Board of Directors

Board President

Dr. Scott Pike is a 1970 graduate of Pacific University College of Optometry. In 2006 he retired from private practice and worked as an assistant professor in clinical instruction at the College until 2020. Enfoque Ixcán was created in 1997 by Scott and a health promoter, Pedro Chom, in the village of Santa Maria Tzeja, Ixcán. Even though neither could speak the other’s language, their dedication to the project overcame that barrier. Now, 47 trips to Ixcán later, Scott and Pedro continue to lead Enfoque Ixcán which has served over 23,000 people. Scott is on the board of directors of Amigos Eye Care.

Board Treasurer

Dwight Fleck is a retired business consultant having specialized in customer risk management. He and his wife of over 50 years currently divide their time living in Texas and, as much as possible, in Montana. 

Dwight has been treasurer of Enfoque Ixcán since 2005 and has made 8 trips to Guatemala with Dr Pike, whom he used to routinely beat in games of marbles on the front lawn as 6th graders at Washington Elementary.

 Currently, Dwight is active on Enfoque Ixcán affairs as well as being involved with family, studying Spanish and Italian, gaining new insights on the history and cultures of peoples of the western hemisphere, and engaging in political affairs.

Ali Durbin, a Massachusetts native, has lived in Guatemala since 2000. An educator, editor, translator, and writer, her work focuses on human rights, social justice, and environmental issues.

She leads immersive educational experiences and international solidarity delegations. 

Ali lives in the Sacatepéquez region and regularly visits the Ixcán.

Amanda Terhes is the Director of Affinity Research at the C2C Project at Oregon State University. The C2C Project provides market research services to a variety of professional clients and is part of the Austin Entrepreneurship Program in the College of Business. Amanda’s focus is on qualitative research methods with an emphasis on the development and sustainability of non-profit organizations. 

While earning her M.A. degree in Applied Anthropology, Amanda worked as an intern for Enfoque Ixcán.  Amanda visited the Ixcán in February, 2006.

Dr. Natividad Chom, “Naty”, graduated as a doctor and surgeon from the University of San Carlos in Guatemala in 2020. She began her postgraduate studies in Antigua, Guatemala as a resident of Internal Medicine at the Pedro Bethancourt Hospital.

Dr. Chom was raised in Santa Maria Tzeja, a village in Ixcán, where her father volunteered as a village health promoter: there were no doctors in the area.

In her childhood, she accompanied her father, Pedro Chom, and a group of Enfoque Ixcán eye surgery patients, to the eye clinic, Visualiza. She received an eye exam at that time and that motivated her to study medicine. Dr. Chom is happy to be a part of the Enfoque Ixcán team.

Emiliano Panjoj Pérez is Maya K’iche’ and was born and still lives in the Community of Santa María Tzejá, Ixcán municipality, department of Quiché, Guatemala.

He is an Agricultural Engineer in Renewable Natural Resources with a degree from the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala. Emiliano has supported the education of his community as a high school teacher, community leader and City Councilor for the Municipality of Ixcán.

For the last 13 years he has been providing his professional services managing his own economic initiative called TopoCampo. Emiliano supports collective struggles including the defense of nature, community organizing and local economic development for community well-being.