Meet The Team
Melissa Blount
CEO, President
Melissa is a wife and mother of four adult children; Jordan, Malachi, Ephram, and Trinity. She is currently working as an Operations Director in an Insurance Sales Corporate office and has for the last Fourteen years. When she is not at work during the week, she is enjoying trips with her husband, and traditional dinners with her children after church each Sunday.
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Melissa was inspired to tell her story while attending a women’s meeting at her local church. A year ago, she started writing her story down and witnessing to her friends, family, and small groups. Her stories have entertained, captivated, and encouraged many women.
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She started a women’s online chat group
that pray and encourage each other daily. The miracles, through the power of prayer, and the ‘God-incidences’ as she calls them, that have taken place within this group have guided her. It’s really been the driving force that has encouraged her to create this Ministry, Women of Valor Collective and to learn how to follow what she believes is the will of God on her life. The next chapter.
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Her objective is to spread the Word, encourage and touch as many women as she can through speaking engagements, the completion of her book, and social media mainstreaming. When she speaks to anyone and shares her story, she finds they are receptive, attentive, and they always tell her she needs to share this with others. She is no longer walking in fear and wants to guide other women to be fearless.
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Tauri White
CFO, Vice President
Tauri was born in Bangor, Maine and raised in Newport Maine.
She was a member of a Pentecostal church in her hometown. She remembers loving her family in Christ; however, when her pastor died suddenly, she took a corner that was not favorable.
She found her new walk with the Lord several years later after she relocated to Wilmington, North Carolina.
She is a mother of two children, she enjoys swimming and fishing and works for an insurance company. She has been revived in her relationship with the Lord, Jesus Christ.
She cannot image a life where He does not guide her to salvation. It does not matter when you find the Lord, it's how you live by His word, and take him as your true father.
Michele Carter
COO, Director of Operations
Michele enjoys helping others find their God given potential and encourages them to seek His will for their lives. Born on the east coast of the United States in Maine, she will always be a coastal girl at heart, especially when her toes are in the sand or sea anywhere on the planet.
She is married to Camron, and together they have a total of six children: her two boys, his two girls and twin boys. They enjoy an empty nest, as all the kids are grown and on their own across the Midwest. She enjoys gathering with as many as can make it around the dining room table to share a meal, catch up on their adventures and make memories, as these are currently her favorite moments with family.
Michele and Camron serve their local church as members of the Restore Worship team. Camron plays bass guitar and keyboards, and she is a vocalist. They met while serving together on a prior church’s worship team. They travel as much as they can, but truly enjoy the quiet moments together at home with their two rescue pups.
During the week, Michele is the Director of Career Development for a major real estate firm, and oversees the professional development, education programs and training for all the staff and sales force. She loves to teach, encourage, and empower people to reach their goals. She teaches, speaks on a regular basis and utilizes those skills in her areas of ministry as well.
Michele is a late blooming, imperfect, but hopeful woman of faith, who hopes to fulfill a calling on her life to share the message that we were all created with a purpose. God knows the plans He has for us and they are good!
Ruthie Spino
Research Director
Ruthie is a lifelong resident of West Virginia who graduated from West Virginia University in the early 80's, and quickly began her working life.
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She was a billboard painter, emergency services dispatcher, and a freelance writer before beginning her 34-year career in the insurance/financial services industry.
She has been blessed to know the Lord for her entire life as she was brought up in a strong, faith-based family. She loves Jesus because he has been through every single aspect of life with her. When things are good or bad, she knows He will never leave nor forsake her.
She loves encouraging others and praying for their needs, and she shines her brightest when she can be in the background just watching others flourish!!
Thank you for everything and GOD BLESS YOU!!!
Jen Frieze
Artistic Director
Jen is a mother of four (2 boys and 2 girls). Her oldest is 24, her middle son is 18 and she has twins that are 12. Life is nothing short of interesting!!
She was born in London, England, and has lived in Boston, Houston, Miami, North Carolina, and Georgia. She has been a dancer her entire life and still absolutely loves to dance and teach dance!
She gave her life to the Lord in 2006, and she has to say that other than having her children, there is nothing that comes close to that kind of soul stirring experience.
She loves Jesus because He first loved her, and she does not have any idea why, but she is SO very thankful. It’s not always an easy walk, but it is worth every sacrifice and every tear. She knows her purpose is to lead women, hear their stories and give them hope because there is a God who loves them and will turn their brokenness into absolute beauty.
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Her story isn’t over. It has just begun!
Jess Hall
Creative Director
Jess is a mother of one son and two fur-babies, residing in the beautiful Blue-Ridge Mountains of South-West Virginia.
