Catherine Kapikian is a site-specific liturgical artist. Her scores of commissions reside in churches of diverse denominations; synagogue; university, seminary, and military chapels; retreat centers; and hotel and convention center lobbies for national ecclesial events. Kapikian is founder and Director Emerita of the Henry Luce Center for the Arts and Religion at Wesley Theological Seminary (WTS) in Washington D.C. and currently Distinguished Artist-in-Residence at WTS. She has authored numerous articles, lectured throughout the USA in ecclesial and academic contexts, and authored the authoritative “Art in Service of the Sacred.” Her work can be seen at catherinekapikian.com.

Ahmad Mansoor Ramizy is the Afghanistan Program Director at Ideas Beyond Borders, a New York-based organization working for education, democracy, and enlightenment in the Middle East. Mansoor is also a writer and reporter for the Middle East Uncovered, an independent publication powered by Ideas Beyond Borders. 

Sadiq Amini is an expert in Public Diplomacy and International Security, with over a decade of experience shaping U.S. foreign and security policy in Afghanistan and South Asia. Through his YouTube podcasts, “Afghanistan Impact” and “Herat Talks”, he delivers in-depth analysis of Afghanistan’s challenges, highlighting the consequences of Taliban rule, especially on women, and advocating for the country’s liberation and democratization.

From 2022–2024, Mr. Amini served as a Non-Resident Fellow and Program Manager for Outreach at ORF America, a Washington D.C.-based think tank focused on U.S.-India relations. Prior to that, he spent nearly nine years as a Political Assistant at the U.S. Department of State/U.S. Embassy Kabul, where he performed sensitive roles in policy analysis, outreach, and crisis response, including advising on the U.S.-Afghanistan Bilateral Security Agreement. During Operation Allies Refuge, he played a key role in evacuating American citizens, Green Card holders, and over 3,000 locally employed staff and their families after the Taliban takeover of Kabul. In recognition of his services, the U.S. Department of State presented him with the Heroism Award in June 2022.

Mr. Amini began his career in 2010 with the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan, later joining the Permanent Mission of Afghanistan to … Read More »

Our upcoming Club Assembly is a chance for members to come together and review key club business, updates, and plans for the months ahead. This meeting is held exclusively on Zoom, making it easy for everyone to join the discussion, share input, and stay informed about our club’s direction.

A Research Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD. He uses data collected from satellites to understand how our planet is changing. His focus is on measuring the Earth’s ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica and developing models that predict how they will change in the future, as the Earth’s climate warms.

Understanding this is critical because, as the ice sheets shrink, sea level rises and this will impact hundreds of millions of people around the world.

Dr. Felikson also leads a NASA satellite mission called ICESat-2, which collects laser measurements that are used to estimate the thickness of the ice sheets, sea ice, as well as tree height all around the globe. This unique satellite is one of many that NASA uses to collect data about our changing planet.

Kevin Flynn will be giving his Classification Talk this week, sharing more about his background, his professional journey, and what brought him to our club. This is a great opportunity for all of us to get to know Kevin better and learn about the experiences that shape his perspective.