Our Team

Farhiya Mohamed

Executive Director, Founder

Farhiya Mohamed is a native of Somalia and a local leader in community organizing. Farhiya received her Master of Social Work from University of Washington (MSW) and her BA in Human Services at Evergreen State College while working as a Family Advocate with Southwest Youth & Family Services in West Seattle. Prior to Southwest, Farhiya worked as a Bilingual/Bicultural advocate with the Refugee Women’s Alliance (ReWA). For more than 10 years, Farhiya has worked assisting and advocating for domestic violence victims within the refugee and immigrant communities in King County. Farhiya has been a member of numerous community organizations including founding member and Vice-Present of the African Community Network in Seattle-King County, steering committee member of Seattle-King County Public Health community research project, board member of the National African Immigrant Refugee Women Network (NAIRWIN), and City of Seattle Commissioner Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs, and founder and Executive Director of the Somali Family Safety Task Force which is dedicated to empowering and advancing the local Somali community by educating families on ways to prevent domestic and gender-based violence and strengthening community. Farhiya’s passion is to empower and advance youth & families by giving them a chance to address the issues they face and providing them with resources.

• 206-659-4755
• farhiya@sfstf.org

Bintou Tunkara

Program Director

Bintou is an experienced program manager and coordinator with a proven track record of success in leading and managing complex projects. She has over 15 years of experience working in both public and private sector organizations, with a strong focus on program management, and project coordination. Bintou has a deep understanding of project management methodologies and tools, which she has applied to various projects across different industries. Her expertise spans across project initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and project closure. Bintou has a keen eye for identifying and mitigating risks, as well as effectively managing project budgets, timelines, and resources. Throughout her career, Bintou has successfully managed and coordinated numerous large-scale projects, working with diverse teams of stakeholders including NGOs, private sector partners, and community-based organizations. Her strong communication skills, coupled with her ability to build and maintain effective relationships with stakeholders, have enabled her to deliver successful outcomes for her projects. Bintou is also an excellent team player and leader, with a passion for mentoring and coaching her team members. Her strong interpersonal skills have helped her to build and lead high-performing teams, fostering a collaborative work environment that drives results. In addition to her technical skills, Bintou has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Marketing. She is also certified in Data Analyst and has completed several other professional development courses in leadership, communication, and change management.

• (253) 220-8314
• bintou@sfstf.org

Elias Tumuhimbse

Program Lead

Elias brings onboard over 15 years of development programming at national and community level with government and non-profit organizations embracing private sector engagement for transformational development. Coupled with excellent technical, tactical, and conceptual skills is a host of academic qualifications including a master's in management studies (MMS), a post graduate diploma in Project planning & management, a Bachelor of Commerce degree, an accounting certification (ACCA) and a host of on job trainings.

• Elias@sfstf.org

Saliha Hacibektasoglu

office assistant

Saliha Hacibektasoglu Born in Turkey, moved to New York in 1980 when 11, Received Associates Degree Business in Administration from MCC in 1992, Received Bachelors Degree in Management Information Systems from RIT in 1999, Received Master Degree in Electrical & Computer Engineering from THKU in 2016, Worked at the Photography Giant - KODAK, last year in high school and after graduation from University after 1999. Got Married in 1987, has 4 children and a granddaughter, Moved back to Turkey for 16 years to raise children. While there worked at the Transportation Head Quarter - EGO in Ankara, Turkey from 2004-2016. After returning to the US, worked at EMAS – Ethiopian Online School, 2019-2020 and Volunteered at Sofia Way and Newport Covenant Church, continuing to volunteer at MAPS-MCRC for 2 years now. Joined SFSTF on Sept 7th 2021.

• 206-659-4755
• Saliha@sfstf.org

Mark Johnson

Development Coordinator

Mark has over 25 years of experience as a nonprofit executive and fundraiser. After leaving politics, he was hired to oversee several capital and endowment campaigns for his first forays into fundraising. Since then, he has served as an Executive Director, Director of Development, chief grant writer and corporate relations manager for a variety of different nonprofits in the Puget Sound area. Having worked on behalf of organizations with a variety of different missions, he develops unique and new ways of communicating an organization’s mission to the great community. These experiences give him great familiarity with the philanthropic community in our area, and we welcome him to Somali Family Safety Task Force. Mark is a 1991 graduate of the University of Washington with a B.A. in History. He is married and lives in Everett, having been born and raised in Seattle.

• Mark@sfstf.org

Saida Alim, MSW

Digital Coordinator

Saida Alim, has been involved with community work in the past 8 plus years in many different capacities as Housing and Policy Advocate with SHA,   advocate. Saida also was a Fellow Intern, EAC  through RVC.  Practicing mental health therapist and has worked in the field for the past years. Graduate from the University of Washington with her master's she is passionate about the work she does for the community and strongly believes in uplifting impoverished, disenfranchised immigrant/refugee and communities of color.

