Laurie Francis, the founder and driving force behind Community Health Partners, will step down in November. And, while she will certainly be missed, our loss locally will become a gain for the whole state. Francis is leaving to become CEO of Montana Primary Care Associates, a Helena organization of clinics that provide medical services for Montana's needy.

Raised in the Bay Area by a mother who conducted social work in poor neighborhoods, Francis took away a life-long interest in providing essential services to those who can least afford it. In 1997 and with the help of grant funding, she founded Community Health Partners, which provides medical, dental, counseling and education services to the underserved in Park and Gallatin counties.

A registered nurse, she started CHP in an office in Livingston Memorial Hospital. From those humble beginnings, CHP has grown to a $5.6 million-a-year, 120-employee business with locations in Livingston, Bozeman and Belgrade.

The clinics bill patients and clients on an ability-to-pay basis for health and counseling services. It's safe to say that, without CHP, many of Gallatin and Park counties' low-income families would go without the most basic of health care.

In 1999, just two years after its inception, CHP expanded into education with a program to help high-school dropouts earn their GEDs. This forward-thinking program attacks poverty at its roots, giving low-income individuals the education they need to move into better-paying careers.

Our nation's health-care meltdown has become epic, and while Washington has taken small steps to remedy the situation, some 1 in 6 Americans still lacks health insurance and, as a result, any meaningful form of healthcare.

And, while Washington politicians continue to lock horns over the issue while getting little down, community clinics like CHP have stepped to fill the void in the more fortunate areas of the country. CHP has done an admirable job under Francis' direction for us here in southwest Montana.

Now, perhaps, her dedication and talents can help bring about similar successes in other parts of the state.

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