Christina Kafkakis
Christina Kafkakis is committed to welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. Her grandfather, the son of Sicilian immigrants, was one of the Flint Sit-Down Strikers, a part of her family’s heritage that she is very proud of. Kafkakis opened her photography business in 2009. After the loss of her daughter, she […]
Ranjeev Puri
Ranjeev Puri is a supporter of welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. Puri is a father to two young boys (and a dog!) and he understands how important it is to ensure we are all doing whatever we can to enable our future generations to succeed. From his time working […]
Alabas Farhat
Alabas Farhat is a supporter of welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. Farhat is an advocate and organizer from Southeast Michigan. The son of immigrants, Alabas is a labor organizer, policy analyst, and a Wayne County Government Appointee committed to empowering the many diverse communities that make up Michigan’s 3rd […]
Rochelle Garza
Rochelle Garza is committed to welcoming refugees and immigrants and ensuring immigrants are treated with dignity and respect. Garza is a fronteriza and lifelong fighter for the border communities of the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. Her father was raised on a farm by an immigrant mother and a father whose family had worked the […]
César Blanco
César Blanco is a supporter of welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. Blanco was raised in El Paso by a single mother, and comes from a family of educators and healthcare providers — and with a family tradition of U.S. military service dating back to World War I. Public service […]
Ismail Mohamed
Ismail Mohamed and his family were forced to flee Somalia in the late 1990s as the civil war unfolded. They fled to Ethiopia and later to Kenya, pursuing his education while facing challenges as refugees in an unstable region. Mohamed’s mother believed moving to Columbus could enable a new start to life for their family. […]
Tina Maharath
Tina Maharath is a supporter of welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. As a the daughter of refugees from Laos, the stories and challenges of refugee’s journeys has always been personal to Maharath. “Although I was born and raised in Ohio, it was not an easy journey to get to […]
Morgan LaMantia
Morgan LaMantia is a South Texas businesswoman. A Valley native, she is part of the next generation of leadership in the family business that supports over 1,200 jobs across Texas and beyond. Morgan heads up data analytics and serves as In-House Counsel, carrying on the legacy of her grandfather, Joe LaMantia, of building opportunities through […]
Gwenn Burud
Gwenn Burud is a supporter of welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. Burud is a teacher for deaf/hard of hearing infants through the local ISD. She works with parents and their children on how to adjust and what resources families have. As a mom to three boys, Gwenn knows what […]
Bee Nguyen
Bee Nguyen is a supporter of welcoming refugees and immigrants and building a robust refugee resettlement program. She is the daughter of Vietnamese refugees and a passionate advocate for marginalized groups, especially refugee families. Nguyen is one of five daughters, born to a resourceful mother and a father who worked as an orderly at a mental institution. She is […]