• saida@sfstf.org

Rahima Houssein

Sewing Coordinator

• rahimahoussein@yahoo.com

Jane Gikonyo

Senior Coordinator

Joy has vast travel experience and a history of serving communities. She has implemented a girl's boarding school in South Sudan, program management in Cambodia in South East Asia, working closely with the school directors and organized youth groups and girl guides. Currently Joy works at SFSTF as senior coordinator.

• jane@sfstf.org

Dashne Ahmed

Advocate

My name is Dashne Ahmed, and I am originally from Iraq. I am a mother of two kids. My family and I moved to Washington in 2017. I love my job as an advocate at Somali Family Safety Task Force and enjoy helping the community with finding resources to make their transitions easier. I speak Kurdish Sorani and Arabic in addition to English.

• Dashne@sfstf.org

Anisa Manur

Advocate

My Name is Anisa Manur. I come from Egypt, I have an associate degree in architecture design and drafting. I have 9 years of professional experience working in customer service and architecture field. I'm passionate about participating in system data collection and my ambition is to make sure everything is done the right way. My goal is to make sure my customers are satisfied. I am excited to learn more and grow professionally. In my free time I like to work on my interior design skills and rearrange furniture in my house.

• Anisa@sfstf.org

Abucar Abucar

Youth Advocate

Abucar Abucar completed his education at Seattle Pacific University, with a specialization in information systems. Abucar is profoundly committed to working with young people and assisting them on their path to success. He holds extensive knowledge in helping youth discover careers that truly ignite their passion. Furthermore, he is fervent about aiding them in accessing resources and navigating through complex life challenges. Abucar also extends his support to families and individuals who are struggling to find solutions to their difficulties.

• +91-89898989898
• Abucar@SFSTF.org

Arabbi Saho

Youth and Family Specialist

Arabbi Saho has five years' experience working with families and children as an outreach specialist and early learning specialist. With one year experience in early childhood education, she levels in a clear way approachable and empathetic with assertive as appropriate satisfaction. Arabbi works at a high standard and has developed a good bond with the West African community, she is also fluent in five different languages. Arabbi is certified as an immigration court interpreter. Arabbi brings her connection and relationship with multiple communities into the service of Somali family safety task forces.

• Arabbi@SFSTF.org

Shirwac Ahmed

IT/Tech Coordinator

Shirwac has graduated from The University of Washington and has received a bachelor's in computer science and systems. With many years of experience in the customer service industry, Shirwac now seeks to bring his experience into the world of tech.

• Shirwac@sfstf.org

Filsan Shamo

Advocate

I hold a B.A. in Digital Technology & Culture from Washington State University. I'm a professional with a track record of building and leading multicultural organizations, handling client needs and using data to support business decisions. Working at Somali Family Safety Task Force is fulfilling my goal of helping people and making a difference in their lives.

• Filsan@sfstf.org

Ahoua Koné, JD, MPH

Clinical Assistant Professor at UW Global Health, Director at Health Alliance International (HAI), and Immigration Attorney

Ahoua Koné is a Lawyer, a Program Director with Health Alliance International, and a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Washington Department of Global Health. She is a native of Côte d’Ivoire. Ahoua’s work has been on health research and community empowerment projects both locally and internationally. She is an activist, always trying to help uplift voices that are neglected or oppressed. She is a founding member and past-president of the African Communities Network in King County and has served on several advisory boards and commissions including the Washington State Commission on African-American Affairs, the Seattle Human Rights Commission, the Planning and Oversight Committee of Seattle Public Schools, the Search Committee for the Seattle Police Department Chief. Ahoua is also a co-founding member of the Somali Family Safety Task Force, an organization for which she continues to be committed to helping thrive. Ahoua was a recipient of the Seattle University School of Law 2013 Vanguard Leader of the Year award and the Rotary International Paul Harris Fellow Award (2000). Ahoua and her husband are parents of two young men. Ahoua is thankful for the support of her extended family and friends and for the numerous opportunities presented to her to contribute and give back to the community.

Saido Jama

Saido Jama works as a Procurement Agent for Boeing in Seattle, WA. Before this role, she was a Supply Chain Analyst. She is well-versed in contract development, vendor/supplier relationships, negotiations, production optimization, and logistics. Saido holds a Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management degree from Western Washington. Saido joined Somali Family Safety Task Force as a board member in 2019, she was captivated by their mission “to empower immigrant and refugee women and their families by providing culturally appropriate services that embody the core values of our community”. As a fellow Somali and immigrant herself, she could relate to the difficulties of navigating in a new country and wished an organization like this existed when she was growing up. SFSTF brings enormous value to the communities it serves and is for the community. A fun fact about Saido, she has toured on most of all major Boeing aircraft.

Gyanendra Subba, Project Manager

Lead Career Coach, SHA

Gyanendra is a Certified Workforce Development Professional (CWDP) with over 10 years of experience in direct service, research and evaluation, policy, and management. He is currently a project manager at the Workforce Development Council of Seattle King County (WDC). Prior to joining the WDC, he worked at the Seattle Housing Authority, Refugee Women’s Alliance, and the Nonprofit Assistance Center. He is a former refugee from Bhutan and was resettled in the US in 2008. He holds an undergraduate degree in Physics from St. Xavier’s College, Kolkata, India, an MBA from Seattle University and a Public Leadership Credential certification from the Harvard Kennedy School.

