PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE: This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf. Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon, as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist. This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.

My answer to the question in this blog headline is yes. And, I found some.

It is the good news of the Salem Free Clinic.

Forget about the impeachment of one Donald Trump and his various violations of character. Forget about other aspects of bad news trumpeted by various media, especially local TV stations, trying to woo listeners, viewers and readers. Forget about the far left Democrats who want to change this country.

Just focus on the Free Clinic.

It is a piece of good news sponsored by various charitable organizations in the Salem-Keizer communites, plus the volunteerism of publicly-spirited individuals – along with, incredibly, 70 area churches which have banded together to do the “good work.”

Those involved didn’t believe that the “Affordable Health Care Act,” which was passed several years ago by Congress, would do the job of providing health care to every citizen. It may have been well-intentioned, but it just would not extend to all populations.

Neither did Clinic supporters believe the so-called “Medicare for All Plan” would ever see the light of day.

So, they acted. They created a place for citizens to get free health care if they didn’t already have coverage.

Here are a couple stories about Free Clinic results:

• A homeless woman came to the clinic struggling with a painful abscessed tooth. She was prescribed an antibiotic for the infection and was able to have the diseased tooth extracted one week later. A patient navigator at the Clinic was able to provide the patient with food boxes and bus vouchers.
• Last month, a new walk-in patient came to the Clinic experiencing extreme abdominal pain. An ultra-sound revealed bladder cancer. The patient was referred to Kaiser Permanente, which agreed to provide, at no cost, all the specialized care and resources to treat the cancer.

Every patient who walks into the facility – it is housed in a building called Broadway Commons, which is adjacent to one of the major church sponsors, Salem Alliance Church — receives free care. [In the spirit of full disclosure, my wife and I have attended Salem Alliance for more than 30 years and we appreciate its emphasis on helping Salem “to become a city at peace with God,” one aspect of which is the Free Clinic.]

Providing the care costs an estimated $120 per visit, but that cost is covered by donations from interested parties, including those who attend the 70 churches that work together to operate the Clinic.

Money doesn’t tell all of the story, of course, though a recent “return on community investment study” reported that the Clinic provides $3 million in benefits to the patients and the community.

What does tell the story are the incredible accounts of those who receive needed help, as well as the commitment of many in the Salem-Keizer area to “put feet to the Gospel.”

By that I mean that, if those individuals who walk into the Clinic want counseling, they get it. The goal is to help individuals understand that, beyond Clinic services, God cares for them, as well.