Maria

When Maria arrived from Rio de Janeiro with her husband, their world turned upside down within just three months of reaching the United States. Her husband suddenly became paralyzed, requiring emergency care. Speaking only Portuguese and without insurance, Maria found herself navigating a complex healthcare system in a foreign land.

“We didn’t know what was wrong with my husband,” Maria recalls, her voice reflecting the fear of those uncertain days. It was a hospital social worker who first connected her to Loudoun Free Clinic, a moment that would transform their healthcare journey.

What immediately touched Maria was finding staff who spoke her language. “I felt very welcomed, very at home,” she shares, emotion evident in her voice. “When I arrived and found people who spoke my language, it meant everything.”

The clinic has become Maria’s comprehensive healthcare home, providing her with access to various specialists, from primary care to gynecology and dermatology. “If there’s no specialist here, the Free Clinic works to guide me or set up appointments at other locations. I am always seen in any specialty I need,” she explains.

But the clinic’s support extended far beyond medical care. They helped with a referral for therapy, and connected her with a food pantry and other vital assistance. “The Free Clinic does the possible and the impossible to aid us,” Maria states emphatically. She has already referred several others to the clinic, knowing first hand its life-changing impact.

Today, as Maria looks to the future, she sees the clinic as an essential part of her healthcare journey. “It’s really essential today and will be necessary in the future for support and a friendly welcome,” she reflects, her voice breaking with emotion. “I can only thank them. When patients come here with problems, they find not just care, but a place that truly takes them in.”

*Note: Name changed for patient privacy reasons.