Rania Mussa , Bachelor of Arts (B.A) History

Rania Mussa works as a Solutions Architect designing technological solutions for clients to meet their ML and AI needs. After earning her bachelor’s from Whitman college, Rania worked in the education sector for a couple of years. First with a non-profit that serves immigrant and refugee families to help close the achievement gap for k-12 students. She later joined a start-up focused on using technology to transform how students read for deeper comprehension. Most recently, she worked with health researchers on innovative informatics is driven projects to improve the health outcomes for patients. In her day-to-day, she is driven by the desire to produce results and make an impact. Rania was drawn to the Somali Family Safety Task Force because of its mission “to empower immigrant and refugee women and their families.” SFSTF is not only a community-centered organization but at its core, it is embedded in the very fabric of the community it serves as a community-led, and community-run organization. The organization is well-positioned to address many of today’s challenges as they emerge and is exceedingly adaptive to communal needs.

Abdi Y. Jama

Abdi Y. Jama received a B.A. from Western Washington University and a Masters of Law in Dispute Resolution from Pepperdine University. Abdi is an Immigration Program Manager and a member of the Director’s Social Justice Cabinet at Catholic Community Services of Western Washington. He has been providing advocacy and legal immigration services to the immigrant and refugee communities in the state of Washington for over two decades. Abdi has worked with numerous Non-profit and Governmental Organizations in the State of Washington and in East Africa as a policy, social justice, and legal immigration consultant. He is also a conflict resolver, mediator, arbitrator, ombudsman, peace. builder, and trainer. He specializes in resolving complex multi-party conflicts internationally and designs conflict resolution systems for governments, NGO organizations, and employers. Abdi is on the roster of volunteer mediators for Los Angeles, California’s Institute for Nonviolence. He is Statebuilding and Democratization Program Manager at New Access International (NAI). A research and development agency established in 2012 by multi-disciplinary practitioners and specialists in Somalia. NAI is a registered civil society organization in the Federal Republic of Somalia. Mr. Jama has been involved in law and policy research with development organizations for over 15 years. Abdi Y. Jama is pleased to serve as a board member of the Somali Family Safety Task Force (SFSTF). He has worked with the founder, Farhiya Mohamed in different capacities and shares her passion for the refugee and immigrant communities. Abdi understands the importance of serving the underserved communities in the state of Washington and applauds Farhiya’s commitment to these populations. Farhiya has all the right ingredients to operate and direct a grass-roots organization and has always gone above and beyond with her community activism. Fun fact: Abdi Y. Jama has so far been to 37 States in the United States. Only 13 to go yay!

Gary D. Gant MPH, MBA

Gary is a community-oriented public health practitioner and health care administrator by training, and presently serves as the Field Office Director for the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for Washington State. Prior to his appointment at HUD, Gary served as the Deputy Regional Administrator for the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs (IEA) in HHS Region 5, based in Chicago, serving Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Before Gary joined the HRSA Chicago Regional Office, Gary served as a Public Health Analyst for HRSA in Region 10, based in Seattle. During his tenure at HRSA, Gary has led several major initiatives to improve health outcomes for underserved populations in urban and rural areas, especially in the areas of chronic disease prevention, health workforce development, homelessness and immigrant and refugee health. Prior to joining HRSA, Gary was an Executive Officer for the Veteran Administration’s Puget Sound Health Care System where he served as the Privacy and Freedom of Information Act Officer. Gary has also worked in various capacities for state public health, including programs for immunizations and maternal and child health. Gary has an M.P.H in Community-Oriented Public Health Practice and a M.B.A. in Healthcare Management. Gary has received various public health fellowships and awards, including the Quentin Burdick Fellowship in Rural Health, the Tobacco Scholars Career Development Fellowship, and the HRSA Administrator’s Special Citation Award in 2015 and 2016 for outstanding performance.

Lori A. Zoellner, Ph.D.

Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington and Director of the University of Washington Center for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress (UWCATS)

Lori A. Zoellner, Ph.D., is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington and Director of the University of Washington Center for Anxiety and Traumatic Stress (UWCATS). Both her research and her clinical experience focus on facilitating resilience and recovery after trauma exposure, with particular expertise in understanding underlying mechanisms of recovery and intervention development. For over ten years, she has been working with the Somali community to address war and refugee-based trauma and promote strengths. She is well recognized in the field of traumatic stress studies, including having served on the Board of Directors of the International Society of Traumatic Stress Studies. Dr. Zoellner has written and published extensively on posttraumatic stress disorder. She is a National Institute of Mental Health federally-funded researcher and has given many workshops for practitioners, community leaders, and the public on the prevention and treatment of PTSD.

• (206) 685-3126
• zoellner@uw.edu

Chelsea Byers

• 206-747-0796
• chelsea.byers@gmail.com