Our Staff
Lavinia Limón
President and Chief Executive Officer
Lavinia Limón has more than thirty years of experience working on behalf of refugees and immigrants. Prior to joining USCRI in August of 2001, Ms. Limón was Director of the Center for the New American Community, a project of the National Immigration Forum. During the Clinton Administration, Ms. Limón served as the Director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement, Department of Health and Human Services, designing and implementing programs to assist newly arriving refugees in achieving economic and social self-sufficiency. She served simultaneously as the Director of the Office of Family Assistance for four years, helping to devise policies and strategies for implementing national welfare reform. Ms. Limón was previously the Executive Director of the International Institute of Los Angeles
Lee Williams
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Lee Williams joined USCRI as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in August 2009. Prior to joining, he was the Executive Director of the International Institute of Akron (Ohio), a USCRI partner agency, for two years. Mr. Williams’ early career was in client services and international banking. He was Vice President of the Morgan Stanley Trust Company, Vice President of Deutsche Bank Global Institutional Services, and Managing Principal of Capco – a capital markets company. Mr. Williams holds a Graduate Certificate of Non-Profit Management from Case Western Reserve University, a Master's degree in International Management from The Thunderbird School of Global Management, and a Bs.L from Georgetown University in Arabic.
Peter Limón
Director of Field Offices
As the Director of Field Offices, Mr. Limón is responsible for the operational, financial, and personnel management of USCRI field offices in Vermont, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Iowa and standardizes best practices in all locations. Mr. Limón has over twenty-five years of experience in business management, investment banking, financial services, telecommunications, and customer service. Mr. Limón's previous work experience includes ownership and operation of two businesses, a financial services company and a hospitality business in San Clemente, CA. Mr. Limón has designed and managed several international communications projects in Africa, South America, and Asia.
Amy Campos
Director of Des Moines Field Office
Amy Campos joined USCRI in 2012 bringing over 10 years of combined experience in government and public relations, grassroots advocacy, community development, policy interpretation, and administration experience. Amy is the Field Office Director in Des Moines and manages day to day operations. Before joining IALA, Amy worked as a research director at the Simpson Urban Studies Institute increasing undergraduate student research projects and discipline representation ranging from humanities to natural sciences. Amy also supervised undergraduate programming at the Mitchellville Women’s Correctional Facility. Prior to her role at Simpson College, Amy worked for the United States Senate working in policy research and constituent services focusing on immigration, international affairs, health and wellness, Medicare and Medicaid, minority populations, and social services policy research and constituent services. From 2003-3007, Amy worked as a direct services provider for youth and families in the Des Moines area. In 2001, Amy worked for the Puerto Rican Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women increasing domestic violence prevention among youth. Amy has a dual Master’s Degree in Communication and Leadership Studies from Gonzaga University, a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Services from Grand View University, and an Associate’s Degree from Indian Hills Community College.
Valerie Stubbs
Assistant Director of Des Moines Field Office
A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Ms. Stubbs has been involved in the volunteer community working towards a greater cohesion of services in Des Moines for underserved populations for many years. Ms. Stubbs has served as an advocate for refugee healthcare services and survivors of domestic violence. Ms. Stubbs is a certified alcohol and drug counselor and has served as the coordinator for co-occurring services for gambling addictions, substance abuse, and mental health for multiple counties in Iowa. She has also worked in the mental health department for prison services in Iowa. Ms. Stubbs received a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and completed her dual Bachelor’s degree in Anthropology and Biology at Iowa State University.
Ann Grove
Case Manager
Ann Grove joined USCRI in December 2012, after working with refugees and immigrants in the Quad Cities (Moline & Rock Island, IL; Davenport & Bettendorf, IA) since 1999. She led the local World Relief refugee resettlement agency for ten years, then joined volunteer community efforts to enhance the integration of refugees while celebrating the skills, talents and cultures they bring. She especially enjoyed leading Refugee Healthy Marriages training and seeing the Quad City Alliance for Immigrants and Refugees organization get off the ground. Prior to working with refugees she earned a B.A. from St. Ambrose University and worked in marketing communications, both as in-house staff and then as an independent contractor.
Gopal Khadka
Reception and Placement Case Manager
Gopal Khadka began his work with refugees in Nepal as the Secretary of the Goldhap Refugee Camp. Prior to his work at Goldhap, he was a teacher at Blooming Lotus. He has since been certified as a Certified Nurses Aid and an EMT in the United States. He assists refugees through the resettlement process. Gopal is fluent in Nepali.
Mie Mie Napa
Matching Grant Case Manager
Mie Mie Napa joined USCRI as Matching Grant Case Manager in October of 2012. She arrived in the United States in June of 2009 and since that time has been involved in volunteer work with the Burmese community, Bureau of Refugee Service, Lutheran Social Service and Catholic Charities. Prior to her current position, she worked for Des Moines Public School as Community Outreach Worker and during that time she bridged communication between families and the school, motivating parents to get involve in school activities, and assisting students with their academic performance. While at Des Moines Public School, she also worked for its adult literacy program which provided ESL and social adjustment training for adults as well as children. She is currently studying at William Penn University in an Educational Leadership program. Ms. Napa graduated from East Yangon University in 2006 with a B.A. degree in Psychology. In her free time, she volunteers at the Refugee Green Card Clinic, helping with the application process for refugees and immigrants. Mei Mei speaks Burmese and Kachin.
Mak Suceksa
Reception and Placement Case Manager
Prior to his time with USCRI Des Moines, he has extensive volunteer experience with refugee resettlement in Iowa spanning decades. Mak has led various youth projects and has vast knowledge of non-profits in the Des Moines area. He assists refugees through the resettlement process. Mak received his Bachelors Degree in Political Science from the University of Iowa. Mak is fluent in Bosnian and Croatian.
Maha Swadi
Job Developer
Ms. Swadi came to Des Moines Iowa from Iraq in 2008. She has a degree in computer technology. She started working as a substitute teacher for Des Moines Public Schools. In 2010, she started working with children and families in Iowa. Maha graduated from Upper Iowa University with a bachelor of social science in March 2012. Maha speaks English and Arabic. She previously worked as teacher in her home country of Iraq.
Laura Wonderlin
Job Developer
Laura graduated from the University of Iowa, double majoring in International Studies and Journalism. She spent time in the Middle East, studying Arabic at the University of Jordan. Laura also spent a summer in Taiwan working with other teens from around the world. She led a volunteer spring break program geared toward college students in the southern United States. Laura’s grandfather worked in refugee resettlement and she grew up attending World Refugee Day events in Iowa.
