At VIA we provide immigration legal services to immigrants, refugees and asylees at a reduced cost. No one will be denied legal services due to an inability to pay. Read more about our team below.
John Breslin
John has worked in law related jobs since the 1960s, first as a student law clerk for the Illinois Attorney General and in the Federal Defender system in U. S. District Court in Chicago, then as a public defender in Chicago after returning from a tour of duty in Viet Nam, then as an Illinois state prosecutor for many years. He has worked at all levels of the state and federal court systems. He started a specialty immigration law practice in the Illinois Valley because people in the community asked him for help with their immigration issues. He got the idea of forming VIA to serve Illinois Valley immigrants in need after volunteering at another non-profit immigration legal services office on the border in El Paso, TX, in 2019. With help and encouragement from many local supportive people, he just took the plunge and started VIA in 2020.
He volunteered in 2021 with the US Department of Homeland Security, Operation Allies Welcome legal orientation program for Afghan refugees at Ft. McCoy, WI.
John holds a J.D. from Loyola University in Chicago and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Detroit.
Octavia Davis
Octavia Davis is a Department of Justice Accredited Representative. She also serves VIA as interpreter and translator. She has worked with attorney John Breslin since 2017, shortly after she moved to Ottawa, Illinois. She has volunteered with Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center in El Paso, interpreting client screenings in Ciudad Juárez, México and interviewing people held in detention centers in the El Paso area.
Prior to VIA, Octavia spent over twenty years as a university professor. Her academic work includes developing and coordinating academic programs, research, teaching, advising, and course development (University of San Diego and St. John’s University in Queens, NY). She grew up in New Mexico and attended New Mexico State University, later earning a doctorate in Comparative Literature from the University of California, San Diego.
Erica Diaz
Erica Diaz was born in a small town in Guanajuato, Mexico and lived there until the age of 14. She and her family moved to Mendota, Illinois in 1998. She attended Mendota High School and graduated in 2002. She went on to attend Illinois Valley Community College, taking general education classes. In 2010, Erica married and is now the mother of three children. As an immigrant, Erica knows the struggles newcomers face when they move to a new country and must face the language barrier and the need for education and other resources.
Erica has always had a passion to help others. Since childhood, she has served as interpreter for her family and friends. At previous jobs in LaSalle County, she served her community and learned about the need for immigration services in the area. She finds working for VIA to be very satisfying and rewarding because in addition to doing something she enjoys, she is also helping her community. She values her colleagues and appreciates their passion to help others, and she is pleased to partner with other non-profit organizations that also care about the community.
Erica continues to live in Mendota with her family. She and her husband love spending time with their children and watching them play sports, especially soccer, and going to their tournaments. She is an avid gardener and cook.
