MILWAUKEE — For the past 51 years, the Brady East STD Clinic (BESTD) has provided free, non-judgmental health care in Milwaukee. But a recent freeze in federal grant money has the clinic looking to the community for long-term support.
Ruthie Weatherly loves her job at the Brady East STD Clinic in Milwaukee, where she has worked for 16 years.
"Someone, you know, needs a service, they don't feel well, and I can help them right away. That's what I like doing," Weatherly said.
Weatherly started as a volunteer in 2009 before becoming the clinic manager.
"So we are a sexual health clinic. We started in the 1970s in response to a syphilis outbreak in Milwaukee," Weatherly said.
When the space opened in 1974, the goal was to provide free, non-judgmental health care to gay men. Before that, there weren't options specifically for gay men outside of pop-up STD testing. However, that happened rarely.
Then, during the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, BESTD began to offer HIV tests as well. Today, the clinic works with gay men, straight men, and those who are transgender and non-binary.
"That's our, you know, reputation that we are able to take care of folks in the gay community," Weatherly said.
That reputation has been built on 51 years of free service for nearly 30,000 patients.
BESTD is what it is today because of its volunteers. From 1974 to 2019, the clinic was entirely volunteer-run. In 2020, Weatherly became its first paid employee, and today there are about 75 volunteers who keep the clinic operating. Of those volunteers, about 75 percent are healthcare professionals.
"So volunteers are basically what allows us to operate on such a small budget each year," Weatherly said.
That small budget means each dollar is crucial. On May 30, the federal government froze the organization's grant money the day before it was supposed to receive $50,000, causing concern for the clinic's future.
"So in the next year, we are not going to be closing. You know, we can float for a little while, but we can't float for 2, 3, 4, 5 years," Weatherly said.
Watch the story to learn more about BESTD's history...
The clinic plans to double down on community donations to keep the doors open. Donations can be made in-person, online, or you can mail a check to 1240 East Brady Street, Milwaukee, WI 53202.
While the long-term outlook might be unclear, Weatherly is certain of one thing: she will do everything she can to keep this 51-year-old clinic going for another 51 years.
"I feel a lot of responsibility to respect that life and to carry it forward," Weatherly said.
This story was reported on-air by James Groh and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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