By Haley Costen
Staff Writer

On March 6, Dr. Patch Adams — physician, activist, and clown —will be speaking in the Linda K. Paresky Center from 6 to 7 p.m., followed by a meet and greet at Common Grounds.

Adams is best known for the 1998 Robin Williams film based off of his life, but the Gesundheit Institute, which he founded, is known for offering free holistic health care, integrating medicine with performing arts, and considering patients as friends.

Nursing student Briana Bouchard met Adams on a spring break trip to Guatamala City, and found Adams and the other clowns she met inspired and influenced her greatly as a nurse.

She, along with the Nursing Association and the Office of Student Leadership and Activities (OSLA), organized the event and got the funding to bring Adams to Simmons and started a fundraiser for the Gesundheit Institute.

“He had such a huge impact on my life and I wanted to be able to share this experience with amazing people in my community that meant the world to me,” Bouchard said. “We all worked so hard to make this event a spectacular experience for everyone who was able to join in on the fun and happiness that Patch brings where ever he goes.”

Bouchard believes that the event will be valuable not just for nursing members, but for all Simmons students. She expects the audience will walk away with some thoughts about caring for people holistically not just medicinally, living a happy life, how you can make small differences in people’s lives, and staying positive.

The event is sponsored by the Nursing Association and OSLA. This is Simmons’ first partnership with the Gesundheit Institute.