Karl-Anthony Towns gets vaccine days before anniversary of mother’s death
Towns lost seven family members to the virus
Karl-Anthony Towns took to Instagram to show he has been vaccinated.
The NBA player’s family has experienced severe heartache after losing several members to the coronavirus, including his mother. Towns, 25, shared an image of himself on Tuesday getting the vaccine.
“Shot 1 ✅,” he captioned the post.
His mother Jacqueline Towns lost her life to the virus on April 13, 2020. She had been struggling with COVID-19 for weeks.
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“Jackie, as she was affectionately known among family and friends, had been battling the virus for more than a month when she succumbed on April 13th,” per a statement by the Timberwolves last April. “Jackie was many things to many people—a wife, mother, daughter, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend.”
“The matriarch of the Towns family, she was an incredible source of strength; a fiery, caring, and extremely loving person, who touched everyone she met,” the statement continued. “Her passion was palpable and her energy will never be replaced.”
Towns lost seven family members to the virus. Back in December, he spoke about how it has impacted him.
“I’ve seen a lot of coffins in the last seven-eight months,” he told reporters per People. The star athlete also tested positive for the virus back in January.
“I have a lot of people who have, in my family and my mom’s family, gotten COVID. I’m the one looking for answers still, trying to find how to keep them healthy. It’s just a lot of responsibility on me to keep my family well-informed and to make all the moves necessary to keep them alive.”
The COVID-19 vaccine has been a point of contention since it was announced but now Towns has been added to the list of celebrities who endorse it. As reported by theGrio, this week Hollywood heavyweight Morgan Freeman is sending an important message to any of his fans who may be on the fence about getting the COVID vaccine.
According to PEOPLE, the Oscar-winner is starring in a new PSA for The Creative Coalition and the National Blue Ribbon Task Force titled “Be There. This Is Your Shot.” The spot essentially urges Americans to “take care of one another” and do their part in the fight against the coronavirus by getting vaccinated.
“I’m not a doctor, but I trust science. And I’m told that, for some reason, people trust me,” Freeman explained in the PSA. “So here I am to say I trust science and I got the vaccine. If you trust me, you’ll get the vaccine. In math, it’s called the distributive property. In people, it’s called taking care of one another. Get the vaccine. Help make our world a safe place for us to enjoy ourselves again. Please.”
Morgan is just the latest A-lister to lend his voice to this cause, and Robin Bronk, CEO of The Creative Coalition, hopes having familiar faces speak out in support of the vaccine will help the general public be more comfortable with the idea of signing up to get it.
“The arts have extraordinary power to change hearts and minds,” Bronk said in a statement. “By helping people to get the facts about the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, we hope this PSA will empower more Americans to roll up their sleeves and get vaccinated. Together, we can achieve a vaccinated nation and stamp out serious COVID illness once and for all.”
Additional reporting by Blue Telusma
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