Help Provide Free Care
Your gift helps RAM provide free dental, vision, and medical services to people in need.
Look around a Remote Area Medical (RAM®) Clinic, it won’t take long before you see volunteers in their matching T-shirts and welcoming smiles. From patient and volunteer registration, to language interpreters, to doctors, dentists, nurses, and dental hygienists — RAM Clinics are only possible through the hard work of volunteers. We have been a volunteer corps since the beginning, we are able to serve our patients because of our volunteers.
23% of the U.S. population — more than 60.7 million people — above the age of 16 formally volunteered through an organization from 2020 to 2021 [US Census Bureau].
Volunteers are crucial to RAM’s mission. RAM has been a Volunteer Corps since it was founded in 1985 — Remote Area Medical Founder and President, the late Stan Brock, carried business cards that read “Volunteer, Founder & President.” Stan was a volunteer first and foremost. RAM has continued his legacy of volunteerism throughout its 39 years of service.
More than 212,738 RAM volunteers have donated their time to provide free, quality healthcare to those in need. In 2023 alone, RAM had 16,633 total volunteers!
While everyone who volunteers at a RAM Clinic does it for their own reason, it usually boils down to one common goal — a desire to help the community. Watch our series of ‘Volunteer Viewpoints’ to see what our volunteers have to say about their time working with RAM.
General Support Volunteers —
There is no such thing as a job too big or too small for RAM Volunteers. General support volunteers are trained in the different areas of the clinic. Each volunteer is important in the clinic’s overall success. No matter what skills volunteers have — there is a role for them to help at RAM.
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Your gift helps RAM continue providing free care to people in need.
Volunteers aren’t just needed at clinics — many volunteers also work at RAM Headquarters in Rockford, Tennessee. Volunteers at headquarters help ensure we can host clinics across the country year-after-year. From loading clinic equipment, filling out paperwork, restocking supplies and maintaining vehicles, volunteers are involved every step of the way.
Healthcare Providers Make Up Our Volunteer Corps —
While general support volunteers keep clinics operational, RAM Clinics would not be possible without support from volunteer healthcare professionals. Every healthcare professional you see at a clinic is a volunteer. Providers from all disciplines of healthcare volunteer at RAM Clinics to ensure patients receive the care they need. RAM works with healthcare professionals to ensure they have everything they need to provide free, quality healthcare to those in need.
RAM Volunteer for Life —
Some volunteers travel the country with RAM to help run clinics, dedicating years of service to the mission Like CORE Volunteers Julie and Holly recently celebrated clinics 50 and 30 recently and plan to attend many more. Similarly, numerous medical professionals volunteer with RAM for years. Dr. Paul and Shelia Wittke, have been providing vision care to RAM patients since 1992. And many more volunteers, who have helped us provide care to more than 940,000 patients!
CORE Volunteers in Our Volunteer Corps—
At a RAM Clinic, you may notice some volunteers are in blue shirts — these are our CORE Volunteers. CORE Volunteers can train in any of the 14 areas throughout the clinic.
CORE Volunteers have chosen to take on a leadership role with RAM. They undergo comprehensive training in specific areas of the RAM Clinic. Once they complete their training, these volunteers become leaders in their area of clinics.
Volunterns —
Each summer, RAM has a group of volunteer interns — Volunterns — who spend their summer volunteering. Volunterns split their time between volunteering at headquarters in Rockford, Tennessee, and travelling to clinics around the country. Read more about what a Voluntern does here!
Every RAM Volunteer makes an immeasurable impact on the mission and on patients’ lives through dedicating their time and skills to ensure patients get the care they deserve. Our volunteers embody the phrase often repeated by Stan Brock, “Never forget the mission.”
More About Our Volunteer Corps —
Want to volunteer with Remote Area Medical? Click here to register to volunteer! For other questions, comments, or concerns about volunteering email [email protected]. Or call (865) 579-1530 to learn more!
RAM is funded through donations from people like you. Because of the generosity of our donors we’ve been able to continue bringing free dental, vision, and medical care to those in need. If you would like to donate to help RAM continue serving patients, please click here. You can also become a monthly donor to support RAM throughout the year.
Learn more about RAM’s mission to provide free healthcare through our blog posts, social media channels, and download free magazine.
Walmart’s Spark Good Program allows you to round up your change and donate that change to RAM. This is such an easy way to donate to RAM in small amounts. Every cent helps us to serve more patients.
RAM now has an online merch shop! Mugs, hats, shirts, sweatshirts, and more are all available at www.ramusa.org/shop.
As always, if you or someone you know needs a free clinic, check our schedule to see when RAM will be near you.
