Volunteers & Interns
A heartfelt thank you to our volunteers
In a year marked with remarkable growth, we extend our gratitude to the 305 exceptional volunteers who gave their time, skills and compassion. Your unwavering commitment and support have been instrumental in reaching and serving an increased number of New Americans this year.
It is with deep appreciation we recognize the volunteers whose passion and dedication have fueled our mission. The following individuals donated their time and talents to International Institute of Minnesota programs as volunteers or interns from October 1, 2022 – September 30, 2023.
A-D
Yaseen Abdalla
Sumayo Aden
Vanessa Agudo
Faisa Ali
Zubair Ali
Mimi Alworth
Michelle Anderson
Aaron Arredondo
Sarah Austin
Deborah Baird
Steve Baird
Jolene Baker
Sujatha Balakrishnan
Sophie Ball
Kevin Barton
Larry Bathen
Karen A Beattie
Josh Becerra
Cecilia Becicka
Nicholas Beecher
Amy Bello
Nadja Berneche
Billie Berry
Nirayudh Bhavsar
Paul Bohnsack
Meir Bonnard
Jenny Borut
Paige Bourland
Lauren Breckenridge
Scott Brink
Amy Britt
Noah Bruce
Juliana Cadaavid Vaughn
Rory Cahill
Fabio Calil
Kathleen Caoyonan
Emily Cargill
Amy Caron
Jeff Carter
Sarah Caruso
Chloe Chambers
Kaitlyn Chambers
June Cheng
Kathy Chinn
Suzanne Chowen
Emily Clemens
Mary Coleman Robards
Lillie Conrad
Karen Cooley-Kistler
Laura Cooper
Judy Cotter
Bailey Couture
Peggy Custard
Ruth Dalman
Jack Darnell
Owen Dean
Eileen Deitcher
Kate Delaney
Francoise Denis
Evan Doran
Libby Driscoll Hlavka
Shirley Durr
E-H
Roberta Ebbers
Katherine Eklund
Sonia Ellis
Omar ElMenoufy
Grace Enz
Hanie Farah
Carla Feldhamer
Lawrence Felice
William Fisch
Cheryl Fleischhacker
Dulce J. Foster
Jacqueline Foster
Nolay Freeman
JoAnn Frekot
Anna Fryxell
Lisa Fulton
Claudia Garcia
Ryan Garrett
Leila Gassmann
Alexander Geer
Dan Goodrich
April Grabner
Allison Greene
Merle Greene
Lesean Greer
Charles Griggs
Jackson Gruse
Asmita Gurung
Jodi Gustafson
Christian Gustin
Dorothea Hansmeyer
Cynthia Hanson
Teri Hanson
Kevin Harding
Jan Harrington
Tracy Harris
Lily Hastings
Susan Henderson
Vicki Henderson
Nancy Hendrickson
Heather Hoecker
Kayla Hoel
Laura Holmes
Rosa Hu
Loan Huynh
Karen Cooley-Kistler, Refugee Housing Set-Up Volunteer
“Housing volunteering has been personally meaningful for me because I get to welcome new refugees to our wonderful state. It gives me pleasure to be changing this world for the better, and hopefully, to bring joy and security to families that have experienced so much disruption and trauma in their own lives.”
