Arriba Juntos

The agency was founded in May 1965 by Leandro Soto, Herman Gallegos, and James McAlister. Its original name was The Organization for Business, Education and Community Advancement (O.B.E.C.A.) In 1967, the name changed to Arriba Juntos, Spanish for upward together.
The original mission of Arriba Juntos was to meet the basic service needs of the Latino immigrants moving into the Mission District in the 1960’s. Those needs were housing, education, employment, childcare and health care. During the sixties such programs were supported by President Johnson’s War on Poverty.