“There’s just a part of my soul that always knows – it’s all going to work out.”
If there’s a single thread running through Yashika Smith’s life, it’s resilience wrapped in hope, with a bright sparkle of humor. Now stepping into her role as the new People and Culture Coordinator at The SPARC Foundation, Yashika brings not only professional expertise but a lived experience that echoes the very mission of SPARC – restoring hope, rebuilding lives, and creating space for people to thrive.
Love & Motherhood
Born and raised in Asheville, Yashika knows the city’s streets and neighborhoods like the lines of her own story. But her personal journey has been anything but straight or predictable. At 18, she walked across the graduation stage at Asheville High School nine months pregnant and unsure what the future held.
“I had already gotten my own apartment. I wasn’t even sure I was going to finish school,” she recalls. That changed when Tangela Ballard Bowman, then director of the YWCA’s MotherLove program, showed up at her door. Day after day, Tangela knocked – sometimes at 7 a.m. – and sat patiently in a lawn chair until Yashika agreed to go to school.
“I hated her for it at the time,” Yashika laughs. “But she didn’t give up on me. That’s what kept me in school. And then I started thinking about my daughter, and I knew – it wasn’t about me anymore.”
That sense of responsibility lit a fire that hasn’t gone out since.
Education & the Road to Stability
Determined to create a better future for her children, Yashika enrolled in college while raising a young family. By 2009, she had earned her Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice – graduating while parenting three children and holding down multiple jobs.
While formal education provided a foundation, Yashika never stopped learning. Over the years, she consistently sought out professional development opportunities, trainings, and certifications to grow her skills and leadership capacity. Whether working in nonprofits, city government, or corporate consulting, she viewed continuous learning as both a personal and professional responsibility.
“The more I grew, the more I realized I wanted to help create environments where others could grow, too,” she says.
Finding Strength in Surrender
Yashika’s professional journey took her across roles in social services, equity consulting, and nonprofit leadership. At the height of her career, she served as the Chief Equity Officer for the United Way of Greater Knoxville. But even as her professional life was thriving, personal hardships – including devastating loss and overwhelming grief – brought her to a breaking point.
In one of her most vulnerable moments, Yashika made the courageous decision to seek mental health care while seven months pregnant. That decision, she says, was a turning point that saved her life.
“That was the beginning of the thawing out process,” she says. “I started asking, what do I have? What’s left? And I realized—I have my kids, I have this baby I’m carrying… I just had to figure out what to do next.”
Coming Home: A City & A Soul in Recovery
In early 2025, Yashika made the life-changing decision to return to Asheville. It wasn’t just a return to familiar streets; it was a return to herself. As she worked to heal and rebuild her life, she found her hometown recovering from a storm of its own – a rare hurricane that left parts of the city battered and broken.
Coming home to Asheville after years away, Yashika noticed how the city – like her – was still piecing itself back together. “Driving through Biltmore Village didn’t even feel like Asheville anymore,” she recalled. The aftermath of Helene seemed to mirror her own personal upheaval. And returning home to help rebuild, in both visible and invisible ways, became a part of her healing too.
That sense of shared recovery gave her a renewed sense of purpose. When she saw the job posting for SPARC’s People and Culture Coordinator, it felt like yet another full-circle moment in a life full of them. Despite knowing it meant a pay cut, she didn’t hesitate.
“I knew this was the kind of place where I wouldn’t have to brace myself for harm every day,” she says. “I needed peace, and I needed to be somewhere I could breathe.”
Building a Culture of Care and Community
Now, as SPARC’s People and Culture Coordinator, Yashika is focused on building the kind of environment she once longed for during her hardest days.
“What I feel here is like a professional village. People ask me, ‘What do you need?’—and I’m not sure I’ve heard that in a very long time,” she says. “That’s the kind of culture I want to help strengthen here, where people don’t just survive their workday but feel supported in it.”
At this stage in her life, Yashika is less focused on chasing external achievements and more committed to creating spaces where people can breathe easier, feel safe, and grow at their own pace. In a culture that often glorifies burnout and constant productivity, that kind of intentional care feels quietly, powerfully revolutionary.
Resonating with SPARC’s Mission
Yashika’s story isn’t one of tidy resolutions or fairy-tale endings. It’s real, raw, and ongoing – just like the stories of so many people SPARC serves.
“I think that’s why SPARC works,” she says. “You can’t fake this kind of care. Just like you can’t fake the ingredients in a good recipe – people know when it’s real. And here, it’s real.”
Back in Asheville, with her children settled and her heart beginning to heal, Yashika is writing her next chapter – one filled with hope, purpose, and, finally, a sense of peace.
“This is what home feels like,” she says.. “And it’s exactly where I need to be.”