Presenters
Bios will be uploaded as they are received.
Adda Ndashimiye, Dance Instructor
Wakandeez is an Afro-hip hop dance group consisting of members Addapro Ndashimiye, Nate Imonigie, Isiah Salazar and Chris Nieves. Wakandeez was formed originally by Adda and Nate. Nate was already in a dance crew and was impressed with Adda’s dancing enough that he invited Adda to join him for practices with his crew. The two formed a new group in 2019 and named it Wakandeez, merging Wakanda from Black Panther and Jabbawockeez, a famous dance crew known for their distinctive white masks worn during performances. Wakandeez also wears these white masks during performances.
Adda moved to Idaho from Burundi and brings an Afro influence to the group’s style. When dancing, Adda’s favorite thing is seeing the audience’s reaction and bringing out the joy in people.
Amy Daniels, CWI
I have been working at CWI in the Boise ESL program for 2 years. I have been part of the digital skills team and developed the curriculum for the Digital Skills 2 & 3 classes. It has been a lot of fun to learn and create content for these classes...and I am still learning and creating! I am currently teaching these digital skills classes to adult English language learners at CWI. I am married and have 2 children who are both in college.
Brent Palmatier, Harmonica Instructor
I’m a mortgage loan officer by profession. I play harmonica in a band as a hobby. The band name is the Half Fast Hillbillies. You can find us on Facebook. We play every year in Weiser, in Emmett at the Cherry and Harvest Festivals as well as Yellow Pine Idaho.
I have been playing Harmonica seriously for the past 11 years. It is definitely a passion of mine. When I was little my grandfather had a shoe box full of various different harmonicas at the house when I would go to visit. I would run around the house playing them. When I asked him if I could take them home, he told me “NO, they belong to me” (I never saw him pick one of them up nor did I ever hear him play a note). I found out later that he bought them for me, but was worried I would lose them if I took them home. So, I would have to say that I owe it to my grandfather that I play harmonica today.
As a kid growing up, I experienced a lot of change. My mom was married and divorced three times. My dad stayed married to his third wife before he passed away 21 years ago. Both of my parents were very loving, however change was constant in my life. I counted that I moved a total of 27 different times and that I attended 14 different schools. I was always the “new kid” and that brought its own challenges when I was growing up. So when Donna Kovaleski reached out to me to teach harmonica to kids that have had traumatic things happen to them, I was happy to help.
Carol Benson, CSI Refugee Center
I am a case manager/senior coordinator for the CSI Refugee Program in Twin Falls, Idaho. I have worked for the refugee program for over six and a half years. I enjoy working with the refugees and the center because no two days are alike. My job entails making appointments with social security to apply for their cards, daycare for young children, visits with clients regarding many concerns, applying for low income housing, recertifying food stamps/Medicaid, planning activities for the seniors, visiting with the seniors to make sure that they are doing well, applying for SSI for those who are not able to work, along with a lot of misc. regarding everyday concerns. I worked in the mental health field before working at the Refugee Program which has come in handy for the clients that need to apply for SSI. I know what is needed to help them to deal with their illness.
Chelsea Jordan, ELC
Chelsea Jordan is the program manager of the English Language Center. She has a Master's degree in Teaching English as a Second Language from Northern Arizona University. Chelsea enjoys collaborating and learning more about the best ways to create belonging in the community of Boise.
Dayo Ayodele, Global Lounge
Before moving to Idaho in 2003 he worked as a music and film producer. He sought to address the need for cultural exposure and enrichment for Boise and co-founded Global Lounge. Today he serves as Artistic and Programming Director. He also serves as a multicultural issues advisor and African Community affairs advisor. He has co-led GL’s launch and creation of artistic programming for the past 11 years. He is a musician, performer and facilitator at a wide variety of events. Out of the desire to bring communities together he established the band Afrosonics who creates music featuring a collective of musicians from the Middle East, Europe, Africa, South America and the United States. At the heart of the group’s progression, the band has conscientiously integrated new American musicians (former refugees from war torn areas of the world) into the collective that is Afrosonics.
He holds a B.F.A degree in Film from Columbia College in California. Currently is an artistic advisory board member to the Idaho Shakespeare Festival.
Devon Jancin, ELC
Devon Jancin is an ESL instructor at the English Language Center. She has an MA in Teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language from Colorado State University. Throughout her career, Devon has presented on how social media intersects with
education at 10 different regional and international conferences.
