ABOUT US

This work is personal to us.

Hands to the Future grew from within Denver’s refugee and immigrant communities. Our understanding of the opportunities and barriers people encounter is shaped by lived experience, trusted relationships, and years of walking alongside people as they navigate education, careers, institutions, and community in a new country.

That experience informs how we lead, build relationships, design programs, and partner with the broader community.

We understand that opportunity alone isn’t always enough. People may need preparation to pursue it, relationships and support to persist, and connections that expand what they believe is possible.

Prepare. Persist. Encounter possibilities.

Our founder

tracy small

FOUNDER & CHIEF LEARNING OFFICER (she/her)
Tracy Small is the founder of Hands to the Future (H2TF) and served as the organization’s Executive Director through 2025. An educator by background, Tracy created H2TF from a deep commitment to helping refugee and immigrant students navigate education, build meaningful relationships, and pursue opportunities for their futures.

Under Tracy’s leadership, H2TF grew through programs and partnerships designed to support students throughout their educational journeys. Her commitment to learning, curiosity, and bringing together people from diverse backgrounds and experiences continues to shape how H2TF learns, evolves, and serves its community.

OUR TEAM

Sara Huron

INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR (she/her)
Sara Huron serves as Interim Executive Director of Hands to the Future, working with the Board and staff to advance the organization’s mission and strategic direction. She brings more than three decades of experience as an entrepreneur, executive leader, and organizational advisor across business and nonprofit settings.
Sara co-founded and built a national educational publishing services company from startup to a $7.4 million enterprise with four offices and more than 70 employees. She later served as founding executive director of a community development nonprofit and today advises founders, executives, and boards navigating strategic decisions, organizational change, and leadership transitions.
Armando Peniche

MANAGER OF PROGRAMS & OUTREACH (he/him)
Armando Peniche was born in Puebla, Mexico, and raised in Denver, Colorado. With years of experience as a project manager and coordinator, he currently serves as H2TF’s Manager of Programs & Outreach. Drawing from his story and lived experience as a first-generation immigrant, Armando has become a passionate advocate for immigrant rights at both the state and national levels. Beyond his professional role, Armando is an aspiring children’s book writer and documentarian. He is developing children’s books that feature diverse characters and fun, empowering storylines and is working on a documentary exploring a migrant’s journey home. Additionally, he coaches soccer for kids in at-risk communities, providing them with opportunities to develop essential skills. Armando’s proudest achievement is being a father to two beautiful children.
Kendall Williams

WELL-BEING FACILITATOR (she/her)
Kendall Williams is a graduate student at the University of Denver, pursuing a Master of Social Work with a concentration in Family Systems and Mental Health. Born and raised in Colorado, she is driven by a deep commitment to equity, inclusion, and the transformative power of culturally responsive social work. Kendall has experience in harm reduction, crisis intervention, program development, and youth mentorship. At school, Kendall focuses on clinical practice, trauma-informed care, and social justice advocacy. In her free time, she enjoys staying active outdoors and exploring different creative outlets.
Sofia Rodriguez

WELL-BEING COORDINATOR (she/her)
Sofia is a Master of Social Work candidate at the University of Denver and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work with a minor in Communications from the University of Kansas. During her time at KU, she studied abroad in Milan, Italy which became an experience that solidified her passion for migrant work and education.
Born and raised in Miami, Florida, Sofia grew up surrounded by a rich racial and cultural variety within a mixed household where her mother is from Golden, Colorado, and her father from Santiago, Chile. This upbringing gives her a unique perspective grounded in insight, curiosity, and an appreciation for the complexities of identity and culture. Acknowledging the privilege within her father’s immigration journey, Sofia is committed to understanding and shaping policy through an equitable, intersectional lens that ensures immigration pathways are not limited by the very identities that define us.
Her experience spans international travel, customer service, and social work with homeless and low-income communities, as well as developmental work in an elementary school setting. Her exposure to these opportunities have shaped her approach to practice, emphasizing learning, empowerment, and collaboration with the communities she serves.
Ivana Carcamo

CONSTRUCTION CONNECT OUTREACH INTERN (she/her)
Ivana Carcamo is a first-generation undergraduate student at the University of Colorado Denver. She is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s in Architecture and expects to graduate in May 2029. She was born and raised in Colorado, speaking Spanish as her first language and learning English throughout her academic process. Her mom is from Chihuahua, Mexico and her dad is from Olancho, Honduras, giving her a rich cultural background. Ivana constantly seeks to gain knowledge through new opportunities and be involved with the community. She has acquired leadership, outreach, and communication skills through the various volunteer hours and programs in which she has participated. Ivana is passionate about reflecting the change she wishes to see and strives to be an asset to those in need.
Kiara Chavez

