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Toledo, Ohio (July 25, 2017) – Compassion Health Toledo will host a grand opening celebration to introduce the area’s first faith-based community health center for underserved neighborhoods on Saturday July 29. From noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, the new clinic at 1638 Broadway Street will offer tours, blood pressure and blood sugar checks, and a meet-and-greet with the doctors and staff. Compassion Health Toledo begins seeing patients next week. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Appointments are preferred, and walk-ins will be accepted on a limited basis initially while the staff continues to grow. All patients will be welcome, with or without insurance, and the staff will assist eligible patients in registering for Medicaid. The staff will provide primary care, women’s health care, prenatal and well-child care, some lab services and diagnostic testing. Future plans include an on-site pharmacy and dental care. Initially, the clinic will be staffed by volunteers, including Spanish-speaking personnel. Within two years, the goal is to have at least 15 paid employees. The clinic’s beginnings Ultimately, Compassion Health Toledo hopes to see the practice serve 250 patients per week. The faith-based clinic became a goal for Dr. Anne Ruch, Compassion’s executive director, after a 2013 mission trip to Guatamala. She determined to focus on the thousands of people in her own city living without access to good health care. “People living in underserved areas tend to suffer from poor health,” Ruch said. “Toledo has one of the highest rates of infant mortality in the country, and Ohio is second to last in the nation for rates of infant mortality among African-American babies.” Compassion Health Toledo is modeled after Covenant Community Care in Detroit. “There are 400 faith-based clinics like this all around the country, in nearly every big city,” she said. “Toledo is one of the few where they didn’t exist. This was a dream achieved through the hard work of many wonderful people – our board of directors, community and business leaders and countless volunteers. This was a project where people gathered together in the name of God and were inspired to be selfless.” A community effort to find the perfect building Rudolph Libbe Properties helped Compassion Health evaluate potential sites and ultimately select the original South Toledo Public Library building, a nearly century-old structure that had stood vacant since 2004 when the library relocated. More than 100 organizations and individuals donated funding and services for the $630,000 project. The 3,000-square-foot, first-floor renovation created six exam rooms, a procedure room, an office and a reception/waiting area. Paul R. Sullivan Jr., AIA, LLC, MDA Engineering Inc. and JDRM provided design services. Serving as design/build contractor, the Rudolph Libbe Group teamed with other local construction firms to coordinate donations and discounted services for the project. The Rudolph Libbe Group helped Compassion Health manage the budget and apply for grant funding. ProMedica obtained the building from the Lucas County Land Bank. The neighborhood revitalization organization Historic South has assisted in obtaining a grant from the State of Ohio that will enable Nueva Esperanza to occupy half of the lower level of the building in the future. Contact: June Remley, 419-206-1262, june.remley@rlgbuilds.com