Donna Kovaleski, Global Lounge
One of the founding members of Global Lounge, Donna serves as the Executive Director and for eleven years and counting is heavily involved in organizational development, grant writing, community outreach, and program development. During this time she led efforts to establish and deliver many programs designed to educate and engage community members across ethnic and cultural boundaries. Two significant accomplishments include the establishment of the annual World Village Festival and the introduction of Make Music Day for Boise in 2019. These contributed to the organization’s distinction as the City of Boise’s Cultural Ambassador to the World in 2017-2019. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Organizational Communication from the University of Idaho and has worked throughout her career as a corporate communications professional with two Fortune 500 technology and engineering companies and a major hospital system in Idaho.
"Global Lounge creates the space and the means where we can all come together to celebrate the traditions, stories and arts of Idaho's many-cultured people. I support Global Lounge because I love to see the magic that happens when people develop new friendships and discover commonalities. Global Lounge builds bridges across generations and Idaho's diverse cultural communities!" – Donna Kovaleski
Elizabeth Rutten-Turner, LCSW
Elizabeth Rutten-Turner, LCSW, is a social worker/counselor at Saint Alphonsus Center for Global Health and Healing. She provides individual and family healing opportunities for survivors of war trauma and torture in an integrated medical setting that includes primary care providers, midwives, cultural liaisons, and social workers. Since earning her MSW she has sought trainings to aid her work in cross-cultural healing with families, such as the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma, Bringing the Body into Therapy and the Neurobiological Effects of Trauma. She is also a trained birth and post-partum doula, a childbirth educator, and an adjunct professor at BSU teaching Principles of USA Refugee Resettlement. Currently she serves on the Advisory Board for the National Capacity Building project for torture treatment centers across the US. Prior to becoming a social worker, Beth earned her BS in Education from Minnesota State University, Mankato. She worked with families affected by the immigration/refugee resettlement systems in various settings; public education, community centers, resettlement agencies, and nonprofits in Minnesota, Nebraska, and Georgia. She has also worked with community-based NGOs in Kenya, Uganda, and Nepal and attended cultural and linguistic immersion classes in Argentina, Chile, and Mexico.
Erik Kingston, PCED
Erik created IHFA’s Housing Information Referral Center in 1998 and coordinates several statewide program and outreach initiatives. He represents IHFA on the Idaho Rural Partnership (IRP) board and Idaho Community Review Team, and is a regular contributor to conference and planning efforts, including the NW Community Development Institute, where he teaches Housing as a Second Language. He is founding Planning Team member of the Western Community Assessment Network (WeCAN), and serves as a volunteer on the boards of the Idaho Access Project and Community Development Council. Erik regularly creates and leads sessions for the Rocky Mountain Land-Use Institute, Association of Idaho Cities, and APA Idaho chapter. He created and manages content for fairhousingforum.org, coordinates IHFA’s fair housing education and outreach activities, and provides technical assistance to communities working to address housing challenges.
George Safari, KA Health Services
George Safari is a Certified Peer Support Specialist with KA Health Services. He strives to empower individuals to achieve their hopes, dreams, and goals, and connect them with their personal recovery journey to mental health. George was born in the Congo, lived in a refugee camp in Uganda for almost nine years, and immigrated to Idaho as a refugee in 2014. He speaks Kiswahili, French, Kinyarwanda and five other languages. George uses his refugee experience and his many languages in his work helping clients from many different countries. He graduated from Centennial Job Corps in Nampa and studied Biology/Health Care at College of Western Idaho. George is currently a member of the Neighbors United Education Task Force, a coalition of organizations working to support Boiseans with refugee backgrounds in education. George also has a small business as a DJ for weddings, birthdays and other events
Holly Bazarski, CWI
Holly has taught English to Speakers of Other Languages in Boise since 1999, working first at Boise State University and then helping to transition the Basic Skills program from BSU to College of Western Idaho in 2010. She was instrumental in developing CWI’s literacy-focused ESL program to better serve students with limited or interrupted formal education. She has taught study circles and designed curricula in this area as well. In addition to teaching multiple levels of life and work-focused classes, Holly has also developed a digital skills class for English language learners at CWI. This class teaches foundational digital literacies to students who are new to technology and is part of a digital skills pathway that Holly also helped develop. Holly has also taught at the English Language Center for refugees and designed and taught integrated education and training for multilingual employees of B&D Foods, and Scentsy.
Jake Englehorn, Drumming/Percussion Instructor
Drummer & percussionist Jake Englehorn received his first drum kit at age 13 and has had a passion for music ever since. Studying with Patrick Kurdy, it was Jake's love of Jazz and Latin music that built the foundation of his playing.
Receiving a scholarship to play drums at Edmonds in Seattle, WA was a dream come true. Jake returned home after a few years to focus on touring, live shows, and teaching.
