Mona Afary

Founder and Executive Director

Mona Afary, Ph.D., MFT (Lic. No. 23809)

Mona Afary has a Ph.D. in clinical psychology. She has been a licensed therapist since 1987 and a social activist since 1977. An immigrant from Iran, Afary’s experiences under Iran’s authoritarian regime shaped her life’s work in healing and justice.

As a community therapist, she witnessed the social and psychological struggles of Cambodian survivors of war and genocide. Responding to the urgent need for a community mental health center, she formed the Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants in partnership with Cambodian survivors committing her life to build a community with care and justice of the highest integrity.

Email: mona.afary@cerieastbay.org

Kate Wadsworth

Clinical Director, LCSW #20267

Kate Wadsworth, LCSW , is a licensed clinical social worker, with over 20 years experience working with children, families and adults through the child welfare, juvenile justice and educational systems. She has been with CERI for over a decade, focused on working with genocide survivors through a trauma informed lens. Other work experience includes individual and family therapy with children and families, supervision of MSW, MFTi interns and trainees and management of community based programs . She supports adults, children and families exposed to violence and poverty, provided through a strength-based, needs driven, trauma informed, culturally relevant health and recovery model. Kate lives in Oakland, is the mother of three young woman, 2 dogs and two cats and in her spare time loves hiking, biking, gardening and spending time with friends and family. LCSW # 202607

Email: kate.wadsworth@cerieastbay.org

Thavery Hov

Human Resource Manager

Thavery Hov, born to a family of Cambodian refugees was initially a client and in 2008 hired as staff for CERI'S youth program. She is a mentor for CERI's youth and aspires to be a teacher or probation officer serving her community.

Email: thavery.hov@cerieastbay.org

Sriyanta Karki

Mental Health Specialist, ASW #93176

Sriyanta Karki is an MSW mental health specialist graduated from California State University, East Bay. Her concentration is community mental health. She has a bachelor’s degree in Public Affairs from the City University of New York. She has worked as a job coach and assessed work skills of consumers with developmental and mental health disabilities. Sriyanta has completed domestic violence counselor training and worked as a relief worker. She is also a trained multilingual access model language interpreter. Sriyanta came to the United States as an immigrant from Nepal at a young age. Her personal life experiences as an immigrant and a survivor have helped her develop a strong passion to work with immigrants, refugees, and traumatized population. As an intern, at CERI, she has practiced trauma-informed care, culture-sensitive counseling, and facilitated groups under the supervision of clinical directors. Sriyanta is very excited to be part of the warm and welcoming CERI community. ASW # 93176

Email: sriyanta.karki@cerieastbay.org

Roxanne Wong

Executive Assistant

Roxanne Wong comes to CERI with 14 years of experience working in mental health non-profits such as Diversity in Health Training Institute and Community Health for Asian Americans. She happily supports the dreams, goals and mission of the Center for Empowering Refugees & Immigrants team for the quest of seeking acclimation, resiliency, healing and wellness. She is a Better Homes & Garden Realtor, writer of novel “Etched in Jade” and previously an AT&T Account Executive in marketing with extensive volunteerism in the Oakland Public School system. Roxanne has found nonprofit work to be the most rewarding in outreach and support of our diverse Bay Area with a passion and love for our Oakland communities.

Email: roxanne.wong@cerieastbay.org

Sophal Yin

Community Outreach Worker and Activity Coordinator

Sophal was born and raised in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. She is a survivor of the Khmer rough genocide that took place in Cambodia from 1975-1979, and came to the US in December 1981 as a refugee. Currently she works at CERI as an Outreach Worker/Activity Coordinator serving the Cambodian population throughout Alameda County since 2017.

Email: sophal.yin@cerieastbay.org

Kanley Souet-Pich

Project Manager for New Light Program, Outreach Worker, and Interpreter

Kanley Souet-Pich is a proud Cambodian American, daughter of refugees who survived the Khmer Rouge genocide in Cambodia. She was raised in Oakland, California. During her childhood, her family faced many obstacles that resulted from poverty and an unsafe living environment. Kanley did not get the opportunity to graduate from high school and became a mother for the first time at the age of 19 years old. In 2019, her husband was incarcerated and detained by ICE. She then organized her community to help bring her husband home. Kanley took inspiration from the successful campaign for the release of her husband and is now our Program Manager at CERI. Kanley is also an Outreach Worker and Interpreter, and facilitator of our Punlu Setrei Khmer women’s group, and serving her community at CERI. She has recently gotten her GED and will further pursue her education to become a social worker. In her free time, you will find Kanley at home with her family, growing traditional Cambodian herbs, knitting hats for the elderly, sewing, or fishing. Through both her professional and home life, Kanley strives to embody the change that she wants to see in her community and provide an abundant future for her family.

