CERI’s Board of Directors

David Dobras, Board Chair

David is a retired Electrical Engineer who spent 21 years living part time in Japan, China and Taiwan partnering with talented people all over Asia to develop consumer electronics including computers and smartphones. David's spouse of 23 years was born in Cambodia and the two of them share a love for Cambodia and, through through family and friends, have a deep and personal connection to the region, its culture and people. David hopes bring his organizational and networking skills to CERI and to help serve human needs of his adopted community.

Chantha Tina Sar

Chantha is a second generation Khmer American raised in East Oakland since the age of 2. She is the middle of seven girls. She is also the first born in the States after her family relocated from a series of refugees camps in Southeast Asia to the central valley in California in 1982. She has a BS in Public Education from San Francisco State University. She currently works at the Homeless Action Center (HAC) in Oakland, CA as a senior advocate and intake coordinator. Prior to working at HAC, she lived a year in Cambodia in order to gain Khmer literacy skills while also developing deeper relationships with family. Her love for Khmer people and Khmer culture naturally causes her to gravitate towards CERI and the community in which CERI represents.”

Thea Chhun, Secretary

Thea is a Cambodian refugee and currently calls California and Texas her home. She considers herself part of the 1.5 generation of Khmer Americans, and is a first generation college student, with a Master’s from the UC Berkeley School of Social Welfare in their Strengthening Organizations and Communities concentration. As a Khmer American refugee and bilingual woman of color, Thea’s lived experiences has driven her long history of community advocacy work. She currently works at the UC Berkeley Office of Disability Access & Compliance, and coordinates campus access programs across UC Berkeley.

Mory Chhom (she/her)

Mory Chhom is a 1.5 Cambodian American born in a refugee camp in Thailand and raised in Modesto, California. She holds a Masters of Public Health and a Bachelor's in Health Sciences from San Jose State University. She dedicates her career to achieving health equity for vulnerable and marginalized community members. Since 2006, she has had the privilege and honor of working for and with low income marginalized people of the global majority to support the improvement of their health and wellbeing. She is currently the Director of Population-Focused Prevention Early Intervention at RAMS, Inc., a Bay Area nonprofit that provides and advocates for mental health and wellness services that are centered in clients, community and culture, with expertise in serving Asian and Pacific Islander Americans. In her free time she enjoys hiking and camping in Northern California, bicycling with her family, and she is a huge fan of cooking, dancing, and collecting vinyl records.

Mariam Arif (she/her)

Mariam Arif was the Development Director for CERI and has been a member of Beacon of Hope for Afghan Children Society (BOHFAC) since its inception in 2006. BOHFAC is a registered Canadian charitable organization, running various projects in Afghanistan- with a focus on health and educational needs of children and their families. In 2008, Mariam was appointed as the secretary of the Society. Mariam was voted to be on the Board of directors, responsible for various fund-raising activities and has assisted in promoting awareness about the plight of women and children in Afghanistan. Majority of Mariam’s time has been spent writing successful grant proposals and establishing partnership with other compatible organizations. Mariam is passionate about the causes of women and children. She not only brings dedication to the work she does, but also compassion which is important in understanding the needs of vulnerable population around the world.

Advisory Board

Kamran Afary

Kamran Afary (Ph.D.) received his Ph.D. in Performance Studies from Northwestern University. He has extensive experience working with and developing community arts organizations. Dr. Afary teaches Communication Studies at Cal State University in Los Angeles and was a programmer at KPFK radio in Los Angeles from 1980 to 1998. He wrote his dissertation on grassroots organizations in Los Angeles during the 1990s. Afary has worked extensively with Middle Eastern and South Asian immigrants.

Taghi Amjadi

Taghi Amjadi (Ph.D.) is an immigrant from Iran. His commitment to freedom and justice has fueled his passion in his work as a therapist with the survivors of torture and trauma. Taghi works with students of various cultures and ethnicities at San Francisco State University’s Counseling and Psychological Services Center.

Dr. James Gracer

James Gracer (M.D.) is an internist as well as a psychiatrist with over three decades of experience and is certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Dr. Gracer has been wholeheartedly donating pro-bono psychiatric evaluation and medication management to more than 1000 Cambodian refugees since October 2001. These services has brought much needed healing to the difficult lives of these refugees.

Dawn Hawk

Dawn Hawk (M.F.A.) serves as Chief Operating Officer of Philanthropic Ventures Foundation, providing leadership around all aspects of PVF’s operations, from program design and administration to fund development, communications, grants management and evaluation, and fiscal, personnel and operational oversight. She works closely with PVF donors, nonprofit leaders and government partners, and supports programs incubated at PVF as Designated Funds.

Dawn received an M.F.A. in Film Production from San Francisco State University and has a diverse background in small business management, teaching, and film production. Dawn’s wide-ranging volunteer efforts in the community include spearheading park renovations, grassroots organizing and service on the boards of Friends of Bella Vista Park, Preservation Park Center, and the Codornices Foundation, and as an advisory board member of Oakland Trybe, Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants, and The Crucible.

Maria Lilia Remigio

Maria Lilia Remigio is an immigrant from Mexico, currently working as a registered nurse in a Medical Surgical Orthopedic/Pediatric Unit at a Kaiser Hospital in Southern California. In April 2013, she visited CERI for the first time and was touched by the love, care, kindness, and the positive energy there. Since then she has become an active fundraiser for CERI and a passionate supporter of CERI's youth program. Her goal is to find a way for CERI to become financially sustainable.