Hilda Sarkisians, new director of operations at IRIS
Interfaith Refugee and Immigration Service (IRIS) – a program of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles providing legal services, resettlement, and advocacy – has named Hilda Sarkisians director of operations effective April 1 while thanking Troy Elder – who is taking a new position at a leading nonprofit immigration justice organization in Miami – for outstanding service as executive director.
Having joined IRIS as refugee employment supervisor in 2013, Sarkisians brings longstanding experience to IRIS’s principal leadership role, succeeding Elder, a veteran immigration attorney who has led the agency since September 2022. Sarkisians’ new position consolidates executive functions as part of staffing changes occurring due to reduced federal funding for immigration services.
“These wrenching changes are necessary not because IRIS wasn’t thriving but because the federal government has declared war on decency and humanitarianism, including especially our nation’s historic moral commitment to refugees seeking safe harbor in the land of the free,” Bishop John Harvey Taylor said. “Troy could not have been more creative and selfless as he and his colleagues re-equipped IRIS for this episode in our national life. All of us at the diocese look forward to working with and supporting our longtime colleague Hilda Sarkisians and her IRIS colleagues, who are pledged to the values of welcome, security, and freedom and justice for all.
Troy Elder, former IRIS executive director
“By the grace of God, and by virtue of the devoted work of Troy, Hilda, and others in the IRIS family who understand what is really great about America, IRIS will long endure and thrive,” Taylor added. “Meanwhile, we wish Troy every blessing as he continues to devote himself to the cause of immigrant justice, thank him for his brilliant executive directorship, and pray he’ll be back with us before too long.”
Sarkisians began working with refugees in 2001 as a case manager at the Armenian Evangelical Social Service Center. She was promoted several times before moving to a Department of Mental Health program in 2011. Her vast experience and expertise became invaluable to IRIS where she was promoted to the post of reception and placement supervisor during President Trump’s first term and took on additional leadership responsibilities as IRIS pivoted to legal services and maintained a base staff of four employees.
Sarkisians’ journey reflects those of many of IRIS clients. “I left Iran in 1999 with my two daughters,” she recounts. “The journey was hard and stressful, especially as a woman who had never traveled anywhere outside of the country. I had language problems, cultural adjustment, and two young kids to take care of. I left Iran because I was being discriminated against not only for being a woman but for my religion. I did not want my kids to grow up in a country with all the discrimination and lack of freedom. We are happy and grateful for all the opportunities we have here with our hard work and dedication.”
Of Sarkisians, Elder notes: “From the streets of Tehran to her recent advocacy in Sacramento and Washington, Hilda embodies the tenacity of IRIS’s refugee clients, whom she has so ably served for more than a decade. At this challenging time, I can think of no better person to lead IRIS into its exciting next chapter.”
IRIS, which opened its doors 20 years ago to continue the diocese’s decades-long immigration work, is now addressing significant changes for people being forcibly displaced who seek refuge in the United States. As of January, all refugee arrivals have been canceled by the U.S. Department of State, all funding for resettlement and case management for refugees has been withdrawn, and federal policy regarding immigrants is now focusing on detention and deportation, IRIS staff members confirm.
With the majority of IRIS’ funding coming from federal sources, the government’s actions to sever contracts with refugee resettlement agencies have been devasting. Peer agencies have had to undergo major staff reductions or simply close all together. Thanks to the support of the IRIS Emergency Fund, in addition to newly available California state funding for special populations of refugees, IRIS is fighting to remain a valuable resource for immigrants in Los Angeles.
About Interfaith Refugee and Immigration Service:
Interfaith Refugee and Immigration Service (IRIS) is a program of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, dedicated to providing immigration legal services, refugee resettlement, and advocacy for immigrants and refugees in Southern California.