The 2026 Tom Nees Award for Exceptional Service honors Monique Diop for her leadership, advocacy, and deep commitment to Community of Hope’s mission and to Ward 8’s Bellevue neighborhood, which she has called home since 2014.
Monique arrived in Ward 8 during a transitional season of her life — newly relocated to an affordable home, and soon after, unemployed. Community of Hope’s workforce development program at the Conway Health and Resource Center first brought her through our doors. What she found there became something much bigger than a job program: a community.
Over the years that followed, Monique came to know Community of Hope in nearly every way a person can — as a patient, a participant, an advocate, and eventually, a board member. Each role deepened her understanding of what it means to serve with love, dignity, and genuine care. “I have appreciated seeing how Community of Hope addresses immediate needs while also investing in the long-term health and stability of families,” she says, pointing to programs like the Family Success Center and HONEY as proof of that philosophy in action.
Her board service was her first time serving on one — and she felt it. “The other members understood that I had a learning curve,” she remembers, “and created space for me and other community members to have our voices heard.” That welcome stayed with her, and it shaped how she now thinks about what thoughtful, community-centered service should look like.
As an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner, the organization invited her to help plan a back-to-school event with the DC Public Library. It was a crash course in the unglamorous mechanics of community-building — permitting, street closures, coordinating with MPD, neighborhood outreach — but more than that, it taught her what’s possible when organizations and government partners work together.
During COVID-19 Monique’s Advisory Neighborhood Commission lost its meeting space, Community of Hope opened its doors. Our team set up chairs, and kept the building open, lights on, until 9:00 at night so neighbors could still gather and be heard. “They did not have to do that,” Monique says simply.
Night of Hope holds a special place for her too — not just as an event, but as a values and approach. “Those moments remind us that community members should not simply be the subjects of our work,” she reflects. “They should be heard, celebrated, and included in shaping it.”
That same conviction runs through Monique’s career. As Director of Community Affairs for the Office of the Chairman of the DC Council, she spends her days listening to residents, untangling complicated systems, and connecting people to the help they need. “I try to approach every interaction with curiosity, honesty, and compassion,” she says. “Even when I cannot provide the exact outcome someone wants, I can make sure that person feels heard.”
Of all the roles she’s held, advocate is the one describes her most clearly. She wants every newcomer to Ward 8 to understand something she knows deeply: this community is not defined by its challenges, but by its history, culture, and the people who show up for one another daily.
It’s a philosophy she returns to again and again, in her own words: “Meet people where they are, but don’t leave them there.” Through her service, her honesty, and her steadfast belief in her neighbors, Monique Diop has left an indelible mark on Community of Hope — and on Ward 8 itself. As she puts it: “Once you become part of a community of hope, that hope doesn’t stop.”
