Five refugees, immigrants to be honored at gala
Five Iowans who came to the United States from other countries will be honored on Sept. 24 at the Passport to Prosperity Gala sponsored by the Iowa International Center. Proceeds from the event fund the center and its campaign to provide free multilingual resources and educational opportunities for new Iowans.This year’s honorees are:
- Jane Agyeman, an immigrant from Ghana, and the director of the TRIO Educational Talent Search/Upward Bound programs at Iowa State University.
- Kenia Calderon, a refugee from El Salvador, a Drake student and founding member of La Fuerza Latina on Drake’s campus.
- Alex Duong, an immigrant from Vietnam and a marketing and communications specialist at Mediacom who volunteers and who was named to this year’s Business Record Forty under 40 Class.
- Lomoro Moses Santino, a refugee from South Sudan, recipient of the prestigious Kathryn Davis scholarship, a process engineer at T.P.I. Co. in Newton, and a community and church volunteer.
- Samra Uzunovic, a refugee from Bosnia with a master’s degree in public health from Des Moines University, focusing on rural Iowans who are at a greater risk of mental health disorders because of a lack of services.
Suku Radia, CEO of Bankers Trust and a 2009 honoree, will be honorary chairperson for the event. More information is available online or by emailing Kerry Goodson.
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