Seattle Gay Clinic records, 1979-1990

Seattle Gay Clinic (SGC), a not-for profit, independent, and volunteer-supported organization, was founded in October 1979 under the name Seattle Clinic for Venereal Health. Its mission was to detect, diagnose, and treat sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), primarily among gay men. In addition to providing primary care for STDs, SGC set up support groups for gay men with Hepatitis B and Herpes. SGC focused on patient education by developing literature about specific STDs and distributing these pamphlets in bars and bathhouses.

After the first diagnosed case of AIDS in Washington State was announced in November 1982, SGC became heavily involved in educating the broader community about AIDS, and developed new ways to assist patients diagnosed with AIDS. In May of 1983, SGC created a "buddy network" in imitation of a successful program in New York, which provided short-term support services to those diagnosed with AIDS. This "buddy network" became known as the Chicken Soup Brigade.

In April of 1984, the SGC Board authorized the founding of another group, "to provide a central coordinating body whereby medical, financial, and information resources of citizens and organizations of the Pacific Northwest can be directed toward a unified response to the public health threat posed by Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)." This group, originally called the Northwest AIDS Project, became the Northwest AIDS Foundation (NWAF). Both the Chicken Soup Brigade and the NWAF ultimately established themselves as independent organizations from the SGC.

SGC remained active throughout the 1990s, collaborating with other agencies and organizations such as YouthCare, Seattle Counseling Services for Sexual Minorities, and People of Color Against AIDS Network in an effort to serve a diverse community. Seattle Gay Clinic closed its operations in 2003.