The Heart of Our Community. Ahead of the Curve.
Lynn Community Health Center is a non-profit, multicultural, community health center. Located in the heart of our community, we are at the center of a larger solution to the healthcare crisis that is facing our nation today. We are recognized as a leader in developing new initiatives that result in high-impact, low cost health care.
Our mission is to provide comprehensive health care to everyone in our community, regardless of ability to pay
At the health center, board-certified providers lead teams of health professionals who can address almost any non-emergency health need or chronic condition. These teams include highly-qualified mental health therapists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, dentists, optometrists, pharmacists, community health workers, and other specialists. LCHC uses an innovative, integrative care model called a patient-centered medical home, which is designed to respect each patient’s unique needs.
We are committed to social justice and reducing barriers to care. Our staff reflect the diversity within the community we serve, and we provide care in many languages and with respect for all cultures.
At LCHC, you are at the center of your care.
Our Community, Our People, and Our History
Our Founders
In 1971 William Mantzoukas was hired by the City of Lynn to found a health center. The first thing he did was hire Stephen D. Hayes, a newly minted psychologist with a big vision and a desire to serve those in need. Together they began the journey that brought us to where we are today.
We started out as the Community Counseling Center in a tiny storefront on Chestnut Street where we served 500 patients in the first year. It was immediately clear that our patients were also in desperate need of primary care. In 1976 we moved to a larger building and began providing medical and obstetrical services. Over the years we have continued to grow to meet the healthcare needs of our community, and are now the largest provider of comprehensive primary care services in our community, serving over 40% of Lynn residents.
It was during these early years that Dr. Hayes began envisioning mental health services as a critical part of primary care. Revolutionary at the time, his vision is one that is now widely recognized, and has become the cornerstone of the current Patient Centered Medical Home Initiative which is being widely adopted at both the state and federal levels. Dr. Hayes was a true leader in promoting the idea that the body, mind and soul need to be treated together and in an integrated fashion.
Bill Mantzoukas served for 3 years as the health center’s Executive Director, and has continued as a friend and board member ever since. His vision has carried us through many moves and new programs.
Dr. Hayes never wavered in his commitment to the physical and mental health of our patients. He served as Director of Behavioral Health and Director of Integrated Care Services for 40 years before his death in 2011. It is in honor of his amazing dedication and commitment that our new building bears his name.
In 2010 Bill and Steve were honored by Lynn Community Health Center.
How We Got Here… and Where We’re Going
Our Leadership
Our Senior Management
Before joining LCHC, Kathy worked for Insight Performance, consulting on HR issues for small to medium sized companies. It was in this role that she was exposed to the community health field and was attracted to continuing her career serving those that are most in need of our services.
Prior to Insight Performance, Kathy worked for General Electric. She started in the Aviation Business Segment and held a variety of positions of increasing responsibility as a Recruiter, HR Business Partner, HR Manager and as the HR Compliance Leader for Aviation. She supported engineering, manufacturing, sales, support, finance, IT and marketing functions. In 2011 she was promoted to the corporate level as the Fair Employment Practices Leader. In this role she oversaw the development and support of over 300 Affirmative Action Plans, supported compensation with equity analyses, published a weekly HR Risk Bytes column and was responsible for ensuring that the HR team complied with global privacy laws. In addition, she ran the HR Risk Management program for HR and promoted Diversity and Inclusion events throughout GE’s businesses.
Kathy is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations.
Prior to joining Lynn Community Health Center, Meaghen’s career focused on policy and community relations in the public sector. She held a variety of strategic leadership positions representing the City of Lynn and the 3rd Essex District in the State Legislature and Mayor’s Office, including as a Senior Advisor to Mayor Jared Nicholson and his team during their transition into office at the end of 2021 and beginning of 2022. Her comprehensive knowledge of the office’s extensive responsibilities and of the City of Lynn (diverse population of 100,000 people) were honed during her time as the prior administration’s Chief of Staff, serving directly as a trusted advisor of Mayor Emeritus Tom McGee.
As former Mayor McGee’s Chief of Staff, Meaghen worked closely with LCHC during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, and specifically as LCHC’s operational partner within the City of Lynn to launch and maintain a Mass Vaccination Site during 2021. That partnership revealed to her LCHC’s foundation as a social justice institution that strives to ensure equitable care in the City of Lynn, and upon completion of her prior role, Meaghen sought an opportunity to join LCHC in furthering this mission.
Meaghen is a lifelong Lynn resident and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science, with a minor in Communications from Boston University.
Clare joined the staff of LCHC in 2008 when the health center was expanding its Development Office in preparation for a Capital Campaign. It became clear to Clare that LCHC was a well-kept secret in the Lynn Community. It has been a core goal of hers to raise LCHC’s profile in the community. She has worked to let people know of its mission, the depth, breadth, expertise of its staff, and its growth as an anchor institution in downtown Lynn
When the successful Campaign concluded Clare remained on staff expanding her role. She accepted her present position in 2015. Today she is excited to be part of the 50+1 Anniversary Celebration of this venerable institution.
An avid boater, Clare can be found in season on the waters off the coast of Massachusetts.
Board of Directors
Just as each patient is unique, so is every community. To ensure that we are responding directly to the needs of those we serve, more than half of Lynn Community Health Center’s Board of Directors are active patients and all live or work in our community. They not only provide direct consumer feedback, but give voice to our diverse community.
Nelson Woodfork
Victoria Pulos
Manuel Ronald Mendes
Eliud Alcala
Edward Besozzi
Lisa Carbone
Laura Gallant
Florance Guerrier
Norris Guscott
Sean Lobdell
Rachel Pohl
Drew Russo
Kirirath Saing
Marilyn Smith
Natasha Soolkin
Jobeth Williams