Danielle Battle

Danielle Battle moved from the Midwest to Baltimore for college. She met and married Michael, who had been born and raised in the city’s Cherry Hill neighborhood – a community long marginalized due to systemic racism. They settled there, determined to support and uplift the small community. They started with a prayer walk. Thirty people showed up.

The couple kept at it, and the turnout eventually grew to over 650 as they organized more walks and festivals with games, pony rides, and hotdogs.  Battle says cooking hotdogs is what helped her create a bond with her adopted community because “food is love.” Soon neighbors were sharing their hopes and needs with her.

Battle is an educator who has been supporting students and families from underserved communities for more than two decades. Yet her greatest passion is Cherry Hill. She and her husband started responding to the needs they heard, for after-school programs, adult job training, and more community events. They began the nonprofit RICH - Restoring Inner City Hope, INC to connect more Baltimore residents to resources and experiences that build individual, family, and community strength through a range of youth and adult programs.

Battle’s work has been recognized locally and nationally, including with an Aspen Institute 2021 Weaver Award and a fellowship at The Johns Hopkins Social Innovation Lab. She earned a certificate in Social Impact Strategy from the University of Pennsylvania and was a speaker with David Brooks at the 2022 Aspen Ideas Festival.