Jake not only teaches, but lives what he teaches as an in-demand musician in the Valley, playing with Steve Fulton Music, Heather Mueleman, Eric Henderson, and The AfroSonics.
Jessica Knarr, Refugee Liaison Officer, Boise Police Department
Officer Jessica Knarr currently serves as the Refugee Liaison Officer for the Boise Police Department. Officer Knarr joined the BPD in 2014 shortly after graduating from Boise State University with a B.A. in Criminal Justice. In her current position with the BPD she works closely with community stakeholders and the refugee community to lessen the severity and frequency of crime involving refugees (as victims or suspects) and strives to create and maintain a positive relationship with the refugee community and police in Boise through education and outreach.
Judy Thorne, ISU
Judy Thorne is faculty at Idaho State University/Meridian in the Master of Public Health Program. She has been the Director of the Idaho AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC) for 18 years where she teaches medical providers about diagnosing HIV, Hepatitis, and STI’s. She has led HIV testing and education programs in Uganda, Kenya, South Africa and Peru. Holly Beech is the communication specialist for the Idaho Office for Refugees. She worked as a newspaper reporter and editor in the Treasure Valley for 10 years and spent six months as a volunteer writer and content editor based in South Africa. Holly has a bachelor’s in journalism with minors in Spanish and history.
Keenan Plate, Refugee Assistance & Immigration Services (RAIS)
Keenan joined the RAIS team in 2018 after moving to Anchorage, Alaska through Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest, a program of AmeriCorps. Keenan’s efforts at RAIS have focused on providing year-round, flexible, healthy, and worthwhile income-generating opportunities for refugee clients through RAIS’ Fresh International Gardens program and Grow North Farm.
Kirsi Jarvis, Careers Manager, One Refugee
Kirsi operates as the Careers Manager for One Refugee. In her role, she oversees all student employer events, internship partnerships, and professional mentorship for senior students. Prior to joining One Refugee, Kirsi worked with Global Talent and UpwardlyGlobal supporting professional job seekers in Utah and D.C. She also worked with Meridian International Center, a large NGO implementing international exchange programs with U.S. embassies worldwide. Kirsi holds an MPA from Brigham Young University.
Liyah Babyan
After surviving the anti-Armenian ethnic killings in Baku, Azerbaijan, Liyah Babayan and her family were resettled in Twin Falls, Idaho through the College of Southern Idaho Refugee Program. An entrepreneur and humanitarian at heart, at age 22 Liyah opened her first business Ooh La La Boutique in 2007 (a sustainable fashion boutique) and second business MAKEPEACE in 2017 (an organic, potato skin care line) pledging to donate soap to displaced people for every product sold. With a passion to give back to her adoptive country, Liyah served on the Twin Falls School Board and was the first refugee to run for City Council in Idaho. Her book "Liminal, a refugee memoir" was published in 2018. In 2019 Liyah was invited to present her book and testimony in Congress in support of recognizing of the Armenian Genocide (which finally passed after a 97 year gag-rule on U.S Congress, Presidency and U.S. Educators.) Liyah's book is incorporated as required reading by secondary and post secondary educators across the U.S. In 2020, "A Teacher's Guide to Liminal" was developed in collaboration with Southern Oregon University to support educators in presenting the refugee perspective and experience to students in the classroom. Liyah was awarded the "The Extra Mile" honor by Governor Brad Little. She is recognized as one of Idaho's Women of the Year in 2015 and 2020, receiving "Idaho's Hometown Hero" Award for her advocacy community work including mental health, PTSD in refugee children, domestic violence, civil and human rights, education, addiction recovery and awareness, small business development, cultural integration of refugees and human trafficking awareness. ACLU's Civil Rights Service Award and featured in The New York Times. Liyah championed efforts to charter the Diversity & Inclusion Committee in Twin Falls, the first D&I Committee in the State of Idaho. She earned her International Studies & Political Science Bachelors at Southern Oregon University and is currently working on her law degree. Most gratifying experience in Liyah's life is her family. She relives childhood with her two children Sarkis and Angeli, savoring every extra breath, every extra day after what her family survived. You can connect with Liyah Babayan on www.liyahbabayan.com - facebook.com/liminalmemoir - Instagram @oohlalaconsignment - Ooh La La! Boutique www.oohlala-shop.com
Matt Ruschman, Idaho Housing and Finance Association
Matt Ruschman is the Housing Preservation Supervisor at Idaho Housing and Finance Association. The Housing Preservation Program (HPP) provides emergency rent and utility assistance to eligible Idaho renters who have experienced a financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to coming to Idaho Housing and Finance Association, Matt worked with over 300 families in the Housing Choice Voucher Program at the Boise City/Ada County Housing Authorities. Matt holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Thomas More University (KY). Matt lives in Boise with his partner and two young children, and enjoys hiking, camping, and playing disc golf.
