Not getting COVID-19 vaccine a common deal-breaker, Prairie matchmaker says

A match-matching service says the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the dating game and what people are looking for in a partner, particularly vaccination status.

Lianne Tregobov, president and matcher behind Saskatchewan and Manitoba-based Camelot Introductions, says it's “very rare” that a vaccinated person will be open to dating a non-vaccinated person.

The service asks clients for their vaccination status and whether they would date somebody who isn’t vaccinated against COVID-19.

“Very few of our clients, or potential clients, are interested in the restrictions or the politics that come along with non-vaccinated people,” Tregobov said.

She says over 95 per cent of her clients are vaccinated, though they may make exceptions if the person had a good reason to not be vaccinated, such as health reasons.

Those looking to travel domestically or internationally on a plane are also required to be vaccinated, which could pose a barrier for couples looking to take a romantic getaway.

“People typically aren’t interested in meeting people who are extreme about anything so it is a huge barrier for those who have not been vaccinated definitely.”

Tregobov says she’s had potential clients say they would only date non-vaccinated people and she had to direct them elsewhere because it’s “not the norm” for her clients.

“When you’re looking for love, you can’t be rigid, you need to be open-minded and have to have an open heart so if people are rigid, I’m certainly not going to convince them to go and get vaccinated, that is their personal choice."

Tregobov also says she doesn’t work with smokers because she knows most people will decline their profiles.

Janelle Daku, a single mother and infant occupational therapist, is one of Tregobov’s clients.

“My personal values are that yes, indeed someone had to be vaccinated and I’m very conscious of where they go, what they do because I’m a business owner and I have a responsibility to my clients … and I also want to keep my own family safe."

Her daughter is under five years old and says the risk is still high for her to get COVID-19.

She says having Tregobov screen matches means she doesn’t have to go out on a date and find out later their values don’t align.

Prior to becoming one of Tregobov’s clients, she says she went on a date and while the person was vaccinated, he had some family tension due to some of his relatives not being vaccinated.

“It then brings you to the whole story of ‘do I want to step into that type of tension?’ Especially as a single mom and thinking ‘what’s best for my child?’”