Title Page & Abstract

An Interview with Sean Eifert

Part of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library

Tumultuous 2020 Oral History project

Interview # T20-A-L-2021-044

Sean Eifert, Bond County Health Department Administrator, was interviewed on the date listed below as part of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library’s Tumultuous 2020 Oral History project.

Interview dates & location:

Date: September 24, 2021                              Location: Greenville, Illinois                        

Interview Format: Digital audio

Interviewer: Philip Pogue, ALPL Volunteer

Total Time: 1:30 / 1.50 hrs.                      

Accessioned into the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Archives on December 1, 2021.

The interview is archived at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield, Illinois.

© 2021 Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library

Abstract

Sean Eifert, Tumultuous 2020, T20-A-L-2021-044

Biographical Information Overview of Interview: Sean Eifert was born July 1974 in Rushville, Illinois. He grew up in Hancock County, graduating from Plymouth High School (now Southeastern) in 1992. Following graduation, he went on to Western Illinois University in Macomb, where he earned BA and MA degrees in sociology. Prior to accepting a position at Bond County Health Department, Eifert worked in a variety of roles, from counselor to case manager. In 2016, he became the administrator of the Bond County Health Department.

This interview covers Bond County Health Department’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020 to September 2021. Eifert discusses the full scope of Bond County Health Department’s role throughout the pandemic. This includes a broad variety of outreach and communication between the Bond County Health Department and the Illinois Department of Public Health. Eifert reviews tracking COVID-19 cases, vaccination efforts and partnerships with schools, hospitals, nursing homes, restaurants and local government officials. He describes the challenges associated with being in a rural county in the more urban EMS Region 4. Eifert also details the way the pandemic will continue to impact Bond county and Eifert’s experiences with the pandemic on a personal level.

Subject Headings/Key Words: Bond County Health Department; COVID-19 pandemic; Illinois Department of Public Health; contact tracing; COVID-19 vaccines.

Note to the Reader: Readers of the oral history memoir should bear in mind that this is a transcript of the spoken word, and that the interviewer, interviewee and editor sought to preserve the informal, conversational style that is inherent in such historical sources. The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library is not responsible for the factual accuracy of the memoir, nor for the views expressed therein. We leave these for the reader to judge.

COPYRIGHT

 The following material can be used for educational and other non-commercial purposes without the written permission of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library.  “Fair use” criteria of Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976 must be followed. These materials are not to be deposited in other repositories, nor used for resale or commercial purposes without the authorization from the Audio-Visual Curator at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library, 112 N. 6th Street, Springfield, Illinois 62701.  Telephone (217) 785-7955