August, 2001

BFC appointed a new director, Joan M. Gordon, from her position on the BFC Board.

November, 2001

BFC surpassed the $2 million dollar market value of medical and prescription services.

December, 2001

BFC introduced its Commemorative Gift Program

December, 2001

BFC introduced its Annual Sponsorship Program ($1000.00) for businesses, service organizations and corporations.

March, 2002

BFC donated medical equipment to Honduras.

March, 2002

BFC received a pharmacy counter from Bill Leonard, owner of Ogunquit Pharmacy in Ogunquit, Maine.

April, 2002

BFC President, Francis J. Kleeman, M.D. received the 2002 Fleet Small Business Leadership Award for Community Involvement. Dr. Kleeman donated his prize, a $10,000.00 cash award, to the Clinic and selected a local charitable organization to receive an equal amount in the small business's name.

April 30, 2002

BFC Director received a United Way of York County Starfish Award for volunteer service.

May 2, 2002

BFC donated medications to the Marine Animal rehabilitation Center at the Marine Science Education and research Center of the University of New England.

May, 2002

BFC received the donation of a custom built pharmacy island by Frank Higgins, proprietor of Arundel Cabinet Works, in the memory of his friend, Albert Boudreau, a BFC pharmacist.

August 2002

BFC appeared in print in the Maine Medical Association Bulletin (April 2002 and Family Circle September 2002).

October 2002

BFC was awarded a contribution of $10,000.00 from the City of Biddeford toward a $40,000.00 improvement project planned for the Clinic.

January 10, 2003

BFC was the first official visit for Governor John E. Baldacci, underscoring his order, signed 1/9/03, to expand health care coverage to all Maine residents.

March, 2003

BFC welcomed two programs from the University of New England School of Osteopathic Medicine to the Clinic:

• Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy
• Extended Family Practice

April, 2003

BFC became the first free clinic in Maine to purchase medications through the state's purchasing contracts as a result of new legislation.

June, 2003

BFC celebrated its 10th anniversary with a picnic at the University of New England on the shore of the Saco River.

October, 2003

BFC celebrated the opening of its newly renovated physical facilities.

January, 2004

BFC renovated facilities were severely damaged by water as a result of a broken elbow on the second floor sprinkler system. However, the Clinic was closed only one evening thanks to the effort of our volunteers.

January, 2004

BFC welcomed Marlene Kane, LCSW as social service coordinator.

DataNetSolutions, Inc. President, Keith Weigand,
designer of MEDSERVICES software for free clinics,
enjoys his first lobster.

Rick Rouillard and Michelle Dow of the Kennebbunk Savings Bank presented the clinic with a check from the Kennebunk Savings Bank for $2768. The unsolicited grant was made as a result of the generosity of customers of the Kennebunk Savings Bank who voted for the Biddeford Free Clinic on their Community Investment Ballot.

Thank you Kennebunk Savings Bank and Kennebunk Savings Bank Customers!

Our Contractors - Don Viger and
brother Tom Viger

The Biddeford free Clinic wants to express its gratitude to the City of Biddeford, Debbie Lizotte, Director of Biddeford 50 Plus Club and Steve Pulos, Director of Biddeford Public Access and contractors responsible for the construction work needed to RESTORE the physical facilities of the Clinic after the flood in Jan '04.

Special Thanks also go to ALL our VOLUNTEERS who worked so hard during the restoration. The great cooperation and enthusiasm demonstrated by our volunteers enabled us to serve our patients continuously with very little disruption.

Josie Muzquiz and Aanders Dommer, medical students from the University of Minnesota School of Medicine, Duluth, visited the Biddeford Free Clinic while vacationing in Maine.

General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products in Saco, Maine provided funds for the purchase of a new ECG machine.

UNE Medical School Volunteers provide counseling on health issues for BFC patients.

Each year more than twenty-five UNE Medical Students gain "hands on" experience with patients through the Extended Family Practice Program.

Maine Senator Nancy Sullivan generously donated the remaining $500.00 of her campaign funds to the Clinic in support and acknowledgment of the medical care the Clinic provides to the uninsured of York County.

Biddeford - Saco Rotary Club utilized the proceeds of their annual fruit fund raiser to purchase a WelchAllyn AED 10 defribullator for the Biddeford Free Clinic and neighbors in the J. Richard Martin Community Center.

Thank you Biddeford - Saco Rotary for this generous gift of life!

