| P e a c e a n d U n d e r s t a n d i n g |
Current US Servas Board of Directors |
Tim Sullivan 2023-2026 
Chair Tim and his spouse Charlotte have had the great opportunity to meet and stay with some amazing SERVAS hosts over the years. They are both deeply involved in justice work and Tim really appreciates SERVAS's peace building mission. Tim and Charlotte live in a beautiful spot in Western Iowa and they are looking for more travelers! | Deirdre Araujo 2024-2027  Vice Chair Deirdre is passionate about integrating volunteer service into both her personal and professional life. She looks forward to engaging SERVAS members whether they're actively traveling or at home. Deirdre has been involved with SERVAS since 1996. On a recent trip to Taipei, she explored the city with lovely SERVAS day hosts and even volunteered at a local senior center. She has also volunteered at her local library and animal shelter and served on several boards such as Phi Beta Kappa of Northern California and the American Association of University Women in San Francisco. Deirdre has worked as the head of volunteer engagement at San Francisco's Exploratorium for nearly 30 years and serves on national boards related to museum volunteerism and government volunteer program leadership. She lives in the Bay Area with her Brazilian partner and has a daughter who recently completed her MSc at Oxford. | Leena Desai
Treasurer I am originally from India and moved to US in 1970s. My family has lived in 15 states and have travelled extensively. I love hiking, gardening, cooking and most of all, I am a fearless traveler, love connecting with people and experiencing different cultures. The best part is meeting and sharing my world with others, locals, fellow travelers and just about anyone. I want us to have a warm feeling in our heart and mind, feel positive about the world we live in and feel togetherness, peace and erase those boundaries between us. My goal is to expand and strengthen Servas for future generations. |
Eileen (Lee) Rowley 2023-2025  Over the past 25 years, Servas has provided me with some of my most memorable experiences. A few of the most significant relationships in my were made as a traveler and a host. Servas provides the opportunity to hear other’s stories, and to share our story, thus promoting cultural understanding and peace. By serving on the Servas board I hope to be a conduit to our members. I bring decades of experience in conflict resolution and mediation; managing volunteers, and serving on the NYS Dispute Resolution Assn. for 6 years. I enjoy empowering people and helping them to discover their full potential. | Tys Sniffen 2023-2025
For me, making friends while traveling is the best part. My lucky life has been full of friends and influences from other cultures, and I believe it's important to bring that to as many people as possible, especially Americans. | Rick Wolfe 2025-2027
Rick and his late wife Coleen first joined Servas in 1989. They traveled around the world in 1990 and stayed with 7 Servas hosts. Since then they have opened their home to over 60 families. I truly embrace the philosophy that meeting and sharing lives with people in different cultures changes world view. Also, some of my best experiences in travels has been with Servas. I also love to take guests to places that are not in travel brochures, what joy! I have also been to many peace walks locally and walk with like minded neighbors in them. I am originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan and received my accounting degree from Eastern Michigan University. I currently live in San Luis Obispo, California. I am a retired accountant specializing in non profits. I have a passion for travelling and cycling, most travels involves two wheels. I also host a small home church. As a board member, I hope to help make an impact in our world. |
Allison McCann 2025-2026 .jpg) Allison is passionate about building connections across cultures and discovering the intricate ways people and places are linked. Her journey in cultural exchange began at 15 as a Rotary International exchange student in Brazil, igniting a lifelong love for global understanding. Committed to the greater good, Allison built a career in public service, working in government administration before earning her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification and transitioning into higher education. She is deeply committed to community service, advocacy, and building a sustainable future. As a US Servas Board Member and a Representative to the United Nations for Servas International, she promotes cross-cultural exchange and global stewardship. In her free time, she enjoys reading, spirituality, and learning how to live closer to the earth. | Effie Trihas 2025-2026 
Effie is a committed environmental and human rights advocate who believes that all living things deserve nothing less than to live their best lives and that we are morally and ethically obligated to help all achieve this. She believes that through volunteerism and activism, we can all find peace and a sense of higher purpose. Effie was born in a rural village in the mountains of Peleponnesus, Greece, and came to the U.S. when she was 3. Her mother instilled in her a love for nature and the art of listening; her father the comfort of solitude and silence. Currently Effie is employed as a Library & Media Technologist for a public school. She also writes screenplays that explore social/cultural norms and what it means to be human. She is full of gratitude at the opportunity to be on the Board and hopes to contribute meaningfully. | Steven Starr 2025  My family and I have been Servas hosts and travelers since the early 2000s. We value meeting people of different lands and cultures to learn more about them, to explore our differences and share our common humanity. I personally enjoy learning about people’s experiences with art, and with mathematics - a career I pursued for 20 years before retiring. In my classroom students learned mathematics and also learned to work together as a community. I’m fascinated to hear how other people understand justice and work to achieve it. Before becoming a teacher, I worked as a machinist, model maker, woodworker and toymaker. I enjoy drawing and painting, bicycling, hiking and exploring nature, geology and the sciences in general. I’m also passionate about literature, poetry, and theater, and love music of all kinds. |
Karen Morian  US Peace Secretary I have been a Servas member for over twenty years, both as a traveler and as a host. I have been the beneficiary of my hosts’ diverse lives and interests: I have wrangled bees in the Alps, ridden scooters in Hanoi, and given a university lecture on Gandhi’s influence on the American civil rights movement in India- all thanks to Servas. As a host, I’ve tried to give travelers a different view of America. I took one to the local historically Black American Beach, one to Election Day events to see American democracy in action, and even took one to a racial justice rally when she came to stay (at her insistence). From my personal experiences, I know how valuable our organization is in bringing people together and sharing experiences. Now that experts are supporting the idea that shared experiences are more valuable in terms of breaking down prejudice and cultural barriers, I relish the opportunity as Peace Secretary to broaden Servas’ mission to “help build world peace, goodwill and understanding.” | Richard Weaver Past Chair
Ex Officio, Chair I was first introduced to Servas in the Spring of 1971. As a young activist, I resonated with Servas which was promoting its mission as building world peace one friendship at a time. That resonated for me and still does. I have been a Servas traveler and have hosted individuals, couples, and families from around the world. I have supported peace and justice organizations my whole adult life. I am a retired college professor living in San Diego, CA. I travel as often as I can, meeting new people and experiencing different cultures. | Joanne Ferguson Cavanaugh
Ex Officio, Board Secretary I was raised in the Nebraska Sandhills on a ranch that has been in family operation since 1909. Experiences living in Washington & London and spending 6 weeks hitchhiking from Switzerland to Morocco and places in between vastly broadened my horizons. As a public librarian I served people from all walks of life. I learned about Servas from Dean Jacobs, a Nebraskan who did a program about his around the world trip. “Servas? What’s that?” I asked. My husband Rick and I joined in 2009 as hosts, then I as a traveler in 2013. And nothing has been the same! Image: North Loup River, Brewster Nebraska |
