Story By : Matt Majewski: Housing Co-editor
Photos by Mariah Hokit
Ever since moving to Grand Junction, Colorado in 1980, David Combs has seen the rise of an ever-growing city. Combs went from working in the oil and gas field, to becoming one of Grand Junction’s most influential figures due to his social work. Today, he is the president of the Black Friends and Citizens Organization (BFCO), along with working closely with School District 51.
Combs grew up in a big family which included seven other siblings. He was born in Indiana, but moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota at a young age.
“I went to a high school where my older brothers didn’t graduate. I had decided I would only go there so I can say I played football there. I didn’t see the importance of education until I saw my brothers not graduate,” Combs said.
High school went well for Combs, and he planned to graduate, join the workforce, and start a family. However, Combs’ high school football coach advised him to play college football. Despite being a first generation student, Combs followed the advice, and played football at the University of South Dakota.
After graduating, Combs acted on a tip from a college friend to move out west to work in the oil field. When looking back at Grand Junction at that time, Combs described that the city was dependent on the oil field. He also stated he had struggles finding a home because he is African American.
Combs would work grueling hours in the oil field. He decided to pursue a career with his degree after a year in the job. It was at this point where Combs began his career in social work.
“I got involved in human services and worked at a place called the Bryson House,” Combs said. “It was a transitional group home in the Department of Human Services Mesa County. [We help] kids who are in transition, either going into a halfway house living scenario, or coming back from the halfway house scenario and then integrating them back into their family. That started me on my journey of community involvement.”
Combs played a major part in co-founding the Black Citizens and Friends Organization (BCFO) in 1983, and today Combs is the president of the organization. The organization would hold one Martin Luther King (MLK) celebration per year in the starting years.
The organization’s MLK day turned into a week and continues today. BCFO now also organizes a black history month celebration, one day a week, in February, in addition to a Juneteenth celebration.
“With the events that we’ve been doing the last few years, the amount of people that are showing up and actively participating in the events continues to grow. It seems to me that awareness is starting to spread throughout the community,” Director of Equity and Inclusion for Mesa County Valley School District 51 Tracy Gallegos said.
Once BCFO started to grow, Combs started to work with many different groups and organizations in Grand Junction. Currently, he works with the Clifton Community Outreach and is the Clifton Community Hall President. He also works with the Committee of Local Trauma, and the Riverside Task Force, which is a group that aims to better serve the Latin American community in Grand Junction.
After Combs had made a name for himself in Grand Junction, he decided to run for a spot on the Mesa County Valley School District 51 in 2022. Combs was seeking to fulfill the District E seat, formerly held by Dr. Amy Davis. Angela Lema won the election, defeating Combs.
“I was really a novice. I’ve never run for political office. The school board is an anti- political position. I didn’t know that even though it was an anti-political position, it was political as all get out,” Combs said.
Despite losing the District 51 election Combs and the BCFO still works closely with the district to help serve minority students.
“We recognize [BFCO] as a community partner within the school district. [Combs] comes to the schools and he’ll do presentations for the students, or he’ll come to events, or come to meetings with the staff. He will provide us with some insight, some guidance and recommendations on things we can do to get better at serving our black students and our black families,” Gallegos said.
Combs is very excited about the progress of Grand Junction. He states the city is not only growing in size, but is becoming a more welcoming, diverse city. When asked to predict what it would look like in the future, Combs stated that the city would become more of a metropolitan area. His reasoning for this was that Grand Junction is the biggest city between Denver and Salt Lake.
When asked to compare Grand Junction from 1980 to now, Combs told a story.
“Back in 1980, my wife and I would meet people. My wife would tell people that she is an occupational therapist at the regional center. Then, they would automatically turn to me and ask me what position I played on the college football team. They didn’t realize that just because you’re black, doesn’t mean you’re an athlete. Now, today, this is a beautiful vibrant city and I tell people all the time, this is the perfect place to raise a family,” Combs said.
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