Board of Directors

Biographies of the Board of Directors

Rev. Melesio Peter-Espinoza PhD currently lives in Austin, Texas. Between 2001 and 2003 he was an advisor at the Pastoral Center at Iberoamericana University, researcher for Central American and Caribbean Research Council in Honduras in 2002 and voluntary development adviser for Atlantic Coast region of Nicaragua. He was recipient of a Latin American Council of Social Sciences (CLACSO) scholarship in 2001 and a Ford Foundation scholarship 2003-2004. He is a member of Latin American Studies Association (LASA) and participated in international conferences in 2000-2008. He has published various articles. He served as the parish priest of the Guadalupe Catholic parish in Temple, Texas and other parishes in the Dioceses of Austin, Texas and Tehuantepec, Oaxaca. He is currently self-employed. He is a native of Santa Marta on the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua and speaks Miskitu, Spanish and English. He is a US citizen and is President of the Board of Directors of Pro-Moskitia Foundation of Nicaragua.

Ms Ruth Rouvier of Happy Camp, California holds an MA in Linguistics from UC Berkeley and is currently a PhD candidate there. She was employed at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D. C. She was the Language Program Coordinator of the Karuk Tribe in California and is a Director of Pro-Moskitia Foundation of Nicaragua. She speaks Miskitu, one of the indigenous languages of the Moskitia region of Nicaragua, where she did her linguistics field work. She raised funds in California for relief efforts in Nicaragua following Hurricane Felix in 2007.

Mr. Philip Mullins of Austin, Texas is a former Trustee of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas and Director and Secretary of the Board of Directors of Pro-Moskitia Foundation of Nicaragua. He is retired from the University of Texas at Austin. He owned and operated small businesses in Toronto; Pensacola, Florida and Austin, Texas and has served in various capacities in community organizations in Florida, Ontario and Texas. He speaks Spanish and English.

Mrs. Amalia Dixon-Humphreys of Palo Alto, California is the former Executive Director of the South and Meso-American Indian Rights Center and member of the Board of Directors of Abya Yala Fund of Oakland, California. She is a Director of Pro-Moskitia Foundation of Nicaragua. She is a native of the Moskitia-region of Nicaragua and lived in Southern California for a number of years where she was active in community organizations. She speaks Miskitu, Spanish and English, and currently resides in Miami, Florida.

Ms. Dina Rivera Fagoth served as the Vice President of the Women's group at the King Nani Kingka Moravian Church of Miami, Florida where English, Spanish and Miskitu are spoken. She was the treasurer of the congregation and served on the Board of Trustees. She is a native of the Nicaraguan Moskitia region. While living there, she was involved in indigenous rights movements including JUDEM and Misurasata and a dance group; the Miskito Folkloric Group; in which she was the premier dancer. She later joined the Miskito guerrilla war in 1981 where she assisted wounded soldiers and refugees. She was elected to the Board of Directors of the Pro-Moskitia Foundation of Nicaragua in 2011. She was nominated by an affiliated group in Miami, Florida.

Mr. Antonio Menn was elected to the Board of Directors of the Pro-Moskitia Foundation of Nicaragua in 2011. He was nominated by an affiliated group in Port Arthur, Texas. Mr. Menn lives in Port Arthur, Texas. He is an alumni of Lamar University in Port Arthur. He is active in the Good Shepard Moravian Church in Port Arthur. He speaks English and Miskitu.

Ms. Diana Amelia Saavedra is a native of Nicaragua who currently lives in Austin, Tx. She is a Director of the Pro-Moskitia Foundation and serves as the Treasurer of the Board. She is employed as an office manager of an insurance company.