My Community: Richmond
Tell us what's happening in the city of Richmond! Maybe there's a community event planned at your child's school, or youth recreation signups are under way. Is your club recruiting new members? Have you - or someone close to you - received an honor lately? Maybe your church is looking for volunteers for a service project. Let us know by posting your news. Send us your photos too. Click here to submit your post. Please keep your post related to the actual city and not the surrounding counties.

The Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) recently honored two Virginia State University directors for excellence in their fields of expertise.  Mr. Henry DeBose, director of financial aid; and Ms. Andrea Tatum, director of alumni relations were recognized at the organization’s annual meeting in San Francisco.

DeBose received the TMCF Award for Outstanding Performance in Financial Aid Management. The award is based on criteria such as the university’s loan default rate, financial aid counseling, percentage of scholarship growth and percentage of students receiving financial aid.

Tatum received her award for Outstanding Management and Performance in Alumni Affairs, Management and Growth.  TMCF recognized Tatum for exemplary performance in the area of alumni relations.

The Thurgood Marshall College Fund provides financial assistance to students attending Historically Black Colleges and Universities throughout the United States.

We took a family adventure down to the Canal Walk for a canal cruise on Mother’s Day.  The weather was perfect and so was the ride, although crowded. It was a sold-out trip, which was both surprising and pleasing at the same time.

We learned tidbits about the history of the canal, Shockoe Bottom, Shockoe Slip, the historic Triple Crossing of train tracks, the Richmond Docks and much more.  The hour-long tour was fun for kids and adults.

Speaking of the Triple Crossing, this (admittedly inferior) photo shows two trains crossing above the canal. A great extra for our money, and we’ve found that for Canal Walk, among it’s many attractions, one of the biggest perks is the constant presence of trains and activity surrounding the area.

Parking can be tough to find, and getting there early is recommended so that you can get your space on the boat.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

Three Lynchburg College students from the Richmond area were selected for inclusion in Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges:

Melissa Mills, daughter of Roger and Debra Mills of Richmond, Christopher Rand, son of Charles and Patricia Rand of Richmond, and Danielle DiFranco, daughter of Vince Gary DiFranco of Midlothian.  Membership is based on a 2.5 grade point average or higher, community involvement and participation in co-curricular and/or extra-curricular activities. 

Mills is a senior music major; Rand is a senior English major; and DiFranco is a senior biomedical science major at Lynchburg College, a private college in central Virginia enrolling 2,400 students in the liberal arts and sciences, and professional and graduate studies.

Mental Health and Juvenile Justice:
The Need for RPS to Expand Services for Richmond’s Emotionally Disturbed Children

Dear Richmond Citizens: 
          Please plan to attend the Richmond School Board meeting on Monday 7, 2007 and let the Richmond School Board know that we need to do more for Richmond’s children who suffer from mental illnesses. 
          As we all try to comprehend the tragedy at Virginia Tech and how a student with a history of mental illness could do something so heinous, that we pause a moment to reflect on what it is we can—and must—do as policy makers to improve the well-being of Richmond’s children with mental illness.  Hopefully, together we can make some decisions that will help avert future tragedies and inspire other school divisions to do the same. . 
          Rather than rush forward with an attempt to wedge the 13 Acres and REAL School programs for children with emotional disturbances into Clarke Springs Elementary School and Henderson Middle School, I ask that we first consider some of the programmatic challenges of educating children with mental illness.  I also ask that you realize that far, far too many of our children never get the help they need.  The statistics—both nationally and locally—are staggering and shameful. 
Once we have reviewed this material, I hope that you will join me in asking Dr. Sherman and her administration not only to place both 13 Acres and REAL School in the Maymont Elementary building where the programs can expand, but also to request that they develop a plan for treating our children once they reach high school students with emotional disturbances.  As of today, no comprehensive program exists for children beyond middle school and I know we can all agree that far too many of our children are winding up incarcerated or dead.  I thank you for your time and consideration of this request.       

