SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

Danielle was born and raised in the Caribbean, splitting her childhood years between the beaches of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. At the age of nine, she moved to a small town near Destin on Florida’s panhandle, where she lived for the next two decades. A high school cheerleading stunting accident resulted in a knee injury, and the subsequent multiple ACL reconstruction surgeries led to a 15-year battle with painkiller addiction during the height of the OxyContin epidemic.

Eventually, Danielle’s struggles culminated in a year-long jail sentence, which became the wake-up call she needed. In March of 2016, she moved to Asheville to begin her recovery journey. Her last drink was at a hotel bar the night she arrived in town, and she has been sober ever since. Danielle attended an intensive outpatient program for women and lived in a sober home in West Asheville. Years later, she returned to that same treatment program as an employee and played a key role in opening a new recovery residence for women. The housing program she designed has since become the foundation for six additional sober living homes across the country.

Pursuing her lifelong dream of helping others, Danielle returned to school in 2017 and earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from UNC Asheville. She is currently working toward her master’s in Addiction Counseling through Hazelden Betty Ford’s online graduate program.

Danielle discovered her passion for graphic design while creating event flyers and conference programs for a statewide recovery community committee. Her role as outreach chair heavily relied on social media outreach, sparking her interest in digital engagement. This led to a position in graphic design and social media management with Sunrise Community for Recovery and Wellness and eventually her current role as Social Media Manager for Operation Gateway. Danielle cherishes her work with both incredible nonprofits, as it allows her to connect people with life-saving local resources and programs.