In 1985, a new private, non-profit corporation called Santa Cruz Community Inc. forms, along with a formal, dedicated, community-based Board of Directors. After separating from the County as a private corporation, the public-private partnership between Mariposa and the County became an extremely innovative organizational model unlike any other in the country. By integrating funding, as well as programs, a more efficient and effective model of care is developed that embraced not only improving access to primary medical care, but a much broader concept of health care that included disease prevention strategies. Through this integration, Mariposa becomes the first community health center in the country to assume responsibility for providing county public health services.

What has become an extraordinarily innovative and nationally recognized Community Health Center had its beginnings in the late 1970s. Dr. Tad Pfister, the health officer for the Santa Cruz County Health Department, recognized that there was a tremendous need in the County to make primary medical care available to everyone regardless of their economic circumstances. To that end, he set out to find the funding. Dr. Pfister learned of a federal health initiative that provided grant funding to start primary care clinics in medically under-served and rural areas. Dr. Pfister submitted the grant in 1979 to begin this new project as part of the County Health Department. When Dr. Pfister was notified that the funding was received in early 1980, he contacted James R. Welden and asked him to spearhead and implement an innovative new County medical program. Originally from Texas, Welden and his wife, Claudia, had lived in Nogales in the mid-70s and were then working in Tucson. Welden assessed the potential of the project and its goals and chose to accept the opportunity. As the story will tell, this opportunity has become a legacy attributed to the founding Chief Executive Officer, James R. Welden.