Virginia Asian Chamber of Commerce’s Gateway Asia 2007 – A Celebration of Asian Heritage Month . The event will be held at Gallery5 in Jackson Ward, Richmond, VA

Virginia Asian Chamber of Commerce (VACC)  partners with Gallery and US-China People’s Friendship Association to bring the entire Asian performers, lecturers, and volunteers to come and help put together a program tailored to Asian history month celebrated annually during May.  The Chamber designed a unique cultural and social/business development education program which combines not only history, and arts but which incorporates almost all aspects of life, that are specifically tailored to Asian traditions and Asian Americans’ strong economic contributions to US society.  The well received program design incorporates the ideas to bring lectures in:  1. Eastern medicines 2. Health and exercise, 3. Asian architecture from India, Korea, and Japan 4. Economic development growth, 5. History of immigration 6. Various regional performances in conjunction with the arts (which are all handled by Gallery5), 7.  Direct conversations with local Asian community members and friends of VACC, 8. History and religious freedom in South East Asia, to the month long program.

Attention NASCAR fans! On Wednesday, May 2, you will have the chance to hang out with NASCAR Nextel Cup Driver Jamie McMurray, as he and IRWIN Tools search Richmond for their Ultimate Tradesman. The Ultimate Tradesman Challenge brings together race fans and power tool enthusiasts alike to the Pleasants Hardware located at 2024 W. Broad Street in Richmond from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Competitors who measure, mark and drill a piece of wood the fastest will have the chance to advance to the regional, then the national competition, for the chance to win $1.26 million, a barbecue in their own backyard with Jamie and his pit crew, and also a 2007 Ford F-150 Truck. Come by Pleasants Hardware on May 2 to see if you can beat Jamie McMurray’s own time of 33 seconds!
To compete, simply visit the Pleasants Hardware at 2024 W. Broad Street in Richmond to register. Then, show up next Wednesday, may 2, to get your chance to win.
Winners of the Richmond competition will receive the following prizes: tickets to their local race (happening that same weekend at Richmond International Raceway) and IRWIN apparel and merchandise. 
Those advance to the Regional challenge and who win will receive a $10,000 cash prize, race tickets, an IRWIN racing jacket and an IRWIN tool bag filled with professional grade product.
For more information, please visit the official web site at http://www.irwinchallenge.com. Or, contact Ira Gleser of IRWIN Tools at
704-987-4498, .

Good luck!

Richmond residents with disabilities speak to city council Monday, April 23 @ 6:00 pm to extend CARE paratransit services into Henrico during their extended hours of service (6:30 am-11:30 pm 7 days/week beginning May 1). People with disabilities needs everyone to be visual and show support at this meeting. Whether you use CARE or not or live in the city or not or are disabled or not.

People with disabilities especially need to show a united front.
There is a petition going around for Richmond residents to sign. Contact Linda Broady-Myers @lgbroady@prodigy.net, 371-3661 ext. 0, 643-7107.

I revisited the site today, and I’m more impressed now that before. See previous blog comments and today’s Times-Dispatch article.

I will post a full slideshow for our Statue Tours page tomorrow, but I wanted to include this tidbit for readers. (Sunday update: Here is the slideshow)

There were flowers and a lighted candle at the base of the statue when we visted this morning. During the 20 minutes we were there, maybe 10 people came by. The cascading fountain behind the statue in this photo carries this inscription:

Liverpool, England
The Benin Region of West Africa
Richmond, Virginia

During the 18th Century, these three places reflected on of the well-known triangles in the trade of enslaved Africans.

Men, women and children were captured in West and Central Africa and transported from Benin and other countries. They were chained, herded, loaded on ships built in England and transported through the unspeakable horrors of the Middle Passage.

They were imported and exported in Richmond, Virginia and sold in other American cities. Their forced labor laid the economic foundation of this nation.

Richmond’s history is stained by the human trafficking that made it, America and other nations prosperous. A 15-foot-tall bronze “Reconciliation” statue by Liverpool, England, artist Stephen Broadbent, will be dedicated today to acknowledge this painful past and to symbolize forgiveness. See this morning’s article

I went by the scene this afternoon and there is a lot of activity with everything getting set up. That block of 15th Street is closed for the dedication, and the stage is positioned for people to stand and sit on 15th. There was a children’s choir practicing and Franklin Military cadets preparing their procession. The statue was covered with a purple velvet cloth, but from what I could see, there is an accompanying fountain with a flat wood bridge and the statue itself is surrounded by three large wood blocks for benches. ‘Reconciliation’ looks like a more than worthy addition to Richmond’s huge number of statues and landmarks.

Stay with TimesDispatch.com this afternoon for more coverage of the event, including photos. Expect more on the Statue Tours page of DiscoverRichmond.com soon.

