Important News about D4A's Future

Kaji Reyes and Whitney Maxey

From Kaji Reyes, Executive Director:

I want to thank you for being part of Durham For All and helping shape and create our political home. I love Durham For All. It’s been my community and my political home for almost seven years—first as a member, then as a member leader, as a board member, as board chair, and finally as Executive Director since 2020. 

While Durham For All will continue to be my political home, I have decided to transition out of my role as Executive Director, effective September 15 and pursue a new opportunity consulting with Durham For All and other progressive movement organizations.

Since the beginning, I’ve always been proud that Durham For All successfully fights for significant change in people’s daily lives—electing our candidates, shaping City policy, and meeting people’s material needs. During my seven years here, I am particularly proud of the successes and wins we’ve had together:

  • We’ve worked with over 60 member leaders and trained over 2,000 volunteers.
  • We’ve elected leaders who are committed to sharing decision making power. 
  • W’eve elected people who are committed to transforming the justice system.
  • We’ve passed the largest housing bond in North Carolina history – $95 million! 
  • Over the years we have been able to increase our fundraising efforts by 40%!

Most of all, I’m proud of all of us who have become leaders through this work, and figured out what each of our individual contributions could be. Growing alongside other members in this organization has taught me how to be a better leader, and also how to follow with pride. 

Durham For All will continue to do this amazing work as we move into the midterm elections. And I’m excited to remain involved as a consultant, primarily to support the organization’s fundraising efforts. While my role is changing, my commitment to the work and to this political home remains strong.

As I’ve pondered this transition, it’s become clear that Durham For All has an outstanding leader already on staff who is perfectly positioned to take over executive management. Whitney Maxey, our current Program Director, will become the new Executive Director immediately upon my departure. Her strategic thinking, ability to move ideas to completion, and deep passion for justice in Durham makes her the ideal person to lead Durham For All through this election cycle and into the future. I’m thrilled she is stepping into this role and I look forward to supporting her leadership as the organization moves forward.

I’m leaving my role as Executive Director deeply grateful and thoroughly transformed by my experiences working with you and our other members—the triumphs we’ve shared and the challenges we’ve overcome as we’ve worked together for a Durham that is truly for all. We’re an organization where you don’t wait until it’s all figured out before getting involved but a place where there is an opportunity to step up and lead, to create something new that benefits everyone. The thing that makes Durham For All so special is the basic hope that by working together, we have the power to change Durham for the better. That hope keeps me going, and it’s the same hope that makes me excited for Durham For All’s future. 

Kaji Reyes
September 1st, 2022

From Whitney Maxey, Incoming Executive Director:

I am honored and humbled to be the next Executive Director (ED) of Durham For All, and I want to thank the board for trusting me with leadership of our remarkable organization.   

I also want to thank Kaji for his outstanding leadership over the past seven years and wish him the best as he transitions out of the ED position. He has played such an important role in Durham For All, and I know he will be missed. His ability to organize people, invest in developing D4A as a political home,  and—above all—intense commitment to relationship and community-building, have inspired me greatly.

As we move into this transition, I echo Kaji’s commitment: Durham For All will keep doing what we’ve been doing —preparing for a critical election, promoting our candidates, developing our leaders, and fostering the sense of political home that is so important to all of us. Additionally, we will strive to reach new heights for the sake of building a Durham where all can thrive. Our fundraising remains strong, and Kaji’s ongoing support on that front will play an important role in moving forward. 

Over the next few months and into 2023, I am excited about building Durham For All’s relationships with other organizational allies and partners, both for our electoral work and for city and county issue-based campaigns on issues like housing, economy, and public education. We are particularly excited about joint work with allies on local government budgets in order to uplift key left progressive priorities that have a tangible impact on the lives of Durhamites. Furthermore, we look forward to expanding on our base building work, the methods and pipelines to develop our leaders, and constructing a multiracial cross class movement with people power that can achieve gains beyond our wildest dreams.

Durham For All’s work will broaden and deepen. Thank you for your leadership and support. We look forward to standing shoulder to shoulder with you as we build power in the streets, in the halls of power, and at the ballot box! 

Whitney Maxey
September 1st, 2022