mainly started with our membership. However, we are posting on all of our social media and we are welcoming media interviews. And it’s really taken a lot of traction, because of how vaccines are the biggest topic of conversation right now.”
As of November, 58% of Kentuckians have received both doses of the vaccine. Public health officials and Gov. Andy Beshear have called on Kentuckians to get their vaccines to slow the spread of the virus. At the end of July, the delta variant prevalence in Kentucky was at 87.7 percent. As of right now, Kentucky’s COVID positivity rate is now 5.4%.
Jacqueline Pitts, vice president of communications and marketing for the state chamber, said although the campaign is rather new, approximately 220 businesses signed up in the first month.
“I think we’re still getting the word out,” Pitts said. “And obviously, this is something that you wouldn’t expect the business community to be involved in, necessarily, but we understand how important it is for businesses to make sure that they’re recognizing and applauding things, the things that are happening within their own company, and most people are employed. And so it’s important to be vaccinated so that we can stop the spread of this virus.”
Coffey said the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce added a sweepstakes program to differ from the original program in Missouri.
The campaign recognizes businesses in a tiered model – 70%, 80%, 90% and 100% vaccinated.
For companies that have 90% and above vaccinations, employees are able to enter into giveaways for items such as football tickets and gift baskets.
The seven businesses in far western Kentucky that are participating are:
- Dry Ground Brewing in Paducah, 100 percent
- Market House Theatre in Paducah, 100 percent
- The Marshall County Exceptional Center, 100 percent
- Murray WATCH Center, 100 percent
- Paducah Bank, 80 percent
- Housman, Garatt and Duncan, attorneys, in Paducah, 100 percent
- Hibbs Insurance, 100 percent
The Market House Theatre in Paducah belongs to the state chamber and is one of 168 Kentucky businesses that have a 100% vaccination rate. Executive director Michael Cochran said he thought it would be a good idea to participate after receiving the email. All eight of the staff members were vaccinated prior to their knowledge of the campaign.
“We are a public organization so getting vaccinated was just right,” Cochran said. “We all want to ensure the safety of the public, not just our employees.”
Being vaccinated helps to produce shows. The theatre produces approximately six shows a year. Along with shows, dance and acting classes are offered. Dance classes are usually a 16-week course while acting classes last six weeks.
Cochran said the theatre might require all actors and volunteers to become vaccinated. As of right now, it is not required but highly encouraged.
“People coming back to the arts need confidence,” Cochran said.
The WATCH center in Murray, a vocational rehabilitation center for those with mental disabilities and brain trauma, has a vaccination rate of 100 percent.
Having employees vaccinated also helped the Living Arts and Science Center in Lexington resume educational programming. Jessica Byassee, a Murray State University alumna and former western Kentucky resident, said the science center employees believed in getting the vaccine because they work with a population that has not yet been vaccinated — children.
“Still, at this point, we didn’t want to have something to pass on to our clients as well,” Byassee said. “So we’ve really changed up our whole processes and how we teach at this point.”
Byassee said the center decreased the number of students that could attend classes or camps and kept students organized into pods as precautions. Normally, the center hosts 15 students at a time for classes, but now the number has been reduced to six to eight children because of social distancing.
“I have read through some of the surveys that we gave parents at the end of each week of camp,” she said. “We had a lot of parents who were able to give feedback. And there were no negative comments about how strict we were. They all appreciated that.”
Byassee said the center has not had any COVID cases or quarantines. All employees are vaccinated.
“I think we are all on the same wavelength also here, as far as my team, that we want to do anything that we can to slow this down and do our part,” Byassee said.
The Chamber has been working to be gentle but firm in their handling of this issue, especially because the vaccination issue has become polarized.
“We wanted to show that we’re all in this together,” Pitts said. “It’s not a Republican, or a Democrat issue. It’s not a business community issue. It’s everybody’s issue. We’re all fighting this together. And so we want to make sure that people understand that we have to take some of these steps to move forward and we’re celebrating, you know, the progress that we are making.”
Since the program originated with the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, local chambers are not obligated to participate.
“We have a good relationship with the Kentucky Chamber on various programs and things, but we are limited in our resources here to be as large or offer, participate in or advocate for everything they do,” said Michelle Bundren, executive director of the Murray-Calloway County Chamber of Commerce.
The campaign is not restricted to just chamber members.
