The COVID-19 vaccination roll-out is the most important priority for our community and country, so when YVR was asked to partner with Vancouver Coastal Health to operate the Richmond vaccination site, we enthusiastically agreed.

We were selected by a BC government taskforce to help get the site up and running starting March 16 for our expertise at moving people efficiently and safely and delivering an exceptional customer experience. This opportunity has allowed us to recall our own employees as well as Musqueam, airline and other airport business employees to provide meaningful employment in service of our community’s greatest priority.

Since the start of the pandemic, YVR has been finding ways to care for our community. We developed YVR TAKECare an industry leading operational program and health and safety campaign within the terminal. Now, we are deploying our YVR Caretakers into the community at large to help B.C.’s mass vaccination effort and deliver a safe well-organized vaccine roll-out.

This is a big opportunity for our team to act in service of our community and support more jobs for those who have been impacted at the airport. We’ll operate this site together as the broader YVR team, and we couldn’t be more excited to carve a path forward towards improved community health.

Since the site opened, on average over 1,200 people have been receiving vaccinations each day. The mass vaccination site will operate through September 2021 or until mass vaccinations are complete.

For more information about appointment bookings, and B.C.’s vaccination plan, please visit vch.ca/covid-19/covid-19-vaccine

We look forward to seeing you at the Richmond Vaccine Centre, or back at YVR when you are ready to fly!

Meet some of the team YVR team members working at the Vaccine Centre:

Nathaniel Nyce is one of the nyce-st guys you'll ever meet. Nathaniel was recalled in March to work at the Richmond Vaccine Centre as the Parking Lead. He learned about the opportunity through YVR’s partnership with the Musqueam Indian Band. Prior to the pandemic, Nathaniel was apprenticing at the Airport Authority as a Heavy Duty Technician since 2018.

“It’s been a team effort to come together to make this operation happen—since April, we’ve been ramping up our numbers to about 1,200 people a day. The more people get vaccinated, the more we can get back to normal life. It’s been great to see so many familiar faces from the airport again and all of the smiling faces and to see everyone excited for what’s to come.”

Narinder Pahal is a matriarch in the YVR community—she’s worked at the airport for 33 years for different companies in various roles (most recently for HMS Host) but one thing is constant: Narinder is notorious for providing the best hospitality.

She has brought this same warmth to the Richmond Vaccine Centre, welcoming every client, and making them feel comfortable. When we saw her, it was like seeing a member of the family that we haven’t been able to see throughout the pandemic. “It’s been very touching working here. A lot of family memories have been missed over the past year and a half. I’ve felt a feeling of accomplishment working here, assisting clients as we get back to normal and know that moving in the right direction.”

When we asked what Narinder was most looking forward to once everyone is vaccinated, she brought tears to all of our eyes with the unexpected emotion in her response, “being back with my YVR family and visiting my mum in England.”

As we chatted to Narinder, we had to pause because of a familiar sound—an airplane flew over us.

Together, as we all get vaccinated, travelling to see our loved ones will once again be possible. We can’t wait for that day!