DENVER — For decades, Tepeyac Community Health Center has been breaking down cost and language barriers to bring health care to north Denver.
It started nearly 30 years ago, as a two-room health clinic, run by volunteers. Now, they see more patients than ever.
"The church owned this little rundown house at 36th and Kalamath, and they said, 'How about we convert that into a clinic where people can get their basic health care needs met?' " said Jim Garcia, CEO and founder of Tepeyac.
Garcia said he often has to pinch himself when he thinks about where they are now, compared with where they began.
"We started in a little renovated 800-square-foot house with two exam rooms," he said.
Today, they have new 24,500-square-foot building at 48th Avenue and Race Street in the Globeville Elyria-Swansea neighborhood.
"The majority of the patients we see here at Tepeyac are uninsured, and so that really has been the focus of our mission since we were founded," Garcia said.
Tepeyac has medical, dental and mental health care, all under one roof, as well as a pharmacy, lab and x-ray department.
Even the art inside the building was done by local artists, like this mural by Daniel Luna.
"I think what you see in his art is just the life of a community and all of the interactions that happen, all the beauty that exists in our Latino community," Garcia said.
While at the Denver Art Museum, before Tepeyac opened, Garcia found their name.
"Tepeyac is actually a physical location in Mexico City," he said. "As part of that exhibit, they told the story of Tepeyac where a healing miracle occurred, and I turned to my wife and I said, 'I think we have a name for our clinic.' "
He and the Tepeyac staff continue that legacy, providing health care to anyone who needs it.
"Tepeyac is here for the entire community," Garcia said.
Tepeyac takes all insurance, as well as Medicare and Medicaid. They also take any and all patients, even if you don't have health insurance.
Garcia said they still need to raise $2.5 million to cover the costs of constructing the new facility. Tepeyac is a nonprofit organization and is always looking for donations to help patients who are uninsured.
More 9NEWS coverage of health care:
SUGGESTED VIDEOS: Mental Health & Wellness
9NEWS+ has multiple live daily shows including 9NEWS Mornings, Next with Kyle Clark and 9NEWS+ Daily, an original streaming program. 9NEWS+ is where you can watch live breaking news, weather updates, and press conferences. You can also replay recent newscasts and find videos on demand of our top stories, local politics, investigations and Colorado specific features.
To download 9NEWS+ on Roku search for KUSA.
To download 9NEWS+ on Fire TV search for 9NEWS.