DYLAN CORBETT

Executive Director

Dylan Corbett, the founding executive director of HOPE, has nearly fifteen years of experience working on issues of international and human development globally, in Washington, DC and in the borderlands. He also coordinates the work of the Vatican's Migrants & Refugees Section in Mexico, Central America and French- and Spanish-speaking Caribbean. Dylan formerly worked as a staffer to the bishops of the United States at the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development as well as with the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), the national anti-poverty and social justice program of the USCCB. He has studied at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy and lives in El Paso with his wife and two children. 

MARISA LIMÓN GARZA

Senior Director for Advocacy & Programming

Marisa Y. Limón brings a wide array of skills and experience to her work at HOPE. She most previously focused on integrated marketing campaigns, strategy, and Latino engagement at TKO Advertising in Austin and Albuquerque. Marisa also served as the assistant director of community engagement and multicultural outreach with the Austin Independent School District and held a variety of positions with the Hispanic Scholarship Consortium. Marisa began her career as a classroom teacher in Catholic schools through the Alliance for Catholic Education. She holds a master’s in education and bachelor’s in English and Spanish literature from the University of Notre Dame along with a certificate in nonprofit management from Georgetown University.

VANESSA SANCHEZ DE CAÑAS

Chief of Staff

Vanessa Sanchez brings a decade of experience of foreign service to HOPE, with significant expertise and experience in the areas of human rights, international cooperation, humanitarian protection and child migration. A native of El Salvador with a background in law, Vanessa has served in key diplomatic posts in both Mexico and the United States and is a notary recognized by the Supreme Court of Justice of El Salvador. In her roles as Consul and Head of Mission, she helped negotiate critical agreements on immigration between the governments of Mexico and El Salvador. In El Paso, she stood up El Salvador’s first consular mission at the US-Mexico border. Vanessa is married with children and calls the borderlands her home.

DR. NICHOLAS NATIVIDAD

Policy Specialist

Nicholas Natividad is a policy specialist with twelve years of experience teaching and researching in the areas of border conflict and violence, immigration and international human rights. He is an Associate Professor at New Mexico State University in the Department of Criminal Justice and Affiliate Faculty in the Department of Borderlands and Ethnic Studies as well as former Visiting Research Fellow at the Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice at Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Dr. Natividad is native to the border region and holds degrees from St. Thomas Aquinas College, State University of New York, Arizona State University and the University of Oxford.

OMAR RÍOS

Humanitarian Support Coordinator

Omar Ríos is native to the border region. He studied architecture at the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez and has earned international distinction for his research on socio-environmental and on emerging and high-impact housing. In 2014, he founded the CHOPEkE CALLI A.C., a group of faith-based development organizations in solidarity with those on the margins in Ciudad Juárez focused on building sustainable housing with and for those without homes. Omar previously worked as a migrant shelter coordinator with the United Nations International Organization on Migration (IOM) in Ciudad Juárez.

ABIGAIL RAY

Formation & Engagement Cooordinator

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in International Studies and Spanish from the College of the Holy Cross, Abi served as a community liaison for international development with the Universidad Centroamericana in San Salvador, El Salvador. Upon returning to the United States, Abi earned a Master's in Theology and Ministry and a master's of Social Work degree from Boston College. Abi has experience providing direct services to migrants and refugees through her previous work with the International Rescue Committee.

LUZ DEL VALLE

Administrative Specialist

Lucy del Valle is an accountant by training with a degree in Certified Public Accounting from the University of San Carlos of Guatemala. She has worked in government, the nonprofit sector and with international organizations, including the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and she holds a certificate in NGO administration from the FOCSIV Institute in Rome, Italy. Lucy is a mother of two young children and an active community volunteer in the borderlands.

PATRICK GIULIANI

Policy Intern 

Patrick Giuliani is a third year student at Notre Dame Law School. He graduated from Saint Louis University with a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, Philosophy, and International Studies. As an undergraduate, he volunteered with St. Francis Community Services in St. Louis, MO and provided legal and social services to local immigrant families. Throughout law school, he has represented detained migrants in bond hearings at the Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project and represented asylum seekers with the National Immigration Justice Center.

CRISTAL A. ARGÜELLO

Executive Intern 

Cristal Arguello is currently pursuing Urban and Community Studies as well as Human Development and Family Studies at the University of Connecticut. At the University of Connecticut, she has advocated for the rights of immigrant students and has organized with Connecticut Students for a Dream.

JESUS DE LA TORRE

Root Causes Intern

Originally from Spain, Jesús is pursuing a Master's in Migration Studies at the University of San Francisco under a Fulbright scholarship. He holds a Bachelor's in International Relations (studied in Spain and Brazil) and a Master's in European Union. He has experience in research and advocacy for migrant rights, as well as in Central American affairs.