Meet Alexandro Rivera

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Alexandro Rivera. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Alexandro below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Alexandro with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

From a young age, I understood the strength that comes from community and the value of working together toward a common good. This belief inspired me to build a career in social services where I could make a meaningful difference in the lives of those facing hardship.
My path into social services was born from a strong, personal drive to create meaningful change. Raised in South Los Angeles, my family and I experienced the everyday realities that many in our community face, including poverty, limited access to nutritious food, healthcare disparities and lack of essential resources. These early experiences shaped my commitment to support underserved populations and confront barriers that sustain social inequity.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

As the Supervisor of Social and Community Services for MLK Community Healthcare (MLKCH), I bring over 15 years of experience in social services, supporting underserved population across Kern County to Los Angeles County. My deep-rooted passion for helping others and addressing social needs has driven me to work relentlessly toward creating a meaningful change and help improve the lives of those living in South Los Angeles.
One of my proudest accomplishments has been pioneering social services within MLKCH Ambulatory Department. Since joining in 2017, I recognized the critical gaps in community resources and took the initiative to integrate the Social Determinants of Health into our patient care plan. This has empowered patients to access the resources they need and receive the support they need to thrive.
I developed a comprehensive outreach initiative within MLKCH’s Ambulatory Department to connect patients and community members facing challenges such as limited access to healthcare services, food insecurity, homelessness and education.
I played a pivotal role in the success of MLCH’s Recipe for Health program, which helps our patients to overcome food insecurity by providing access to fresh fruits and vegetables, along with educational material and cooking classes. Through this program, I’ve helped bridge the gap of food insecurity and the essential resource our patients need to lead healthier lives.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

I would say for me it would come down to three things. First, Empathy helps me connect deeply with people and having the ability to feel with others, but with boundaries to avoid burnout. Staying grounded is what allows me to keep pushing myself to help others, day after day. Second, Adaptability helps me understand our patients and community’s background, whether it’s racial, economical or familial. Sometimes we don’t just have to “help” but we have to listen, adapt and honor each person’s background. That to me is what builds trust. Third, Creativity has helped me find a workaround some problem-solving, connecting patients and community members to hidden resources or advocating for change. Helping underserved communities often means navigating broken systems or resource deserts and that is where the creativity part kicks-in and you need to know how to move within it.
My advise for those who are just starting to walk the yellow brick road is to cultivate these three through experiences, reflections and a lot of heart and always stay focused, because you’ll never know where the road may lead you to.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

To me building connections and collaborating with other organizations that are aiming for the same goal as you are has been my key to helping our MLKCH patients and community members. Having that unwavering commitment in addressing social needs can positively impacting the lives of countless individuals in your community. I would love to collaborate with organizations within Service Planning Area (SPA) 6 and within Los Angeles County to help work toward a better community.
You can connect with me via email: [email protected], Instagram: alrivera3000

Contact Info:

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Highlighter Series
Are you walking a path—or wandering?

The answer to whether you are walking or wandering often changes from season to season

Highlighter Series
What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?

With so many high-achievers in our community it was super interesting to learn about the

Highlighter Series
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?

We asked some of the wisest people we know what they would tell their younger