Diraw is an Immigration Specialist holding a Bachelor's degree in Law, motivated by a strong desire to help individuals needing immigration assistance in various aspects. With experience in management and data entry, she brings organizational expertise to her role. Diraw's proficiency in Kurdish and Arabic equips her with a distinctive insight into the cultural and linguistic factors that can influence the immigration process.
Ana is the Housing Coordinator for CWS Harrisonburg. In 2023 she graduated from James Madison University with a Social Work degree and minor in Family Studies. During her free time, she enjoys going to the gym, traveling, and spending time with her family. Ana enjoys getting to meet people from all around the world and leaving a positive impact on their lives. Ana speaks Spanish.
Bio coming soon!
Jessica leads the housing team in finding and maintaining safe temporary and permanent housing for newly arrived refugees. She graduated with her associate degrees in both Paralegal Studies and Legal Administration from Lord Fairfax Community College. She obtained a bachelor’s degree in social work from Eastern Mennonite University. Jessica is currently completing her master’s in social work at Virginia Commonwealth University. In her free time, she loves to travel, write, and photograph nature. Jessica dreams of working in international social work and law. She is fluent in Spanish.
Leah is the receptionist/operations assistant for CWS Harrisonburg. She is usually found at the front desk overseeing operations and supervising volunteers and interns. She graduated from James Madison University as a Political Science major in December 2023. Leah also studies Spanish, and working at CWS has been a great opportunity for her to gain fluency in the language and learn about many other languages spoken in Harrisonburg. Besides her interest in languages, she also enjoys listening to music, playing guitar, singing, and spending time outside on long hikes or reading a good book.
Marisol works as an HSPRS Case Manager that provides case management and home study services to unaccompanied children and their sponsors after being released from federal care. She was born and raised in Mexico and has been residing in Harrisonburg since 2013. She graduated from Eastern Mennonite University and obtained her bachelor’s degree in social work. In her free time, Marisol loves spending time outdoors, enjoying nature, spending time with family, and traveling to her home country whenever she gets the chance to.
Jessica is a Case Manager for HSPRS and provides case management and home study services to unaccompanied children and their sponsors upon their release from federal care. After graduating from the University of Puerto Rico with a bachelor's in social science with a concentration in Sociology. She begins her career in Unites States, she has experience and training as a case manager, victim advocate, employment specialist, human resources and social services providing support services to all clients.
Lewam Amine is a Case Manager for CWS Harrisonburg. Originally from Eritrea, she and her family spent several years as refugees in Ethiopia before arriving in the U.S. 11 years ago. Lewam began her education in Harrisonburg, starting in the 8th grade and continuing through college. During her college years she became interested in studying social work was interested in working with CWS. She took the initiative to volunteer her time and skills, and later joined CWS as an interpreter. Today, she proudly serves as a full-time Case Manager. She loves working here at CWS Harrisonburg and meeting and helping new people from everywhere in the world.
Bio Coming Soon!
Jen is the Community Engagement Associate and is responsible for volunteer coordination, co-sponsorship, and community engagement. She holds a Bachelor of Social Work from Wichita State University and joins CWS with three years of experience working in refugee resettlement. Brand new to Virginia, Jen is originally from Chicago and most recently lived in Kansas. In her free time, she enjoys world travel, reading, and spending time with her two cats.
Jean Claude joined CWS as the Integration Specialist in charge of helping clients adjust and integrate into U.S. culture. He immigrated to the United States from Burundi in East Africa twelve years ago as a green card holder. He attended L'Université Lumière de Bujumbura in Burundi and holds a bachelor's in communication sciences. He spent three months in Wellington, South Africa where he got trained in holistic community development during a Transformational Leadership Training Program. He's married to an incredible woman, Yvette and has two beautiful children, Abby (5) and Glenn (1.5). He speaks five languages: Kirundi, kinyarwanda, Swahili, French and English. Prior to join CWS, he worked at Frontier Culture Museum almost eleven years as Historical Interpreter. Since 2014, he has been involved in helping refugees and immigrants by providing interpretation in schools, hospitals and courts via different agencies, International Rescue Committee, Language Group and Liberty Language Services. He loves music and different aspects spirituality. He is devoted to serving as an advocate, a helping hand, and a support for those in need.
Jennifer Davis Sensenig serves as our Development Coordinator focusing on building relationships with individual and corporate donors as well as faith communities. Jennifer earned her B.A. at Carleton College in Northfield, MN and her M.Div. at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary in Elkhart, IN. She has 25 of pastoral ministry experience and is certified in Human Systems Dynamics. Jennifer and her husband, Kent, have made their home in the Shenandoah Valley since 2008.
