2021 Annual Dinner Program_FINAL

EAST BAY SANCTUARY COVENANT’S

2021 ANNUAL DINNER

Saturday, October 23, 2021



Join us in creating legal protection and integration
for immigrant families!

Founded in 1982, East Bay Sanctuary Covenant provides legal and social
services, community organizing, and transformative education to support
low-income immigrants and people fleeing violence and persecution.

Here’s what your support has made possible in 2021:
» Free or low cost legal help for 10,000 people through our multilingual
hotline, phone appointments, and outreach
» To date, over 4,000 asylum wins with a 98% success rate
» Advocacy for a permanent path to residency for over 2.1
million holders of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred
Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
» Protection of asylum law through lawsuits and organizing campaigns
» Launch of the Amplifying Sanctuary Voices Climate Migration Project
» Expansion of our Trauma-Informed Support Services, with vaccine,
mental health, housing, and health support for vulnerable immigrants
» Creation of a Support Group for Maya Mam Indigenous
Guatemalan Women, using art as a tool for healing and leadership.

And so much more – our programs support the most marginalized
populations, including unaccompanied children, survivors of gender-based
violence, Indigenous Guatemalans, and LGBT asylum seekers.

We could not do this work without you!

HONOREES

Dr. Ameena Ahmed
Ameena Ahmed, MD MPH, has been working with torture

survivors since 2001 and is a passionate human rights

advocate. Dr. Ahmed’s expertise is in the medical treatment

and forensic medical and psychological evaluation of

survivors of trauma, including torture and domestic violence.

From 2003-2006, she was Medical Director of Survivors

International, the largest torture survivor treatment center

in Northern California. From 2006-2011, she served as

Medical Director of the Human Rights Clinic (HRC), where

she provided primary care to refugees and asylum seekers.

Dr. Ahmed has served as a volunteer medical evaluator

for EBSC clients since 2003 and has served as an expert witness on hundreds of asylum

cases in federal immigration court, and a high-profile case of detainees at Guantanamo Bay,

Cuba. As a consultant to Physicians for Human Rights (PHR), Dr. Ahmed published a study

of Physician Complicity in Human Rights Abuses in Iraq. She has also worked with PHR to

train professionals in Mexico, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkey on forensic medical and psychological

evaluations. Dr.Ahmed is currently an Internal Medicine physician at Kaiser Permanente, SF.

Highland Hospital Human Rights Clinic (HRC) - Dr. Nick Nelson
HRC is an Oakland-based clinic embedded in Alameda
County’s safety-net healthcare system. Since 2001, HRC has
provided primary care to victims of torture and other forms
of abuse. HRC has helped hundreds of asylum seekers over
the years, conducting 80-100 forensic evaluations annually
and working closely with EBSC and other partners to give
people the biopsychosocial and legal help they need to begin
rebuilding their lives.Asylum seekers whose applications are
supported by an evaluation from HRC are granted asylum
at a rate of >85%, as opposed to a national average rate of
37%. HRC provides a training environment where interested

clinicians and trainees can learn to perform forensic evaluations and provide trauma-informed
medical care, organizes training events for physicians and mental health professionals, and
has conducted evaluations in detention centers to support asylum seekers incarcerated by
ICE. Nick Nelson studied medicine at St. George’s Hospital in London before completing
postgraduate training in internal medicine at Highland Hospital. He was trained in the care
of torture survivors by Ameena Ahmed, from whom he assumed leadership of HRC in 2011.

HONOREES

Our Clients on the Path to Citizenship
We honor all of our courageous clients who work so hard to support themselves and
their families as they forge a new life, strive to attain U.S. citizenship, and manifest their
dreams. Accepting this award on behalf of all of our clients are:

Ana Flores Romelia Enriquez

Javier & Tony Mejia

PROGRAM

Welcome Ela Banerjee,Voice of Witness and Member of
Amplifying Sanctuary Voices Leadership Team

Bringing us into this Moment Naomi Ortiz, Poet and Activist
Giving Back Ela Banerjee and Ana Flores

Reflections from EBSC Staff

The Path to U.S. Citizenship Brenda Gomez Vazquez, Naturalizations

and DACA Coordinator

Romelia Saba Enriquez, EBSC Client



Javier and Tony Mejia, East Bay TPS

Committee and EBSC Clients

Amplifying Sanctuary Voices Video: No Separate Survival by Shabnam Piryaei
Honoring Pavie and Now You Hear Us




Musical Interlude: Francisco Herrera
“Our Children Are Sacred”

Update on Haiti & Afghanistan Pierre Labossiere, Haiti Emergency Relief
Fund and Haiti Action Committee

