Richmond Free Press June 18-20, 2020 edition

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VOL. 29 NO. 26

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

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JUNE 18-20, 2020

Booted out

Former Chief Smith

After days of protests and videos of police tear-gassing and pepper-spraying peaceful crowds, Richmond Police Chief Will Smith was asked to resign Tuesday

by Mayor Levar M. Stoney

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

A year ago, new Richmond Police Chief Will Smith was extolled as the best thing since sliced bread when it came to leading 754 sworn officers in the fight against crime.

Mayor Levar M. Stoney, in promoting the then-interim chief to the top job, described the Richmond native as a “thoughtful, detail-oriented, accountable, compassionate and fair” person who had the right stuff to lead the department “and serve our community with a spirit of inclusivity and equity.”

But all that ended Tuesday.

Amid an unprecedented upheaval involving nearly non-stop protests against police brutality and racial injustice, Mayor Stoney on Tuesday dumped Chief Smith like a moldy loaf of bread, referring to him as a roadblock to the progress and reforms in public safety the city needs.

At a hastily called afternoon news conference, Mayor Stoney announced the dismissal of Chief Smith, who has spent 25 years with the department, and the Interim Chief appointment of his chief of staff, Maj. Blackwell William “Jody” Blackwell, as his immediate replacement as a search for a new chief is conducted.

While noting the 52-year-old Richmond native was a “good man” who served the city with grace, Mayor Stoney said Chief Smith no longer met his “high expectations for the Richmond Police Department.”

“At a minimum, I expect (the RPD) to be willing to come around the table with the community to reform and re-imagine public safety,” said the mayor, who is facing a tough re-election campaign this fall against four challengers.

The interim chief, a Marine Corps veteran, also has risen Please turn to A4

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Tavares Floyd of Richmond, council liaison for City Councilwoman Ellen Robertson, speaks at the 5000 Man March last Saturday at the Lee statue about the racial inequities in Richmond and throughout the nation, as well as the “bad apples” within police departments. His cousin, George Floyd, was killed May 25 by a Minnesota police officer, who has since been charged with second degree murder and second degree manslaughter.

Juneteenth being recognized as state, city holiday

By George Copeland Jr.

On June 19, Virginia will see the first steps of a new celebration for the Commonwealth.

Juneteenth, which celebrates the day in 1865 when enslaved black people in Galveston, Texas, learned of the Union victory in the Civil War and their freedom, will be a paid state holiday this week for executive branch offices, Gov. Ralph S. Northam announced Tuesday, with plans to make it official statewide next year.

“We are changing what we honor

LGBT activists see hard work ahead despite U.S. Supreme Court victory Free Press wire report

NEW YORK LGBT rights activists are elated by a major U.S. Supreme Court victory on job discrimination, and hope the decision will spur action against other biases faced by their community despite Trump administration efforts to slow or reverse advances.

In most states, it remains legal to discriminate against gay and transgender people in housing and public accommodations, leading activists noted.

And they decried continuing violence and discrimination directed at transgender Americans, notably trans women of color.

The Trump administration

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Hundreds of demonstrators march in support of Black Lives Matter and Richmond’s LGBTQ+ community on June 12, the four-year anniversary of the deadly Pulse nightclub rampage in Orlando, Fla., where 49 people were killed.

has sharply restricted military service by transgender people and last week formally over-

The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering free community testing for COVID-19.

Testing will be held from 9 to 11 a.m. at the following locations: Location

Address

Thursday, June 18

Tuckahoe Middle School

9000 Three Chopt Road, in Western Henrico

Tuesday, June 23

Southwood Management Properties

1400 Southwood Parkway in South Side

In case of rain, testing will take place at Second Baptist Church of South Richmond, 3300 Broad Rock Blvd.

Thursday, June 25

Please turn to A4

Courtesy Governor’s office

Virginia Beach native Pharrell Williams notes that black lives “are finally being acknowledged” in part by the Juneteenth state holiday announced Tuesday.

RPS to review relationship with Richmond Police, consider reopening options Gibson, 3rd District, said at Monday night’s board meeting.

Two Richmond School Board She was supported by board members urged the administration member James “Scott” Barlow, 2nd to dissolve the school system’s relaDistrict. tionship with the Richmond Police And during the 2½-hour public Department, eliminating the school comment portion of the meeting, an resource officers who patrol the city’s overwhelming number of parents, high schools, middle schools and students and teachers demanded that Mr. Kamras alternative school.

RPS’ relationship with Richmond Richmond Public Schools “needs to end the Police be severed.

