History & Stories

In 2020, Lowell Community Health Center celebrated it’s 50th Anniversary. One way we honored the Health Center’s legacy was by celebrating the people we’ve served, the people who have served, and those in the community who have sustained us for five decades. Throughout the year, we shared many of their stories with you — one each week.

A little over a year ago, we began our 50 Stories for 50 Years by recalling the song “Seasons of Love,” from the musical Rent, which asks, “How do you measure a year?” We imagined that song to be the soundtrack of our anniversary year, capped by confetti and a big, bold community celebration that was filled to the brim with laughter, nostalgia, and hope for the future. We could never have imagined the reality of the year that lay ahead.

Still, we managed to celebrate our history. And 50 Stories was a key part of that. At first, we weren’t sure how to continue. How would people respond to these stories in a world suddenly re-defined by isolation and uncertainty? As it turns out, sharing these inspiring, heartwarming, and hopeful personal experiences were just what the doctor ordered.

History

It all began with a bold idea. That everyone deserved access to quality health care.

Your community health center is rooted in the belief that everyone in Greater Lowell deserves access to quality, affordable health care.

In 1965, the national community health center movement launched as part of President Johnson’s War on Poverty. The first two CHC’s were located in Boston’s Columbia Point neighborhood and in rural Mississippi.

Planting the seed in Lowell

In 1970, the movement came to Lowell. That was when Lowell General Hospital (LGH) established a small, community-based clinic in an apartment at the Shaughnessy Terrace public housing complex. The clinic focused on prenatal and pediatric care, all easily accessible to residents.

Photo caption: Lowell CHC employees during the early years (top) and an artist rendering of the Shaughnessy Terrace public housing complex, site of our first clinic in 1970 (bottom).

Stories

Meet Sylvia

Sylvia is in her 60s, and often works more than 40 hours a week – even suffering through severe pain in her teeth. Sylvia needed dentures. It couldn’t wait any longer. “We see a lot of patients pushing through and just accepting constant pain,” laments Sorasmi, Dental Care Coordinator Supervisor, Read More

Meet Paola Daza Nunez: Doctor, Linguist, Reading Champion

Dr. Daza Nunez is carrying the torch for early literacy at Lowell CHC, where children receive brand new books during well-child visits through Reach out and Read. Dr. Nunez has always had a love of language and community health. She speaks English and Spanish and is working hard to perfect Read More

Michelle

Even over Zoom, Michelle has a voice and presence exuding warmth and confidence. It’s no wonder that she’s spent much of her career successfully recruiting talent for various organizations. Michelle is also a protective “mama bear,” always on alert, willing to do whatever it takes to fight for her three Read More