Grant Boosts Garberville Clinic, Expands Care for Rural Residents

On December 17, 2025, the Southern Humboldt Community Clinic in Garberville was awarded a $150,000 grant from The California Wellness Foundation to support its core operating needs. The award is targeted to help the clinic maintain and expand primary health care services for low income and uninsured residents across Southern Humboldt, Northern Mendocino, and Southwestern Trinity counties.

Clinic leaders said the funding will bolster the clinic's capacity to deliver comprehensive primary care, chronic disease management, screenings, vaccinations, referral coordination, and patient support across an extremely rural region. The Southern Humboldt Community Clinic has served Garberville for over 75 years, and leaders intend to use the grant to strengthen access to care for vulnerable populations who face long travel times and limited local options for routine and preventive services.

Rural communities in this part of the North Coast often lack easy access to continuous primary care, which can lead residents to delay preventive care and to seek episodic treatment at distant facilities. By supporting core operations, this grant is designed to help sustain staff, expand appointment availability, and improve coordination with specialty providers outside the region. Those operational improvements can increase screening rates, keep chronic conditions under better control, and make vaccinations and referrals easier to obtain for residents who are low income or uninsured.

For local patients, the grant may mean more reliable scheduling, better follow up after specialty referrals, and enhanced support for navigating insurance and community resources. For the clinic, stable operating support can reduce financial uncertainty and allow leaders to plan for hiring, outreach, and partnerships that extend care into remote parts of the service area.

The funding arrives as the clinic continues its long history in Garberville and as communities across Humboldt County confront the challenge of maintaining local health services in rural settings. Clinic officials say the grant will be an important step toward preserving and expanding primary care for some of the county's most vulnerable residents.