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Daniel Johnson, dressed in a suit, tie and polished shoes, stood before the crowd gathered Thursday for the grand opening of the Prince William Area Free Clinic’s expanded Unified Health Center and spoke with the enthusiasm of a preacher on Sunday.

He animatedly retold the story of collapsing one day and being refused medical care because he had no money. The West African immigrant who came to Prince William County 20 years ago was told to go to the free clinic, which he refers to as the “noble army of the Prince William County Free Clinic.”

“What a wonderful people they are,” he said.

Johnson is not alone in his appreciation of the clinic, which for the past 20 years has provided comprehensive medical care to the uninsured and indigent of the county and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.

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According to the U.S. Census, in 2011 more than 48 million Americans were without health insurance. In Prince William alone, more than 60,000 people are uninsured.

The clinic provides acute and chronic care, preventive health services, dental care, case management, mental health services, a medication access program and a mobile clinic for homeless patients. To qualify for services, patients must meet income requirements.

Rebecca Sinclair, its medical director, said the clinic is the only service in the county that provides medical care completely free.

Last year, the clinic had 12,464 patients: 85 percent of them were the working poor and 120 patients were homeless, executive director Linda Franklin said.

Sinclair and Franklin work closely with a staff and team of volunteers to bring medical services to a community that might receive little or no care at all.

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“We provide patient-centered care,” Franklin said. “It’s their medical home.”

As the demand for services rose, the clinic began to outgrow its facilities. Patients were being seen at the Manassas and Woodbridge health departments, St. Paul’s Church and in the basement of St. Margaret’s Anglican Church.

“We were booking two or three weeks out because of such a demand. Literally, we were seeing people in the hallway at times,” Sinclair said.

On Thursday, patients, staff members, hospital administrators and volunteers celebrated the opening of the Unified Health Center at St. Margaret’s Church in Woodbridge. The new facility was made possible through a grant from the Potomac Health Foundation, and space was provided by the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia.

The expanded space includes a waiting room (formerly a church multipurpose room), a nurses station, eight exam rooms with state-of-the-art medical equipment, a kitchen, food pantry and donated coat closet.

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“They are doing phenomenal work,” patient Larry “Kent” Dawson said. “Their dedication level is through the roof.”

The care and dedication to patients sometimes goes beyond medical care. When one of the nurse practitioners learned that Carlos Yanes had to leave his trumpet behind when he immigrated to this country, she went on Craigslist and bought him a new one. He played the trumpet at the dedication Thursday.

“Prince William Area Free Clinic is a place of encouragement, dignity and care,” Sinclair said.

The Unified Health Center at St. Margaret’s Church is at 13900 Church Hill Dr. in Woodbridge. The hours are 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, 2 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday and 8 a.m. to noon Thursday.

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