Angela Peabody

Executive Director and Founder

Angela has worked as a humanitarian for most of her adult life, supporting the Susan G. Komen Foundation, the Tigerlily Foundation and several other non-profit organizations. The Liberian journalist and novelist is an accomplished and award-winning writer. She is the first Liberian woman to write and publish a full-length novel. Her career has taken her to the corners of the earth, as she speaks out against female genital mutilation and other gender-based violent acts. A highly sought-after public speaker, Angela has spoken at Harvard University, George Washington University, Georgetown University, The University of Pittsburgh, Catonsville Community College, Saint Simon’s Island Festival, and the Making Poverty History Conference in London, where she shared the stage with two members of the House of Parliament. Angela is the former Chair of the Washington, D.C., Chapter of the National Writers Union and has served on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) and the Advisory Board of Tigerlily Foundation. Though Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation keeps Angela’s schedule very busy, she continues her career as a novelist. Her novel, When the Games Froze was released December 2013.

ARNOLD E. DESHIELD

Treasurer and Co-Founder

In addition to his role with Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation, Arnold serves as the controller of The Goode Companies. Arnold began his career at Chancellor Broadcasting Corporation as a business assistant. He later worked as an assistant business manager for Radio One, corporate controller at On Top Communications, and later at McKinley Marketing Partners, as manager of finance and accounting for the East Coast and Southeast regions. He brings many years of finance experience to the boardroom of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation.

AMIE E. JALLAH

Vice President and Co-Founder

Amie is a graduate of the George Washington University in Washington, D.C. with a Masters Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies and a certification in Health Care Administration. She is also a graduate of the Loyola College Management Training Program. She has an extensive background in the development and implementation of community outreach programs and has developed collaborative partnerships with many non-profits and Churches throughout the Washington, D.C. area. She is the former Executive Director of the Metropolitan Community Development Corporation a 501c(3) non-profit that aims to improve the quality of life for African immigrants and low-income residents in Montgomery County, Maryland, through programs and services that engage the community in meeting their own physical and emotional needs, and close gaps in education, health, income, and family well-being. She is currently a Program Director with City Gate, an urban ministry in Washington, D.C., seeking to open doors of opportunity and empowerment with the primary focus on children and youth. Amie is also one of the founders and a director with the African Cultural & Resource Center, which provides programs and services for African immigrants in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. She is the vice president and co-founder of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation.

Arielle Buchmann

Board Member

Arielle Buchmann is a Swiss-American content creator and former journalist who is passionate about making this world a better place. She currently works for the Embassy of Switzerland in Washington, D.C., as a media and communications manager. Arielle was introduced to FGM when a high school friend revealed to her that she was a survivor.

 Prior to her present position, she worked as a multimedia web producer at the CBS news affiliate, WUSA9.  Arielle left Switzerland to attend Alcorn State University in Mississippi on a full tennis scholarship. She pursued her dreams of becoming a journalist because she believed that being in the media would allow her to bring awareness to the fight against female genital mutilation (FGM). Arielle was introduced to FGM when her high school roommate revealed to her that she was a survivor. Arielle hopes to continue globetrotting, empowering people, and shining light on gender-based violence.  She has served on the Board of Directors of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation for the past six years.  She currently serves as the Media Director of the Board, and also serves on the International Committee.

F.A. Cole

Board Member

From Freetown, Sierra Leone, F.A. Cole has used her childhood and young adult experiences to design a blueprint to defeat female genital mutilation, sexual abuse, and oppression. Through unwavering faith, Cole has developed art for empowering the lives of women and children. From victim to victor – F.A. Cole experienced life’s tragedies at an early age and fought to overcome them (sexually molested at age six; forced to undergo female genital mutilation at age eleven, raped multiple times; and many more.) Her astonishing work, Distant Sunrise – the Strength in Her Pain to Forgive, speaks to the pain and suffering of women who have experienced female genital mutilation and survived physically, mentally, and spiritually. Cole has traveled multiple times to Sierra Leone to host workshops for young women and girls and distribute sanitary napkins, pencils, and other necessities. Cole speaks out about the benefits of restorative surgery and her experiences after surgery. Although Maine still remains without a law against FGM, F.A. Cole was vigilant in working with a State Representative in Maine to put forth a bill in that state through her testimony.

Dr. Wallicia Gill

Board Member

Dr. W. Wallicia Gill is a retired Middle School Principal and Adjunct Professor. Since retiring from Education, Dr. Gill has worked passionately to support community service initiatives. Dr. Gill has published articles on Human Trafficking for The BlueView, the Fairfax County Democrats Newsletter. She is President of Centreville/Chantilly Rotary Club, and First Vice President of The Northern Virginia Business, and Professional Women’s Club. Dr. Gill is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc; she is co- Chair of the Scholarship Committee and oversees awarding deserving young women scholarships to pursue college/ university studies. Dr. Gill completed her undergraduate work at Hampton University, her Master’s work at George Mason University, and an Ed.D in Educational Leadership at Shenandoah University.

Dr. Karen McDonnell

Board Member

Dr. Karen A. McDonnell is an associate professor and Vice-Chair in the Department of Prevention and Community Health at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University. Dr. McDonnell is a public health program evaluation and implementation specialist with over 16 years’ experience working with community groups, public health agencies, and health care systems both locally and globally. Dr. McDonnell’s expertise lies in using mixed methods to look at complex public health issues and programs. Her most recent work includes leading a team to evaluate gender-based violence in immigrant communities; development and testing of a community-centered FGM prevention project; evaluating the National Domestic Violence Hotline/Love Is Respect Helpline; taking a public health approach to gender-based violence and HIV; and evaluating multi-systems changes in the Clinical Translational Science Institute with Children’s National and GWU. Dr. McDonnell has conducted trainings in public health policy, gender equity, and women’s leadership, and teaches coursework in Program Evaluation, Maternal, and Child Health. She works with undergraduate and graduate students, medical residents, and community groups to further the exploration of methods to meet our current complex public health challenges. Dr. McDonnell is the recipient of the 2009 ASPH Early Career in Public Health Teaching Award, ASPH Academy of Distinguished Teachers, and the 2011 Milken Institute SPH Excellence in Teaching Award. She was a 2018 recipient of the Global Woman Awards in the Education/Health Category. Karen has been vigilant in her work against FGM, including teaching, training, facilitating workshops, and supporting Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation.

Jacqui Olkin

Board Member

Jacqui Olkin is a digital user experience consultant specializing in web content strategy, user research, and usability. Jacqui received an Emmy Award as project editor and co-author of the “Biography Project for Schools,” a multimedia educational project with A&E Networks, and was the strategic lead on numerous award-winning websites. She is spearheading development of a values statement for the fields of user experience and information architecture, to guide ethical practice in digital products. Jacqui’s interest in fighting FGM started with a desire to help girls in her community, many of whose families come from FGM-practicing countries. Jacqui holds an honors undergraduate degree in English literature and creative writing from Brown University and a master’s degree in English literature from Boston University. She is a runner and a devoted fan of the Washington Nationals baseball team.

Dr. Carmen Gill Bailey, MD FAAP

Dr. Carmen Gill Bailey is a board-certified practicing pediatrician, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics. She recently served as the Medical Director and Executive Director for Children’s School Services, Children’s National, where she and her team were awarded grants and funding to focus on equitable distribution of healthcare services for Washington D.C. children. Dr. Gill Bailey, in all of her professional roles, continues to focus on health care disparities in marginalized communities. She is a lifelong advocate for the health and wellness of children and families and has dedicated her career to addressing social injustice in health care.

She served as the School Health Physician for one of the largest health districts in Virginia, responsible for medical oversight of the School Health Program, which served approximately 189,000 students in just under 200 schools and centers. She was also responsible for medical oversight of the Maternal Child Health program. She has provided clinical care to women impacted by trauma, including female genital mutilation, sexual trafficking, and utilizes her medical practice to advocate for women impacted by gender-based violence.

Dr. Gill Bailey has published in the Journal of Pediatrics on health care disparities in Sudden Infant Death Syndrome among African American and Native American communities. More recently, her research interests have led her to partner with George Mason University College of Education and Human Development to conduct qualitative research on the community assets, and health needs of refugee and immigrant populations. As a result of this work, she and her team, were invited to present during the American Psychology Association Annual Conference. Dr. Gill Bailey’s research interests also include closing achievement gaps and the overlap between education as a social determinant of health and health disparities.

Dr. Gill Bailey completed her Medical Degree at Howard University College of Medicine, and her residency training at Fairfax Hospital for Children. Dr. Gill Bailey has been active with the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) VA and DC Chapter, most recently serving on the DC Chapter’s Executive Board from 2019 to 2021. She is a past recipient of the AAP Community Access to Child Health Grant, which she and her colleagues used to address disparities in health access for teen parents and their children.

Dr. Gill Bailey is a passionate advocate for community health and wellness and is honored to serve on the Global Woman P.E.A.C. E. Foundation Advisory Board.

Sherelle T. Carper

Sherelle Carper is the President of the National Association of Negro Business & Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc. She is the cofounder of the Northern Virginia Business & Professional Women’s Club; the club was established as one of the Mid-Atlantic regional clubs of the National Association of Negro Business & Professional Women’s Club. She started as a junior member with the National Club, and remained with that club until she was old enough to become an adult chartered member. Carper earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and a graduate degree the Darden Graduate School of Business Administration at the University of Virginia. A resident of Centreville, Virginia, Sherelle worked as an Air Traffic Controller at the Federal Aviation Administration, where she also was a manager. Sherelle has been a supporter and fundraiser for the Walk to End FGM since the first year in 2014. She and her club have continued their support and have become a partner of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation. In 2018 alone, Carper and her club collected 3,434 feminine pads for GWPF’s Just4You Program. They continue to collect feminine pads for this program.    

Sarian Bouma

Born in Sierra Leone, West Africa, Sarian Bouma is an advocate for immigrants and those in underrepresented communities. She has a high degree of working knowledge in legislation governing federal assistance and financing programs. With over 30 years of corporate and executive management, she has provided expertise in trade relations and investment opportunities in over 20 Sub Saharan African countries. Founder and CEO of a multimillion-dollar corporation with over 200 employees, in addition to being a motivational speaker and life coach, she has provided entities with 30 years of corporate planning, corporate finance advice, international trade advice and performance review. She is currently the President and CEO of Bouma Consulting Service, LLC. She was also the Founder and CEO of Capitol Hill Building Maintenance, Inc. from December 1987 until October 2009.

Maria Viola Sanchez

Maria has been a talk radio host for more than 25 years. She started at KFI AM 640, the most listened to talk radio station in the United States. Subsequently, after numerous iterations of the “Maria Sanchez Show,” it evolved into daily podcasts that were released on The Maria Sanchez Show website every weekday as the interviews with her live guests were completed. The show consisted of her latest podcasts; there is an archive full of both earlier podcasts and videos on YouTube which Maria recorded when she worked with KADY TV. A native Californian, Maria Sanchez graduated from Fielding Graduate University in August 2019 with a master’s degree in Media Psychology. Maria also graduated in 2017 from Pepperdine University, with a master’s degree in Clinical Psychology, with an emphasis on Marriage & Family Therapy. Maria is also currently working on a dissertation concerned with Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), and she has become an activist in the eradication of the practice. 

Julie Taitt

Julie Taitt served on the original Board of Directors of Global Woman P.E.A.C.E. Foundation (GWPF) for more than four years. Because of her busy schedule, Julie transferred to the Board of Advisors, where she has served for the past 6 years. During her visits to Liberia, West Africa, Julie became affiliated with the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. She and her husband formed an attachment to Liberia, the church, and Pastor Simon Depaye, after they watched Simon and his wife tirelessly expand their church and school, despite many challenges, especially during the Ebola pandemic. The church school was named after Julie—the Julie E. Taitt Evangelical Lutheran School—and is located in Yamah Town in Fendall, a suburb of Monrovia. Fendall is an area heavily populated with people who practice female genital mutilation, which is a major concern for Julie. GWPF is a contributor to the school, making scholarships available to girls as a way to encourage their education and discourage FGM. Julie recently authored a book titled, Living in the Real World.  She also teaches grant-writing.