Tani Shimizu, Refugee Rights Advocate, EBSC

Dr.Ameena Ahmed, Human Rights Advocate

Honoring our 2020
Sanctuary Champions


Dr. Nick Nelson, Human Rights Clinic



Closing Remarks Sister Maureen Duignan, Executive Director

Living Room Music Concert Francisco Herrera

SPEAKERS

Ela Banerjee, Emcee
Ela is the Community Partnership Coordinator at the oral history nonprofit,
Voice of Witness. Ela is also a member of the leadership team for the Amplifying
Sanctuary Voices (ASV) project at EBSC. She previously worked at StoryCorps,
where she facilitated audio recordings of personal and community stories to
be archived at the Library of Congress. Ela received her BA from UC Berkeley,
where she studied cognitive science, creative writing, and education.

Naomi Ortiz
Naomi is a poet, artist and activist living in the Borderlands of Arizona. Her book,
Sustaining Spirit: Self-Care for Social Justice, highlights the need for radical self-
care for social justice activists. Her most recent work focuses on the intersection
of climate migration and disability justice.

Ana Flores
Ana came to the U.S. as a teenager and she and her family received asylum and
residency with EBSC’s help. She now works as a Community Health Worker at La
Clinica de la Raza.

Brenda Gomez Vazquez
Brenda came to EBSC in 2017 as a student intern and DACA holder. She
graduated from University of California, Berkeley in December of 2018 and joined
EBSC as a Refugee Rights Advocate. She now coordinates EBSC’s Naturalization
program as a Department of Justice Accredited Representative.

Romelia Saba Enriquez
Originally from Guatemala, Romelia received asylum, residency, and citizenship
through EBSC. She is studying to become a certified nurse assistant.

Javier and Tony Mejia
Javier is a TPS holder originally from El Salvador. He and his son,Tony, are active in
the national campaign for permanent residency and have travelled multiple times
to meet with Congress as part of the NorCal TPS Coalition.

SPEAKERS

Pavie
Pavie fled Afghanistan at age 9, lived in Iran for four years, and spent two years
in refugee camps in Greece. In 2019, she and her brothers were reunited with
their mother after four years of living as unaccompanied minors.The host of the
Now You Hear Us podcast for Youth UnMuted, Pavie is a writer, photographer and
painter who continues to incorporate her art with her passion for women’s rights.

s

Pierre Laboissiere
As Co-Founder of the Haiti Action Committee (HAC) and Haiti Emergency
Relief Fund (HERF), Pierre works with Haiti’s grassroots movement to provide
information regarding conditions on the ground, assist refugees, and support
community-based initiatives working for the liberation and rebuilding of Haiti.

Tani Shimizu
Tani is a recent graduate from the University of California, Berkeley. She interned
at EBSC throughout her time at Cal and has recently started as a Refugee Rights
Advocate and Paralegal where she works directly with asylum applicants.

Kaveena Singh
Kaveena started at EBSC as a legal intern in 2003.After completing law school,
she clerked at the Los Angeles Immigration Court and was a staff attorney at the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.As Managing Attorney at EBSC, she works directly
with clients while supervising staff and volunteer attorneys.

Sister Maureen Duignan
Sr. Maureen has been with EBSC since 1984 and has served as Executive Director
since 2000. She has earned many awards for her work supporting immigrants,
including the Phillip Burton Award and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the
Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

EBSC is proud to work alongside TPS and DACA holders
to campaign for a path to legal permanent residency.

TPS is a designation granted to over 320,000 immigrants in the U.S. who
cannot return to their home countries due to violence, natural disasters, or
epidemics. Since the early 1990s,TPS has allowed holders from 13 countries
to legally work. Many have been in the country for decades due to multiple
extensions and continuing dangerous conditions in their countries of origin.
Since October 2018, the Bay Area TPS Committee, an EBSC-sponsored
project led by TPS and DACA holders, has been tirelessly advocating to establish
a path to permanent legal residency for allTPS and DACA holders. The Dream
and Promise Act of 2019 was passed in the House, but we are in urgent
need of passing similar legislation in the Senate.The coming weeks will be critical
on Capitol Hill as the Democratic leadership determines if they will deliver on
their long-held promise to enact a path to citizenship and lasting protections
for undocumented immigrants.We have the opportunity to pass Build Back
Better legislation, a once-in-a-generation investment in care, climate, jobs, and
education - it must include a path to citizenship for the 11 million hard working
migrants in the U.S. For more information, see our TPS Campaign Page or

email [email protected].

