PORT ANGELES — The Volunteers in Medicine of the Olympics free clinic has doubled its space and capacity to serve patients with a move to a new building.
It opened for business at the new location at 819 E. Georgiana St. on Monday.
The public is invited to an open house at the new site from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, said Zoe Apisdorf, development coordinator for the nonprofit VIMO clinic, aka Volunteers in Medicine of the Olympics.
The tiny yellow house where VIMO once lived at 909 E. Georgiana St. cost just $1 a year, thanks to the medically minded landlord.
After opening in 2005, VIMO had rented the house from Olympic Medical Center, which gave it that dollar deal.
In that 750-square-foot house, VIMO’s volunteer doctors, counselors and nurses provided free care for more than 4,000 people who could not afford health insurance, said Gary Smith, VIMO’s executive director.
So for a while now, the clinic has needed more room.
And, Smith said, OMC has been preparing to construct a new office building, which will necessitate the tearing down of VIMO’s place.
Both problems are being solved: VIMO has purchased and moved to a 1,500-square-foot building about a block away.
This new place, bought for $360,000, has space for four patient examination rooms instead of two, a manager’s office, a better waiting area, a private space for nurses to take patients’ vital signs and a four-chair dental clinic.
To make the down payment, the VIMO board of directors decided to deplete its reserves, Smith added.
Seeking donations
So the clinic is seeking to raise $50,000 to restore its rainy-day fund.
To generate contributions, Apisdorf is using www.IndieGoGo.com, a crowd-funding website that allows anyone to make an online donation.
It can be found at http://tinyurl.com/PDN-VIMOindiegogo or by clicking on the link on the VIMO Facebook page.
As of Saturday, IndieGoGo had raised $10,396, or 21 percent toward VIMO’s goal.
The campaign began Dec. 31 and will close at 11:59 p.m. March 1.
It’s still possible to give to VIMO the old-fashioned way, by mailing or bringing a check made out to Volunteers in Medicine of the Olympics to the new location, 819 E. Georgiana St., Port Angeles, WA 98362.
Donations, along with grants and some Medicaid billing, are what keep the clinic healthy, Smith said.
“We never bill a patient,” he added, thanks to VIMO’s 120 volunteers: doctors, dentists, nurses, office workers and other support people.
VIMO does have a handful of paid staffers, including Apisdorf, Smith and clinic manager Mary Hogan.
“Drawing from our reserves was a risk we were willing to take to serve our patients,” the IndieGoGo page reads.
“We now have the space to see twice as many people, but we need help with the full purchase of our new building . . . [but] this is not just a building. It is an opportunity to provide quality health care to adults who could not access care otherwise.”
A donation of $75 covers a year of medical care for one patient, the page continues.
While the clinic needs a big influx of money to replenish its reserves, Smith said, its monthly mortgage bill is fairly low.
VIMO also has a tenant helping out: Certified Hearing Aids rents space in the building at 819 Georgiana.
Like just about any move, this relocation has taken longer than expected, Smith said. But he looks forward to serving more patients over the coming months.
How to contact
To reach VIMO for medical appointments or information about volunteering and otherwise supporting the clinic, phone 360-457-4431. The website, which is being updated, is www.vimoclinic.org.
For questions about the fundraising campaign, email development@vimoclinic.org.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