Email: kanley.spich@cerieastbay.org

Louije Kim

Clinical Therapist, LMFT #102718

Louije Kim, LMFT, provides individual and couples therapy, group and individual supervision at CERI. They have been working in community mental health settings for a decade, serving communities that are impacted by collective, political and historical traumas. Trained in EMDR, CBT for Psychosis, and mindfulness approaches, Louije’s primary focus in working with people is to provide a mirror and relational workspace. Through connection, clients begin to sense and rely on their inherent resilience, finding their way back to safety and self-compassion

Outside of the therapy room, Louije loves to hike and go on backpacking adventures, meditate and is an avid, indiscriminate TV and movie watcher. LMFT 102718

Email: louije.kim@cerieastbay.org

Min Thein

Community Outreach Worker and Interpreter

Min Thein is a Burmese Community Outreach worker at CERI. Min immigrated to the United States in 2013 and started his social work as interpreter in IRC ( International Recuse Committee ) and transitioned to LFCD ( Lao Family Community Development ) as victim advocate to work in both Alameda and Contra Costa Counties in 2016 while he was pursuing his education in Psychology in community colleges and CSUEB ( California State University East Bay ). Now Min has joined CERI team to work as Outreach worker to focus Mental Wellbeing of South East Asians communities in need. Min loves sharing resources and fills the blanks in immigrants and refugees communities as Min, himself, is going through personally and professionally.

Email: min.thein@cerieastbay.org

Borey “Peejay” Ai

Outreach Worker

Peejay has worked with at-risk youth and incarcerated individuals at San Quentin as a Peer Counselor. In 2010 and 2011, he co-founded Kid C.A.T., R.O.O.T.S., and Criminal and Gang Members Anonymous programs, that provide life skills and support services for youth and the San Quentin community. He co-trained hundreds of facilitators in trauma therapy and criminal thinking reform. As a peacemaker and advocate for community health, Peejay serves as a group facilitator for both the Batterer Intervention and the Guiding Rage into Power programs. He currently provides peer support services to communities that are affected by the criminal justice system. Peejay joined the Next Generation Fellowship because he values community members coming together to build collective power. Peejay identifies as the 1.5 Khmer generation and has the community strengthening skills to contribute weekly to CERI’s male identified elders’ group, all survivors of the Khmer Rouge genocide . He believes that together change is possible and wants to make a difference in the lives of individuals in all communities.

Email: peejay.ai@cerieastbay.org

Chanthon Bun

Mentor and Outreach Worker

Formerly incarcerated, Chanthon is currently working as a mentor and outreach worker at CERI, supporting CERI’s youth and elders. His passion is in immigration work and freeing his community from systemic oppression. In his free time he loves drawing and fishing!

Chanthon is a father of three boys. He is a 1.5 generation Khmer community member and is a model of how we can transform the community by transforming ourselves.

Email: bun.chanthon@cerieastbay.org

Ngawang Lama

Community Outreach Worker

Ngawang Lama holds a bachelor's degree in English Literature, an Associate Degree in Case management, Psychology Counselling/ Social work. She has served the refugee communities in Nepal which includes Tibetans and Bhutanese, and also the urban refugees settled in Nepal. She speaks several languages. She had been awarded by her previous employers for her leadership skills, interpersonal relationships and her communication skills.

Email: ngawang.lama@cerieastbay.org

Neda Adhami

Community Outreach Worker

Neda was born in Iran and left the country in 2012. She spent several years in multiple countries before arriving in the U.S. in 2022. Neda's experience of leaving her home and starting anew in a foreign land instilled in her a genuine passion for helping those in need. While in Australia, she helped facilitate support groups for individuals suffering from traumatic events. In 2022-2023, she joined CERI's Wellness in Action Program.