EBSC BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Bill Balderston – Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists
Sister Maureen Duignan, Executive Director – Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia
Sarah Barry Fike – St. Joseph the Worker
Margaret Fine – Community Member at Large
Maria La Boissiere – Haiti Education Program
Minda Hickey – Community Member at Large
Eduardo Martinez, Chair – Richmond City Council Member
Glenda Pawsey – St. John’s Presbyterian Church
Ada Recinos, Treasurer – Community Member at Large
Alex Schafran – Community Member at Large
Andrea Valverde – Community Member at Large
Roberta Weisbard, Vice-Chair – Community Member at Large

EBSC STAFF

Sister Maureen Duignan, Executive Director Esmeralda Perez, Refugee Rights Advocate

Michael Smith, Refugee Rights Program Jasmine Ruiz, Refugee Rights Advocate

Director Liliana Macias, Refugee Rights Advocate

Kaveena Singh, Managing Attorney Tani Shimizu, Refugee Rights Advocate

Lisa Gano,Assistant Director Yoshi Mendez, Refugee Rights Advocate

Alex Kristallis, Staff Attorney Yuko Matsumoto, Refugee Rights Advocate

Angela Fitzsimons, Staff Attorney Juan Enriquez, Office Administrator

Jaime Ross, Staff Attorney Lisa Hoffman, Development Director

Veronica Granillo, Staff Attorney Bree Davis, Development & Communications

Brenda Gomez Vazquez, Refugee Rights Manuel de Paz, Community Development &

Advocate Education Program Coordinator

Cristina Campos, Refugee Rights Advocate Miriam Henneberger, Finance Coordinator

Cristina Ceballos, Refugee Rights Advocate Owen Thompson-Lastad, Support Services

Cynthia Coronel Borboa, Office Program Manager

Administrator & Refugee Rights Advocate Shiori Akimoto, DACA Coordinator & DOJ

David Garcia, Maintenance Accredited Representative

Esmeralda Mendoza, Refugee Rights Advocate

Thank you to our musician, Francisco Herrera!

Singer-Songwriter Francisco Herrera grew up in the border
town of Calexico. He has joined music and activism in his
work with women recovering from domestic violence, day
laborers organizing for a universal wage, children becoming
bilingual (Spanish/English), Interfaith groups shutting down
private prisons -- always performing uplifting and energizing
songs that move, teach and inspire. His latest album, Honor
Migrante, crosses physical and musical borders to expose the
grace and beauty of the migrant community.

Please Support Our Local Business Sanctuary Champions!

Plátano Salvadoran Cuisine
2042 University Avenue, Berkeley

Tel: 510-704-0325

Thank you for your generous support!

California Department of Social Services The First Congregational Church of Berkeley
The Isabel Allende Foundation The Sisters of Philadelphia
The San Francisco Foundation Ark Ministries
Horizons Foundation The Vanguard Charitable Endowment Fund
Firedoll Family Foundation California Humanities
Hispanics in Philanthropy UC Berkeley Chancellor’s Fund
The VanLobenSels/RembeRock Foundation Alameda Health Consortium
The Y & H Soda Foundation War Taxes Redirected by the People’s Life Fund
The Zellerbach Family Foundation Flora Family Foundation
Catholic Campaign for Human Development
AILA Northern California

We are grateful to St. John’s Presbyterian Church and Trinity United
Methodist Church for their steady support of EBSC since 1982!

THANK YOU TO OUR 2021 ANNUAL DINNER SPONSORS

Sustainer
Melba Wu and Michael Bush

Defender
El Cerrito Progressives
Flora Family Foundation
Roy & Patricia Disney Family Foundation

Leader
Jerry J. Wilson Memorial Foundation

Sarah Van Roo
EiroBridge

Chris and Marian Tiedemann
Rosenstein Family
Nancy Powell

Partner
Dave Rorick
San Francisco Foundation
St. John’s Presbyterian Church
Carlson Family
Fellom & Solorio
Bankston Immigration
Kathi Pugh and Josh Maddox
Barbara and Bob Hoffman
Van Der Hout LLP
Immigrant Legal Resource Center
Lawrence Gibbs & Margaret Corrigan

Bell Investment Advisors Friend Pamela Grove & Gerald Nelson
Sisters of St. Francis Michelle Mercer
Jewell Stewart & Pratt Latitude High School Arata and Ruben
Jennie Flanigan Dr. Susan Seeley Alexandra Wilson
Herb and Geri Thomas OLAS LGBT Sanctuary Anya Sengupta
Ruth MacNaughton and Project Johnston, Kinney & Zulaica LLP
Harold Spencer Weaver Shlenger LLP
Saint Columba Church Becker & Lee LLP



Standing with EBSC in its
unwavering commitment to
asylum seekers and all who

seek social justice.

