AFC Building “Green” & Naming Opportunities

In 2009, AFC will have a brand new home in South Arlington. The Clinic will be located in the Halstead Building (pictured left) which is currently under construction on the block bordered by Columbia Pike, S. Walter Reed Drive and 11th Street. Arlington Free Clinic will occupy a 7,500 square foot ground-floor condo that it will own. This fall, the developer of the Halstead Building will deliver “the shell” of the Clinic condo space. The Clinic must manage and fund all aspects of the design, construction and move to the new space with minimal disruption to the patients.

AFC has set a goal of LEED® Silver Certification for the new Clinic facility. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. LEED certification provides independent, third-party verification that a building project is environmentally responsible, energy-efficient, and a healthy place to live and work.  Building “green” will minimize operational expenses, allowing us to leverage our operating dollars to provide innovative, quality care at a minimum cost to the community.  AFC’s LEED target is in harmony with Arlington County’s Green Building initiative and a sign of the importance we place on providing our patients, volunteers and staff a healthy environment that is environmentally and financially sustainable.  AFC will be the first health care space in the County and the first free clinic in Virginia to be LEED certified. 

To help fund the interior construction of the new Clinic, AFC is offering a wonderful “once in a lifetime” opportunity for individual, family or corporate donors to name spaces in the Clinic. Plaques with the requested inscription of the donor will be placed in the new Clinic space. Spaces can also be named in honor or memory of someone or can be given anonymously. If you would like to discuss a naming opportunity, please call Pat McDermott at (703) 979-1425, Ext. 21 or pmcdermott@arlingtonfreeclinic.org

Click here to see opportunities for naming spaces in the new Clinic

2008 Benefit Gala – Oct. 18, 2008 –Please join us!

Our Special Gifts and Gala Committees are in full swing preparing for the “Elegantly Green for Health and Healing” Gala, which will be held on Saturday, October 18th at the Ritz Carlton in McLean.  Our theme, “Elegantly Green” is in keeping with our goal to achieve LEED Silver Certification in our new Clinic on Columbia Pike.

This year we will be returning to our traditional format featuring our wonderful silent auction, and we will not have a live auction.  We are delighted to announce that for the first time we will also have an online auction, which will allow you to bid on selected items from the comfort of your home!  The online auction will be available at www.arlingtonfreeclinic.org  beginning on September 1, 2008.  We invite you to peruse the offerings, make your bids and win one or more of our wonderful auction items!

Gala tickets and table sponsorships can now be easily purchased online. Please click on the link below You will be able to purchase your table/tickets, list your guests and make your meal selections all with a few clicks of your mouse.

The revenue raised through the Gala provides a significant percentage of AFC’s annual operating budget and your support and generosity make it all possible.  If you would like more information on this year’s gala or would like to become a volunteer, please contact Jody Steiner Kelly, 703-979-1425, ext. 43 or jody@arlingtonfreeclinic.org.  For more information regarding the Special Gifts Committee, please contact Coralie Miller, 703-979-1425, ext. 11 or cmiller@arlingtonfreeclinic.org.

Click here to see the 2008 Benefit Sponsors.

Click here to buy tickets to the Gala or become a Benefit Gala Sponsor.
To see list of Gala Committee Members click here.
To see list of Special Gifts Committee Members click here.

Coming soon – Online Auction!

We are pleased to announce that, for the first time, we will be holding an online auction in addition to our Benefit Gala Silent Auction 2008 (Our 12th annual Gala, “Elegantly Green for Health and Healing” will be held at the Ritz Carlton, Tysons Corner, on October 18th, 2008).   The online auction will be available beginning on September 12th and will run through October 21, 2008.  It will feature items such as restaurant gift certificates, theater tickets and vacation getaways.  We invite you to check back on September 12th, peruse the offerings and bid on fabulous auction items with the click of your mouse!

Report from the AFC Medical Director - July 2008

The big news on the clinical side of the Free Clinic is the arrival of two nurse practitioners on the clinical staff. Each will work half time, giving us the equivalent of a full time nurse practitioner. Leslie Henry and Maura Constance both have experience as nurse practitioners in a clinical setting, and Maura has also worked in a volunteer capacity at AFC.

They will see patients Monday through Friday who require immediate attention in our new Timely Access to Care (TAC) program. Currently, our general medical appointments are filled 6 weeks ahead and it is difficult to see patients with immediate needs. They also will help make the whole operation more efficient by being available to see some patients with chronic problems for routine follow-up. This will, in no way, move us away from our tradition of being a Clinic run by volunteer physicians. It will, however, enable our volunteer physicians to utilize their time better by seeing the more complicated and sicker patients, and it is becoming clear that we are seeing more and more of these.

Many of the most respected and best managed private and university medical practices are increasingly using nurse practitioners as part of their health care team. I am very grateful to the senior staff and the board for making it possible for our Clinic to move in the same direction as the very best medical organizations.

N. Thomas Connally, MD
Medical Director

Watch the video on — How You Can Still Be a Real Doctor After You Retire
N. Thomas Connally, MD, AFC Medical Director explains how a retired physician can still… be a "real doctor."

AFC Awarded Coveted 4-Star Rating from Charity Navigator

Arlington Free Clinic has once again earned a 4-star rating from Charity Navigator, America’s premier charity evaluator, for its ability to efficiently manage and grow its finances. Only 17% of the charities have received at least 2 consecutive 4-star evaluations, indicating that Arlington Free Clinic consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way, and outperforms most other charities in America. This “exceptional” designation from Charity Navigator differentiates AFC from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust.

Charity Navigator's mission is to highlight the fine work of efficient charities and provide donors with essential information needed to give them greater confidence in the charitable choices they make.

You can view Arlington Free Clinic's rating page at Charity Navigator.

AFC Chosen for Catalogue for Philanthropy

Arlington Free Clinic has been selected for inclusion in the 2008-09 Catalogue for Philanthropy- Greater Washington. This is the second time Arlington Free Clinic will be featured in this prestigious publication. AFC was first chosen in2004. AFC was one of 69 charities chosen from a very competitive field of 230 candidates. The 60 Catalogue reviewers believe that AFC is one of the finest small charities Greater Washington has to offer!

Supported by area foundations (Harman, Meyer, Cafritz, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac) as a service to the community, the Catalogue profiles outstanding environmental, cultural, educational, human services, and international organizations with budgets below $2million.

Come and See the New Art Show at the Clinic

The Arlington Artists Alliance has a new show at Arlington Free Clinic called “Anything Goes” with guest exhibitor Concetta Scott. We are pleased to show the “Summer Time at the Beach” special paintings by Rebecca Croft, European scenes by BeeJee Juhnke, a variety of subjects by George Bowles and a group of scenes of the locks of the C & O Canal by Jane McElvany Coonce. This all media show will hang at AFC through the first week in September. It can be viewed at the Clinic from 1:00 to 4:00PM, Monday through Friday. Twenty percent (20%) of the sale of each painting will benefit the medical programs of the Clinic.

Virginia Hospital Center and many Medical Practices Provide Vital In-Kind Services to Clinic Patients.

Arlington Free Clinic is indebted to Virginia Hospital Center for providing extensive x-ray and laboratory diagnostic services for Clinic patients every year. In FY 07, VHC donated over $811,000 in these in-kind services. There are also numerous local medical practices who provide a wide variety of specialty medical services in their offices for hundreds of Clinic patients. These medical practices donated hundreds of thousands of dollars of their time and expertise in FY07 to care for patients the Clinic referred to them. Click here for list of these very generous medical practices.

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