By Tashi McQueenAFRO Employees Writertmcqueen@afro.com
As Cherry Hill, a historic majority-Black neighborhood in Baltimore Metropolis, continues to enhance, girls like Tracey Garrett-Rogers, ZeeVelle Nottingham-Lemon and Malika Brown are main the neighborhood into the following technology of success.
Malika Brown, a lifelong resident and neighborhood organizer, serves on the boards of the Cherry Hill Group Coalition and the upcoming eightieth anniversary gala.
“Cherry Hill Houses was the primary deliberate Black neighborhood in america,” mentioned Brown, 39. “We take satisfaction in understanding our historical past to assist us propel ahead. Being the primary deliberate Black housing improvement allowed the founding households to showcase Black satisfaction. With the altering demographic, we need to maintain true to the founding households’ needs.”
These needs included guaranteeing Cherry Hill could be a neighborhood the place Black People might afford to dwell, construct generational wealth and lift households in a tight-knit neighborhood, based on Brown. The anniversary celebration honors the time of the official dedication of the neighborhood, which occurred in February 1946.
Because the neighborhood works to have a good time 80 years of historical past, present leaders are persevering with efforts to honor Cherry Hill’s previous, whereas advocating for residents and constructing a stronger future for generations to come back.
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One of the vital urgent considerations going through the neighborhood is entry to wholesome and inexpensive meals, because the neighborhood presently lacks a full-service grocery retailer.
The problem extends past Cherry Hill. A December 2025 Johns Hopkins College survey of almost 1,500 Baltimore residents discovered that 58 p.c of Black residents all through the town reported experiencing meals insecurity in 2025, up from 38 p.c in 2024 and 54 p.c in 2023.
Brown mentioned certainly one of her prime hopes for the way forward for the neighborhood is to see a full-service market open so residents can entry recent produce, meats and grains at inexpensive costs.
Garrett-Rogers, 61, lived in Cherry Hill till age 13 and later returned to function principal of Historic Cherry Hill Elementary and Center College from 2010 to 2021. After 35 years in training, she now focuses on supporting the neighborhood via the Cherry Hill Group Coalition.
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“With the Cherry Hill Group Coalition, we’re what we name the ‘umbrella group’ in the neighborhood,” mentioned Garrett-Rogers. “We carry all of the organizations and stakeholders collectively for our month-to-month conferences.”
She mentioned one of many coalition’s only gatherings is the general public security committee assembly, the place residents meet month-to-month with police, residents and accomplice organizations.
ZeeVelle Nottingham-Lemon, 39, govt director of Cherry Hill Robust and a board member, has labored in the neighborhood, serving to residents construct the group since 2021. Cherry Hill Robust organizes residents, turns concepts into motion and helps transfer the neighborhood’s plans ahead.
One main mission this yr highlights the group’s ongoing efforts: the neighborhood’s eightieth anniversary celebration.
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The Cherry Hill eightieth Anniversary Gala will happen Might 16 from 7-11 p.m. at Martin’s West, 6817 Dogwood Street, Baltimore. The black-tie occasion will have a good time the neighborhood’s historical past and spotlight its future. Proceeds will fund scholarships awarded that evening.
“It’s a image of the tides delivering Cherry Hill,” mentioned Nottingham-Lemon. “It’s a homecoming, a calling again to reinvesting and getting concerned within the transformation of Cherry Hill as is self-determined by the precise folks in and from Cherry Hill.”
The night will characteristic visitor audio system, dinner, music by DJ Eli and dancing. Tickets price $125.
