Our neighbors at Zion Hill Baptist Church are throwing a Fall Festival in their parking lot this Saturday, and the whole neighborhood is invited:
The Dean Highland Neighborhood Association will have a table there. We’ll be handing out candy. If you’d like to make donations to the candy stash, shoot us an email and we’ll hash out the details. Or just go here and give online (there should be a spot for you to explain what you’d like us to do with your gift).
To recap, if you want to bring the whole family and party, you’re welcome to do so. If you just want to chill at the DHNA table and hand out candy, you’re more than welcome to do that, too. Here’s Zion Hill Baptist Church on a map:
Saturday, October 31st, from 11am to 2pm. Bounce Houses. Food. DJs. Games. Prizes. Catch you there!
I was not disappointed! Dean Highlanders came through! When I cruised back over to the triangle earlier today, there was a big, black, beautiful bag of trash for me to collect and place at our usual dropping off site at Mitchell Park:
So, to whoever showed up and helped clean the neighborhood and pave the way for Hillcrest Park: thank you! You restored my hope in doing things the hard way. Our next conservancy initiative service project will be on November 14th (a Saturday). I’ll wait around for more than 15-20 minutes next time! I’m thinking we hit the alleyway between Windsor and Live Oak from 30th to 26th, but I’m open to suggestions…
Um, the neighborhood association board is currently short 3 members. It’s been short 2 members since the beginning of the year, and we lost a 3rd member last month.
Tinker Kramer, Chelsea Kramer-Noonan, and Jessica Ford have given so much time and effort to Dean Highland via the neighborhood association over the past 6 years (at least!) that words would simply fail to describe the impact they’ve had on all of us. They’ll still get glowing profiles in these pages, eventually, but for now I just want everybody who tunes in to our newsletters to know that these three ladies are AWESOME!
If you want to serve, if you have a heart for advocacy, and you like to fellowship, please consider approaching us about becoming a member of the board. Shoot us an email.
2027 is just around the corner, so if you’re looking for a new challenge with a good cause, look no further!
Since early this year there has been a flurryofreports on the plan for the empty lots where Hillcrest hospital once stood. To piggyback off those reports and to build organizational capacity, the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association launched the Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative. This initiative is one-of-a-kind in Waco, and while it’s mostly aimed at cleaning alleyways, streets, empty lots, and pocket parks, we have also utilized the conservancy initiative to help clean up trash in the yards of Dean Highland’s single mothers and, just this past Saturday, to help a local Dean Highland celebrity — Ms. Alice, the Christmas lights lady – get her decorations out of storage and prepped for setup.
The idea was so cool (thanks to Rick, our DHNA Treasurer, for thinking it up) that the Waco Tribune-Herald picked up the story. Read the whole thing here. Here’s a picture of Saturday’s October 10th crew courtesy of the one-and-only Tinker Kramer:
DHNA’s President, Scott Michael (holding Goofy), led the charge along with Robert, Skip, and Tinker.
What a great neighborhood!
Our next neighborhood cleanup will be October 24th (a Saturday). Mark your calendars, and submit a spot in the neighborhood that you think needs some tender lovin’ care.
We are not going to be doing a traditional garbage cleanup this Saturday (Oct. 10th). Instead, we are going to gather as a neighborhood and help Ms. Alice, who has also been known over the past few decades as the “Christmas lights lady.” Her thoughtful Christmas display has brought joy and comfort to many people not only in Dean Highland or even Waco but throughout Texas and the United States (her decorations have won national awards; check it out).
Ms. Alice is starting to slow down in life. This is one of two main reasons why the neighborhood association is throwing this year’s annual holiday party in Highland Baptist Church’s parking lot rather than in front of Alice’s house (the other reason is budget cuts to the City of Waco’s neighborhood grants program; we couldn’t afford the insurance to shut down Proctor Ave. without that grant).
With this being said, she is still planning on putting up many of her decorations this year, but she needs our help — that’s right neighbors, our help – to get everything out of storage. So, instead of picking up garbage in our alleyways or pocket parks or abandoned lots, we are going to meet at Ms. Alice’s house at 10am this Saturday to help her get all of her holiday decorations out of storage. We will not be helping her install or put up decorations; we will only be getting everything out of storage and putting the boxes where she instructs us to put them.
Ms. Alice has been selflessly bringing cheer to our neighborhood for a long, long time. I sincerely hope all members of the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association can show up for this one. Here’s where she lives:
Her address is 2737 Proctor Ave, Waco, TX 76708. Again I hope you all, as members of the neighborhood association, can turn up for this service project. If you can’t make it, please shoot us an email at deanhighlandwaco@gmail.com to let us know. You can walk to her house. Ride a bike. Drive. Bring the whole household. Better yet: bring a neighbor!
Alice holds a place near-and-dear to my heart because she was one of the people (along with my next door neighbor, Gloria) who inspired the “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project. She is truly a neighborhood jewel.
Here’s a selfie of me and my friend, and neighbor, Alice Tristan:
Catch you all on Saturday morning, at the Christmas lights house. The fun starts at 10am!
One of the things that most excited me about our last quarterly meeting was the fact that Dean Highlanders stood up and introduced their neighbors to some of the non-profits that they work with in their capacities as private citizens.
Valerie Fillmore (Maple Ave.) introduced us to a fundraising project that Mobilize Waco is working on right now: Cinnamon ROLL.
Check it out:
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month—a time to celebrate the contributions of disabled workers and advance access, equity, and inclusion in our communities.
