BLAINE, Wash. — Along America’s border with Canada, communities straddle two nations and businesses cater to two peoples.

“They come down to do a little shopping,” said Michael Jones, city manager of Blaine, Washington. “People come down for the weekend, for the day.”

They did that, until COVID put the brakes on it.

“I think the impact has been underappreciated,” Jones said.

Blaine is one of those border communities and home to the Peace Arch, a century-old symbol of America’s friendship with its northern neighbor.

“We are right on the edge of the Vancouver metro area, which is about three million people,” Jones said. “That's our nearest city. It's literally just a half a mile up the street, and all of a sudden we can't go there and they can't come here.”

For the past 20 months, COVID restrictions at the land border meant nonessential travel suddenly became a no-go. In Blaine, which relies heavily on Canadian visitors and Americans heading into Canada, gas tax revenue plummeted 80% and sales tax revenue dropped by a quarter.

“It affected the city's tax base substantially, which affected our ability to serve our citizens,” Jones said. “It essentially means one worker full-time all year with supplies and equipment to do things like fill potholes and stripe streets.”

Blaine is home to the busiest land border crossing between the U.S. and Canada, west of the Mississippi River. In the year before the pandemic, there were nearly four million personal vehicles that crossed through there—personal travel that proved difficult because of COVID restrictions until now.

As the U.S. lifts those restrictions at its borders for the fully vaccinated, there is hope things will start to improve.

However, some say the strain in relations between the U.S. and Canada might take longer to recover.

“Coming out of the restrictions, we are not at all aligned, which is particularly problematic for the land border,” said Laurie Trautman, director of the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University.

She said because Canadians are still requiring a negative COVID test to enter or return through the land border -- but the U.S. is not -- shows the relationship between the two countries still needs work.

“We went into this crisis with pretty poor Canada-U.S. relations. The Trump administration and the Trudeau administration were not friendly to each other,” Trautman said. “I think they're not as good as many Canadians had anticipated they would be when the Biden administration came in place. You know, we have pipeline issues and other sort of ‘buy American’ initiatives that aren't particularly friendly to Canadians.”

Yet, it’s a friendship that border communities like Blaine are counting on, to help them thrive once again.

“We are ready and excited to have our Canadian friends and neighbors come south,” Jones said. “And, frankly, I'm anxious to go to Canada. I'm ready for them to reciprocate and open their border without testing.”

It’s a move the Canadians have not made yet and it is unclear when they might, leaving one final hurdle of COVID’s legacy at the northern border.

Safety looks different for everyone. And in communities of color, there’s often a mistrust of the health care system.

“We don’t really trust. We’ve been used as guinea pigs for a really long time,” Rose Marie Allen said.

With so much concern about COVID-19, there’s now a stronger effort to make sure everyone has equal access to vaccinations, especially in predominantly Black neighborhoods.

“To have this in Five Points, where a lot of the African American community is, is huge,” Jessica Newsome said.

This vaccination event is part of the Colorado Vaccine Equity Task Force, which exists to ensure all groups are informed about their options and have the opportunity to get vaccination shots for free.

“This is what success looks like,” said Maisha Fields, Advisor to Colorado Governor Jared Polis.

Fields is also a registered nurse and says getting people of color vaccinated is all about location and trust.

“If we’re going to be intentional about making sure that everyone has equal access to the vaccine, we’re going to have to go to those communities and we’re going to have to go to places that are trusted in those communities to make sure that they are vaccinated,” she said.

Places like Brother Jeff’s Cultural Center.

“This is about, if you want the vaccine, you should have access to it,” JeFF Fard said.

Fard runs the center and says he’s allowing it to be used as a vaccination site so citizens who are often overlooked or underserved have access.

“You see the demand. You see folks taking advantage of the opportunity and it makes all the difference in the world,” he said. “And a matter of fact, it could mean the difference between life and death.”

There are statistics that show African Americans are being disproportionately affected by COVID-19, so vaccination clinics held at places like cultural centers could save even more lives.

Many of the people who showed up at Brother Jeff’s Cultural Center say they’re much more comfortable getting vaccinated by someone who looks like them.

“They appointed me to a Black nurse, and I felt comfortable immediately because I know that she understands me and my body,” Allen said. “And more than anything she understood my fears.”

Fears that could be eased, one shot at a time.

DENVER, Colo. – With the world stuck inside for weeks, some people are now stepping out and cheering on in a fight against an invisible killer – COVID-19.

“We’re all getting together and we’re all going to whoop it up a little bit and cheer them on,” said a Denver man from the balcony of his high-rise apartment.

The “them” the man is referring to are first responders, heroes he says are worth celebrating.

At Brooks Tower, downtown Denver’s oldest high rise, Kim Dozier is leading her neighbors as they cheer from their balconies for medical workers on the frontlines.

“Pass the love,” Dozier said. “There’s nothing else that matters right now.”

Acts like this are happening across the country

Whether praying from a hospital parking lot in Nashville, Tennessee or dancing in their driveways in Buffalo, New York – people caught in this pandemic are escaping from self-quarantine for a few minutes each night by gathering from a safe distance and howling as the coronavirus takes control of our lives.

Our news team obtained cell phone video from New York City’s Lower East Side, a hot spot for deaths linked to the virus.

The video shows proud New Yorkers hooting and hollering from their rooftops and balconies.

The excitement might make some forget the make-shift morgues now lining the city streets.

COVID-19 is has already killed thousands of people across the world – with health experts predicting many more deaths to pile up before this global pandemic ends.

But whether in New York or the oldest high rise in Denver, Colorado, Americans are making social distancing seem not that far away while making the world feel a little closer during this crisis.