Dean Highland Neighborhood Association

Tag: Voices from Dean Highland

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Mark & Melinda Leazar

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Allow me to introduce the Leazars, Mark & Melinda, from Herring Avenue. Mark grew up in the Dean Highland neighborhood, just a few houses down from where he currently resides, and has a wealth of knowledge and memories from Dean Highland as a child and now as an adult with accumulated wisdom.

    Melinda came to Dean Highland via a lengthy and adventurous stay in Los Angeles (where she became a big fan of UCLA) before blessing us with her time and efforts here in the neighborhood.

    Mark sat down with me twice, on June 13 and July 13, 2026, and Melinda sat down with me on July 12, 2026. I am grateful to both of them for their time and their thoughtfulness regarding the Dean Highland neighborhood. They have been good to us.

    Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give the Leazars a hearty greeting if you see them out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or raucous quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate or fellowship with them, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    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 other “Voices” spotlights here.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Jessica Shelby

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Please allow me to introduce Jessica Shelby, who resides on Homan Avenue.

    Jessica is a proud Dean Highland Dragon and has lived a beautiful life — filled with adventures and a love of history – in many parts of Texas and beyond. As you can see, she’s a big Star Wars fan.

    Jessica contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on July 11, 2026.

    Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Jessica a hearty greeting if you see her out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or raucous quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate or fellowship with her, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    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 other “Voices” spotlights here.

    The project is going well. In addition to capturing neighborhood stories from residents, I have started to make inroads with people who have worked in the neighborhood at some of our most important institutions: Hillcrest Hospital, Zion Hill Baptist Church, Waco Police Department, and Highland Baptist Church.

    Currently, I am collaborating with the good, God-fearing folks at Zion Hill, who are celebrating their 145th anniversary this year. Please, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email or text, and lets get your neighborhood stories told and archived for the generations to come.

    Thanks Jessica!!!

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Michael Long

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    Allow me to introduce you to Michael Long, who comes to us from Fadal Avenue. He and his lovely wife, Edith, sat down with me on May 19th, 2026, although only Michael actually did the interview. Michael was a radio DJ for many years and is currently a filmmaker and podcast host. You can check out his podcast here.

    Michael has been interested in UFOs since his first sighting at the age of 12 in Ellisville, Mississippi. On the same date as Charles Hickson and Calvin Parker’s abduction in Pascagoula, Michael witnessed a huge orange ball float across his property about 90 miles from the coast headed north to south toward the gulf coast and Pascagoula. Since then he has had sightings concurrently about every two years. In 1975 he and a friend observed a huge silver ball hovering over them and moving against the wind. He has witnessed saucer shapes, balls of light, and even a small fleet of unidentified objects.

    Michael was definitely a cool addition to Dean Highland’s oral history project.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Michael a hearty greeting if you see him out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate with Michael, or simply fellowship with him, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    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 kids and grandkids and other loved ones will appreciate long after you’re gone.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Rosy Bautista-Ramos

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    Amid all the hustle and bustle of our Conservancy Initiative (which is kicking butt; catch you at our next service project on Aug. 8th?), our fight for Hillcrest Park, and the ins and outs of all our personal lives, is the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association’s ongoing oral history project: “Voices from Dean Highland.”

    If you haven’t done so yet, please reach out to me (brandon.l.christensen@gmail.com or 530-748-7566[text first!]) to set up an appointment and we’ll get your story added to the neighborhood collection. The more lives we can add to the collection, the cooler our neighborhood will become.

    At any rate, meet Rosy Bautista-Ramos:

    Rosy has been in the neighborhood for decades and has raised two great kids in Dean Highland. In fact, one of her kids was my go-to babysitter before she went off to college in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

    Rosy currently serves at Highland Baptist Church and does an amazing job serving the Spanish-speaking community of Dean Highland and Waco.

    She sat down with me on May 11, 2026. Please, reach out to me so we can add your story to the fabric of our neighborhood.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Jim SoRelle

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Please allow me to introduce Dr. James “Jim” SoRelle, a now-retired historian who worked at Baylor for several decades. He and his wife have also lived in Dean Highland for several decades, and are currently residing on Maple Avenue.

    Jim actually grew up in Dean Highland, and while he hasn’t stayed here his entire life, his memories of this neighborhood are absolute treasures. He continues, even in retirement, to be an active member of the DHNA and is a regular at our conservancy initiative cleanups.

    His heart is his greatest asset to the Dean Highland neighborhood, and we have been lucky to have Jim and his family as neighbors for so long. The SoRelles have given and given (and given) to Wacoans for a long time, and it’s always been done humbly, gracefully, and with a grateful heart. His efforts for our conservancy initiative reflect this “attitude of gratitude” time and again.