Neda has now joined the CERI team as a Community Outreach Worker for the Office of Community Partnerships & Strategic Communications (OCPSC). She enjoys working with people from diverse cultural backgrounds, and she is dedicated to supporting the refugee and immigrant communities.

Email: neda.adhami@cerieastbay.org

Zeenna A. Stapper

Youth Program Manager

Zeenna was born in the Philippines and grew up in Germany. Since 2018, she has called California her new home. Zeenna has joined the CERI team to work as Youth Program Manager. Prior to this, she provided mentorship, promoted leadership development, and facilitated youth-led community action projects that addressed health inequities and social justice issues in our Southeast Asian community. Zeenna deeply cares about youth and young adults and is passionate about creating meaningful and tangible leadership opportunities so they can reach their full potential no matter their socioeconomic barriers. Zeenna holds a Ph.D. in Bioscience from the University of Heidelberg and the German Cancer Research Center. In her free time, she enjoys wine walks, exploring different neighborhoods, watching movies, and going to thrift stores and flea markets.

Email: zeenna.stapper@cerieastbay.org

Roger Remera

Community Outreach Worker

Roger is a documentary/filmmaker and focuses his work on human rights issues around the world. He wants to fight ignorance and injustice by telling the untold stories of the voiceless through his lenses. His hope is that people will learn from people in conflict zones around the world. He is especially interested in Africa where he is from as a survivor of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide.

His experience in America has been in the humanitarian sector, where he worked with different non-profits organizations. Mr. Remera’s work has included education with the American Friends Service Committee in the Peace Building Unit-Africa Program in Philadelphia. Roger has been working as a mitigation specialist for the Center for Capital Assistance where he conducts defense investigations for people who are standing trial for murder or who are on death row. Simultaneously, he worked as a psychology technician/interviewer in a neuropsychology practice also focused on mitigation of penalty phase murder convictions and appeals.

Mr. Remera was an invited speaker to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland when they re-launched the United Nations Moratorium on Executions. He has also spoken on college campuses and in school classrooms.

Email: roger.remera@cerieastbay.org

Louije Kim

Clinical Therapist

Louije Kim, LMFT, provides individual and couples therapy, group and individual supervision at CERI. They have been working in community mental health settings for a decade, serving communities that are impacted by collective, political and historical traumas. Trained in EMDR, CBT for Psychosis, and mindfulness approaches, Louije’s primary focus in working with people is to provide a mirror and relational workspace. Through connection, clients begin to sense and rely on their inherent resilience, finding their way back to safety and self-compassion. Outside of the therapy room, Louije loves to hike and go on backpacking adventures, meditate and is an avid, indiscriminate TV and movie watcher. LMFT 102718

Email: louije.kim@cerieastbay.org

Cam-Mi La

Community Outreach Worker

Cam-Mi La is very much dedicated to serving refugee and immigrant communities. She was born in Vietnam and left the country as a refugee and spent 12 years in Taiwan and France, obtaining her BA in Sociology. She established a small clothing business before immigrating to the US. In the US, she has dedicated her career to helping individuals and families – from newborns to the elderly – with developmental disabilities by supporting enrollment into early intervention programs and by educating the community around entitlement and independency.

Cam-Mi has also spent time working to support sales and enrollment for an elderly health management program, Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). She brings with her many years of experience in community health work and is very excited to be a part of CERI!

Email: cammi.la@cerieastbay.org

Kajal Pradhan

Community Outreach Advocate

My name is Kajal, and I immigrated to the United States to pursue an MBA. Along the way, I developed skills in finance, management, and organizational strategy. This journey not only expanded my professional expertise but also deepened my understanding of the challenges faced by immigrant communities, which inspired me to support others in similar situations.

As an Outreach Worker at CERI, I focus on building connections, spreading awareness about important programs, and making sure refugees and immigrants have access to the resources they need. I am passionate about helping individuals and families find stability and build better lives.

Laura Ann Coelho

Evaluation and Planning Coordinator

Laura (she/they) identifies as queer, kid of immigrants from India and the Philippines, born a settler on stolen Ohlone land with class privilege. Laura brings 12 years of experience in the fields of public health and community mental health, working with community-based nonprofits, grassroots organizations, and government agencies on program and evaluation design and implementation, facilitation and coaching, and fundraising. after experiencing a personal health scare in 2013, Laura began consciously studying embodiment and healing arts. as an embodiment practitioner today, Laura is committed to politicized healing with intergenerational immigrant and BIPOC communities. Laura’s greatest joy these days is laughing with their two siblings.