Born and raised in Miami, FL. Stephanie is a second-generation immigrant. Her mother is from Cuba and her father is from El Salvador. She speaks fluent English & Spanish. After 35 years in Florida, she decided to make a change and move to Virginia. Stephanie loves the outdoors and Virginia was the perfect fit filled with adventure. She loves exploring new places to go camping and overlanding in different states.
Sandy is a Case Manager for HSPRS and provides case management and home study services to unaccompanied children and their sponsors upon their release from federal care. After graduating from James Madison University with degrees in Social Work and Spanish, she moved to Mexico City where she resided for 18 years before moving to Virginia with her family. Sandy has devoted her life to helping children and families flourish. She enjoys walking with her husband and grandpup, hanging out with her daughters, growing in her Christian faith, and enjoying authentic Mexican food with family and friends. She speaks Spanish.
Blanca is a Case manager for HSPRS and provides case management and home study services to unaccompanied children and their sponsors upon their release from federal care. She worked at Healthy Families of the Blue Ridge as a Family Support Specialist, after graduating from Bridgewater College with a Bachelor’s in Family and Consumer Sciences. Blanca enjoys spending time outdoors and with her family. Blanca speaks Spanish.
Ana oversees programs that offer direct support to clients for both the Harrisonburg and Winchester offices. She provides supervision to case managers while working to develop mental health services for clients. Ana is a graduate of Eastern Mennonite University and holds an MA in Clinical Mental Health.
Vicky Lim is the Senior Communications Specialist for the Harrisonburg and Winchester offices and assists with developing communication material through creative and innovative design work. She graduated from James Madison University with a BFA in Graphic Design. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, painting, and drawing. She speaks a little bit of the Chinese dialect Teochew.
Nancy has been with CWS since October 2022 and provides case management and home study services to unaccompanied children and their sponsors upon their release from federal care. She completed her bachelor’s in social work at James Madison University in May of 2022 and completed her field practicum with Healthy Families of the Blue Ridge. Nancy acted as the Interim Executive Director for the Fairfield Center in the summer of 2022. Nancy is a certified Juvenile & Domestic Relations Spanish-English mediator. She has been on the planning committee of the International Women’s Day March and the Harrisonburg International Festival representing the Spanish-speaking community. Nancy is passionate about community advocacy and interned with NewBridges Immigrant Resource Center early in her career to help people find beneficial local resources. Nancy loves to spend time with her family on her days off. Nancy loves to watch movies with her oldest daughter and dance to Latin music with her youngest two. She speaks Spanish.
Gulala Hassan is the Adult Education and ESL Specialist. She graduated from University of Mosul College of Education in Iraq with a BA degree in English Language and graduated from Eastern Mennonite University with a Master's degree in ESL. Gulala worked as an English language teacher K-12 in Iraq for many years and is a member of the Iraqi Translators Association. She also is a Certified Medical Interpreter/Translator for Arabic and Kurdish languages by Blue Ridge AHEC. Previously she worked as a core coordinator/liaison officer between international NGOs and Kurdistan Reginal government in Iraq and HR and Finance Manager with the United Nations in Iraq-Erbil. She lives with her husband and four children in Harrisonburg. In her free time, she likes to cook, read, watch documentaries, and travel. She speaks English, is fluent in Kurdish and Arabic languages; good at Turkmani language and working on refreshing Farsi language.
Aemal helps new arrivals and long term clients find jobs and reach their career goals. His aim is to find the talents and guide them to the right path. He believes that every individual who comes to the U.S. has valuable talents and new ideas which can strengthen the community. He is fluent in English, Farsi, Russian, Urdu (Indian dialect) and basic Arabic and Spanish languages. He loves to learn about cultures and languages.
Deborah was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and came to the USA with her family in 2014. She has a degree in Digital Media Art and Communication Studies from Bridgewater College. As the School Liaison, she helps school aged refugee children excel in their studies in their new home. She is a creative thinker with experience in developing social media and web design and customer service. Her hobbies are meeting new people, photography, and traveling.
Isaac is the Virginia Finance Manager. He is on the ground here at our Harrisonburg location and works with our regional Finance Manager to ensure the financial needs of the office are met. He has an AS in Accounting and BS in Business Management from City College Miami. Originally a south Florida native, Isaac speaks English and Spanish. He and his wife are new to Virginia and love camping and off-roading (aka overlanding), serving at their church, and growing their homestead.
Spes provides on-going and supportive services to help victim survivors of domestic violence cope with trauma while helping them access the additional resources available in the community. She provides support and accompaniment to court for individuals who wish to seek a protective order and helps the survivors to file for child support. She offers education and information about domestic violence prevention. Spes supports all individuals and families regardless of economic status, immigration status, gender identity, religious beliefs and/or ethnicity in crisis because of domestic violence. She likes raising livestock, and reading books, articles, research, and magazines about health. She speaks French, Kirundi, Kinyarwanda and Swahili.