SOCIAL MEDIA INTERN (she/her)
Kiara Chavez is a first-generation graduate from Leeds School of Business with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration. At Denver Parks & Recreation, she drives outreach, engagement, and communications initiatives, managing the monthly newsletter and all social media channels. Kiara is passionate about leveraging storytelling and community service to create positive change in the community. She amplifies this work as a Denver content creator through her Instagram account @wecreatedenver.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

CHRISTIAN KALENGA

CHAIR (he/his)
Christian is an education professional who believes that education has the power to provide equity of opportunity. He made Colorado home after moving to the United States from Zambia over a decade ago. Since then, he has devoted his professional career to advocating for and striving to inspire others to develop self-efficacy in education and ultimately in life. Christian received a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Colorado State University- Fort Collins. Christian is the College Success Officer at The Daniel’s Fund. He also worked as the Program Director for the Westminster Public Schools Foundation and Mentorship Program at Goodwill.
RUBEN MEDINA

SECRETARY (he/his)
Ruben Medina, Secretary (he/his)—For the past ten years, Ruben has worked for the city of Aurora as a supervisor of recreation centers. He used asset-based community development (ABCD) principles to get the community engaged and push the city to build a new recreation center in North Aurora. The area had a bad reputation of poverty, low-income residents, huge immigrant population, gangs, crime, and youth in trouble. He and others started many partnerships in the community, tackled many issues around poverty, jobs, gangs, police issues, etc. The center became the hub in the community. One of their most successful projects was to get the Moorhead Community Center remodeled.
More recently, Ruben has done consulting on community engagement for The Denver Foundation’s work in Africa and is no longer with the City of Denver. He is pursuing community engagement work full-time. He is a trustee of The Denver Foundation and sits on 25 different committees including Basic Human Needs, Education, Inclusion, Strengthening Neighborhoods, Stapleton Foundation, and others.
CHEVY LOWE

BOARD MEMBER (she/her)
Chevy Lowe is the director of The College Place—Colorado. With more than 10 years of experience helping students and families navigate the path to higher education, she is committed to expanding access to postsecondary opportunities and empowering students to achieve their educational goals. One of the most rewarding aspects of her role is seeing students realize that higher education can be both attainable and affordable. She is passionate about breaking down barriers to education and connecting students with the resources and support they need to succeed. Chevy holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Business Administration and has dedicated her career to supporting student success, educational equity, and workforce readiness in communities across Colorado.
ELIZA harding

BOARD MEMBER (she/hers)
Eliza Harding is an expert in operations and strategy with a career spanning the sectors of technology, entrepreneurship, education, and workforce development. Currently serving as the Senior Manager of Technology & Strategy at Western Union, she formerly co-founded and directed Trendlines Colorado, where she focused on creating novel solutions for workforce and educational hurdles. Her professional background also includes a tenure as the Director of Operations for Zero Dropouts and providing mentorship to youth via the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver. Eliza earned her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Denver. She contributes her extensive knowledge of entrepreneurial ventures, organizational strategy, and workforce systems to the Hands to the Future Board of Directors.

Click Here
Emmanuel Shima

BOARD MEMBER (he/his)
Emmanuel Shima is a U.S. Army officer, leadership speaker, and creator of The Honor Framework™ and Honor Cycle™, through which he helps organizations build high-performing cultures where people feel seen, valued, and connected to their contributions. A former refugee, Emmanuel brings both lived experience and expertise in leadership, organizational culture, project management, and systems thinking to the Hands to the Future Board. He holds a master’s degree in Systems Engineering Management from the Naval Postgraduate School and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP).

Click Here
Micki O’Neil

BOARD MEMBER (she/her)
Micki O’Neil is a finance and data specialist with extensive experience in education, organizational leadership, and strategy. She currently serves as Director of Business Support and Impact at CEDS Finance and previously founded and led Foundations College Prep, a grade 6–12 school in Chicago that grew to serve more than 250 students. Her career has included leadership roles in education and nonprofit organizations as well as deep experience in financial modeling, data analysis, strategic planning, and organizational operations. Micki has an MBA and master’s degree in public policy from the University of Chicago, and a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University, and brings both an executive and analytical perspective to the Hands to the Future Board.

Click Here