Cástulo de la Rocha began his career at the East LA Barrio Free Clinic in 1977, a few years after returning from law school in Berkeley. He describes himself as a "very typical hippie" upon his arrival, with long hair and worn clothing. The clinic, established by activists to offer free health care in Spanish to the Latino community, was already facing significant demand. De la Rocha recalled seeing "long lines of people waiting to get a number—a ticket early in the morning, so that they may see a volunteer physician at 4:30, 5:00 in the afternoon."
Born in Chihuahua, Mexico, de la Rocha immigrated to East LA at age 10. He was the clinic's first employee, and his position as executive director depended on his ability to secure funding within the first three months. Over the subsequent five decades, this effort led to the expansion of the small clinic into AltaMed Health Services, now a prominent health care provider in Southern California and the nation's largest nonprofit Federally Qualified Health Center. De la Rocha currently serves as CEO and president, overseeing an organization that employs approximately 10,000 people and serves around 700,000 patients through roughly 2 million visits annually.
Throughout his tenure, de la Rocha has been motivated by the founders' and board members' passion for social justice. "They said we can make a difference," he stated. "There was a need for health care, and as long as we kept our doors open, continued to support the community, people kept coming. Here we are today. AltaMed is a very different organization, but we’ve never forgotten our roots and our commitment to the community."