Gary Schoener: I’m retiring — to Walk-in

I’ve been part of Walk-In since the very beginning — 1969, before we had much more than an idea and a willingness to try something different. I was the first paid staff in 1971, and in 1973 I became Executive Director, a role I held until 2010. That was a full 37 years in that role. Licensure of psychologists began five years after Walk-In opened, and my original number was 0013 (I secretly wanted 007 but was too slow to get it).

That’s a long time to be part of one thing. Looking back on it now, mostly I just feel fortunate. I happen to have been in a room full of idealistic psychologists when somebody said, “Hey, let’s start a free clinic!” The name was easy … we wanted acess to be the key …no red tape, no money, and anonymity if you wanted it.

And it’s hard to believe that what started then is now something that became so important and still matters a lot today. Thousands of people have walked through our door over the years. Our model of care is pretty much unique — free, anonymous, accessible. We actually copied the team consultation model from a clinic in Los Angeles, but that has stayed at the core of our model ever since. The learning experience of post-clinic consultation time has shaped hundreds of professionals’ careers. I’ve been lucky to work with so many amazing professionals over that time, all who share the same belief: That access to care shouldn’t depend on what you can afford, or who you know, or how organized you are at the moment you need help.

I’ve stayed involved in Walk-In in the years since stepping down as Executive Director, most recently as the Director of Consultation & Training (first full-time, then part-time), because there was continued opportunity and need. All told this has been more than 57 years, with 55 on the paid staff. This has brought connections and friendships with thousands of people — volunteers, board members, clients, and professionals of all sorts who worked with us or sought our consultation and training. It’s hard for me to convey the richness of this experience and how lucky I feel.

Now that it’s (past?) time for me to step away as a member of the staff team, I’ve decided to officially do that on Dec. 31. (I’ll be 82.)

But don’t worry, this isn’t a good-bye. I’ll be doing what I’ve been encouraging others to do for years; I’ll be retiring to Walk-In. I will become, for this new chapter, a Walk-In volunteer. I can’t think of a better role for me at this time of life. It will be good to be one of the volunteers who make everything happen, who I call the lifeblood of this place. We’ve had some talented staff, including my current colleagues, but this has never been about the staff — it is about the volunteers, board members, donors, and supporters.

Walk-In has always struck me as a good place to ease into new roles. You don’t have to choose between stepping back from a career and staying useful in it. You can do both, here, in whatever way you want.

I don’t expect I’m the last person at this stage of a career to find that true. As Mark Twain said, “aging is a privilege …not everyone gets to do it.”

I’m looking forward to being part of whatever Walk-In becomes next — just from a different seat. We’ve lived through and survived some interesting times, and remember the Chinese saying “may you live in interesting times” was actually a curse. Survival is, of course, a gift and a lot of fun.

With gratitude,

Gary Schoener

PS: I am still around with a ton of stories about Walk-In. Ask me sometime about how we survived 2003 when county funding ended after 30 years, or the day that we kept getting calls about a counselor “Kelly Green,” how a puppy dog caused a psychoanalytically trained therapist to throw Freud out the window, and the team with a hard-boiled behaviorist and a Jungian analyst found peace & inspiration…and….