Local families and friends are invited to join the Collier County Bar Foundation (CCBF) for a bite to eat and a good cause at multiple events throughout 2016. The CCBF, which best describes itself as “the philanthropic arm of the Collier County Bar Association and its more than 800 Southwest Florida attorney members,” has changed their style this year, selecting a sole beneficiary for all if it’s philanthropic events that will take place over the course of the best 12 months. This year’s beneficiary has officially been announced as the Naples Neighborhood Health Clinic. In previous years, more than one beneficiary was chosen, but this year all financial eggs will fall into the Naples Neighborhood Health Clinic’s basket – a unique local health provider that according to the Marc Huling, the President of the Collier County Bar Foundation, shares a similar vision for Collier County. “Their mission is aligned with ours,” Huling said. “The Bar Association has over 800 members and every year we give tens of thousands of dollars to local charities and organizations to help those who are underprivileged in Collier County. We chose Naples Neighborhood Health Clinic because they give back to underprivileged residents locally through medical and dental services. With our missions aligned, we hope to raise awareness of an organization that dies such great work in the community.” The way that Naples Neighborhood Clinic works is simple: If a local working resident is uninsured, they may qualify for medical and dental care through the organization. According to John P. Cardillo, the Board Chair of the Naples Neighborhood Health Clinic, more than 35 thousand Collier County residents qualify for his organization’s services. “Here is the way it works,” Cardillo said. “Fill out the paperwork and apply, and if you qualify, you can go in and see a physician. Now say you’re sick and you think you have pneumonia. Once you go in, they do an exam, give you the prescription, and we cover $100 worth of medicine. Typically our clients only pay modest fees of like, $25.” “So let’s say you go home and you give it some time and you’re just not feeling better. So you make another appointment with the same doctor, this time he goes deeper with his examination and you get and X-ray and a CT scan or an MRI. You find out that something is significantly wrong – such as cancer or something. So far, all of those tests only costs one hour’s wage. If you’re making $15 an hour, than that’s what it costs. So say we determine you have a tumor, we send you to the hospital, you undergo surgery, and when you get out, all that costs is another one hour’s wage. That’s what we do.” Naples Neighborhood Health Clinic only has one location, which is why its partnership with CCBA is so important. Cardillo says there are plans to open more locations and add a full dental crew to their staff in the next year or two. Right now he says that the organizations employs approximately 250 doctors, 200 nurses and about 200 more volunteers. “The people we care for have the lowest paying jobs in the area, but they are what makes the economy stay afloat in Southwest Florida,” Cardillo said. Many of the working and uninsured patients they see are the unseen heroes such as the dishwashers at restaurants, maids at local hotels and those who work in landscaping and home care. Because they don’t have insurance, Neighborhood Health Clinic helps to free up space in the local Emergency Rooms by treating those who can’t get a doctor’s appointment with a general practitioner but don’t necessarily need to take space in the triage of Emergency Room patients. “We are grateful and appreciative that the Collier County Bar Foundation has chosen us to be their primary beneficiary this year,” Cardillo said. “It says a lot about the character of our Bar and the generosity and community spirit of the attorneys. It is the efforts and contributions of the Foundation and its supporters that make me proud to be an attorney and it is professionally rewarding to lead the work of the Clinic in delivering quality medical and dental care to low-income, working but uninsured Collier County adults.” A portion of the proceeds from all events hosted by the CCBF in 2016 will benefit the Health Clinic. This is the first year that proceeds from all CCBF events will be donated to just one charitable organization. The CCBF expects to donate a minimum of $10,000 to the Naples Neighborhood Health Clinic this year, with at least half of the proceeds generated at the Barbeque event which took place on Feb. 20. Other events that will benefit the Neighborhood Clinic include the 5K Judicata Race on Memorial Day, annual fishing tournament in October, and the annual golf tournament tentatively scheduled for October. To learn more about the events and the people benefitting them, visit this link.
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