Omar Johnson will be stepping down as the West Tisbury health agent, the select board announced at the Jan. 11 meeting. In an emotional scene, select board chair Cynthia Mitchell paid tribute to the “amazing work and leadership” Mr. Johnson gave during the Covid pandemic.

“Omar was kind of ever-present, made it all work, not to mention the duties he had as a health agent,” Ms. Mitchell said, speaking highly of Mr. Johnson’s work establishing a testing site in town.

Town administrator Jen Rand also commended Mr. Johnson for his leadership during the pandemic, recalling the weekly meetings she held with him and other town officials.

“In the thick of it, we couldn’t have done it without all of them, but without Omar in particular,” she said.

Mr. Johnson said he has enjoyed his “six wonderful years,” as the town’s health agent, and credited other town staff for their own Covid-era contributions.

“It was a great team effort...not losing a single person here on the Vineyard is quite a feat.”