Email: laura.coelho@cerieastbay.org

Anupama Chapagain

Program Manager and Community Resource Specialist for CalHope

Anupama is a first-generation Nepali immigrant to the United States of America. She has been living in the San Francisco Bay Area since 2005. Being an immigrant herself, she is aware of the obstacles that many migrants have to go through, such as lingual and cultural barriers which are the most prominent barriers for the members of these communities and Anupama specializes in finding resources for community members who are adversely affected by these barriers.

She has been working and advocating closely with many non-profit, city, county and state programs for immigrants in the San Francisco Bay Area to provide resources for equal rights and opportunities for access to quality healthcare, legal assistance, domestic violence issues, mental health, education, and economic growth for the immigrant community as well as the capacity building of the immigrant community as a whole. She strongly believes that strengthening community members by engaging them in their areas of interest and creating opportunities for them to thrive, will improve their mental health and their ability to contribute to society positively. 

Email: anupama.chapagain@cerieastbay.org

Graziele Cruz

Admin & HR Manager

Grazi grew up on a farm in northeastern Brazil. She holds a degree in Business Administration and a post-graduate degree in social innovation management. Throughout her journey, she gained experience in communication and, social and environmental program management. Today she takes the role of HR & Admin Manager.

Email: graziele.cruz@cerieastbay.org

Weeda Rahimi

Community Outreach Worker

Weeda was born in Afghanistan and has faced great social and economic obstacles, but her drive for education and empowerment has led to great achievements in her life and impact on the lives of women and girls in Afghanistan.

Weeda’s father died when she was only a teenager.  After his death, Weeda opposed to many challenges on pursuing her education. After her primary and high school education, despite the enormous pressure and threat of punishment, she pursued her studies in Law & Political Science at Kabul University.

By the time Weeda was in her early 20s, she began a career working for an internationally recognized company that provided security for Americans. Utilizing her skills and knowledge, it was not long before she secured a senior level position. Soon after her promotion, she faced threats due to her work, as the local community viewed it as not culturally acceptable.  She had no option other than to flee the country so she could continue her professional career and promote human rights from outside the country.

With an advanced degree in International Relations from one of university in Turkey, and fluency in English, when Weeda arrived in the USA, she started her work as a Community Outreach Worker. Weeda is working each day with several Afghan newcomer families and helping them to resettle. Because she's walked the process, she is assisting other refugees and immigrants of her community with providing with different resources in effective ways.

Email: weeda.rahimi@cerieastbay.org

Nirmal Ghimire

ERAP Application Coordinator and Outreach Worker

I was born in Nepal and came to the US as a first generation immigrant. Going through different difficulties and hardships myself I want to provide support and resources to people who are struggling because they do not have resources and support. I completed my Bachelors degree in Anthropology and Developmental Studies in Nepal. And have worked in education related field and sexual health and reproductive rights among the youths in different parts of Nepal. I am currently working as a Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) Coordinator and Outreach Worker in CERI. I am also a US Airforce veteran.

Email: nirmal.ghimire@cerieastbay.org

Jun Park

Intern

Jun Park has graduated from UC Davis with a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology, and has worked in different non-profit organizations supporting the immigrant and undocumented communities. He has worked with first generation students by providing mentorship for college planning, providing support with college applications, and financial aid applications such as Dream Act and FAFSA. Working with and supporting the immigrant community, Jun has developed a passion and understanding of the needs and wants to further support and advocate for the immigrant communities. Jun is currently pursuing his Master of Social Work at California State University East Bay, in hopes to become a social worker, to support others in overcoming the difficulties they face in life. In his free time Jun enjoys hiking and bouldering.

Email: jun.park@cerieastbay.org

Ponnaka Pok

Outreach Worker

My name is Ponnaka, aka, Naka. I would consider myself to be a passionate advocate for refugee rights. I specialize in researching and enhancing refugee resettlement experiences. Born and raised in the vibrant city of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, I've embarked on a profound journey pursuing a master's degree in International Studies at the University of San Francisco (USF). At 25, I am driven by the vision of uniting elder communities, intertwining my academic pursuits with a love for art. Beyond the books, you'll find me actively embracing life, particularly through my love for swimming and music—a refreshing dive into both literal and metaphorical currents of exploration and understanding.