Rabiou Manzou, Immigration Services Supervisor, International Rescue Committee-Boise
Rabiou Manzo began working for IRC Boise in February 2006 when the International Rescue committee first opened in Boise Idaho. He spent 6 years working as a case manager and case manager supervisor for Reception and Placement and Matching Grant programs for newly arrived refugees. In April 2012, he obtained his BIA (Board of Immigration Appeals) accreditation and started working as an immigration services supervisor providing legal services and citizenship services to refugees, immigrants and asylees. In addition to his work at the IRC, Rabiou is currently a HROC (Healing and Rebuilding Our Communities) facilitator where he works with different communities in Boise providing trauma rehabilitation workshops. Since 2011 Rabiou is an Adjunct Professor, at Boise State University, teaching refugee case management and principles of refugee resettlement classes. Rabiou speaks French, Russian, Hausa and Djerma and has a M.S. from the University of Idaho.
Raymon Burton, Executive Director of Operations, One Refugee
Raymon serves as the Executive Director of One Refugee. He has been with One Refugee since 2017 and has been working with individuals from a refugee background in various capacities for the last six years. He recently worked for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in developing their refugee initiatives and spent half of 2016 embedded within the International Rescue Committee. Raymon holds an MPA from Brigham Young University.
Sara Skinner
Sara Skinner, MPH, is a facilitator, trainer and consultant. She specializes in creating workshops and meetings that are transformative for the people involved and for the communities where they live and work. Sara’s background is in community-based public health, specifically in how to design, implement and evaluate community-based programs. She brings extensive cross-cultural experience from her work with farmworkers, refugees, and other immigrants, and from her time living in Spain and Brazil. She currently serves on the Neighbors United Refugee Collaborative and as the Board Chair of Project Zawadi. Sara’s work has been featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and in the Minnesota Star Tribune.
Todd Dunnigan, Vocal Instructor
A native of Idaho, Todd is a multi-faceted keyboardist, vocalist and record producer, and has worked in nearly every area of the music business. He first started playing professionally when he was 15 in his hometown of Boise, Idaho. Throughout the 80’s & 90’s he played and toured with a variety of acts, including Smokey Robinson, The Moody Blues, Boz Skaggs, Gary US Bonds and the national touring company of Beauty and the Beast. In 1988, he produced his first album, “Small Pond,” a compilation of local Boise artists. Over the last 15 years, Dunnigan has produced hundreds of albums for every type of artist from punk to polka. These experiences have provided him with a diverse palette of first-hand musical knowledge to draw upon.
US Attorney Rafael Gonzalez
On December 26, 2021, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland appointed Rafael M. Gonzalez, Jr., United States Attorney on an interim basis for 120 days. Mr. Gonzalez had been serving as Acting United States Attorney since March 1st, 2021, pursuant to the Vacancies Reform Act, however, that term expired Christmas Day. He previously served as Acting U.S. Attorney from February 26, 2017 until September 20, 2017. Mr. Gonzalez joined the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Idaho in March of 1995, and was serving as its First Assistant U.S. Attorney at the time of his Acting U.S. Attorney appointment, a position he has held since September 2010. Before that, he served as the District’s Criminal Chief from 2005 - 2010. As an Assistant United States Attorney for more than 30 years, Mr. Gonzalez prosecuted violent crimes and drug trafficking, immigration offenses, and other general and regulatory crimes. Before joining the U.S. Attorney's Office in Idaho, Mr. Gonzalez was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Michigan, and before that, an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in Detroit, Michigan, where he began his legal career in 1987.
In June 2008, Mr. Gonzalez was appointed to a two-year term on the Criminal Chief’s Working Group of the Department of Justice. In 1998, he was presented with a Director’s Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant United States Attorney. Mr. Gonzalez currently sits as an executive board member on the Oregon-Idaho HIDTA; a committee member on the Ninth Circuit’s Jury Trial Improvement Committee; and serves as an ex officio member of the Idaho Criminal Justice Commission. He is a senior evaluator with the Executive Office of U.S. Attorney’s Evaluation and Review Staff. Mr. Gonzalez was born in Seattle, Washington. He graduated from Michigan State University’s James Madison College with a B.A. in international relations in 1983 and from Wayne State University Law School in Detroit, Michigan, with a J.D. in 1987. Mr. Gonzalez is married and has two grown children.
