The 12-year-old Dubbo student was one of the first in the city to be vaccinated by the Australian Defence Force, through their week-long walk-in clinic which has been operating at Pioneer Park then the Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre.

Marlia went along on the first day with her mother, Jasmine and father Greg, who also received his first shot of Pfizer.

In NSW, children aged 12-15 years-old are eligible for Pfizer if they are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, suffer from medical conditions that put them at risk of severe COVID-19 effects, and if they live in a remote community.

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"My daughter is an indigenous 12-year-old with asthma, I'm also Indigenous and have asthma and I've had both my shots," mum Jasmine said. "I just wanted to make sure that she's going to be protected against anything that can affect her.

"She also wanted to stand up and have the needle as well, she's always been the type of child that has done amazing things."

Marlia's age group was among the first in Dubbo to be affected when COVID hit the region. Many schools were forced to close when the virus spread among students and staff within a week.

Marlia attends Dubbo College Delroy Campus, but fortuitously was absent on the days the school was struck by COVID.

"We went a got tested just to make sure because you just don't know if it was in the school beforehand, we don't know how long it's actually been in the community," Mrs Middleton said.

"We both go to the shops quite nervous, ever since knowing that COVID is actually in Dubbo, we try to limit our time because we don't want to become sick and then make anybody around us sick either.

While the recommendation is currently for 'at risk' children aged 12 to 15 years-old, like Marlia, Australia's expert panel on immunisations - ATAGI, could make a recommendation as early as this week to open up the Pfizer to all children.

For the Middleton family, the vaccine is step towards "normality".

"We've done it, not just for our family and to be able to see our family, but to protect everybody in the community. Obviously the Indigenous people are a huge concern, anybody with serious health conditions as well.

"Having older grandparents that are still alive, we would like to be able to see them again, and my Mum also has health problems, and she's actually in Sydney in the middle of all of it.

"Just do your part and let's get a little bit of normality back because, this whole situation is affecting a lot of people."

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