cameo network services
California Association for Micro Enterprise OpportunityCAMEO’s history, like
that of many entrepreneurial endeavors, can be traced back to long planning
sessions at the kitchen table. Its four founders usually met in Santa Rosa at
the home of one of their parents, who put them up, fed them, and let them hold
their day-long meetings in the kitchen. At our 2018 Board Retreat, facilitator
Judy Hawkins drew this time line of CAMEO’s History. Idea In 1993, a grant from
the James Irvine Foundation brought together four pioneering leaders from around
the state: Mimi (Lufkin) Van Sickle of Women’s Economic Growth (Weed) Sheilah
Rogers of West Company (Ukiah) Debi Clifford of Women’s Initiative for Self
Employment (San Francisco) Forescee Hogan-Rowles of the Coalition for Women’s
Economic Development (Los Angeles) Each founder was determined to create and
enrich business development programs serving low-income women entrepreneurs.
They quickly realized that in order to serve this population, there was a
pressing need for advocacy work. “Several regulations affected the ability of
low-income women (and particularly welfare clients) to even imagine starting
their own business,” remarks Rogers, “and these needed to be addressed.” Welfare
clients, for example, were not allowed to hold assets, presenting a major
barrier to business ownership. “We realized that if we were to move forward, we
needed to start some kind of trade association that would let us do it.”