Ponnaka.Pok@cerieastbay.org

Tenzin Sonam

Program Manager for Refugee Health Promotion and HEAR US

Tenzin Sonam was born in India. She grew up in a small Tibetan refugee camp in Leh Ladakh. She received her Bachelor of Arts, and Bachelor of Law (BA.LL.B) from J.S.S. Law College, Mysore, Karnataka. In addition, she has a Master’s degree in International Law from American University, Washington College of Law, specializing in Human Rights Law and Gender and Law. Before joining CERI, She worked as a Human Rights Officer for the Tibetan Government-in-exile in India in the Department of Information and International Relations. She also worked for the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy, North America. She is passionate about working on human rights issues concerning refugees and immigrant populations. She joined the CERI team in 2021 as a Crisis Counselor and now works as our Outreach Worker for programs like Stop the Hate, COVID-19 education, and Wellness-In-Action. In her free time, she enjoys reading and hiking.

Email: tenzin.sonam@cerieastbay.org

Milene Monteiro

Wellness in Action Program Manager

Milene Monteiro is a communication consultant, performance educator and group facilitator. Native from Bahia, Brazil and based in California, she has worked as a consultant and group facilitator since 1996 in Brazil, Peru, England and California. At the core of her practice is a conviction that individual stories are powerful, and when embodied, shared and supported by the strength of the collective, stories work as a tool for social transformation. In her consulting, teaching, and performance production practice, she focuses on understanding the performance strategies that marginalized communities employ to combat social, racial, political, and economic inequity. Milene holds an MA in Communication Studies with a specialization in Performance Studies, from San Jose State University, where she was  also a professor for five years. In addition to her academic education, she is trained in Expressive Arts, Drama Therapy, and Somatic Experience. Her commitment to culture changes through the arts led her to actively engage with the private sector and artistic communities, facilitating workshops and training in a variety of environments. In her free time, Milene adapts her research on intercultural performance to creative work by writing comic books, play scripts, and producing documentary films.

Email: milene.monteiro@cerieastbay.org

Rinna

Intern

Irazema Guerrero

MSW Intern

Yalda Azizi

Outreach Worker

Yalda was born in Afghanistan and she grew up there. After her primary and high school education. She pursued her studies in Business and Management at university in Kabul. she began a career working for a private school as a teacher. After one year her promotion, utilizing her abilities, skills and knowledge, she started a new career in the administration of school. When Yalda arrived in the USA, She studied community health worker. After that she started her work as a community outreach worker with Afghan newcomer families, Support and helping them with different resources.

Email: yalda.azizi@cerieastbay.org

Sreyneang Lim

Calhope Outreach Worker

Sreyneang was born in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and raised in the Bay Area, California. Her parents and her two older siblings are survivors of the Khmer Rouge genocide that took place in Cambodia in the 1970s. Based on this fact, during her teenage years she developed a lot of anger issues as well as the inability to understand herself, which led her to develop later on an interest and a curiosity in wanting to understand the human mind and its behavior. This paved the way for Sreyneang to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, where she graduated in 2017. This was a huge accomplishment for her, as she is the first generation in her family to receive a college degree. She is planning to pursue a Master’s degree in Social Work in the future.

As a former staff member of CERI for many years, Sreyneang is very excited to be back on the team, and to be able to support families and at-risk youth, who may be experiencing intergenerational trauma, mental health challenges, or the lack of accessibility to resources. To Sreyneang, CERI is like her second home, and she is delighted to serve the community once again. During her down time, Sreyneang loves to be outdoors, in nature (especially any setting with waterfalls), exploring new places, hiking, biking with a group of friends, or going to the beach. She also enjoys dancing, exercising, yoga, and spending quality time with family and friends. 

Email: sreyneang.lim@cerieastbay.org

Sheila Bharat

Mental Health Specialist

 Sheila (pr. “Shay-la”) (she/her) comes to this work as an immigrant from Tashkent, Uzbekistan and is a bilingual (English/Russian) therapist, guided by the values of abolition. A large portion of her work has been supporting BIPOC, LGBTQ+ and immigrant adolescents, adults, and elders. She offers support with treating depression, anxiety and PTSD and has experience working with clients struggling with ambiguous loss, migration and cultural adjustment, queer identities, and ongoing impacts of various forms of oppression. She approaches each client with deep curiosity about the ways they have had to adapt to get them this far, and honors their strengths and joy.

