It is with deepest sadness that we share the news that Mamae Teklemariam was struck and killed by a car in Addis Ababa on March 29th 2011. She leaves behind two sons, brothers and sisters, her mother, and a cohort of friends and colleagues that remember her work and her vibrant life.
Etsihiwot (Mamae) Teklemariam was born and raised in Addis, the daughter of an Eritrean father and an Ethiopian mother. She came to the U.S. as a young woman and graduated from San Jose State University, then went on to get her MSW and MPH at the University of Washington. She came to Harborview to do her Master’s thesis, and was recruited to be one of the founding members of the Community House Calls Program. Mamae played a critical role in the integration of services for limited English speaking patients at Harborview and helped to establish EthnoMed. She worked at Harborview for many years before returning to Ethiopia to interface between the Centers for Disease Control and varied University of Washington Global Health initiatives.
Mamae was a strong manager, strategic thinker, and valued colleague. She had a powerful sense of justice and a very generous heart. Mamae could always be counted on to speak her mind. She was a world citizen who, in her too brief life, fought for and accomplished much good.