    Dr SoRelle contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on September 14, 2024. Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Jim a hearty greeting if you see him out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or raucous quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate or fellowship with him, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    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 kids and grandkids and other loved ones will appreciate long after you’re gone. Check out some other “Voices” spotlights here.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Linda Hampton

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    Allow me to introduce you to Linda Hampton, a longtime homeowner on Alexander Avenue for decades, but also somebody who has spent many of those decades in other countries doing missionary work.

    Linda was one of the first people to give me a call after I started taping flyers about the Voices from Dean Highland oral history project onto doors, and for that I owe her a sincere gratitude of debt for her efforts and trust. If you find a flyer about the Voices from Dean Highland oral history project taped to your door, it was me! You can just zap the QR code that’s on the flyer and it will take you here.

    Linda contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on March 29, 2026. Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Linda a hearty greeting if you see her out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate with Linda, or simply fellowship with her, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    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 kids and grandkids and other loved ones will appreciate long after you’re gone.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Mr. Reynaldo “Rey” Moralez, Jr.

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Our “Voices from Dean Highland” is starting to explode in popularity. I recently had the great pleasure of sitting down with none other than the founder-owner of the Quesadilla Factory food truck franchise!

    Rey was a good sport, and his story is an inspiring faith-based one.

    Rey just recently put his house up on the market, and contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on March 2, 2026. Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Rey a hearty “goodbye greeting” if you see him out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate with Rey, or simply say goodbye to him, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started. You (yes, you!) are way more interesting than you think.

    You can read more about our “Voices from Dean Highland” project here.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Mr. Henry Sewell

    I first met Henry at one of our infamously enjoyable quarterly meetings held at Dean Highland Elementary School. Henry has lived in Dean Highland for 30 years, and he’s witnessed a lot of changes.

    Henry contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on September 14, 2024. Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Henry a hearty greeting if you see him out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate with Henry, or simply fellowship with him, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    You can read more about our “Voices from Dean Highland” project here.

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Mr. Will Morris, Jr.

    Dear Dean Highlanders,

    Meet Mr. Wilbert “Will” A. Morris, Jr., a resident of Dean Highland for 70 years. You read that right: 70 years. He spent a few years in Dallas dancing his nights away, but for the most part of seven decades he has lived in his Summer Avenue residence.

    Will remembers all of the grocery stores that were in the neighborhood. Did you know that the building which houses the Metro Phone store and the Advocacy Center was once for a grocery shop? There were more grocery shops, too, in the northeast corner of the neighborhood. It’s hard to imagine a world without a massive H-E-B in it, but Will lived in such a world, and was able to us all about it.

    Will’s memory is so incredible that this spotlight would be a book-length expository of knowledge and memories if I tried to summarize everything he knows about Dean Highland. Thankfully, the Institute for Oral History at Baylor University is doing the difficult work for us!

    Will is an active and flourishing member of several civil society groups, including Catholic and Bohemian (Czech) charities.

    Will contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on February 27th. Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Will a hearty greeting if you see him out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate with Will, or simply fellowship with him, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    You can read more about our “Voices from Dean Highland” project here.

  • Fundraiser Friday

    Hello Dean Highlanders,

    Wow, what a week. What a couple of weeks!

    We’ve been serving others through our bi-monthly Mitchell Park cleanup. We’ve been advocating like crazy for our vision of Hillcrest Park. On the fellowshipping front, our oral history project (in partnership with Baylor’s Institute for Oral History) has supplemented the best neighborhood holiday party that’s thrown in Waco.

    There’s no doubt about it: the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association has kicked its tempo up a notch. I hope y’all like it.

    In order to keep this tempo up, we need your financial support as well as your physical and spiritual support. We won’t be paying ourselves a salary with your donations. We’ll be using it to assert a bit more independence from the City of Waco’s amazing grants program. We’ll be using it to further enhance our ongoing projects. We’ll be using it to launch the Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative. That’s it.

    Can you donate to the cause this Friday? If so, here’s our Venmo account. Just click on it to get started. There should be a spot for you to tell us why you’re donating this Friday. Are you giving because you support our ongoing history projects? Or perhaps you want to donate to the war chest we will need to fight for every acre of Hillcrest Park? Are you giving to the flyers and equipment that we utilize to lovingly and humbly serve our neighbors?

    Please, we need all the financial support we can get. (If you have any questions about taxes and donations to the neighborhood association, please shoot us an email at deanhighlandwaco@gmail.com.)

    Thanks, and enjoy your weekends…