At Grassroots, we are committed to a brighter future for children, neighbors, and communities. We consider a healthy neighborhood to be one that is safe, clean, and diverse; one in which it makes economic sense for people to invest and one where neighbors manage change successfully.

Grassroots began 25 years ago when four businessmen and one pastor gathered over breakfast and lunch to discuss ways they could make a positive impact on their community. They began studying various community development models across the country until they came across one from Atlanta, GA, that they felt could be successfully replicated in Waco. After more than a year of gathering and planning, they established Waco Community Development Corporation (now known as Grassroots Community Development).

The foundational focus of Waco Community Development Corporation was to bring neighbors together into healthy, mixed-income communities by promoting and supporting homeownership. The founders chose to begin this work by focusing in the Brook Oaks and Sanger Heights neighborhoods in North Waco, which at the time had over 200 vacant lots within them and a homeownership rate of 38%. We began building and remodeling homes in these two neighborhoods, offering financial literacy and homebuyer education classes, and providing a housing counselor who walked with community members through the home-buying process.

Over time, the organization has come to understand that cultivating healthy neighborhoods is more than just building attractive and affordable homes. For the past 19 years, Grassroots has implemented community organizing efforts to work with community members in neighborhood associations, schools, businesses, and places of worship. The organizing efforts began in these same two North Waco neighborhoods back in 2007, but over the years, have expanded to also include East Waco in 2011 and South Waco in 2018.

Our team at Grassroots aims to bring neighbors together to work towards community-driven change. Nearly 20 years after its founding, Grassroots has built over 65 new homes and assisted over 335 families in becoming homeowners, while providing financial literacy education to almost 2,500 individuals. Building intentional and authentic relationships with neighbors is at the heart of what Grassroots does. Over the past 5 years, we have worked closely with 7 schools across 6 neighborhoods to facilitate 14 leadership development training sessions and support over 50 community-led projects in neighborhoods and schools.

At this Rooted dinner, we invite you to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Grassroots. We are grateful for the impact we have achieved alongside the Waco community. Over the last 25 years, we have seen lives changed, generations transformed, and communities in charge of their future. We invite you to lean in during our Rooted dinner, tune in to the work we have been supporting over the last 25 years, and dream big with us for the next 25 years!

Rooted: Celebrating 25 Years of Grassroots!