– Nancy Powell

Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC
is proud to support the important work of

East Bay Sanctuary Covenant

www.jspvisa.com | 456 Montgomery
Street, 19th Floor,

San Francisco, CA 94104

Congratulations, East Bay Sanctuary, for celebrating
the healers and poets who share their skills in medicine
and music, and the refugees who become citizens and

advocates for social justice!
Congratulations to Dr. Nick Nelson and Dr. Ameena
Ahmed, of the Highland Hospital Human Rights Clinic

And to the young creators of ‘Now You Hear Us’;
to Naomi Ortiz, poet and writer; and all at EBSC
who add their voices to our cry for an enfranchised and

equalitarian society!

– Dave Rorick

Mike Smith is a rock star!
The students at Berkeley Law appreciate
his mentorship & common sense guidance

on their asylum matters.

We are proud to honor him for
his decades of work.

– Kathi Pugh & Josh Maddox



Ecumenical Peace Institute
Fall Gathering 2021

Sanctions and Economic Warfare,
A to Z,Afghanistan to Zimbabwe
and 39 countries in between.
Is it worth the price?

Saturday, October 30, 3:00 –– 5:00 PM
Donation Requested $10 –– 100
Hybrid event (not a dinner)
Zoom or social distance outdoors under

the canopy of St John’s Presbyterian’s patio
Weather and numbers permitting

2727 College Ave, Berkeley
Zoom & RSVP link will be posted at

www.epicalc.org
Please RSVP & let us know if you will attend

by Zoom or in person.

We shall look at sanctions and economic warfare as practiced by
the United States in its efforts to determine the governance of other

people’s countries and the operation of other people’s economies.
Our speaker will be investigative reporter Rick Sterling, co-author of

“We Don’t Deserve This”
The Impact and Consequences of US Sanctions,

published by Sanctions Kill Coalition

Ecumenical Peace Institute• www.epicalc.org
(510) 990-0374 • PO Box 9334, Berkeley, CA 94709

The Sisters of St. Francis
of Philadelphia

“I was a stranger and you
welcomed me”

Matt 25:35

Every day the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia respond with diverse gifts in a
spirit of collaboration and of mutual service to the needs of others by seeking
opportunities to be with those who are poor and vulnerable. Consider joining us —
as a sister, as a Franciscan volunteer, or as a Companion in Mission.

TthMhepearSuEoiruasetdseCetlnryoBsvDsaeounuyfpiagSpSnntoat.arn!FntcrtSaaurnna.drciys Explore how you can make a difference.

www.osfphila.org

@SrsofStFrancis www.facebook.com/
SrsofStFrancisPhila/

El Cerrito Progressives
El Cerrito Progressives is proud to stand in solidarity with
EBSC and others fighting for justice. Thank you for your work
to support unaccompanied minors!

Join with us to advocate for policies to stop gentrification, limit police surveillance,
ban plastics, stop deportations, defend immigrants, and promote voter engagement.

www.elcerritoprogressives.com
email: [email protected]

OLAS, an EBSC program, is a community support project for
LGBT refugees and immigrants. We offer events, retreats, and
holiday celebrations througout the year that bring people
together in solidarity and mutual support. We also foster
healing fromtrauma and discrimination through the expressive
arts, music, facilitated group discussions, meditation, nature
walks, and community building.

SOCIAL IMPACT INVESTING

Do you know what’s in your portfolio?

Social Impact Investing aims
to align your portfolio with
your personal values.

For a complimentary consultation:

510.433.1066 bellinvest.com

Dr. Ameena Ahmed, Human Rights Advocate

Dr. Nick Nelson, Human Rights Clinic
at Highland Hospital

EBSC Clients on the Path to Citizenship

“Congratulations to With great gratitude to
Dr. Ahmed - an excellent Drs. Ameena Ahmed
role model for anyone who is and Nick Nelson for
your deep commitment
committed to health and to protecting the rights
social justice. Over years of of immigrants and your
clinical practice, research, and
service to EBSC and
advocacy on behalf of Highland Hospital.
survivors of trauma, she has
exemplified compassionate – Judith Wofsy
engagement for colleagues

and proteges.”

