Eva Duran (Dominican Republic)
Eva Maria Duran-Paulino was born in Santiago, Dominican Republic.
Eva attended elementary school in Santiago Dominican Republic until sixth grade. She migrated to the United States in 1993 were she attended Broadview Middle School and graduated from Danbury High School in 1999. She received an Associate degree in Accounting in 2015.
Eva has a lot of passions for dancing, crafting and being involved with the community. While a teenager she was part of the dance group of Sociedad Cultural Dominicana in the city of Danbury, CT. Since then, she has been teaching the folklore and traditional dances to all the kids in our community.
Currently, Eva is the President of the Dominican Community Center and a board member of the Connecticut Institute for Communities, Inc. (CIFC).
Gloria Garcia (Mexico)
Gloria Mora A native from Mexico City who graduated from the National Autonomous University of Mexico UNAM with a degree in economics.
She is a proud mother of 4 children, 3 of them living and serving the Danbury community, the eldest is serving the country as Staff Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps. Gloria has lived in the Danbury community for 35 years, of which the last 20 have had an upward participation as a community leader.
She has been involved in different community activities and programs. She recognized the needs of Latinos and immigrants who like her arrived in this country. So, she decided to be a voice for everyone advocating for children and families. She worked as a program coordinator for parents and had the opportunity to inform families to learn more about the community's resources and teach them how to use their voice. As part of this, she took a large group of families to the Hartford Capitol where parents could express their needs to improve the quality of life of their families.
She also works in the Danbury public schools where she got involved guiding children with special needs for a better education. She currently works as a social worker at Head Start preschool where she puts all her efforts to help and guide families. She continues to actively participate helping her community and is currently the secretary of the board of directors of the Ecuadorian Civic Center. She also participates in a large number of community and civic activities in the Danbury area. Where she continues to meet and guide families.
Krystal Gopaul
Krystal Gopaul is a member of LCOM’s Class of 2024. Prior to medical school, Krystal completed a Masters in Public Health at the University of Miami. During her MPH,
Krystal did a summer internship with the CDC in Guatemala City assisting with a project to improve care for HIV positive MSM and transgendered women. Krystal also completed numerous global health trips abroad to Guyana and the Dominican Republic as well as spent a semester abroad in Colombia. Krystal strongly believes that all medical students should do some global health work during their medical education. It’s not only a great way to see the world but also expand our knowledge of foreign cultures to improve the care of our patients at home.
Wilson Hernandez (Ecuador)
Wilson Hernandez was born in Ecuador. He Immigrated to USA in 1985. Living in Danbury for the last 22 years. Restaurant owner in the City of Danbury. Completely committed to the common good. Member of the Ecuadorian Civic Center of Greater Danbury for 19 years: former president, vice-president, and treasurer of the organization. Member of the Board of Director of ARC (Association of Religious Communities) for 17 years. Always willing to do my part to build a better society. Ready to join fellow human beings who work for peace, justice, and equal opportunities for all.
Alex Kayongo, MD
Dr. Alex Koyongo is currently a Research Fellow at Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Kampala, Uganda in the department of Immunology and Molecular biology as well as the Lead, Lung infection and immunity working group at Makerere University Lung Institute. Over the past five years, he has conducted observational human- based studies related to the epidemiology and immunobiology of non-communicable diseases (such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension and kidney disease) among people living with HIV in rural Uganda. After a thorough epidemiologic characterization of COPD among PLWH in rural Uganda, he is currently investigating the role of airway microbiome as a potential therapeutic as well as biomarker signature for COPD. He has contributed to international guidelines to prioritize respiratory diseases research in Low and Middle income (LMIC) settings.