DAY OF RECONCILIATION
• When: 4 p.m. today
• Where: 15th and East Main streets
• Program: Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, Mayor L. Douglas Wilder, ambassadors from eight African nations and special guests from Liverpool.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

I recently completed a photo tour of the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k for the March 31 event. After just a few short years in existence, it has become a Richmond tradition and has set a record with almost 25,000 registered to participate.

As a side benefit to working on this project, I completed something that I’ve gotten requests for from readers: a driving tour of Monument Avenue‘s statues. A fun time, and I hope that locals and vistors to Richmond alike can get some use out of it. Monument Avenue is usually one of the first places people suggest as a must-see for anyone that is new to Richmond.
Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

The search is underway for Miss Teen DC International 2007.  Applications are being accepted for the title of Miss Teen DC International 2007 and young ladies who live or go to school in Richmond are eligible to compete.  The competition will be held April 28 in Ft. Washington, MD.
This is a great opportunity for young ladies between the ages of 13 to 18 who are involved in their communities and want to make a difference to participate in a pageant that is designed just for them.  This pageant showcases the physical, intellectual and social accomplishments of young women in the DC Metropolitan area.  Previous pageant experience is not required, and there is no talent or swimsuit competition.
You could be the next Miss Teen DC International Queen!!!  Enter today and start living your dream.

Young ladies who want further information or who want to apply should visit http://www.dcteenpageant.com, contact the pageant director at ,  or call 301-257-2334.

Have you ever taken the time to see Arthur Ashe‘s statue on Monument Avenue up close? I’ll bet not many people have seen it from as close as this image, taken today from the base of the monument.

There was plenty of controversy over this statue when it was proposed and after it was placed at Monument and Roseneath avenues back in Jully 1996. Questions like: Should it be on Monument Avenue with all the Confederate heroes? Should there be more design options? Is the base too big for the statue? Is he about to hit the kids with the books and the racquet?

Personally, I don’t think it is the best statue in Richmond. I’ve taken the time to look at many of the best, and Ashe’s statue is a few notches below. That’s no slight to Mr. Ashe, who was and still is a hero to so many people worldwide. The message in the statue is a good one, and true to his legacy. It is a shame that his “home” tennis courts at Battery Park have had such a bad time in the past year, but at least he’s kept a smile over on Monument Avenue.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

This might come off like a shameless plug, but I feel the need to get this out. If you live in Richmond, someday you should treat yourself to a Sunday brunch (or any meal) at the Tobacco Company in Shockoe Slip. The food is great, but the atmosphere is even more “Richmond.“ I’m partial to the classic elevator and the open-air balconies on the second and third floors with the skylight above.

For the record, I had a Tobacco Company fritata (big spicy southwest omlette) and loved it. My kids and our out-of-town family guests did too.  Fun times. If you go and you have the time, hit some of the attractions in Shockoe Slip or a couple of blocks over on Canal Walk.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

I work downtown and enjoy getting out of the office now and then for a walk around the city. Brown’s Island has always been a quick and fun destination. Most days there will be some activity, whether it is construction at the Federal Reserve building, trains heading across the trestle on the island, people walking around Canal Walk and the island’s pathways or just looking at the James River itself.

The ‘Headman’ statue on Brown’s Island sees all of that activity on a daily basis year-round. All the summer festivals, adventure games, big storms, all of it. Since the first time I noticed the boatman, I always take a second to see how he’s doing.

When I was doing the research for the “What’s This?“ feature I do for DiscoverRichmond.com, I found out that the original fiberglass version of ‘Headman’ was stolen and vandalized. I was new to Richmond when this happened back in 1989, and missed this shameful news. The current bronze statue was dedicated in 1993 and has patrolled Brown’s Island since. I think Richmond does a great job of making wonderful little places like this for people to see the diverse history of this old town. It’s one of the things that makes me proud to live and work here.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

President’s Day (Feb. 19) at the Children’s Museum of Richmond. Packed with parents and kids! A fun time for everybody. This picture of museum-goers was taken at the always popular James River WaterPlay.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

Yeah, it’s cold outside and the days are still pretty short, but biking is still on my mind.  I finally got a chance to finish a new four-part photo tour through the James River Park System’s North Bank Park between the Boulevard Bridge and Belle Isle.  I shot the photos back in December when it was warmer and I had some extra time off.  Many sections of the North Trail are a little more than a year old, and are constantly being maintained by some of the best trail-builders around from Richmond M.O.R.E. Check the website for more information, or see CyclingCentralVA.org and read some of the excellent posts on area trails, including North Trail. If you want to help build and maintain trails, they could use the extra help.