Memorandum of Understanding with the police School systems across the country have been department and use more money for mental Please turn to A4 health in schools,” School Board member Kenya

By Ronald E. Carrington

COVID-19 testing

DATE

in Virginia,” the governor said a news conference, where he was joined by singer-songwriter-producer Pharrell Williams, a Virginia Beach native, and many of the ranking African-American state lawmakers.

“It’s time we elevate Juneteenth …,” he said. “It finally shut the door on the enslavement of African-American people. And while it did not end racism, black oppression or violence, it is an important symbol. By commemorating it, we push people to think about its

Eastern Henrico Recreation Center

1440 N. Laburnum Ave. in Eastern Henrico

Appointments for testing are encouraged by calling the Richmond and Henrico COVID-19 Hotline at (804) 205-3501 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Walk-up testing will be offered while test supplies last.

On Wednesday, the state Health Department reported a total of 55,775 positive cases of COVID-19 in Virginia, with 1,583 deaths and 5,692 hospitalizations. AfricanAmericans comprised 18.7 percent of the positive cases and 23.2 percent of deaths where racial and ethnic data is available, while Latinos made up 45.3 percent of the cases and 10.8 percent of the deaths.

turned Obama-era protections for transgender people against sex discrimination in health care. And there are pending lawsuits over transgender participation in school events.

“This is a landmark victory for legal equality, but unfortunately we have a lot of work still to do,” Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBT-rights organization, said of the high court’s ruling on Monday.

The Supreme Court decided 6-3 that the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964 — by prohibiting workplace sex discrimination — protects gay, lesbian and transgender people from discrimination in employment. The opinion was written by Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of President Trump’s two appointees to the court.

Even with the high court ruling, Mr. David said there’s a pressing need for enactment of the federal Equality Act, passed by the U.S. House of Representatives last year but stalled in the U.S. Senate. It would extend to all 50 states the Please turn to A4

Young people advocate for bigger goals and lasting change

By George Copeland Jr.

Downtown echoed with the sound of cheers last Saturday as more than a hundred young people and their families gathered for the RVA Youth Rally at the Maggie L. Walker statue and shared their ideas for building a better future.

Organized by Makayla White, 13, a student

at Elkhardt-Thompson Middle School, and Stephanie Younger, 18, a leader with RISE For Youth, the rally featured a mix of song, dance and collective strategizing.

Poetry and performance stood alongside speeches stressing the importance of sustaining Please turn to A4

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Nelson Foster, 4, participates at the RVA Youth Rally last Saturday with his grandmother, Rita Flowers. The rally drew young people and families to the statue of Maggie L. Walker at Broad and Adams streets in Downtown.

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June 18-20, 2020

Richmond Free Press

Local News

VSU facing possible $26M deficit, enrollment drop

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Virginia State University has become a prime example of the financial hits historically black colleges and universities are taking because of the coronavirus The 138-year-old institution is heading into the fall semester facing a potential 10 percent drop in enrollment, big losses in dorm and cafeteria revenue because fewer students will be allowed on campus and a potential $26 million operating deficit, according to information provided June 12 to the VSU Board of Visitors.

VSU President Makola M. Abdullah told the board, led by Huron F. Winstead of Richmond, that VSU is likely to have to dip into its $21 million reserve fund to cover some of the deficit, particularly payments on debt on residence buildings, and to make other hard decisions to balance spending and revenue.

Sagging enrollment has been a continuing unresolved challenge.

According to Kevin Davenport, VSU’s vice president of finance, the 2020-21 budget that goes into effect July 1 is built on a potential enrollment of about 3,900 undergraduate and graduate students, or nearly 440 students fewer than the 4,365 students enrolled last fall.

If that proves true, VSU would be facing its smallest enrollment in about 25 years.

The school’s enrollment peaked in 2012 with about 6,200 undergraduate and graduate students and has remained in the range of 4,300 to 4,600 students in recent years.

Enrollment has not grown since the arrival of Dr. Abdullah in 2016, state data show.

Dr. Abdullah Dr. Abdullah told the board that freshmen enrollment seems likely to grow a little this year and that enrollment could actually prove to be more stable than projected.

However, Dr. Zoe Spencer, who serves on the board as the representative of the VSU Faculty Senate, expressed skepticism.

She noted at the meeting that the school plans to charge students who take classes remotely the same tuition as those who will participate in face-to-face classes. She expressed concern that some students would object to that approach and go elsewhere.

