A legacy of building needed housing in Arizona
Diana “Dede” Yazzie Devine has helped thousands of people in metro Phoenix find behavioral health support, housing, work training and childcare.
The CEO of Native American Connections has worked with the nonprofit for over 40 years and is one of Arizona’s most respected advocates for people who need substance abuse help, affordable homes, jobs and other support.
Under her leadership, Native American Connections developed 1,000 affordable Phoenix residences and opened 23 Valley projects that provide aid and social services, including, most recently, HomeBase Surprise, a shelter for young people experiencing homelessness.
The housing advocate is retiring this year.
Devine is one of USA TODAY’s Women of the Year, a recognition of women who have made a significant impact in their communities and across the country. The program launched in 2022 as a continuation of Women of the Century, which commemorated the 100th anniversary of women gaining the right to vote.
Meet last year’s honorees at womenoftheyear.usatoday.com. This year’s list will be out later this month.
Devine, humble and hardworking, gives other housing and behavioral advocates much credit for teaching her how to get projects done.
Native American Connections touches about 10,000 people a year, according to the organization’s estimates. The nonprofit was launched when it became clear Native Americans were moving to the Phoenix area for jobs but found themselves alone, homeless and struggling, Devine said.
“There may not be a more impactful community leader in Arizona than Dede,” said U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton, who served as mayor of Phoenix before being elected to Congress and worked with Devine on multiple projects, including the Phoenix Indian School Visitor Center. “She’s smart and empathic and listens to what people need. No one has changed as many minds about affordable housing more than her in Arizona.”
Building houses people can afford
Devine Legacy on Central, apartments with a playground and community center, was the state’s first LEED-certified affordable housing development. LEED, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a rating system of the U.S. Green Building Council that assesses a building’s efficiency and sustainability.
The apartment complex is located along the Valley’s light rail line and is a prime example of transitoriented development.
Native American Connections opened the community during the Great Recession when it also was able to buy parcels that helped it build housing and health centers before land prices soared.
James Lawrence and Arlinda Whidehat live in an affordable three-bedroom downtown Phoenix apartment with their two children and a teenage relative. It’s one of a few Native American Connections complexes in the area. The couple’s monthly rent costs about 30% of their income, which is considered a healthy standard for affordability.
“We feel very lucky,” said Lawrence, who is a recovery support specialist at a care facility. “It was difficult to find an affordable apartment in a decent location when we moved here in 2020, but now it’s so much harder.”
Hard talks for housing
Talking to neighbors fighting Native American Connections projects, Devine said, is one of the toughest parts of her job, particularly as the not-in-my-backyard attitude has become more common in recent years.
The community leader, who has run the Boston Marathon three times and started doing Ironman races when she was 60, is practiced at working through neighborhood concerns.
“My mom taught me compassion, and my dad was a football coach who taught me discipline,” said Devine. “When things get hard, stick to your values and work through the problem.”
Devine said she learned from Arizona housing advocates including Gloria Munoz, Darlene Newsome and Sheila Harris.
Munoz recently retired as executive director of the Housing Authority of Maricopa County, and Darlene Newsom retired from leading UMOM New Day Centers a few years ago. Harris is the founding director of the Arizona Department of Housing. All three housing leaders continue to tackle Arizona’s housing crisis.
Native American Connections opened a 70-bed family wellness center in 2016 anchored by a sweat lodge. It’s a project dear to Devine’s heart, and she said neighbors embraced it after meetings and talks to help them understand it.
A sweat lodge represents Mother Earth’s womb and is part of a Native American purification and healing ceremony for the mind, body and soul. The smell of smoke from the fire and the sound of drumming and songs draw people to the lodge.
“Native American people guided me on alcohol and drug recovery with traditions that have been around for thousands of years,” Devine said. “You have to heal the family and keep them together during abuse recovery.”
Building relationships and preserving heritage
Devine’s tireless work was also crucial in transforming the Phoenix Indian School Visitor Center. The 1931 building was once part of a government-run boarding school, open from 1891 to 1990. Native American students were forced from their homes on reservations to attend.
Devine helped bring former Indian School students together to design the visitor center and fill it with memorabilia. The center has become a place for Native Americans from many tribes to come together.
“The visitor center happened because Dede pulled together communities from throughout the state and alumni from the school,” said Terry Benelli, executive director of the Phoenix office of Local Initiatives Support Corp., also called LISC Phoenix. Benelli’s organization worked with Native American Connections on the visitor center. “She always gets an important job done.”
Coping with COVID and adversity
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Native American Connections kept all its facilities open, provided several thousand free meals and went to reservations with vaccines months before they were widely available. Reservations had
some of the highest infection rates of COVID-19. The group worked with Native Health of Phoenix to get vaccines as early as December 2020.
“There’s courage around empathy, listening to someone’s story, working with people who know more than you and learning from what they know as you let them take the lead,” said Devine, who plans to spend more time with her children and grandchildren.
Her impact on Arizona and the hundreds of thousands of people Native American Connections has helped will long be felt. Thank you, Dede.