Immigrants and Refugees-Reality vs. Rhetoric

 David Duea, CEO of Lutheran  Community Services Northwest and Liz Dunbar, Executive Director of Tacoma Community House, will share the realities of immigration and dispel myths about refugees and immigrants.

Liz Begert Dunbar

Liz Dunbar began as the Executive Director of Tacoma Community House in April 2009.  She retired in 2006 from the Department of Social and Health Services after 25 years of service. At DSHS, she served in a number of capacities, including State Refugee Coordinator, Diversity Director, Assistant Secretary for Economic Services and lastly as the Deputy Secretary of the department for six years.

Liz is active in community affairs as well, serving on the board of trustees for Tacoma Community College, the boards of the LASCO Foundation, Pioneer Human Services and the Japanese American Citizens League.  She is the daughter of a Japanese immigrant and a US Air Force officer.

Liz lives in Tacoma with her husband Mike, a financial planner and they have two grown children

David Duea

David is the CEO of Lutheran Community Services Northwest where he oversees work related to Mental Health, Child Welfare including Foster Care, Wraparound and Human Trafficking, Family Support, Immigration and Refugees Services, and Senior Services.

He manages 35 locations serving Washington, Oregon and Idaho, with more than 700 staff members and 4,000 volunteers.  Lutheran Community Services sees more than 43,000 clients annually with a $41 million budget.

David lives in Gig Harbor with his wife Jane of 28 years. They are graduates of Pacific Lutheran University and have two children – Elliott (22) and Joy (19), who attend Seattle Pacific University.