Born and raised in West Baltimore, Joni Holifield devoted her life to giving back. Growing up with a 21217 zip code, Joni hated the state of Baltimore and the negativity from the drugs, violence, and death.

Joni decided to create a non-profit after learning about the killing of Freddie Gray while she was in the Bahamas. She hit a wall of frustration after seeing people tear down their own communities during the riots that ensued. Joni decided that she wanted the youth in the city to see that there is more to life than violence, drugs, and poverty. She knew the youth lacked access to mentors.

She founded the non-profit, HeartSmiles, in April 2015, and was willing to move back in with her mother just to make HeartSmiles happen.

Jada, a current Heartbeat, said that "Joni walked every block of Pennsylvania, North Avenue, Mondawmin, down to as far as she could, and connected with every parent she could find." Joni had a strong boots-on-the-ground work ethic. Instead of complaining about the state of Baltimore, she put in the effort and hard work it took to see those changes. What the world needs is more people like Joni, people who take initiative, people who care, and, most of all, people who are willing to trade their own comfort for a cause bigger than themselves.

Jada Johnson, who became a Heartbeat before COVID at the Johns Hopkins building, and her fellow Heartbeats spoke about social and emotional wellness and awareness. Joni introduced the Heartbeats to mayoral candidates and worked on numerous projects, such as the Granny Project, created through a partnership between HeartSmiles and the Johns Hopkins Center, a mission to end adolescent food insecurity. 

Joni always made sure the Heartbeats weren’t just doing busywork while trying to keep them occupied, and she also kept kids involved in their own communities. The Granny project was recognized by Johns Hopkins and was awarded the Henrietta Lacks Award. Jada also talked about how Joni showed the Heartbeats that there is so much more to the world and that their lives could go far beyond Baltimore if that was the path they chose.

Joni took the Heartbeats more than 4,000 miles away from Baltimore to Hawaii. Jada talked about how grateful she was, as she had never been outside Baltimore City before her trip to Hawaii. Jada is a prime example of how Joni would do whatever it took to find a way for a Heartbeat. Joni called just about every Baltimore City public school to find out if Jada had graduated; it was acts like these that showed how much Joni cared.

Getting the chance to hear about Jada’s relationship with Joni spoke volumes about how the right amount of support can help just about any kid see the endless opportunities the world has to offer, and that’s what Joni did for every kid that ended up in her care.

The Baltimore Times was lucky enough to also interview Joni’s aunt, Ganita Wallace, who was there for Joni through HeartSmiles and throughout Joni’s entire life. Ganita saw many different stages of Joni’s life— observing that Joni was always quiet and she always listened, to seeing her become someone who was outspoken and stood firmly by what she believed in. More importantly, her aunt saw how Joni’s passion for helping kids brought out a new side of her, which made her want to stand up for these kids when no one else would.

Ganita went on to say that the only reason they could keep HeartSmiles going was because of their great leader, Joni. Ganita said explicitly, “Visions don’t die with good leaders,” and that was the perfect way to describe Joni’s legacy.

Getting the chance to interview so many Heartbeats just showed how strong Joni was and how enduring her legacy will be. Just about every Heartbeat interviewed mentioned that Joni always reminded them, “If you are blessed, it’s important to bless someone else with what you have.” Ganita even went so far as to say that, even when Joni was on her deathbed, she still had the same devotion and strength, and she mentioned that Joni never complained, no matter how hard it was for her.

Before Joni became aware of what her future would bring, she told everyone that regardless of whether she was here or not, they must keep HeartSmiles going, because Joni never felt that HeartSmiles was about her. HeartSmiles is about making sacrifices and giving back however you can, and based on what every Heartbeat said, that’s exactly how Joni wanted it. Joni passed away this June from ovarian cancer.

Lastly, The Baltimore Times would like to thank everyone who was willing to share a little about who Joni was to them and how she impacted everyone around her. In just a couple of hours and a couple of interviews, The Baltimore Times got just a glimpse of how Joni poured into everything and everyone around her.

There were so many emotions, and all of them were so honest that one would feel as if they knew Joni as well.

Overall, Joni built a family on sacrifice, support, and hard work, as seen in how the Heartbeats keep her legacy alive by maintaining her leadership and supporting each other and anyone who needs it.