Supporters of Whole Family Health, the nonprofit founded by Dr. Gerald Pierone, enjoyed a Donor Gratitude Reception at Quail Valley at the Pointe to thank them on behalf of the clients they serve, and give an update on plans for the future.
Board Chair Steve Trooboff expressed appreciation on behalf of their clients, noting that as a result of the supporters’ donations, patients are overwhelmingly happy with the quality of the care they receive.
Trooboff said that they have moved into half of a 15,000-square-foot building on 37th Place and, to support it, began a capital campaign late last spring. They will expand over time to incorporate pediatrics, a complete women’s health clinic, an expanded pharmacy and additional adult exam rooms.
“It’s all part of a much larger plan to serve our population,” said Trooboff, noting that many people know little about Whole Family Health.
He said that when he got involved in 2018, they had 4,500 patients and 50 staff in two locations. In 2025, more than 200 staff members served a little more than 20,000 patients, provided some 135,000 prescriptions, made upwards of 46,000 referrals for specialty care, and operated out of four locations and mobile medical office.
“We are, in one way or another, either the largest or the second largest primary care clinic on the Treasure Coast,” said Trooboff.
Although they are a fee-for-service business, they accept patients with or without insurance, and a vast majority of their clients live at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines.
“For them, healthcare is a discretionary item, not a core item,” said Trooboff.
After receiving a cancer screening grant, they screened 700 people for mammograms, pap smears, etc., and discovered 64 positives.
“When I saw those numbers, I said to myself, ‘What did those people do before?’ And the answer is, they didn’t do anything at all. They don’t go for screening because it costs money and they can’t pay for it,” he said.
“That’s the population that we serve. And the money you give us helps us serve those people,” said Trooboff, adding that Florida is an unhealthy place to live as it never implemented the Affordable Care Act Medicaid expansion.
“We are here to say thank you to all of you for supporting us year after year. And now with this capital campaign, we have so much to look forward to. And we’re looking to all of you and others within the community to help us with that important endeavor,” said Marie Andress, WFC CEO, before recognizing board and staff members and introducing founder and chief medical officer Dr. Gerald Pierone.
He said what began in 1995 as a small medical clinic in Fort Pierce had a simple mission statement: “To provide high quality medical care to people regardless of their ability to pay.”
“It was that simple. And we’ve stayed true to those roots.”
The scope has grown considerably though, and now includes adult primary care, pediatrics, women’s health, behavioral health, cancer screenings, care management, infectious disease, clinical research, a pharmacy, an on-site lab and social services.
“The patients we take care of are a very diverse patient population,” said Pierone.
He said they include the homeless, migrant families, the working poor and fixed-income seniors, all of whom rely on their donor support.
“These are very challenging times. The federal government and the state government has been cutting back on healthcare. When you look at the Medicaid program and the health exchanges, they’re facing potentially catastrophic changes. And the demand and need for our services just continue to grow,” said Pierone.
He added that they regularly see patients with serious needs turned away from other providers because they don’t have the right insurance.
“We’ve been able to say yes because of support from people like you. And that’s really, at the end of the day, what this is about. The donations you make are important. They do keep the lights on for us. But really, what they allow us to do is take care of people regardless of their ability to pay.
And that’s what we are most grateful for.”
For more information, visit wfhcfl.org.
Photos by Joshua Kodis
