Monique Thomas

Executive Director

Monique Thomas is a woman uniquely driven by purpose and the calling of her faith. She has supported multi-million dollar change management and capacity-building initiatives in both the community and corporate setting. As the Executive Director for Cornerstone Corporation, she leverages her background in urban planning/policy and experience with regional systems-change efforts to fulfill Cornerstone’s mission to love the whole person by championing choice and dignity. She completed her BA at Cornell University in Government with a focus on Urban Studies and her MBA/MPH at Washington University in St. Louis. Her orientation to equity is based on John 10:10: “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

Angela Mayes

Resident Champion and Operations Manager

Angela Mayes leads our Resident Services team, which includes all our asset and property management and anti-displacement services for families at Cornerstone Corporation. She holds a Certified Apartment Leasing Professional (CALP) credential and manages our 38 units. Prior to coming to Cornerstone CDC, she successfully performed eight years of national service through AmeriCorps, where she was a reading tutor, team leader, fundraiser, and mentor. Angela adds a lived experience to her advocacy and coaching work with residents as she recently transitioned out of low-income housing and public support just six years ago, completing two bachelor's degrees in Fine Arts while supporting her family. Angela was employed with the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis as a Community Engagement Specialist, her duties included scheduling the mobile health van at community events, developing partnerships with community organizations, assisting in operation of food pantry, and fostering workshops to engage and educate residents in numerous topics ranging from healthy eating to homeownership. She also supported Mission: St. Louis as a Community Engagement Specialist and SkillUp Case Manager where she worked with ex-offenders to find stable employment, case managing women who needed supportive services, and facilitated classes on job training.

estelle nettles

Housing Empowerment Coordinator and Grants Support

After four years of serving as our Housing Empowerment AmeriCorps VISTA, Estelle has transitioned into the role of Housing Empowerment Coordinator, working under Angela Mayes, to support our housing and social services work at Cornerstone. In addition to resident services, Estelle provides backend support on grant administration and special projects that support the development and design of unique programming for Cornerstone residents to infuse a healing-centered approach to housing stability based on her lived experience.

She is a mother of two living children, a deceased son, a grandmother of 14, and a great-grandmother of three. She has extensive experience in customer service, compliance, and reporting having worked nearly 20 years in accounts receivables for a multinational communications firm. Estelle has a big heart, a willingness to learn, an open mind, and great faith in God. She is one of our resident foodies and is a resident in the West End.

ANTWOINETTE AYERS

Manager of Community Development

Antwoinette Ayers is a community development professional and proud UMSL alum with a BS in Communication. As Cornerstone CDC’s Manager of Community Development, she leads resident-driven initiatives in St. Louis’s West End and Visitation Park neighborhoods, including the weCollab Ambassador Program and Development Review Committee.

She holds Chancellor’s Certificates in Neighborhood Leadership and Economic Development from UMSL and ULI St. Louis, and is currently completing a Certificate in Data for Social Impact at Washington University. A published author and creative director, Antwoinette is dedicated to building equitable, thriving communities rooted in resident voice and inclusion.

RONDA BRADEN

Special Assistant to Executive Director | “In the Black” Project Coordinator

Ronda joins Cornerstone CDC supporting general operations and administration, as the special assistant to our Executive Director. An entrepreneur and owner of R.Braden Enterprises, Ronda brings over 30 years of operations and supply chain management in healthcare, nonprofit/church administration, and government. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Management, and Operations from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.