– Tom Blair

Congratulations to Dr.Ahmed and Dr. Nelson for all the work they have
done and continue to do to improve the lives of the most vulnerable. In
2001 as a third-year medical resident, under the mentorship of Judy Wofsy
and Lyn Berry, I was fortunate to start the Human Rights Clinic (HRC) at
Highland Hospital to provide primary care for Bay Area survivors of tor-
ture. Helping patients negotiate a new life of as a refugee in the East Bay is
both extremely hard and rewarding work. In 2006, it was amazing to find
Dr.Ahmed to assume responsibility for the clinic. She already had a wealth
of experience and was a passionate and compassionate physician. For the
past 15 years, under the capable leadership of Dr.Ahmed and now Dr.
Nelson, HRC has grown and provided much needed care to innumerable
patients. It is a true accomplishment and life dedication for these doctors
and it is with great pride and pleasure that we all witness the recognition
and celebration of their humanitarian efforts. – Thaddeus Bordofsky, MD

What We Do

We change work and Why We Do It
workplaces through
reconciliation.

Workplace conflict and

disconnects happen, and

it hurts more than just

productivity. How We Do It

We LAUGH, a lot! We
Listen, Ask, Understand,
Grow perspective and
identify How to move
forward.

(Re)Connection In Your Workplace & Work:
It's Not About Kumbaya

At its heart, EiroBridge is all about (re)connection in the workplace
and work. It is not about sitting together and singing Kumbaya. It's
about intentionally and strategically tackling the often difficult tasks
and conversations that are required when it comes to reconnecting
disconnected work and workplaces. Learn more at eirobridge.com.

BAY • CA

24"W EASTN 122°25' 37°48'22"

I am proud to support
East Bay Sanctuary
Covenant for your
important work
supporting refugees
and immigrants.

Jennie A. Flanigan

510.610.3601

Congratulations to the
Human Rights Center &
Dr. Ameena Ahmed for
her inspiring mentorship,

advocacy and creative
ways of working at the
intersection of public
health and human rights.

– Keramet Reiter

“Congratulations to Dr. Ameena Ahmed and
Dr. Nick Nelson for this much-deserved
recognition of the tremendous work you do.

Your efforts have enabled myriad survivors of
torture and other human rights abuses to
secure safety and regain wellbeing.
Thank you for all you make possible.”

Thank you to all of our individual donors
and volunteers who have accompanied
and supported EBSC. Each of you makes a

huge difference in the lives of the
people we serve!

HAITI ACTION COMMITTEE
HAITI EMERGENCY RELIEF FUND/HERF

Congratulations to East Bay Sanctuary Covenant for 39 years of service to the migrant and
refugee communities and to this year’s Sanctuary Champions.

Also, Thank You to all who have donated to Haiti Emergency Relief Fund. Your support is
so critical at this time. For example, one of our many projects supports the University of
the Aristide Foundation, UNIFA, whose medical students and staff have been ministering to
the needs of those injured in the devastating earthquake of August 14th. Since it reopened
in 2011, UNIFA has graduated 523 doctors, 116 nurses, 62 lawyers and 46 physiotherapists,

and is currently building a teaching hospital.

UNIFA students attending to people injured in the earthquake
Since the 2004 coup against democratically elected president Jean-Bertrand Aristide, US-backed
regimes have been placed and maintained in power through stolen elections and death squad terror,
marked by government corruption, land grabs, rising prices, massive poverty, and years of UN/
US military occupation. Police and paramilitary forces have attacked demonstrators with bullets,
teargas, imprisonment and have committed a series of horrific massacres in opposition communities.
These are the conditions that drive people to leave Haiti – and these are the conditions that over
6000 Haitian refugees are being forcibly returned to by the U.S. government, with few means to
support themselves. We call on the Biden Administration to end these racist deportations, to treat

Haitian migrants as refugees, and grant them due process to gain asylum.
In the wake of the assassination of Jovenel Moise, the U.S. government continues its push for
quick elections to put in place another puppet government and rewrite Haiti’s constitution. Haiti’s
democratic majority – including Fanmi Lavalas, the people’s party of Haiti - rejects this, and is calling
instead for a transition government generated by broad sectors of civil society to end the terror and

corruption, rebuild governing institutions, and pave the way for truly free and fair elections.
Mesi Anpil EBSC for your profound solidarity with Haiti. You set an example for all of us.
From your friends and allies in Haiti Action Committee and Haiti Emergency Relief Fund.
www.haitisolidarity.net • www.haitiemergencyrelief.org

“The people of Haiti bend in the storm but do not break.”



EAST BAY SANCTUARY COVENANT
Mail: P.O. Box 4670, Berkeley, CA 94704
Location: 2362 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, CA 94704

www.eastbaysanctuary.org

Tel: 510-540-5296
Email: [email protected]
www.facebook.com/EastBaySanctuary

Instagram: @EastBaySanctuary
Twitter: @EBaySanctuary