Five years have passed since the first Seattle/King County Clinic, a giant pop-up event that has offered free medical, dental and vision care each fall for four days at KeyArena. Public Health – Seattle & King County is proud to have been part of this enormous community effort, along with over 100 other organizations.
In 2019, with the construction of a new arena at Seattle Center, the Clinic is on hiatus. We’re taking this pause to reflect on what the impact of this free clinic has been, as told through two comic strips, the third in a series of comic journalism from the 2018 Clinic. The first tells a very personal story about the difference the Seattle/King County Clinic made in the life of one individual, and that person’s legacy on the entire event. The second story steps back for the big picture, illustrating key achievements and more importantly, the work still left to be done.
Artwork by David Lasky, written by Meredith Li-Vollmer
Thanks to the Seattle Center, the Seattle Center Foundation, and Public Health—Seattle & King County for support of this comics journalism project. Special thanks to the artists Amy Camber, Ellen Forney, Kelly Froh, Tatiana Gill, Roberta Gregory, David Lasky, Meredith Li-Vollmer, and Rachel Scheer who volunteered their time and to all the patients and volunteers who shared their stories with us.
More on the Seattle/King County Clinic at seattlecenter.org/skcclinic
Originally posted on February 7, 2019.