Currently, VSU plans to limit the number of students living on campus in the fall to 1,740, or about 1,100 fewer than the 2,840 who did so last fall. That would substantially reduce revenue from room rentals and meals sales, Mr. Davenport noted, and still leave VSU to pay $9 million to cover the annual repayment of debt on residence buildings.

At the same time, VSU also is facing increased costs to provide online classes. The board was told that VSU is investing $9 million in technology to provide a robust distance learning experience for students taking remote classes.

Dr. Abdullah told the board the financial picture is extremely fluid, with too many uncertainties because of COVID-19. Take the residence situation, he said. “We could come back in two weeks and legitimately say no students would be allowed on campus. Or we could come back and legitimately say many more students could be on campus.”

Dr. Abdullah noted the university has identified potential cuts to reduce the deficit by up to $10 million and limit the damage.

That includes imposing a freeze on purchasing and hiring.

Mr. Davenport also noted that the university has received about $10 million in federal CARES Act funding and identified other resources, but said VSU is trying to find savings to avoid quickly using up that mostly one-time money.

However, Dr. Spencer warned the university could make it harder to recover if VSU sought to fill the budget gap by replacing full-time faculty with part-time adjunct professors who are paid far less.

She noted that educational quality could suffer and lead to questions from the school’s accrediting agency, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

VSU was facing financial challenges before the pandemic.

The board was told at its May meeting that VSU would need to come up with money to repay the National Institute of Food and Agriculture for mismanaged grants. By some estimates, the school could be required to repay between $6 million and $8 million.

The board was told that VSU had not identified where the money to pay NIFA would come from, but as Mr. Davenport put it at the time, it should not come from students in the form of increased tuition.

SCC bans most utility cutoffs until Aug. 31 Virginians who have fallen far behind in paying their electric bills have gained a two-month reprieve from disconnections.

The State Corporation Commission has ordered service disconnections halted until Monday, Aug. 31, continuing the ban on disconnections that has been in place since March 16. The order also bans imposition of late payment fees.

Aug. 31 was chosen to give the governor and the General Assembly, which is to meet in special session in August, time to consider policies related to the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on customers.

The SCC’s June 12 order also impacts private companies that provide water, sewer and natural gas service, though not municipally owned operations like the Richmond Department of Public Utilities.

Dominion Energy, the state’s largest electricity provider, had sought SCC permission to suspend disconnections through Oct. 14. The utility has not disconnected any electrical service since mid-March.

Dominion Energy also is urging people who are behind to call and is offering an extended repayment plan to allow customers to stretch out payment of arrears over 12 months.

In addition, the company is increasing its EnergyShare grants to low-income households from $900 to $1,200 annually for cooling and heating.

Meanwhile, utility disconnections also remain on hold in Richmond for customers who have fallen behind in paying water, sewer, natural gas and refuse collection bills.

Rhonda Johnson, spokeswoman for the City of Richmond Department of Public Utilities, said suspension of disconnections would remain in force until the city and state lift their emergency order for the coronavirus.

Ms. Johnson noted that DPU had scheduled court proceedings related to utility service disconnections prior to the March 12 declaration of emergency.

However, she stated that DPU would not actively enforce any court judgments or pursue wage or bank garnishments to cover unpaid bills while the state of emergency is in place. — JEREMY M. LAZARUS

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Legendary Henrico County educator VirginRoad School and went on to become the first ia Randolph made a difference during a career Jeanes teacher in the United States, working that spanned more than 50 years starting in the to upgrade vocational training programs for late 1890s and touched the lives of countless Slices of life and scenes black students at 23 schools. She started the students and teachers alike. Today, her likeness first in-service training for black teachers in Richmond stands with other Virginia women celebrated and pushed hands-on training and community in “Voices from the Garden: The Virginia Women’s Monu- self-help programs. She also launched the first school-based ment” in Capitol Square. A new General Assembly building is Arbor Day program in Virginia and was influential in servgoing up behind her. Ms. Randolph is credited with upgrad- ing on state commissions on industrial education and public ing education for black children in then-segregated public health. Her legacy lives on through the Southern Education schools in Henrico County and influencing the teaching of Foundation, in the Henrico school that is named for her and black children across the South and in Africa with the Henrico in the Virginia Randolph Foundation that awards scholarships Plan she wrote. In 1892, Ms. Randolph opened the Mountain to high school students in the county.

Cityscape

City voter registrar to host June 22 ‘Drive Up, Drop Off!’ Early voting in Richmond is jumping in popularity ahead of the Tuesday, June 23, party primary, and city Voter Registrar Kirk Showalter is taking an extra step to ensure mail-in ballots get counted.

