CDR IS THE PROUD RECIPIENT OF THE 2023 DEI CHAMBER CHOICE AWARD
Our Executive Director, Yoke-sim Gunaratne is also one of the honorees for the 2024 Virginia McKnight Binger Heart of Community Honor!
Originally called the Virginia McKnight Binger Awards in Human Service and later the Unsung Hero Awards, the honor has recognized 319 people since it was first presented in 1985. This year, the McKnight Foundation and the Minnesota Council on Foundations (MCF) received 256 submissions from across Minnesota with 7 approved and 2 from Clay County, including Yoke-sim.
Yoke-Sim Gunaratne (West Central region) has empowered countless individuals, strengthened communities, and inspired people to embrace diversity and equity across the globe. When the nonprofit organization Cultural Diversity Resources started in the Moorhead-Fargo area in 1994, Yoke-Sim took charge as the organization's executive director and has been at the helm ever since, developing programs to support employment, financial literacy, diversity education, bilingual interpreter services, nonprofit management and entrepreneurship training to increase knowledge, skills and community engagement for quality living. Colleagues say that her personal journey, from Malaysia to Australia to Moorhead, Minnesota has affirmed her understanding of the interconnectedness of global, national and local issues and the value of giving back to communities wherever you are.