by Nick Laughter | Oct 14, 2025
I am a proud Latina, passionate about youth empowerment and mental wellness. Representation matters to me. I strive to be a relatable role model who shows young Latina girls they are seen, heard, and capable of achieving anything.
“They tried to bury us, but we bloom louder, prouder, and brighter for ourselves and for every girl watching.”
Yarkenda Payne-Diallo is a political strategist and bridge-builder serving as the Director of Justice for Black Coloradans. She designs solutions to confront systemic harm, dismantle inequities, and build pathways for Black communities to thrive across Colorado.
Rooted in education, asset-based community development, and strategic policy design, Yarkenda’s work bridges lived experience with bold vision. She has led initiatives in affordable housing, preventive health care, food sovereignty, and youth leadership through a lens of racial and economic justice. She challenges the status quo across nonprofit, public, and philanthropic spaces and advances community-centered power.
Yarkenda believes Black liberation must be built intentionally through policy and that true justice demands communities shape the systems meant to serve them.
My work is rooted in personal experience, community-led change, and a commitment to mentorship that empowers young women to see themselves as powerful and capable. At CHIC to build resources that advance healing, education, and economic mobility for women and girls of color.
“If you’re going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can’t be erased” Maya Angelou
At CHIC, I create intentional spaces that empower women and young ladies in education, workforce, re-entry, and community work. I combine compassion with strategy to drive lasting change. From managing operations and coordinating events to building relationships and ensuring every detail aligns with CHIC’s mission, my role is about turning vision into impact and making sure women and young ladies feel supported every step of the way.
“A woman is the full circle. Within her is the power to create, nurture, and transform.” – Diane Mariechild
I am dedicated to empowering Black and Brown youth, drawing from my own experiences as a young girl who once felt unseen and unworthy. As a mother and dance instructor my world revolves around nurturing and uplifting youth, making this work a full-circle moment for me. My role at CHIC is more than just a job, it's a calling fueled by passion and purpose.
"When you learn, teach. When you get, give”. - Maya Angelou
I have always had a passion for mentorship and community work. That passion was born from having amazing black women in my life that provided me mentorship through the difficult times of my life. My hope is to give back to young people what others poured into me. I never wanted to be a leader but I answered the call anyway.
"In everything that you do, strive to do it so well that no man living, no man dead, and no man yet to be born can do it better." B. Mays
Through my own challenges, I’ve learned that life is always working for us, not against us. This truth allows me to walk alongside the young women of CHIC with compassion and relatability while also holding them accountable to their goals and dreams. My role is to encourage victory by helping youth move beyond false identities and embrace their true power, even in the face of setbacks. Service to my community is not just my calling; it is the posture of my heart, and I strive to live it daily by creating safe, loving spaces where growth and transformation can flourish.
“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
I am a proud Latina, passionate about youth empowerment and mental wellness. Representation matters to me. I strive to be a relatable role model who shows young Latina girls they are seen, heard, and capable of achieving anything.
"They tried to bury us, but we bloom louder, prouder, and brighter for ourselves and for every girl watching.”
I am deeply passionate about youth, sisterhood, and community empowerment, and have spent over 18 years intentionally showing up as the person I once needed. Through CHIC, I create safe spaces for girls and women to heal, grow, and embrace their magic. My mission is simple: Be Present. Be Mindful. Spread Love.
“I come as one, but I stand as ten thousand.” - Maya Angelou
I honor the legacy of the Black women who lifted and supported me by creating opportunities through CHIC where every woman and girl can rise with love, faith and determination. My commitment is rooted in believing Black women and girls can carry every dream, break every barrier and shine in every space. Our superpower is not what we do, it is WHO WE ARE.
“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.” — Audre Lorde
Our duties naturally emerge from such fundamental relations as our families, neighborhood, workplaces, our state or nation. Make it your regular habit to consider your roles-parent, child, neighbor, citizen, leader -and the natural duties that arise from them. Once you know who you are and to whom you are linked, you will know what to do.” (Epictetus)
I credit this core philosophy when leading and serving others. My roles, past experiences, relationships with others and connection to my community, are the leading factors to my innate responsibility to do the work I do.
“To start something is to change everything”
– Sadé Cooper
