If you volunteered at the Neighborhood Christian Clinic anytime in the last two decades, you probably knew “Pharmacy Bob.” His name is Bob Raatjes, and he first heard about the Clinic the way many great stories begin in Phoenix: on a golf course.
Bob was golfing with his friend, dentist Jerry Denning. Jerry and his wife, a dental hygienist, both volunteered at the Clinic and support it faithfully. Not long after, at a Mission Sunday at Christ’s Church of the Valley, Bob saw the Clinic’s booth in the lobby. He walked up, introduced himself, and offered his skills. He had spent a career in healthcare as a hospital administrator and later served on hospital board, including Phoenix Baptist Hospital. The fit was immediate.
He started coming every Friday morning. He kept that rhythm for eighteen years, serving about forty-five Fridays each year. From day one, Bob says he could see that God was moving in this place. Patients were working hard, doing their best, and falling into the gap. Many earned around 26,000 dollars a year, which was too much for Medicaid and not enough for employer-provided insurance. The Clinic stood in that gap with prayer, medicine, and love. Bob often says everybody at the Clinic is a great pray-er. Staff and volunteers pray with patients, with each other, and for the work.
The early years gave Bob a front-row seat to the way God brings the right people together. He met Dr. Paul Lorensten and called him one of the most wonderful men he has ever known. A man of God who learned to speak fluent Spanish on the job so he could love patients better. Meeting Paul only deepened Bob’s excitement for the mission.
Bob also discovered another thread of providence. He and longtime Clinic champion and former executive director Gary Plooster attended the same Christian college, Hope College in Holland, Michigan. They were there five years apart and both loved that the school is rooted in the Reformed Church tradition. Shared roots became shared service.
Most Fridays you could find Bob in the medication room, quietly watching the flow of patients and providers. He saw more than refill slips and labels. He watched medical miracles. A father who could finally work without pain. A grandmother whose blood pressure came under control. A cancer patient who left with a care plan and a sense of hope. Bob has volunteered all his life, including years with hospice, yet he will tell you that the most significant and meaningful work he ever did was at the Clinic.
Faith and family steady Bob’s life. He and his wife, Sue, have been married for sixty-one years. When driving became difficult, Bob decided to stop volunteering. He says that if he had not quit driving, he would still be there every Friday morning.
Ask anyone who served alongside him and they will tell you the same thing. Pharmacy Bob gave the Clinic more than time. He gave us a picture of faithfulness. Week after week. Friday after Friday. Eighteen years of showing up, loving patients, and trusting God with the results.
“I love the Clinic. I always have and always will.” — Bob Raatjes