In the deep waters of abuse and anxiety, divorce and depression, she discovered the depth of her Heavenly Father’s love as He brought her out of her circumstances.
Loving nature, she explores from the tops of the mountains to the depths of the Earth as she goes hiking, kayaking, and caving. Capturing images through photography, and creating images with paint on canvas, and words on paper.
She photographs, paints, and writes from all her experiences to help shine God’s light into other’s deepest, darkest places.
He reached down from on high and took hold of me; He drew me out of deep waters.
(Psalm 18:16, NIV)
Jean DiVincentis
Chairman of the Board
Intercessor
Jean lives in the northeast with her husband Tony, they have five adult children and ten grandchildren. She has walked with the Lord for 40 years serving in a variety of ministries.
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Being primarily a stay-at-home mom, she is currently babysitting some of the “Grands.”
She has also worked homeschooling students, as an at-home birth mom, and has over the years worked in mental health, childbirth, education, and retail.
She has a heart for missions and likes to travel and read.
Hajo Iya
Intercessor
Hajo is a lawyer and former criminal prosecutor, nurse, and she is passionately in love with Jesus. She is eternally indebted to Jesus Christ who set her free from the hopelessness of sin and gave her the abundant life found in Him alone. She is also a wife, mother of four and soon to be grandmother (Glory, Hallelujah!).
Hajo enjoys reading, writing, swimming, traveling, and spending time with her family, friends and loved ones.
She thoroughly loves leading the ladies in her Life group while doing life with her Christian friends and sharing the gospel with the lost. These are some of the joys of her Christian experience.
She is also a member of the African Christian Fellowship, a non-profit organization with about forty chapters in the U.S.A. that share the love of Jesus in various communities, and the world at large.
She considers it an honor to be a recent contributor to WVC!
Diane Lipoma
Intercessor
BIO coming soon
Teresa Oyeneye
Director of PR/Marketing
Teresa was born and raised in Long Island, New York. She was adopted at eleven months old, and grew up in a very conservative Catholic home.
A mother of three children and one bonus child, Keyana, 21, Alvin, 20, Anissa, 16 and Jimi, 6. She has been married for just short of two years, and her husband is from Nigeria so they live a culture-rich life together.
Teresa has a 23 year career in healthcare starting off as an LPN, and now finishing her Bachelors degree in Healthcare Administration. She has always loved people and being in healthcare has afforded her the opportunity to serve every demographic; rich to poor, young to old. She has loved every experience and she is grateful for all of the amazing mentors that took her under their wing and taught her something to launch her career further.
In 2011, she rediscovered Christ when faced with death. After a simple outpatient procedure, she made the hospital her home for close to seven months. With months of recovery to follow at home. Although her family was preparing to bury her, God healed and restored her physically and spiritually. This was the launching pad for what she now knows as the purpose driven life, in the kingdom for God and only His glory.
Teresa has walked a road of addiction, destructive behavior with her son, a painful divorce, battled PTSD, anxiety and has learned to heal by mentoring other broken women just like her. A bible study leader, a prayer warrior and advocate for the community in Christ, Teresa has always been the bold, sassy, tell it like it is woman with her “Teresaisms.” Give me some grace and grit, overcomer.
Teresa loves to cook, shop, party plan, host and travel when she is able. A lover of beautiful things, butterflies, mermaids and meaningful conversations. Teresa loves people but she is especially partial to her ladies. She believes life is better when you live, laugh and pray together.
When my heart is overwhelmed lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
(Psalm 61:2; KJV)
Jane Doe
IT Director
BIO Coming
Debbie Quinama
Chief Editor
Debbie is a pretty happy go lucky, loving mother of three incredible young men that are 25, 22 and 20 years old. She find much of her happiness in laughing and joking with family and friends. She is outgoing and truly loves to meet new people!
Melissa Blount, who started this faithful journey, became her friend more than eighteen years ago. She was a woman with a mission then, and she remains that way today. They met through their son’s friendship. There was always “something” that kept them connected over the years that was more than their sons. Many years later, Debbie came to realize that “something” was the Lord’s plan all along.
It was not until 2016 that she found her true passion…WORDS!
When she was asked to edit for WVC, she was thrilled. She is learning from each and every printed word that her struggles are similar to others. Please understand that she reads each word with love, she learns from each sentence, scripture and personal experience as she is helping WVC, She is understanding that she is doing what He has wanted her to do.
This collective has inspired her, shown her love and support, and led her back to knowing God in ways that she just cannot put into words. She thanks you in advance for each and every blog or literary contribution to this collective..
In summary, she is surrounded by amazing women that live in faith and keep her encouraged to do the same.