Adda Ndashimiye, Dance Instructor
Wakandeez is an Afro-hip hop dance group consisting of members Addapro Ndashimiye, Nate Imonigie, Isiah Salazar and Chris Nieves. Wakandeez was formed originally by Adda and Nate. Nate was already in a dance crew and was impressed with Adda’s dancing enough that he invited Adda to join him for practices with his crew. The two formed a new group in 2019 and named it Wakandeez, merging Wakanda from Black Panther and Jabbawockeez, a famous dance crew known for their distinctive white masks worn during performances. Wakandeez also wears these white masks during performances.
Adda moved to Idaho from Burundi and brings an Afro influence to the group’s style. When dancing, Adda’s favorite thing is seeing the audience’s reaction and bringing out the joy in people.
Amy Daniels, CWI
I have been working at CWI in the Boise ESL program for 2 years. I have been part of the digital skills team and developed the curriculum for the Digital Skills 2 & 3 classes. It has been a lot of fun to learn and create content for these classes...and I am still learning and creating! I am currently teaching these digital skills classes to adult English language learners at CWI. I am married and have 2 children who are both in college.
Brent Palmatier, Harmonica Instructor
I’m a mortgage loan officer by profession. I play harmonica in a band as a hobby. The band name is the Half Fast Hillbillies. You can find us on Facebook. We play every year in Weiser, in Emmett at the Cherry and Harvest Festivals as well as Yellow Pine Idaho.
I have been playing Harmonica seriously for the past 11 years. It is definitely a passion of mine. When I was little my grandfather had a shoe box full of various different harmonicas at the house when I would go to visit. I would run around the house playing them. When I asked him if I could take them home, he told me “NO, they belong to me” (I never saw him pick one of them up nor did I ever hear him play a note). I found out later that he bought them for me, but was worried I would lose them if I took them home. So, I would have to say that I owe it to my grandfather that I play harmonica today.
As a kid growing up, I experienced a lot of change. My mom was married and divorced three times. My dad stayed married to his third wife before he passed away 21 years ago. Both of my parents were very loving, however change was constant in my life. I counted that I moved a total of 27 different times and that I attended 14 different schools. I was always the “new kid” and that brought its own challenges when I was growing up. So when Donna Kovaleski reached out to me to teach harmonica to kids that have had traumatic things happen to them, I was happy to help.
Carol Benson, CSI Refugee Center
I am a case manager/senior coordinator for the CSI Refugee Program in Twin Falls, Idaho. I have worked for the refugee program for over six and a half years. I enjoy working with the refugees and the center because no two days are alike. My job entails making appointments with social security to apply for their cards, daycare for young children, visits with clients regarding many concerns, applying for low income housing, recertifying food stamps/Medicaid, planning activities for the seniors, visiting with the seniors to make sure that they are doing well, applying for SSI for those who are not able to work, along with a lot of misc. regarding everyday concerns. I worked in the mental health field before working at the Refugee Program which has come in handy for the clients that need to apply for SSI. I know what is needed to help them to deal with their illness.
Chelsea Jordan, ELC
Chelsea Jordan is the program manager of the English Language Center. She has a Master's degree in Teaching English as a Second Language from Northern Arizona University. Chelsea enjoys collaborating and learning more about the best ways to create belonging in the community of Boise.
Dayo Ayodele, Global Lounge
Before moving to Idaho in 2003 he worked as a music and film producer. He sought to address the need for cultural exposure and enrichment for Boise and co-founded Global Lounge. Today he serves as Artistic and Programming Director. He also serves as a multicultural issues advisor and African Community affairs advisor. He has co-led GL’s launch and creation of artistic programming for the past 11 years. He is a musician, performer and facilitator at a wide variety of events. Out of the desire to bring communities together he established the band Afrosonics who creates music featuring a collective of musicians from the Middle East, Europe, Africa, South America and the United States. At the heart of the group’s progression, the band has conscientiously integrated new American musicians (former refugees from war torn areas of the world) into the collective that is Afrosonics.
He holds a B.F.A degree in Film from Columbia College in California. Currently is an artistic advisory board member to the Idaho Shakespeare Festival.
Devon Jancin, ELC
Devon Jancin is an ESL instructor at the English Language Center. She has an MA in Teaching English as a Second/Foreign Language from Colorado State University. Throughout her career, Devon has presented on how social media intersects with
education at 10 different regional and international conferences.