If you don’t know, the trail loop that makes up the James River trail system (including North Trail, Belle Isle, the Buttermilk Trail in the Main Section of the JRPS and Forest Hill Park) has a huge following among the local biking scene. The majority of my off-road mountain biking experience has come in just the past year. Richmond is lucky to have the James River running through our great city (or does the river make Richmond great?). These trails are becoming a huge attraction for out-of-town riders and professional athletes, thus we get events like the Xterra East Championships and Capital One Adventure Games.

Read more about those events and the history of the parks on our James River page, and get ready for spring!

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

We do a Discover Richmond quiz every two weeks.  This week’s quiz, which we posted today, includes a question about Benedictine High School, which has been in the news this week as the private school announced plans to move to Goochland County.

Funny thing for me is that I created the questions for the quiz last week.  Just a coincidence that a school that was founded in 1911 and has been at the same location for all that time decides to move the same week that I ask a question about it in a quiz, right?

For the record, I lived two blocks from Benedictine in the mid-90s, and I can’t imagine how the traditions of the school could continue if it left the city. Neither can the multitudes that responded to this development in our Goochland blog. I’m a big fan of the excellent nearby restaurant Chiocca’s, and so are many of the Benedictine alum.  What would happen to Chiocca’s if Benedictine disappeared?  What would happen to St. Gertrude’s? That just ain’t right.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

The fifth grade class of St. Christopher’s School raked leaves and performed other chores to earn money for the Fifth Grade Gift.  This year, the students have generously contributed their earnings to the St. John’s Church Foundation to assist in the creation of an educational DVD and television program, and help “history come alive for future students.“  Burks Echols, fifth grade teacher at St. Christopher’s stated, “the boys take great pride in their gift, and their interest in history has certainly been spurred by participating in this project.“

The St. John’s Foundation has partnered with the Community Idea Stations to produce “Liberty or Death,“ an educational DVD and television program that will document the events in Virginia leading up to the American Revolution and include a performance of the reenactment of the Second Virginia Convention featuring Patrick Henry’s “Give me liberty or give me death” speech.

The program will be broadcast Monday, March 26 at 9pm, and Thursday, March 29 at 9pm on WCVE Richmond PBS and WHTJ Charlottesville PBS.  The Community Idea Stations are currently working to secure a national broadcast on PBS stations across the country.  This project will benefit students and adults in Virginia and across the nation, as well as raise awareness right here in the Greater Richmond area.  For more information contact Kay Peninger, St. John’s Church Foundation Executive Director at 649-0263, .

Hello!  My name is Joan Hodges, and I am a teacher in Henrico County.  This summer, I will help manage a cultural student exchange of 15 French and 15 Spanish students plus their three adult chaperones.  I am seeking families interested in hosting a student,  ages 13-17, or their chaperone for three weeks beginning July 2.  Please contact me if you are interested at , or call 804-346-0797 in the evening.  The sponsoring organization website is http://www.compass-usa.net.  Thanks for your time and for reading the post.  Warmest Regards, Joan

Anybody with children will tell you, this time of year is tough to get the kids good and worn out.  Cold weather makes it tough to be outside for long, and staying in the house for hours on end can get boring for everyone. To help combat this, my family visited Maymont Sunday.

Due to the cold, we limited our outside time to the Children’s Farm (the ever-hungry goats got the most of our attention) and walked from there to the Nature Center.  The kids had fun, the animals at the farm looked happy to see us and several other families and it was another great Maymont visit.  We loved the turtles and fish in the aquariums and had a blast with many of the center’s educational displays on the James River (see photo). The usually-spunky otters at the Nature Center were napping, but learned that they might have been tired from all the extra attention Saturday from the With Love From Your Significant Otter event, held by the Dooley Noted Society.

Phil Riggan
DiscoverRichmond.com

In Sunday’s Real Estate, staff writer Carol Hazard wrote:

A group of residents in north Church Hill wants to curb the number of old and historic buildings from being bulldozed. It also wants to control development. The group is seeking an old and historic designation from Richmond to protect the historic charm of an eight-block area there.

The area—from North 21st Street to the alley east of North 29th Street bounded by Jefferson Avenue and N Street to East Broad and Marshall streets—involves about 500 properties.