Amy Siewko, Medical Student
Berkshire Medical Center
Pittsfield, MA

Thanks for everything you offered me at BFC. You were all so welcoming and kind, and through my year there allowed me to learn so much about medicine, free care, medications and the importance of caring people - the difference that they make. This knowledge carries me through my rotations every day and I'm sure will stay with me forever.

Laurie Tolliver, Volunteer

I first discovered the Biddeford Free Clinic while searching the VolunteerMaine.org website for a healthcare-related volunteer opportunity. As a student interested in the healthcare field, I was looking for a way to get involved in the local community. I found several positions that appealed to me on the VolunteerMaine website, but the BFC position fit both my interests and my schedule. One quick e-mail put me in touch with Jo-Anne and Joan, and shortly thereafter I began volunteering as a screener for new patients. The Clinic is run by a wonderful group of people who provide a much-needed service to the community. I learn something every time I volunteer and I feel privileged to be able to contribute to the valuable work done at the BFC.

Little things can mean a lot

Arlene Landry, Patient and Volunteer

I am writing this letter to tell you how grateful I am for all of the wonderful care I have received over the years ate the Biddeford free Clinic . . . with out the BFC I don't know where I would have turned to for help when my company cut my hours, excluding me from health insurance. The atmosphere at the clinic is one of People helping People. I have never been made to feel like a "charity case." Each volunteer genuinely cares for the patients. Having the BFC and its free pharmacy in this area has certainly helped save lives . . . donations help fund the Clinic, and anyone who contributes can be sure it will be used to help the many people who are "caught between the cracks."

Pat Frechette, BFC Lab Coordinator & Board Member

I have been blessed in so many ways I cannot but share (my talents) with those people who can benefit from them. For me, I love this service. We're all here for each other and (the people I meet) give me so much. It is so rewarding to see some of the patients who come back regularly. They become a member of the clinic family. I am proud to be part of this work, and part of the trials and tribulations of survival with a great bunch of people.

Danielle D'Entremont, UNE Medical Student

As a second year medical student, I have discovered that there is no better way to learn than to do. I am grateful for the staff at Biddeford Free Clinic and their remarkable patients for giving myself and some fellow classmates (Sugar Busters) the opportunity to practice our skills and help a group of diabetic patients who need some direction to get well. As I follow my patients from month to month, it is amazing to see them excel and to see them fail. We learn together what eating and exercise plans work best from them. In fact, I have discovered that they learn best from their failures. We talk about the good and bad things that happened to them that month and plan on ways to cope with life. It is astonishing to me to see how much I can actually help someone by just being there to listen to them. It is not the advice that I give, or the diet plans I create, or the medications that I persuade them to keep taking; it's their ability to get well based on the motivation we create together. As a physician, I will be able to diagnose and prescribe, but no patients are going to get well unless we work together to instill a motivation and desire to get well. I thank my patients at the Biddeford Free Clinic for teaching me how to have "patience with patients" and the staff at the Biddeford Freed Clinic for taking the time to help a group of people who are in need of medical and personal attention. I really believe that there is a population in southern Maine who are much better off due to the generosity of the physicians, nurses, pharmacists and volunteers who take time to make a difference.

In Memory 0f
Elmina Brewster Sewell
Dec 8, 1911 - April 7, 2005

Elmina Sewell and her good works are so special for so many, far beyond the walls of the Biddeford Free Clinic. She was an active community philanthropist and Citizen of the Year for the Kennebunk area in 1995. Those who benefitted from her charitable giving noted both her unassuming generosity and her active interest in the programs she supported.

Her passion was the protection of animals and wildlife - as founder of the Animal Welfare Society in West Kennebunk, she cared for stray animals. rescued racing greyhounds, and supported dog and equestrian shows throughout the northeast. But she recognized the role she could play in helping her friends, neighbors and fellow community members access free quality health care.

Biddeford Free Clinic is better for having Mrs. Sewall's generous support over the years. She made this clinic - and this community - stronger.

In Memory 0f
Hannah Hall, R.N.
August 29, 1936 - Feb 22, 2005

Hannah Hall was a nurse volunteer for many years - she was a dedicated nurse and nurse coordinator, a generous benefactor and a member of the board of directors for the BFC. A nurse of the "old school," Hannah "often taught us a thing or two," commented a BFC physician.

A plaque dedicated to Hannah in May 2005 hangs in our office recognizing her outstanding volunteer commitment and her contribution to the BFC. She made a great difference here; she will always be missed and we know she will never be far away.