I-L
Nazar Ibrahim
Daniel Iden
Ginny Jacobson
Mary Jacobson
Deborah Jahn
Leona Jakupi
Rachel Jensen
Martha Jentz
Mark Joffe
Betsy Johnson
Jeff Johnson
Michael Justin
Emilia Kaczynski
Masumi Kanakov
Sean Kelly
Paula Kelty
Emmanuel Keppel
Maya Ketema
Kennedy Kispert
Stephan Kistler
Elisabeth Klein
Celene Koller
Chad Kratochwill
Carrie Krautkramer
Luke Kretchmer
Shawnai Ku
Chris Kwong
Casey Lagueras
Michael Larson
Ann Leake
Josh Leegaard
Hwajin Lee-Olson
Sophie Lefebvre
Laura Leu
Anna Levin
Jensen Li
Alan Lifson
Karen Lilley
Diane Lindquist
Brigid Ling
Megan Link
Andrew Lipinsky
Catherine Lipinsky
Jason Lipinsky
Peter Lipinsky
Qianlin Richard Liu
Jenny Loomis
Nicolas Lopez
Nancy Lorimer
William Lorimer
John Lunieski
Brad Lynch
Tessa Lynch
M-Q
Elise MacKenzie
Emma Maes
Nafiso Mahad
Dolly Mariucci
Bilal Masood
Christiana Mastley
Rachel Matthes
Marin Maxwell
Will Mayberry
Colby Maynard
Louise Mccarten
Kim McCourtney
Michael McGarry
Kate McGowan
Rowan Mclean
Tina Mclean
Britta Milius
Jessie Mischke
Chuck Moberg
Eva Moline
Shawne Monahan
Jamie Monson
Priya Moran
Katie Mortenson
Lynne Moser
Nejate Mume
Jennifer Nelson
Madison Nelson
Paul Nelson
Joe Nelson
Sumitra Ness
Karen Newcomer
Joy Nguyen
Jodi Noll
Baqir Noor
Mark Norlander
Lolla Nur
Colleen O’Dell
Cecilia Oberg
Kevin OBrien
Mark Odland
Amber Oestreich
Rachel Ohman
Penny Oleson
Jean Olson
Gary Orris
Sharon Oswald
Martha O’Toole
Daniel Panikkar
Sarah Paquin
Samuel Parker
Olivia Paulson
George Peltier
Leslie Giselle Pérez Sámano
Nick Petree
Sierra Pieper
Bonnie Power
Charlesa Prior
Mark Prpich
Colleen Quesnell
R-T
Melissa Rands
Subhika Rao
Clara Reed
Kelsey Reinke
Amy Riley
Teresa Rios Rivera
Kellie Rock
Lisa Rogers
Grace Roskowiak
Edward Ruen
Inga Rundquist
Allie Rykken
Iryna Sachek
Lisa Sackreiter
Chris Sapper
Paramita Sarkar
Anne Savereide
Arlis Sayler
Mary Sayler
Emily Schad
Greta Schoenberg
Mark Schumacher
Thomas Scott
Eugene Senger
Sooji Seo
Eric Severude
Ann Shaw
Yane Sima
Rob Sims
Natasha Singer
Anne Sioco
Kara Skahen
Sara Skinner
Brad Sleeper
Rachel Snitzer
Jovanna Sol Lopez
Zhuo Song
Lucy Speers
Nathan Steeves
Anne Stevenson
Loly Stoffel
Joanne Sum-Ping
Rik Svien
Jared Swanson
Stephen Swanson
Bisola Taiwo
David Talarico
Ma Tao
Christiaan Tarbox
Sarah Tautin
Yesica Tello Castro
Jesse Terry
Rachel Thiemann
Allison Thrash
Lela Tilney-Kaemmer
Annette Toews
Jonathan Tolstedt
Jacklyn Tran
Brooke Trottier
Ly Truong
Van Truong
U-Z
Tom Unger
Cassidy Valade
Maria Vela
Roselin Victor
Annalise Walsh
Pam Wandzel
Mark Wangerin
Mark Watje
Matthew Webster
Gabriela Weiner
Erica Weiss
William Wentworth
Kathleen Widmer
Anja Wiesner
Ethan Wilensky-Lanford
Linda Woessner
Starry Wu
Mai Tong Yang
Shela Yang
Claire Ziller
Alexander Zoltai
Rachel Zubrzycki
Robert Zuchowski
Featured Client Stories
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The training helped me to get a good job. I’m able to take care of my myself. I’m able to take care of my family.
Elizabeth
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My dream and hope as a mother is to change my childrens’ lives. To provide safety for them, number one. I want them to be happy and to have a future.
Khanom
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I was challenged. And I loved that … If I didn’t have the Institute, I wouldn’t be where I am.
Sandra
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FROM OUR EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
We continue providing the critical core services we have developed over the years that lead to stability and a place for New Americans to call home.
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OUR 2023 IMPACT
With Institute growth came an increased capacity to offer quality services and classes to more New Americans. As a result, we impacted the lives of 4,533 clients.
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OUR DONORS
We’re inspired by our community of donors. In 2023, this network showed its commitment to standing by New Americans as they journey toward stability and success.
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2023 Annual Report
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About Us
Founded in 1919, the International Institute of Minnesota (IIMN) offers New Americans quality services that support their journey to stability and success. Our comprehensive offerings include refugee resettlement, English education, workforce and leadership development, college preparation and immigration and citizenship assistance. We are a diverse team of knowledgeable and encouraging advocates, ready to welcome refugees and immigrants. IIMN helps New Americans rebuild their lives while pursuing their personal and professional goals.