At Mobilize Waco, we believe disability justice isn’t just about access—it’s about leadership, visibility, and equity. When you make a non-obligated donation, you help us:
Amplify disabled leadership
Fight for access and justice
Create a truly inclusive Waco
Get something sweet in return: Make your donation by October 1st at noon (12pm), and we’ll treat you to 6 freshly baked cinnamon rolls! Warm and gooey. Pick them up October 4th, in front of For Keeps Coffee.
Want to support without the cinnamon rolls? No problem. You can choose to not receive your cinnamon rolls below. Every gift counts toward building “a Waco that works for everyone.”
For Keeps is located at: 3619 Bosque Blvd Waco, TX 76710-5033
Got that, Dean Highlanders? If you want some delicious cinnamon rolls, donate to this fundraiser by October 1st! Here is the link one more time.
Thanks Valerie, for participating in our quarterly meetings. Of course, Valerie and her husband Cameron have already participated in the “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project. You can, too! Just shoot me a text or email and we’ll set something up.
We had a good turnout this morning, with some Dean Highlanders and some members of Baylor’s Alpha Epsilon Delta Honors Society showing up to do the hard things.
We met at Highland Baptist Church’s Wellness Center parking lot and hit the alleyway in between Maple Ave and the church from 30th Street all the way down to 27th Street:
We then jumped in our cars and hit up Zion Hill Baptist Church, Wenz Park, and Mitchell Park:
Check out all the garbage we collected:
Big shout-out goes to the one and only Dr. Jim SoRelle for bringing lemonade with him. It hit the spot perfectly. Our next conservancy initiative cleanup will be October 10th. If you’ve got an alleyway or yard or street you’d like to nominate for a service project, click here and fill out this form.
We had a rousingly successful turnout for our quarterly meeting. The neighborhood association board’s secretary, Austin Wright, took excellent notes. Read them here. Check out some pics, too:
Two Dean Highlanders, Valerie Fillmore and Melinda Leazar, also shared some information about the non-profits they are collaborating with. Both groups are so interesting that they will get their own posts here shortly, so stay tuned!
The location of the annual Holiday Party will be at Highland Baptist Church this year. Katie Wong, a DHNA board member, is heading up the planning committee and she needs all the help she can get. If you would like to help us out with the holiday party’s planning committee, shoot us an email.
Speaking of Highland Baptist Church, we will be meeting in its parking lot this Saturday, starting at 10am, for our first post-summer conservancy initiative service project.
We will be collaborating again with some upstanding youngsters from Baylor’s Alpha Epsilon Delta (AED) Honor Society, so meet us in the parking lot of Highland Baptist Church’s Wellness Center (2924 Trice Ave, Waco, TX 76707). Here is a map:
You will receive cleaning supplies, courtesy of our friends at Keep Waco Beautiful, and then we will spread out from the parking lot and hit the neighborhood with everything we’ve got. A lot of garbage has accumulated over the summer. This is a great way to meet some neighbors and do a good deed at the same time. Check out some pics from past cleanups.
Our next Quarterly Meeting is Thursday evening, at 6pm, on the 24th, at Dean Highland Elementary School (3300 Maple Ave., Waco, TX 76707). Here it is on a map:
We will be voting on where to hold the Annual Holiday Party this year. Your vote matters, so be sure to attend this meeting so that you can have your say.
The front doors of the school will probably be locked, so you will have to hang a left (if you’re facing the front doors) and follow the building to the black gate, where you will see an entrance to the cafeteria. This is where you will find us!
Our Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative will kick off its post-summer festivities with a service project on Saturday, September 26th, beginning at 10am. We will be collaborating again with some upstanding youngsters from Baylor’s Alpha Epsilon Delta (AED) Honor Society in the parking lot of Highland Baptist Church’s Wellness Center (2924 Trice Ave, Waco, TX 76707). Here is a map:
Meet us in the parking lot, where you’ll receive cleaning supplies, and then we will spread out from the parking lot and hit the neighborhood with everything we’ve got. A lot of garbage has accumulated over the summer. Apparently, trash doesn’t care about the heat! This is a great way to meet some neighbors and do a good deed at the same time. Check out some pics from past cleanups.
ETC.
Our “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project is going well. You can read more about our “Voices from Dean Highland” project here. You (yes, you!) and your story are way more interesting and important than you think, and this project is something that your loved ones will appreciate long after you’re gone. Check out some “Voices” spotlights here. Reach out to me (Brandon Christensen) when you’re ready to tell some neighborhood stories!
Our next Quarterly Meeting is Thursday evening, at 6pm, on the 24th. The new Principal for Dean Highland Elementary School will be at the meeting and is going to share some of the challenges that the school faces today. As a longtime supporter of the school, the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association is looking forward to hearing about the challenges and how we can serve.
So, Thursday, September 24th, 6pm, at Dean Highland Elementary School (3300 Maple Ave., Waco, TX 76707). Here it is on a map:
The front doors of the school will probably be locked, so you will have to hang a left (if you’re facing the front doors) and follow the building to the black gate, where you will see an entrance to the cafeteria. This is where you will find us!
Zion Hill Baptist Church will be celebrating its 145th anniversary today (September 20th), beginning at 9am, and they want to let the whole neighborhood know that we are invited to the service. I know I previously reported the wrong date. I regret the error, but it’s this Sunday. Like, service starts in two hours! Zion Hill Baptist Church is located at 2919 McKenzie Avenue, Waco TX, 76708. Here they are on a map:
This is a fantastic opportunity to get out of the house and explore your neighborhood. You will not regret switching up your Sunday morning routine for this. Check out their Facebook page.