Sheila’s approach is warm and personable, as well as trauma-informed and relational. She works psychodynamically and is an IFS-trained provider. Outside of work, Sheila enjoys spending time in the sun with a good book, running, and cooking for her loved ones.

Email: sheila.bharat@cerieastbay.org

Aris Suryapermana

Aris is a valued and appreciated CERI Staff who does outreach for our Indonesian community, runs our Salesforce data and reports and assists in administration for the team.

Email: aris.suryapermana@cerieastbay.org

Georgia Young

Holistic Life Coach and Group Facilitator

Native to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Georgia Young has graduated in Psychology and post graduated in Sensorymotor Development and Education. She also has training in art therapy, art education, energy healing, ancestral practices and somatic therapy. She has worked as a psychotherapist, school counselor and sensorymotor educator in Brazil for over 6 years. Georgia moved to California in 2013 and after going through her own challenges as an immigrant she decided to go back to the healing arts to provide support to other individuals, and immigrant communities. She got certified in Hakomi professional Training I and Hakomi Somatic Coaching. Since 2022 she has dedicated her work to supporting individuals through Holistic Life Coaching and groups through Women’s Circles, Wellness Workshops and retreats. She is passionate about witnessing people remembering, reconnecting and reclaiming their inner wisdom, personal power and authenticity. She also experienced the healing powers of communities and believes community is the best medicine. Georgia’s approach is guided by loving presence, non-judgement, compassion and the trust that as organic beings, humans and communities are inherently able to self-correct and to heal if they are held by a supportive and loving person and/or environment. In her free time Georgia loves to take care of her herbs and flowers, go for hikes, dance, and be with her family and friends.

Email: Georgia.Young@cerieastbay.org

Ariam Araya

Outreach Worker

Ariam was born in Eritrea and moved to the USA in 2017 as a first-generation immigrant, and has been supporting Eritrean community members since then. She is also an advocate for community wellness and has recently joined our Embodied for Community Wellness Program in which she is developing expertise to provide wellness and arts groups for the Eritrean community. Ariam has a background in Art and is an award-winning author, film director, poet, storyteller, and television host. She has written and directed three films, the second won awards at international film festivals in the U.S., three-stage dramas, and also published a book of poems and short stories which became one of the bestselling books in Eritrea that year.

Email: ariam.araya@cerieastbay.org

Rita Phang

MSW Intern for Stop the Hate Program

Rita comes from a family of Chinese-Vietnamese refugees and was raised in the Bay Area. Her family’s history has deeply influenced her identity and interest in connecting and working with the southeast asian community. Her experience has included providing mentorship and advocacy for Southeast Asian young women; navigating the healthcare system with children and families with cancer diagnoses; and providing intensive case management services for adults experiencing houselessness. She is committed to holding space for diverse mental health needs, ensuring access to essential resources, and navigating and addressing the impact of systemic oppression. She is passionate about holding space for community members through a relational and strengths based lens, and supporting individuals in the process of recognizing their innate wisdom. She enjoys tying in art as a tool to explore healing through creative expression, as well as a way to articulate thoughts outside the realm of verbal communication. In her free time, Rita enjoys hiking with her dog, crafting, and tending to her plants.

rita.phang@cerieastbay.org

Basma Jaber

Clinical Social Work

Basma Jaber (they/them) is a 2nd year MSW intern from Smith SSW. Prior to arriving to CERI and social work, Basma was a social neuroscientist working on trauma psychoeducation with forcibly displaced Syrian communities in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and Syria. Basma, indigenously Shami (from the levantine region) and was born in Saudi Arabia and grew up around Southwest Asia before immigrating to the United States. As an immigrant who is familiar with the workings of the immigration system, Basma is committed to supporting all immigrants and refugees in the communities where they reside. They fundamentally believe that healing occurs in relationships and in community, and they are committed to building and contributing to these relationships to support trauma-healing. They are grounded in the belief that resistance is an essential part of healing, and so they are also committed to support communities in their resistance movements and abolition praxis. In their free time, Basma enjoys hanging out with their cat, making food with and for community, and participating in creative endeavors like DJing, watercolor painting, and printmaking.

