About Us

Tneyah Thomas

Program Administrator

Tneyah was born and raised in Fort Worth, TX. She is a singer/musician and a part time co-founder of Blaccent- a member organization of the ChangeWaco coalition.
Blaccent is a community group that works to deconstruct oppressive systems by educating the public on issues affecting Black lives via social media platforms, and community events. The group was a key actor in organizing Waco's peaceful protest and Rally for Change. The protests sparked something in Tneyah that she couldn’t ignore. She knew immediately that she wanted to fight for the cause on a daily basis rather than every once in a while. After ChangeWaco was awarded a one year grant, that door was opened for Tneyah to become our new Program Administrator.

CUEVAS PEACOCK

Co-Organizer

Cuevas Peacock is a community builder with dreams of becoming a poet, for he was once told that they are life's last true teachers. Hailing from Port Arthur, Texas, the only place where oil and water mixes, Cuevas is engaged in numerous justice and equity-focused community efforts centered on the sole goal of achieving liberation for all.

Hope Balfa-Mustakim

Co- Organizer

Hope Balfa-Mustakim is an organizer-activist who holds a Bachelor's and Master's of Social Work from Baylor University. She was born in South Louisiana, and moved to Waco in 2009 after completing a summer internship with Mission Waco Youth. Hope is the proud mother of two elementary-age Waco ISD students and a miniature schnauzer named Avery. Hope is honored to serve on several local coalitions, boards, and committees working to improve the quality of life for Waco's most disenfranchised and underrepresented families. She is the Director and co-founder of the Waco Immigrants Alliance, advisory council member of the ChangeWaco coalition, and is the full-time local Field Organizer for NextGen America, the nation's largest youth voting organization.

Hope believes in the power of collective action, and recently ran her second grassroots campaign for Waco ISD Board of Trustees centered on the stories and lived experiences of Waco ISD's students, families, and staff. She believes that the experts who hold the solutions to the community's unique challenges are the people most directly impacted by those systems and policies, and who are unfortunately most often excluded from the decision-making process. Hope envisions a Waco that is truly equitable and just - a safe and peaceful place for all.

DeShauna Hollie

Board Member and Co-Founder of the Central Texas Economic Justice Fund

DeShauna Hollie grew up in Waco and attended Waco public schools. She moved away to attend college in Illinois at Greenville College where she studied History and Political Science. DeShauna moved to Philadelphia to attend graduate school at Eastern University’s Tony Campolo School for Social Change where she studied Urban Economic Development. She moved back to Waco in late 2008 to be closer to family and since being back in Waco, DeShauna has spent a lot of time volunteering on community boards and committees that focus on a range of Waco centered initiatives that include education, immigration, and performing and theater arts. DeShauna helped start the Central Texas Economic Justice Fund is a mutual aid fund that works to remove barriers for re-entry through economic support.

Rebecca Larsen

Assistant Professor of Practice Department of Political Science Texas Tech University at Waco