Donna Kovaleski, Global Lounge
One of the founding members of Global Lounge, Donna serves as the Executive Director and for eleven years and counting is heavily involved in organizational development, grant writing, community outreach, and program development. During this time she led efforts to establish and deliver many programs designed to educate and engage community members across ethnic and cultural boundaries. Two significant accomplishments include the establishment of the annual World Village Festival and the introduction of Make Music Day for Boise in 2019. These contributed to the organization’s distinction as the City of Boise’s Cultural Ambassador to the World in 2017-2019. She received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Organizational Communication from the University of Idaho and has worked throughout her career as a corporate communications professional with two Fortune 500 technology and engineering companies and a major hospital system in Idaho.
"Global Lounge creates the space and the means where we can all come together to celebrate the traditions, stories and arts of Idaho's many-cultured people. I support Global Lounge because I love to see the magic that happens when people develop new friendships and discover commonalities. Global Lounge builds bridges across generations and Idaho's diverse cultural communities!" – Donna Kovaleski
Elizabeth Rutten-Turner, LCSW
Elizabeth Rutten-Turner, LCSW, is a social worker/counselor at Saint Alphonsus Center for Global Health and Healing. She provides individual and family healing opportunities for survivors of war trauma and torture in an integrated medical setting that includes primary care providers, midwives, cultural liaisons, and social workers. Since earning her MSW she has sought trainings to aid her work in cross-cultural healing with families, such as the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma, Bringing the Body into Therapy and the Neurobiological Effects of Trauma. She is also a trained birth and post-partum doula, a childbirth educator, and an adjunct professor at BSU teaching Principles of USA Refugee Resettlement. Currently she serves on the Advisory Board for the National Capacity Building project for torture treatment centers across the US. Prior to becoming a social worker, Beth earned her BS in Education from Minnesota State University, Mankato. She worked with families affected by the immigration/refugee resettlement systems in various settings; public education, community centers, resettlement agencies, and nonprofits in Minnesota, Nebraska, and Georgia. She has also worked with community-based NGOs in Kenya, Uganda, and Nepal and attended cultural and linguistic immersion classes in Argentina, Chile, and Mexico.
Erik Kingston, PCED
Erik created IHFA’s Housing Information Referral Center in 1998 and coordinates several statewide program and outreach initiatives. He represents IHFA on the Idaho Rural Partnership (IRP) board and Idaho Community Review Team, and is a regular contributor to conference and planning efforts, including the NW Community Development Institute, where he teaches Housing as a Second Language. He is founding Planning Team member of the Western Community Assessment Network (WeCAN), and serves as a volunteer on the boards of the Idaho Access Project and Community Development Council. Erik regularly creates and leads sessions for the Rocky Mountain Land-Use Institute, Association of Idaho Cities, and APA Idaho chapter. He created and manages content for fairhousingforum.org, coordinates IHFA’s fair housing education and outreach activities, and provides technical assistance to communities working to address housing challenges.
George Safari, KA Health Services
George Safari is a Certified Peer Support Specialist with KA Health Services. He strives to empower individuals to achieve their hopes, dreams, and goals, and connect them with their personal recovery journey to mental health. George was born in the Congo, lived in a refugee camp in Uganda for almost nine years, and immigrated to Idaho as a refugee in 2014. He speaks Kiswahili, French, Kinyarwanda and five other languages. George uses his refugee experience and his many languages in his work helping clients from many different countries. He graduated from Centennial Job Corps in Nampa and studied Biology/Health Care at College of Western Idaho. George is currently a member of the Neighbors United Education Task Force, a coalition of organizations working to support Boiseans with refugee backgrounds in education. George also has a small business as a DJ for weddings, birthdays and other events
Holly Bazarski, CWI
Holly has taught English to Speakers of Other Languages in Boise since 1999, working first at Boise State University and then helping to transition the Basic Skills program from BSU to College of Western Idaho in 2010. She was instrumental in developing CWI’s literacy-focused ESL program to better serve students with limited or interrupted formal education. She has taught study circles and designed curricula in this area as well. In addition to teaching multiple levels of life and work-focused classes, Holly has also developed a digital skills class for English language learners at CWI. This class teaches foundational digital literacies to students who are new to technology and is part of a digital skills pathway that Holly also helped develop. Holly has also taught at the English Language Center for refugees and designed and taught integrated education and training for multilingual employees of B&D Foods, and Scentsy.
Jake Englehorn, Drumming/Percussion Instructor
Drummer & percussionist Jake Englehorn received his first drum kit at age 13 and has had a passion for music ever since. Studying with Patrick Kurdy, it was Jake's love of Jazz and Latin music that built the foundation of his playing.
Receiving a scholarship to play drums at Edmonds in Seattle, WA was a dream come true. Jake returned home after a few years to focus on touring, live shows, and teaching.
