“The clinic gave me the opportunity to not only delve into the world of medicine and explore my passion, but to become part of a team, which provides crucial medical care and education to the underserved in our community,” says Michelle. “ My time at the clinic allowed me a lot of hands-on experience that has put me ahead in my classes as well as in my work as a medical student and resident,” she adds. She also notes, “I have great memories of my time at clinic helping my dad and the other doctors. I hope to come back after I finish my residency and volunteer at WFC again.”.

One can see how proud Howard Levy, MD is of his daughter, Michelle, who is now a physician and third year internal medicine resident at Kaiser Permanente in Santa Clara. Michelle started volunteering at WFC as a high school student in 2001. Soon after, she convinced Howard to volunteer as well – which he has done for the past 14 years. As a high school student interested in medicine, Michelle appreciated how Westminster Free Clinic was the first step of many in her path to becoming a physician.

Howard says, “ It has been such a great experience volunteering at Westminster Clinic, that I have recruited other doctors and donors to help out, too. You can see the difference you make in the lives of patients and high school student interns.” Howard, an ophthalmologist at Kaiser Permanente in Woodland Hills, screens diabetic patients for bleeding in the back of their eyes, which, if left untreated, can lead to blindness. “Just a few months ago, I identified a young man with a retinal bleed at Westminster Clinic,“ says Howard. “Finding this early will change this patient’s whole future. He will not have to lose his vision which means he can work, drive, and care for a family. It makes volunteering worth it. It feels so great.”

Michelle Levy, MD, plans to pursue a career in Oncology, another area where one can make a big difference. She says “Every day, there are new treatments and procedures for cancer and it’s exciting!” They both marvel over how big the clinic has become since the early days when they volunteered together. “It was just a small room,” Howard reminisces. “Yeah, we only saw like eight patients on a clinic night,” says Michelle, “and there were only a few student interns. Now you see over 100 patients each night and have over 80 interns in the program, and you have so many more services. The clinic has really grown,” she reflects. Michelle gave a “grand rounds” doctor talk to the current clinic high school interns in May. “It was so awesome to be back at clinic and talk to the students,” she said. Michelle and her father’s passion for service is truly inspiring!.