Rodrigue works with the CWS policy and advocacy team to develop and implement strategies to increase support for refugee resettlement with policymakers in the state of Virginia. He also supports building refugees’ civic engagement efforts in the State of Virginia through capacity building and trainings. He holds a Master’s degree in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg, VA, and a B.S. in Information Technology from Institut Superieur d’Informatique et de Gestion in Goma, DRC. He speaks several languages including French, Swahili, and Lingala.
Bio coming soon!
Lucia is the Immigration Program Coordinator for both the Harrisonburg and Winchester offices. She assists clients with applications for legal services such as asylum, citizenship, green card applications, and family reunifications. She is accredited by the Department of Justice to practice immigration law. She speaks Spanish and French.
Sarah Alice provides oversight of programs that provide direct services to clients and coordinates resettlement activities. She has an MSW from Virginia Commonwealth University and enjoys raising sheep, running, and gardening in her free time. Sarah Alice speaks French.
Susannah provides leadership and oversight to all CWS offices operating in Virginia, working collaboratively with the Office of New Americans to advance the shared vision of welcome across the state and the provision of professional, compassionate services to displaced populations. She lives in Harrisonburg with her spouse and dogs and enjoys riding her motorcycle and trying different foods from around the world. Susannah grew up in Brazil and speaks Spanish and Portuguese.
Emily oversees the CWS Virginia development and community engagement department, coordinates community support for refugees, organizes fundraising initiatives, and responds to local media requests. She has an MA in International Migration from the University of Kent Brussels School of International Studies. Prior to moving to Harrisonburg, she worked with Mennonite Central Committee in Papua, Indonesia and UNHCR in Washington DC. She enjoys weaving, biking, and spending time with her family.
Alex is primarily responsible for coordination of resettlement activities including the United States Reception and Placement (USRP) and case management, as well as supervising case management. He holds an MA in Public Policy and an MPA in Nonprofit/Organizational Management from Liberty University. He speaks Kiswahili and Ekegusii.
Ahmad Arifi is a Case Manager at CWS Harrisonburg. He holds a master’s degree in Non-profit leadership from University of Lynchburg in Virginia and Bachelor of Law from Pune University-India. He speaks Dari-Farsi, Uzbeki, Pashto, Urdu, and Hindi.
Bio coming soon!
Hayat was a former CWS Client and now serves as a Case Manager for the CWS Harrisonburg office. In her free time, she loves running and spending time with her parrot, Quacker. She is a huge dog lover and is an active volunteer at the SPCA. She speaks Urdu, Dari, Pashto, Hindi, and English.
Alexis works as a Case Manager for the CWS Harrisonburg office. He studied Clinical and Social Psychology at the Great Lakes University in Burundi. Before coming to the United States, he worked with different organizations that intervene in the field of gender-based sexual violence doing counseling for victims of HIV/AIDS. He worked for Mennonite Central Committee in Burundi and worked as a certified nurse assistant after arriving in the United States. He enjoys spending time with his family.
Natalia helps local refugees navigate the healthcare system. She is a Harrisonburg local and graduated from James Madison University with a BA in International Relations. In her free time, she loves to paint and draw. Natalia is fluent in Ukrainian.
Rebecca leads the staff working on intensive case management, employment, career pathways, adult education, integration support, youth programming, and small community grants providing oversight of all operations and services. She represents the mission of the projects coordinated and serves on several local coalitions working collaboratively with other community agencies with the same goal.
Aemal helps new arrivals and long term clients find jobs and reach their career goals. His aim is to find the talents and guide them to the right path. He believes that every individual who comes to the U.S. has valuable talents and new ideas which can strengthen the community. He is fluent in English, Farsi, Russian, Urdu (Indian dialect) and basic Arabic and Spanish languages. He loves to learn about cultures and languages.
Spes provides on-going and supportive services to help victim survivors of domestic violence cope with trauma while helping them access the additional resources available in the community. She provides support and accompaniment to court for individuals who wish to seek a protective order and helps the survivors to file for child support. She offers education and information about domestic violence prevention. Spes supports all individuals and families regardless of economic status, immigration status, gender identity, religious beliefs and/or ethnicity in crisis because of domestic violence. She likes raising livestock, and reading books, articles, research, and magazines about health.She speaks French, Kirundi, Kinyarwanda and Swahili.
Thierry helps immigrants and refugees in Harrisonburg acheive their career goals in healthcare. He speaks Swahili, Kinyarwanda, Kirundi, French, and a bit of Lingala.