Jake not only teaches, but lives what he teaches as an in-demand musician in the Valley, playing with Steve Fulton Music, Heather Mueleman, Eric Henderson, and The AfroSonics.
Jessica Knarr, Refugee Liaison Officer, Boise Police Department
Officer Jessica Knarr currently serves as the Refugee Liaison Officer for the Boise Police Department. Officer Knarr joined the BPD in 2014 shortly after graduating from Boise State University with a B.A. in Criminal Justice. In her current position with the BPD she works closely with community stakeholders and the refugee community to lessen the severity and frequency of crime involving refugees (as victims or suspects) and strives to create and maintain a positive relationship with the refugee community and police in Boise through education and outreach.
Judy Thorne, ISU
Judy Thorne is faculty at Idaho State University/Meridian in the Master of Public Health Program. She has been the Director of the Idaho AIDS Education and Training Center (AETC) for 18 years where she teaches medical providers about diagnosing HIV, Hepatitis, and STI’s. She has led HIV testing and education programs in Uganda, Kenya, South Africa and Peru. Holly Beech is the communication specialist for the Idaho Office for Refugees. She worked as a newspaper reporter and editor in the Treasure Valley for 10 years and spent six months as a volunteer writer and content editor based in South Africa. Holly has a bachelor’s in journalism with minors in Spanish and history.
Keenan Plate, Refugee Assistance & Immigration Services (RAIS)
Keenan joined the RAIS team in 2018 after moving to Anchorage, Alaska through Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest, a program of AmeriCorps. Keenan’s efforts at RAIS have focused on providing year-round, flexible, healthy, and worthwhile income-generating opportunities for refugee clients through RAIS’ Fresh International Gardens program and Grow North Farm.
Kirsi Jarvis, Careers Manager, One Refugee
Kirsi operates as the Careers Manager for One Refugee. In her role, she oversees all student employer events, internship partnerships, and professional mentorship for senior students. Prior to joining One Refugee, Kirsi worked with Global Talent and UpwardlyGlobal supporting professional job seekers in Utah and D.C. She also worked with Meridian International Center, a large NGO implementing international exchange programs with U.S. embassies worldwide. Kirsi holds an MPA from Brigham Young University.
Liyah Babyan
After surviving the anti-Armenian ethnic killings in Baku, Azerbaijan, Liyah Babayan and her family were resettled in Twin Falls, Idaho through the College of Southern Idaho Refugee Program. An entrepreneur and humanitarian at heart, at age 22 Liyah opened her first business Ooh La La Boutique in 2007 (a sustainable fashion boutique) and second business MAKEPEACE in 2017 (an organic, potato skin care line) pledging to donate soap to displaced people for every product sold. With a passion to give back to her adoptive country, Liyah served on the Twin Falls School Board and was the first refugee to run for City Council in Idaho. Her book "Liminal, a refugee memoir" was published in 2018. In 2019 Liyah was invited to present her book and testimony in Congress in support of recognizing of the Armenian Genocide (which finally passed after a 97 year gag-rule on U.S Congress, Presidency and U.S. Educators.) Liyah's book is incorporated as required reading by secondary and post secondary educators across the U.S. In 2020, "A Teacher's Guide to Liminal" was developed in collaboration with Southern Oregon University to support educators in presenting the refugee perspective and experience to students in the classroom. Liyah was awarded the "The Extra Mile" honor by Governor Brad Little. She is recognized as one of Idaho's Women of the Year in 2015 and 2020, receiving "Idaho's Hometown Hero" Award for her advocacy community work including mental health, PTSD in refugee children, domestic violence, civil and human rights, education, addiction recovery and awareness, small business development, cultural integration of refugees and human trafficking awareness. ACLU's Civil Rights Service Award and featured in The New York Times. Liyah championed efforts to charter the Diversity & Inclusion Committee in Twin Falls, the first D&I Committee in the State of Idaho. She earned her International Studies & Political Science Bachelors at Southern Oregon University and is currently working on her law degree. Most gratifying experience in Liyah's life is her family. She relives childhood with her two children Sarkis and Angeli, savoring every extra breath, every extra day after what her family survived. You can connect with Liyah Babayan on www.liyahbabayan.com - facebook.com/liminalmemoir - Instagram @oohlalaconsignment - Ooh La La! Boutique www.oohlala-shop.com
Matt Ruschman, Idaho Housing and Finance Association
Matt Ruschman is the Housing Preservation Supervisor at Idaho Housing and Finance Association. The Housing Preservation Program (HPP) provides emergency rent and utility assistance to eligible Idaho renters who have experienced a financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to coming to Idaho Housing and Finance Association, Matt worked with over 300 families in the Housing Choice Voucher Program at the Boise City/Ada County Housing Authorities. Matt holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Thomas More University (KY). Matt lives in Boise with his partner and two young children, and enjoys hiking, camping, and playing disc golf.
