Legal Services Staff

Meet Our Team
"The manner of giving is worth more than the gift." - Pierre Corneille
Meet Our Team
"The manner of giving is worth more than the gift." - Pierre Corneille
Meet Our Team
"The manner of giving is worth more than the gift." - Pierre Corneille
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Las Cruces Office

Cristina Roberts

Accredited Representative/Citizenship
Cristina Roberts is responsible for Family Petitions, Consular Process, residency card renewals, DACAS, FOIAS, waivers (I-212, I-601A), and naturalization cases. 
In addition, she is an Accredited Legal Representative with the Executive Office of Immigration Review through the Office of Legal Access Programs. Cristina is a naturalized U.S. Citizen, born and raised in the state of Chihuahua, Mexico. 
She obtained a degree in information technology and computer systems. Cristina is in her 13th year working for Catholic Charities. 
Elizabeth Zavala

Accredited Representative/Victim Advocate
Elizabeth brings more than 20 years of immigration experience to Catholic Charities. Elizabeth handles family petitions and legal residency for victims of a crime and those covered by the Violence Against Women Act. 
She’s bilingual and an accredited legal representative with the Executive Office of Immigration Review through the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Access Programs. 
Elizabeth previously worked for La Casa Inc. as a domestic violence Intake Specialist and Immigration Advocate.
Rose Chavarria

Paralegal/Defense For Deportation

Presenting Rose Chavarria, she has been part of Catholic Charities staff since 2016. Rose comes to CCSNM with more than 20 years of experience in both Legal Assistance and management. She graduated with an Associate degree in Applied Science from DACC.

She is our Office Manager and Paralegal who brings dynamic and proactivity to the office and is passionate about what she does. Rose’s role as office manager is very important she makes sure that our office is well functioned and follows office operations and procedures, as well as assist our DOJ Representative in immigration cases.

April Hinojos

Paralegal/Victim Advocate

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April (Abril) is a Paralegal/Victim Advocate here at CCSNM. She was raised in Las Cruces and is a proud Alumni of New Mexico State University where she received a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice. She is passionate about serving her community and advocating for the inherent dignity of all people regardless of their immigration status.
April works closely with Accredited Legal Representative Elizabeth Zavala on the handling of family petitions and legal residency for victims of crime (U-Visa) and those covered by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

Monique Saenz

Community Outreach Specialist

Monique is our Assistant Director of Community Outreach and Partnerships.
Monique was born and raised in Las Cruces NM, is bilingual speaker and has a background in the dental field. As her new journey with CCSNM started Monique quickly became intrigued with the services provided for the people in her community. Monique states that she feels lucky to be a part of a nonprofit organization who has outstanding services and strives to provide the highest level of assistance.

Elizabeth A. Balizan 

Receptionist

Elizabeth Balizan is our Las Cruces office receptionist!
She is a proud Native American and a member of Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo. She was born and raised in the City of Las Cruces, NM, and has resided here all of her life. She’s a recent retiree from the Third Judicial District Court, where she worked for 25 years. Also, she’s a proud alumnus of New Mexico State University and Dona Ana Community College where she received an Associates Degree in Secretarial Administration.

Haleigh Haven

 Intern/Student Mentor

 
 
Haleigh is a Master of Public Administration student serving as our graduate student intern as well as beginning her second year of student mentoring for our scholarship program that aims to support local homeless/disadvantaged students. 
She is a proud NMSU Aggie, having earned her B.S. in Counseling and Community Psychology in May 2022. Haleigh is first-generation and strives to open doors to educational opportunity for others.


Roswell Office

Nancy Hernandez

Paralegal

Nancy Hernandez has been with Catholic Charities since May of 2021, where she first served as a receptionist/secretary prior to becoming a paralegal.  She is bilingual and works closely with our Accredited Representative Cecilia Najera in the Roswell Office. 

Nancy grew up in Roswell and volunteered at the Roswell Independent School District for numerous years.

Cecilia Najera

Accredited Representative/Office Manager

Cecilia Najera comes to Catholic Charities with many years of experience in the immigration field. She has been with the Roswell branch since its opening on April 1, 2019.  

She is an Accredited Representative responsible for family petitions, consular processing, renewals, waivers, and naturalization cases.

Veronica Calderon

Receptionist
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Veronica Calderon is our Part Time Receptionist, who comes with 12 years secretarial experience. 

 Veronica works closely with Accredited Representative Cecilia Najera. She is in charge of scheduling appointments and working closely with clients to ensure all of their documents are in order.

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