email: basma.jaber@cerieastbay.org

Irazema Guerrero Meléndez 

Mental Health Specialist and Stop the Hate Program Coordinator

Irazema is a mental health specialist, mindfulness facilitator, lifelong learner and educator. She is the eldest daughter of Mexican immigrants, growing up in South Los Angeles. She honors the love, courage, and resilience of her parents and ancestors, who are a source of strength and vision. Her firsthand experience with the inequitable conditions that BIPOC and economically disadvantaged communities face inspire her work as a clinical social worker and racial justice consultant. She brings over a decade of experience as a public school teacher and curriculum specialist, working primarily with immigrant youth and families from Latin America. At CERI, Irazema provides individual counseling, facilitates support groups, and integrates a collaborative approach to therapy and care management. With the guidance of her spiritual teachers and medicine elders, Irazema cultivates a path towards individual and collective liberation by integrating her indigenous ancestry, mindfulness practices, and educational leadership skills. During her free time, Irazema enjoys spending time with loved ones, being in nature, and swimming.

Baron Lim

UCB CERI Intern

Baron Lim is currently a second-year undergraduate student studying at the University of California, Berkeley. He is currently studying Anthropology and Linguistics, at the institution and hoping to give back to his community. Baron was born and raised in Long Beach, California to a refugee family from Cambodia. He was actively involved in the Khmer community of Long Beach and hopes to serve the Bay Area community as well. In his efforts for community involvement, he eventually found CERI and the community. Through a UC Berkeley program, Baron was able to be placed and now serves as an intern at CERI. He plans to continue to serve the Khmer and wider CERI community as both an intern and part of the community at hand.

Mohini Tamrakar

CalHOPE Outreach Worker

Mohini Tamrakar was born in Nepal and grew up in the capital of Nepal, Kathmandu. She has a diploma in Architecture Engineering from Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk (IOE). She was working for the Town Development Project under Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) for 14yrs as a Junior Architect. 

She came to the United States in February 2011. Since then, she has worked in different places like Subway, Safeway and Walgreens as a cashier. Beside those works, she is involved in some of Nepali organizations and groups like Newa Organization, Nepali Association of Northern California (NANC), Nepali Community Support Group where she helps her community members and guides them in navigating different resources.She is one of the grantees for CERI’s first cohort  Advocate for Community Wealth(ACW) training and has been supporting her communities,especially focusing on women's mental health wellness.

Starting January 2023, she joined CERI’s as a CalHOPE Outreach Worker and has been helping and supporting communities as their needs.

Currently, Mohini is one of the grantees of Wellness In Action Community Advocate Cohort 2023-2024.

Mohini is taking Domestic Violence volunteer training as well so that she can help and support DV survivors in the community to navigate resources to move forward in their life.

Mohini.Tamrakar@cerieastbay.org

Danielle Spoor

Development Manager

After earning a Masters in Public Health and Social Welfare at UC Berkeley, Danielle began grant writing for Bay Area nonprofits, focusing on youth-led social justice programs. She has been helping mobilize resources for nonprofit teams for the past seven years, securing grants, designing major gift programs, online appeals, and supporting a $20M capital campaign. She is passionate about public health, community-led social change, and using the arts as a catalyst for personal and collective healing. She can be found practicing expressive arts and hanging out with her two nieces in Berkeley. She is excited to be a part of the CERI team.

Danielle.Spoor@cerieastbay.org

Priyanka Khadka

Community Outreach Worker

Priyanka is originally from Nepal and relocated to the US in 2014. Inspired by her mother's involvement in adult education and her grandfather's role as a travel nurse, both deeply rooted in community service, Priyanka naturally desired to help people. Since 2019, she has actively engaged with multiple local nonprofits, dedicating her efforts to supporting those in need. Priyanka's overarching goal is to contribute to the creation of a communal community in the midst of an individualistic society. Priyanka finds joy in dancing, connecting with nature, and spending quality time with family and friends during her free time. Looking ahead, her aspirations include pursuing a career in social work, where she aims to advocate for social justice issues, make a positive impact on her community, and extend a helping hand to those in need.

Priyanka.Khadka@cerieastbay.org