Rabiou Manzou, Immigration Services Supervisor, International Rescue Committee-Boise
Rabiou Manzo began working for IRC Boise in February 2006 when the International Rescue committee first opened in Boise Idaho. He spent 6 years working as a case manager and case manager supervisor for Reception and Placement and Matching Grant programs for newly arrived refugees. In April 2012, he obtained his BIA (Board of Immigration Appeals) accreditation and started working as an immigration services supervisor providing legal services and citizenship services to refugees, immigrants and asylees. In addition to his work at the IRC, Rabiou is currently a HROC (Healing and Rebuilding Our Communities) facilitator where he works with different communities in Boise providing trauma rehabilitation workshops. Since 2011 Rabiou is an Adjunct Professor, at Boise State University, teaching refugee case management and principles of refugee resettlement classes. Rabiou speaks French, Russian, Hausa and Djerma and has a M.S. from the University of Idaho.
Raymon Burton, Executive Director of Operations, One Refugee
Raymon serves as the Executive Director of One Refugee. He has been with One Refugee since 2017 and has been working with individuals from a refugee background in various capacities for the last six years. He recently worked for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in developing their refugee initiatives and spent half of 2016 embedded within the International Rescue Committee. Raymon holds an MPA from Brigham Young University.
Sara Skinner
Sara Skinner, MPH, is a facilitator, trainer and consultant. She specializes in creating workshops and meetings that are transformative for the people involved and for the communities where they live and work. Sara’s background is in community-based public health, specifically in how to design, implement and evaluate community-based programs. She brings extensive cross-cultural experience from her work with farmworkers, refugees, and other immigrants, and from her time living in Spain and Brazil. She currently serves on the Neighbors United Refugee Collaborative and as the Board Chair of Project Zawadi. Sara’s work has been featured on NPR’s All Things Considered and in the Minnesota Star Tribune.
Todd Dunnigan, Vocal Instructor
A native of Idaho, Todd is a multi-faceted keyboardist, vocalist and record producer, and has worked in nearly every area of the music business. He first started playing professionally when he was 15 in his hometown of Boise, Idaho. Throughout the 80’s & 90’s he played and toured with a variety of acts, including Smokey Robinson, The Moody Blues, Boz Skaggs, Gary US Bonds and the national touring company of Beauty and the Beast. In 1988, he produced his first album, “Small Pond,” a compilation of local Boise artists. Over the last 15 years, Dunnigan has produced hundreds of albums for every type of artist from punk to polka. These experiences have provided him with a diverse palette of first-hand musical knowledge to draw upon.
US Attorney Rafael Gonzalez
On December 26, 2021, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland appointed Rafael M. Gonzalez, Jr., United States Attorney on an interim basis for 120 days. Mr. Gonzalez had been serving as Acting United States Attorney since March 1st, 2021, pursuant to the Vacancies Reform Act, however, that term expired Christmas Day. He previously served as Acting U.S. Attorney from February 26, 2017 until September 20, 2017. Mr. Gonzalez joined the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Idaho in March of 1995, and was serving as its First Assistant U.S. Attorney at the time of his Acting U.S. Attorney appointment, a position he has held since September 2010. Before that, he served as the District’s Criminal Chief from 2005 - 2010. As an Assistant United States Attorney for more than 30 years, Mr. Gonzalez prosecuted violent crimes and drug trafficking, immigration offenses, and other general and regulatory crimes. Before joining the U.S. Attorney's Office in Idaho, Mr. Gonzalez was an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of Michigan, and before that, an Assistant Prosecuting Attorney in Detroit, Michigan, where he began his legal career in 1987.
In June 2008, Mr. Gonzalez was appointed to a two-year term on the Criminal Chief’s Working Group of the Department of Justice. In 1998, he was presented with a Director’s Award for Superior Performance as an Assistant United States Attorney. Mr. Gonzalez currently sits as an executive board member on the Oregon-Idaho HIDTA; a committee member on the Ninth Circuit’s Jury Trial Improvement Committee; and serves as an ex officio member of the Idaho Criminal Justice Commission. He is a senior evaluator with the Executive Office of U.S. Attorney’s Evaluation and Review Staff. Mr. Gonzalez was born in Seattle, Washington. He graduated from Michigan State University’s James Madison College with a B.A. in international relations in 1983 and from Wayne State University Law School in Detroit, Michigan, with a J.D. in 1987. Mr. Gonzalez is married and has two grown children.
