Jewish Family Service of Metrowest (JFS) is making vaccine education accessible to Spanish-, Portuguese-, and English-speaking children through book translations and free video read-alouds.

Discussing the intricacies of the pandemic with children can be difficult. JFS is trying to change that. With the recent authorization of pediatric COVID-19 vaccines and an emerging new variant, JFS is educating immigrant children on how to protect themselves and their communities as well as helping to inform parents’ decisions on getting their children vaccinated.

The initiative was inspired by the release of JFS Volunteer and recent Standford University graduate Emma Rashes’s new children’s book Lily the Llama Helps Her Herd. This beautifully illustrated book teaches children about herd immunity, explaining the importance of vaccination.

Rashes spoke on her motivation for writing the book: “In the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, I became increasingly aware of the abundance of anti-vaccine information and the lack of pro-vaccine scientific resources targeted at families, and higher rates of vaccine hesitancy among communities of color in the United States.” Rashes also cited a decrease in routine childhood vaccination-rates since the start of the pandemic, which “put communities in our country at risk for outbreaks of vaccine-preventable disease when children returned to in-person school.” Rashes hopes that the book will play a role in combating vaccine hesitancy and serve as an educational resource for families.

Thanks to translations by JFS CEO Lino Covarrubius and the JFS Immigrant Services team, the book is now available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese in both hard copy and video read-aloud formats.

Covarrubias noted, “Our local immigrant community was especially hit hard by COVID-19. Having ways to accelerate vaccinations and dispel myths about the COVID-19 vaccine was and continues to be a high priority for JFS. Lilly the Llama was one of many initiatives we put in place to accomplish this very important lifesaving work. The book is a very helpful and creative way for parents/guardians to talk to their children about the vaccine. It has made a huge difference.”

Keep your communities safe by sharing Lily the Llama Helps Her Herd!

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About JFS of Metrowest

Jewish Family Service (JFS) of Metrowest is a community-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that is dedicated to Accelerating Social, Academic and Health Equity. Harnessing the power of over 300 volunteers and collaborative partnerships with more than 100 organizations, JFS serves over 7,500 people, within the Metrowest and Greater Boston regions each year - regardless of faith affiliation or background - and offers a wide range of programs that support the needs of low-income immigrant children and families, vulnerable older adults and at-risk members of the Jewish community. JFS’ sound fiscal management practices have earned it a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s largest independent charity evaluator. To learn more about JFS, visit http://www.jfsmw.org/ or click to view the 2021 Report to the Community.