Some links on this page may no longer be available now that the VEBA Vaccinates program is closed.
If anyone at Morse High School is feeling down and needs a friend – as many of us are and do during this COVID experience – Officer Dave Pallesen is the pal to call.
Officer Pallesen is one of many sworn peace officers committed to providing a safe and secure learning environment for San Diego students. Because of the virus, the officers have been limited to insuring campus security and a few home visits, hoping to ease any pain or mental health challenges that may come with virtual learning.
“A lot of the kids, unfortunately, this has been hard on them just like everyone else; the isolation, not being around friends… We’re human beings by nature, we’re social creatures, we need that interaction. And we need that face-to-face human interaction.”
Soon, that face-to-face interaction will be possible, thanks to the VEBA Vaccinates program.
“(Getting the vaccine) was all very smooth, very quick, very efficient. I have nothing but positive reviews and was very pleased with the whole process. As far as the information I received signing up, everything was really seamless.”
Officer Pallesen did his research and feels confident that the vaccine is safe and will help him protect his family.
“I got the shot for my wife and kids, to protect my parents who are older, and for the kids at the schools and the people in my life that I care and love.”
That love is something Officer Pallesen is looking forward to sharing when he reunites with the students and educators he serves.
“I’ll get to interact more with the kids and do what I love, which is having those interactions and building those relationships and helping those kids out, helping them be successful… and I’ll be smiling. I’ll probably be wearing a mask, but I’ll be smiling.”
Click here to learn more about our VEBA Vaccinates program.
For more ideas about protecting your mental health, read these VEBA Resource Center blogs:
