August 31, 2015
Dear Friends and Supporters,
You will kindly recall that the Fregenet Foundation has recently made a change in its structure and leadership. Tafesse Woubshet, who was founder of the organization and chairman of the Board along with Annie Glasel and Leulseged W/Selassie, two long-time members of the Board, are stepping down from their position and have been assigned different responsibilities. The Foundation would like to take this moment to express its gratitude for their relentless and committed service over the years and for their willingness to continue to serve the organization in a different capacity.
The Foundation is also proud to introduce to its esteemed supporters the incoming members of the Board – Mr. Peter Callaghan, Dr. Abdi Sheriff, and Dr. Shimelis B. Gulema. The Foundation is delighted and honored to have such wonderful friends and professionals who support its cause and are willing to serve when the need arises.
Please join us in welcoming the new board members and wishing them success, as they take on this role, carry out the mission of the organization, and take it to the next level. Below is a short bio of each incoming member.
Peter Callaghan
Peter is a Director at Shea Ventures, a firm with a long history of participation in venture capital as a direct investor and active participant in private equity funds, where he has worked for the past 8 years. He spends his time meeting with and analyzing early-stage companies as they progress through their company life cycle. Peter graduated from the University of Southern California, where he received a B.S. degree in Business Administration and International Relations minor.
A native of Los Angeles, Peter spends his free time on the golf course honing his game, which he has been playing since his early days. He also is an avid supporter of USC football and attends most games, both home and away. As a long time supporter of the Fregenet Foundation from outside, he’s looking forward to contributing to the growth and success of its mission as a board member.
Abdi Sherif MD, FACS
Abdi was born and raised in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. He attended the University of Oregon as an undergraduate and was an activist in student leftist politics. He obtained his graduate degree from UCLA and Medical degree from the University of Michigan. After completing his residency in surgery in New York, he has been in practice with the Southern California Permanente Medical Group and Kaiser Permanente in Los Angeles for over twenty years. Dr. Sherif is an avid soccer enthusiast and still plays, though not as well as in his younger days.
His interests include education and public health. Favorite groups include The Fregenet Foundation and Doctors without Borders.
Shimelis Bonsa Gulema, PhD.
Shimelis is an Ethiopian scholar based in Stony Brook University (SUNY), New York, where he teaches modern African history, politics, and development. He was a senior lecturer in the History Department, in Addis Ababa University before he joined the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) where he completed his doctoral studies.
A member of different forums working on Africa, Dr. Shimelis’ works have been published, among others, in the Journal of Ethiopian Studies, Journal of North East African Studies, and African Review of Books. He is now working on two articles and completing a book manuscript.
Apart from his academic life, Dr. Shimelis is passionate about education and environment.
Thank you very much.
The Fregenet Foundation.