Rickell Howard Smith is helping the YWCA of Greater Cincinnati return to its roots: housing.
In May, she opened a new regional shelter in Avondale for survivors fleeing from domestic violence − a major milestone for the 157-year-old organization and one of the many reasons Smith was named as one of The Enquirer’s 2025 Women of the Year.
Complete with full-scale apartments or “havens” as staff calls them, a medical center and a state-of-the-art playground, the building is more than a temporary shelter. It’s a calming, bright place that’s safe and secure for people experiencing one of the scariest yet most courageous transitions of their lives.
It’s also a place that Smith, a child survivor of domestic violence, once needed herself.
“This probably is one of the proudest moments of my entire career, that I was put in a position to do this project, something so critical for the community,” she said. “But more than anything else, I got to build something that the smaller version of me wanted.”
The shelter, known as the Francie Garber Pepper House of Healing, was crafted on the principles of trauma-informed design − spacious and warm with an emphasis natural light and privacy. So it’s also equally as healing for YWCA staff, Smith explained.
“This building makes a huge difference through their eyes,” she said. “They really ‘own’ it and know that they’re now in a better position to serve.”
The shelter comes nearly a century after the regional YWCA opened its first-ever development, an affordable housing tower for women on Walnut Street where its offices are now located. Decades later, the YWCA hosts a transitional housing program and continues to expand services in underserved rural areas.
Smith wants the organization to be part of the solution to address the region’s affordable housing crisis, too, so people coming out of shelters have a permanent place to call their next home.
To do that, it will take strategic thinking and making connections, two skills Smith has grown throughout her career as a lawyer and advocate for civil rights, justice and fairness − particularly on behalf of children and families. From her early days as a Legal Aid attorney working on eviction and housing discrimination cases to eventually serving as a prison litigator and a director at the Children’s Law Center, Smith has always tackled systemic issues.
“One thing I figured out about myself early on is that I am meant and built to be a person to address the hard stuff,” she said. “I’ve never really gravitated toward solving the easy problem.”
According to Jackie Reau, Smith’s Women of the Year nominator and CEO of Game Day Communications, Smith is “building a legacy of systems change” through her work.
“Her long-term vision is to make Greater Cincinnati a place where women and families are safe, economically empowered, and represented in leadership,” she added. “Rickell’s impact spans the structural and the deeply human.”
About the honoree
Birthplace: Mount AuburnCurrent residence: RoselawnFamily: Kenyatta, Justin and Camille Education: Walnut Hills High School, Howard University, B.B.A., Temple University, J.D.Occupation: President and CEO of the YWCA of Greater Cincinnati
What she says
What inspires you to give back?I know that my purpose is to make people, places and things better than I found them. My passion and desire is to help people to improve their position in life. Now, I try to do that in ways that actually leverages my skill set.
What need in the community would you like to see addressed?Two things come to mind for me: The first is affordable housing. This is Cincinnati. This is supposed to be a place where you can have the American dream. The other piece is support for children. Our young people in this city are an asset and we’re just not leveraging them in the way that we could. The more we include young people at the table when decisions are going to be made, the more ownership they take. This is their city just as much as it’s ours.
Who most influenced or inspired you to care about others?I come from a long line of women that just took care of their communities. For example, my grandmother, from as far back as I can remember, always had people living in her home because they were unhoused. She would open up her doors as a temporary place so people could get on their feet. This was embedded in who I am.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: YWCA’s Rickell Howard Smith on creating housing for healing and hope
Reporting by Sydney Franklin, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
