My Story

Alvaro Maurice

CEO, Conquistador Consulting LLC

Venezuelan native Al Maurice came to Dayton through Wright-Patterson Air Force Base with his parents. He developed a passion for Dayton that led him to start his own consulting business and become heavily involved in planning for the city’s future.

My Story

The Boussahas

Widad Boussaha emigrated from Algeria with her parents when her mother’s name was drawn in the U.S. Visa Lottery program. Through constant pursuit of higher education not available in their home country, the Boussahas have begun creating a better life in Dayton.

My Story

Allen Elijah

President and CEO, United Way of the Greater Dayton Area

These are members of the community. They’re not a hypothetical concept–they’re here. This country has an extremely supportive culture of giving, going back to the days when a man’s barn would burn down and the whole community would come together to help raise a new one.

My Story

Danny Diaz

Military firefighter, DJ

Danny Diaz escaped Castro’s Cuba with his family in 1970 and joined the U.S. Air Force after high school. Now, by day, he serves his country as a firefighter at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. By night, he uses music to unite people from all cultures as one of the region’s most popular nightclub DJs.

My Story

Frank Perez

Retired CEO, Kettering Health Network

Cuban native Frank Perez, former CEO of Kettering Health Network, is the personification of the American Dream. He and his family fled Cuba under Castro’s regime; he came to America with nothing and became a towering success and a respected community leader.

My Story

Nozipo Glenn

Community activist

Exiled from South Africa in 1972 for crusading against apartheid, Nozipo Glenn has been a trailblazer in community and ethnic activism and a towering mainstay of the multicultural fabric in the Dayton region for four decades.

My Story

The Cuellars

After working several years in the Mexican government, Sabino Cuellar brought his family to Dayton, and his legacy of hard work and community continues in his son, Manuel, a student at Stivers School for the Arts.

My Story

Damira Hayrullina

Student, Wright State University

A third-year student at WSU and a graduate of Sinclair Community College, Damira elected to renew her student visa after graduating an exchange student from Centerville High School, and returned to Dayton to pursue further education.

My Story

Rafi Rodriguez

President, Dayton Hispanic Chamber
President, Ohio Hispanic Chambers of Commerce

Rafi Rodriguez was born in Puerto Rico as a United States Citizen and has devoted his life to service, first to the United States in its armed services, and now as a community leader who strives daily to increase and improve opportunities for Hispanic workers and business owners.

My Story

Cheryl Scroggins

Coordinator, Dayton Council on Health Equity

Cheryl Scroggins works in both her career and her volunteer work to help ensure that basic needs are met for minorities from all walks of life. An administrator for public health programs who works with multiple ethnic coalitions, Cheryl was also a drafting member of the Welcome Dayton plan.