The Wright Center for Community Health’s Health City Hub (“the Hub”) in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania – named in honor of Attorney John Moses – serves as a one-stop shop for integrated, whole-person primary care, dental, mental and behavioral health, and pharmacy services. As part of The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education’s Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Safety Net Consortium, the Hub also offers interprofessional healthcare workforce development through partnerships with 12 academic institutions.
In a neighborhood marked by high poverty rates and limited access to transportation, having comprehensive primary health services under one roof, conveniently located along a bus route, can be transformative. Despite the clear need for expanded community health resources, the Hub got its start in an unconventional way.
A Crisis Becomes a Community Cause
“We got a letter that the owners were closing the acute hospital facility where we had been operating a small teaching health center in existence for over 40 years, and that we were being evicted in 60 days. We panicked because it was right before Christmas, and some of the most vulnerable patients that The Wright Center serves were in that legacy health center,” recalls Dr. Linda Thomas-Hemak, president and CEO.
The Wright Centers for Community Health and Graduate Medical Education’s Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Safety Net Consortium has spent 50 years delivering care and educating the healthcare workforce in underserved communities throughout Northeast Pennsylvania. Today, the nonprofit enterprise operates 13 health centers and a mobile medical and dental clinic, serving more than 38,000 patients annually across eight counties.
Prompted by the eviction crisis, Dr. Thomas-Hemak and her team galvanized the surrounding community to realize that this was not just a real estate problem, but a community healthcare emergency.
“I know The Wright Center’s true power is the patients, families, learners, partners, and communities we are privileged to serve,” says Dr. Thomas-Hemak. “With great faith in the capacity of every community, I have developed a remarkable leadership skillset to make my problem everybody’s problem.”
“Primary care is over-tasked and under-resourced, so we need mission-aligned and purpose-driven partnerships. The Wright Center thrives in the pronoun ‘we,’ and we are intentional about never taking on a community’s serious problems alone. So, we leaned in and reached out to find a permanent destination for our legacy teaching health center where we could grow and develop a Health City Hub.”
A Site Chosen for Its Neighborhood
Within weeks of receiving the eviction notice, longtime supporter Attorney Moses helped identify an underutilized 35,000 square-foot office building on Pennsylvania Avenue in Wilkes-Barre’s North End. The location – in a distressed neighborhood where nearly one in four residents live below the poverty line – was a natural mission fit.
Situated near a homeless encampment and directly across from a shelter, the site represented an opportunity to bring healthcare services directly to those who needed them most.
“We were devastated when we discovered a deceased homeless man on the old railroad tracks on the property. That would probably have scared most organizations away, but that motivated our immediate commitment to purchase the building,” explains Dr. Thomas-Hemak.
The renovation process itself revealed deep roots in the local community. The local developer selected for the project discovered a memorial document hidden beneath the building’s entrance, left by his own father during the original construction decades earlier. For Dr. Thomas-Hemak and her team, this connection was meaningful because it was a piece of a local family’s history that had come full circle.
Closing the Financing Gap
Transforming the aging structure into a state-of-the-art Health City Hub required more than vision; it required significant capital. Two Pennsylvania Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grants made the initial purchase and construction possible, but these resources were not adequate to finish the full renovation.
That support came through Reinvestment Fund, a mission-oriented community development financial institution that provided $8.5 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) financing. The federal program is designed to drive private investment in economically distressed communities through tax incentives to investors. For The Wright Center, the financing became the critical financial bridge between architectural plans and a completed facility.
Dr. Thomas-Hemak credits Reinvestment Fund’s leadership for having an open heart, patience, competence, and integrity.
“Everything has been amazingly synchronous, and the timing couldn’t have been more elegant and perfect if we had planned it. Reinvestment Fund guided it to all just come together, impressively not only allowing but encouraging us to continue and finish the whole renovation project, honoring prevailing union wages,” reflects Dr. Thomas-Hemak. “The people at Reinvestment Fund are strong leaders who compassionately gave our community a space to unify, partner, learn, grow, and establish a flourishing Health City Hub in Wilkes -Barre.”
Built to Adapt
Dr. Jignesh Y. Sheth, senior vice president and enterprise chief operations and strategy officer at The Wright Center, led the construction and design process with a focus on removing barriers that patients commonly face when accessing care. Feedback from staff, patients, learners, and community partners generated lessons that were built directly into the facility’s design. By treating the building as an evolving “template” for primary health services and workforce development, Dr. Sheth ensured the Hub is far more than a medical clinic.
“We are constantly learning and always improving as we go at The Wright Center,” says Dr. Sheth. “When a need arises at one location, we realize it’s probably a need elsewhere too. Whether it’s adding a bus stop, making sure there is a place to sit outside, or enriching disability access, we are building an ecosystem to promote equity, where we address health-related social needs that are beyond just healthcare needs.”
The results of the Hub’s $10.9 million total renovation are visible on the street. ADA-accessible sidewalks, bright windows, a welcoming facade, bright signage, and revitalized parking areas transformed the property into a cornerstone of neighborhood revitalization. The project earned the 2025 Greater Wyoming Valley Chamber of Commerce Pride of Place Award.
More importantly, the Hub has become a sanctuary of wellness for the surrounding community, proving that high-quality healthcare services and careers are not just for the affluent – they are community rights for everyone.
From Patient to Provider
The Hub also serves as a Teaching Health Center for The Wright Center’s Graduate Medical Education Safety Net Consortium, training 60 of its nearly 200 physician residents annually, along with numerous interprofessional healthcare students from partner academic institutions. The model helps cultivate a homegrown healthcare workforce that reflects and serves the surrounding communities.
Few stories capture that mission more powerfully than Joanna Cox, a local resident. Adopted from Ukraine as a baby, she grew up in a multigenerational family that considers The Wright Center its health home. Over the years, she progressed from patient to summer intern, then to rotating student, employed medical scribe, and ultimately a physician assistant at The Wright Center.
“Joanna’s journey is a life story that captures the heart of The Wright Center’s powerful mission to improve the health and welfare of our communities through responsive, whole-person health services for all and the sustainable renewal of an inspired, competent workforce that is privileged to serve,” describes Dr. Thomas-Hemak. “Our Health City Hub Wilkes-Barre brought Joanna’s awesome story home.
“If you meet her, you will be awestruck. She’s from and embodies her community. She’s had very challenging circumstances that she’s had to overcome. Now she’s here as the face of the community taking care of itself. It’s amazing and an absolute blessing.”
Today, the Hub is a bustling center of activity where the parking lot is full, and the energy is upbeat and full of hope. It stands as a testament to what happens when a community development financial institution like Reinvestment Fund aligns with a visionary healthcare provider and medical educator.
As the Hub looks toward the future – with capacity in Wilkes-Barre expected to grow to 37,000 annual visits by 2027 – the mission remains human-centered. Equity isn’t treated as an extra goal or a checkbox; it is baked into the very fabric of how it operates every day.