Board of Directors

Deb Sorem, President

Deb has degrees in nutrition and public health, and has held a variety of clinical and administrative posts in community nutrition programs.  Her organizational skills are essential to the leadership role she fills for QFE.  Deb is also an established fiber artist whose works have been shown nationally and internationally.   She knows well that fabric and thread are simple yet powerful tools that can be used to teach life skills, promote economic independence and develop self-esteem and creativity.  She lives in Salem OR.

Steve McCammon, Treasurer

Steve has a BA in economics and an MBA in finance.  He retired after a 48-year banking career primarily focused on small businesses and nonprofits, and continues to serve on several local and statewide nonprofit boards.  His financial expertise is key to assuring QFE’s ongoing ability to fulfill the mission set forth by our late founder Mary Ann McCammon.  He enjoys hiking, reading, gardening and watching sports on TV, as well as buying and selling used books.  Steve lives in Yamhill County, OR.

Lottie Smith, Secretary

Lottie has degrees in technology and business, and worked in the corporate world to connect artists with technology.  An accomplished quilter herself, Lottie was drawn to supporting QFE’s mission of teaching quilting as a way of empowering fistula survivors.  Her commitment to QFE is an extension of teaching her children on the family farm the benefits of a strong and consistent work ethic and the value of sharing knowledge with others.  Lottie still lives on the family farm in St. Paul OR.

Linda Saliva-Valvo, Community Member

Linda devoted most of her career to working with dentistry patients and systems, as well as volunteering in hospitals.  She learned to knit at age 8, and fiber arts have been a strong influence throughout her life.  Switching professional gears a few years ago, she took a position with the Lincoln City (OR) Fiber Museum.  There, she educated visitors about QFE’s work with fistula survivors and helped sell and promote our products.  Linda brings to the Board great enthusiasm for telling QFE’s story, coupled with valuable retail and marketing experience.  She enjoys camping, hiking and doing anything outdoors, and lives in Lincoln City.   

Emma Mitchell, Community Member

Emma is a multilingual, gender and rural digital inclusion expert.  She is dedicated to personal and leadership development for underserved girls and women, particularly in rural international settings, and was drawn to QFE for its commitment to girls and women from her own hometown of Vihiga, Kenya.  Emma holds a bachelor’s degree in Healthcare/Business Administration and a master’s in Computer Information Systems, both from the University of Houston, and is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP). She has used her expertise in STEM education (Science, technology, Engineering and Math) to found an award-winning international STEM mentoring program in the USA and Kenya.  Her commitment to girls’ education has also taken her to Nicaragua, where she trained rural teachers on how to integrate technology into rural schools.  Born and raised in Kenya, Emma is now based in South Carolina.

Mary Ann McCammon (October 14, 1942-November 25, 2022), Founder

Mary Ann established Quilts for Empowerment as an expression of her lifelong passion for women’s health.  Her long and distinguished career as a nurse/midwife, coupled with her teaching and research, was devoted to improving the welfare of marginalized women and girls.  In retirement, she turned her love of quilting into a tool for helping others: women in correctional custody in Oregon, women in a rural Mexican fishing village and, in 2015, women in Kenya.  Quilts for Empowerment was formalized as a nonprofit in 2017, allowing the expansion of her work in Kenya.