Kiwi musician Paige Tapara for The 90% Project - about why she got the vaccine and her message to others. Video / NZ Herald
"We want to move on. We want to move forward. We don't want to be stuck in this treadmill running in the same place like we have been for the past nearly two years."
Young Kiwi musician Paige Tapara got vaccinated against Covid to help protect her family and friends. Now she's asking others to do the same to get New Zealand moving again.
She's the latest in a string of high-profile Kiwis to get behind The 90% Project being run by the Herald to help get 90 per cent of the country's eligible population vaccinated by Christmas.
"I got offered the vaccine in March - that's because my sister works in customs on the border - so I got the opportunity for getting an early vaccine. I think a lot of people in my household at the time were pretty nervous about getting it and they said they wanted to wait," Tapara said.
"I was the first one to go and get it done just because I want things to start moving forward. Now my whole family have gotten vaxxed and we're all wanting other people to get it done too."
The South Auckland-based singer-songwriter said learning the vaccine could help stop the virus spreading as much that she knew for sure she wanted to get it done and she encouraged others to think of those around them.
Auckland singer-songwriter Paige is encouraging others to get vaccinated against Covid for the sake of their friends and family. Photo / Supplied
"It's really important to help keep your family and friends protected from the virus. You don't want people around you getting sick," she said.
"The only way that we can move forward is getting this vaccine. We don't want lockdowns anymore. It would be nice to just go and earn money the way you used to and have businesses be open and have live music again. The vaccine is really the closest thing we have to going back to normal."
For her, the latest outbreak and lockdown has put question marks around a summer filled with gigs, prompting her to get a job at The Warehouse to make ends meet if they aren't able to take place.
"The thing about summer for musicians is that's kind of where your source of income for the whole year is and it's actually quite nerve-wracking that we might not be getting that pay."
Where to get a vaccination in Auckland - without a booking
This map shows large vaccinations centres from the Unite again Covid-19 information page. For more detailed information about your neighbourhood visit Healthpoint.
As far as getting the jab itself, she said it was easy.
"Everyone's really, really lovely. It didn't hurt nearly as much as I thought it would. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be.
"For the second vax I felt a bit tired but that was the absolute worst."