Ms. Showalter announced that her office will sponsor a “Drive Up, Drop Off!” program to collect absentee ballots outside the 9th Street entrance to City Hall from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday, June 22.

The purpose: To make sure the ballots are in and available to be counted, she said.

Ballots that are mailed must arrive by the close of the polls on Election Day,

Tuesday, June 23. With mail delays, Ms. Showalter said, some ballots might not arrive in time.

“As of June 10, our office has issued 6,713 absentee ballots through the mail for the Democrat primary,” she stated. “I don’t think we’ve ever done that volume except in a presidential primary. I want to make sure those who get mail ballots can be assured their votes will be in our hands and get counted.”

The primary to win the Democratic Party’s nomination for the 4th District congressional seat features a contest between incumbent U.S. Rep. A. Don-

ald McEachin and challenger R. Cazel Levine, who touts her background as a mother, lifetime member of the Girl Scouts and a former 30-year federal employee.

There also is a Republican primary to choose a candidate to run against Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner, who is seeking his third term in the November election.

Three GOP candidates are running: Army Lt. Col. Daniel Gade, Army reservist Tom Speciale and Nottoway County teacher Alissa Baldwin. – JEREMY M. LAZARUS

40 candidates throwing hat in ring for City Council, School Board seats

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Here are the candidates who have filed so far:

Contests are shaping up in Richmond for seven City Council seats and six School Board seats.

But the list of 40 candidates who already have filed paperwork could grow, thanks to a June 9 Richmond Circuit Court ruling.

That decision extended the filing deadline for candidates from Tuesday, June 9, to next Tuesday, June 23, the same date as for mayoral candidates.

Richmond Circuit Court Judge Beverly W. Snukals ordered the extension to enable people blocked by the pandemic to file as candidates for office in the city’s nine districts. The ruling also reduced from 125 to 50 the number of valid signatures of registered voters within the district required on petitions for candidates running for City Council or the School Board.

Attorney Charles H. Schmidt Jr. brought the case on behalf of Richmond For All, Virginia Justice Democrats and the Richmond Crusade for Voters.

Crusade officials said the organization was surprised to find itself a plaintiff and is now asking, after the fact, for its name to be removed from the case.

Mr. Schmidt apparently also represented two candidates in the suit, incumbent 3rd District School Board member Kenya Gibson, and 6th District council candidate Allan-Charles Chipman, who is challenging incumbent Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson.

Voter Registrar Kirk Showalter said it could be the first week of July before the Richmond Electoral Board can meet to certify candidates for the ballot.

City Council 1st District: Incumbent Andreas D. Addison; challengers, Michael Gray and Michael Dickinson.

2nd District: Open seat (incumbent Kim B. Gray is running for mayor); candidates, Katherine Jordan and Tavarris Spinks.

3rd District: Open seat (incumbent Chris A. Hilbert stepping down); candidates, Willie Hilliard, Ann-Frances Lambert, John Smith and Elaine Summerfield.

4th District: Incumbent Kristen N. Larson (no challenger) 5th District: Incumbent Stephanie A. Lynch; challengers, Nicholas DaSilva, Jer’Mykeal McCoy and Mamie Taylor.

6th District: Incumbent Ellen F. Robertson; challenger, Allan CharlesChipman.

7th District: Incumbent Cynthia I. Newbille; challenger, Joseph Rogers.

8th District: Incumbent Reva M. Trammell; challengers, Regie Ford and Amy Wentz.

9th District: Incumbent Dr. Michael J. Jones (no challenger) School Board 1st District: Incumbent Elizabeth Doerr (no challenger) 2nd District: Incumbent, J. Scott Barlow; challenger, Mariah White.

3rd District: Incumbent, Kenya Gibson; challenger, Sabrina Gross.

4th District: Incumbent Jonathan Young; challenger, Deanna Fierro.

5th District: Open seat (incumbent Patrick Sapini stepping down); candidates, Jennifer Aghomo, David F. Jones and Stephanie Rizzi.

6th District: Open seat (incumbent Felicia Cosby stepping down); candidates, Shonda Muhammad, Lynette Plummer, Timika S. Vincent and Deon Wright.

7th District: Incumbent Cheryl Burke (no challenger) 8th District: Incumbent Dawn C. Page; challenger, Dana Sally Allen.

9th District: Incumbent Linda Owen (no challenger)

GRTC to offer free rides through June 2021

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

GRTC, which eliminated fares in March, will continue free rides on the Pulse bus rapid transit system, regular buses and CARE vans through at least June 30, 2021. For now, riders still will be required to wear face coverings.

The decision was included in the transit company’s $72.8 million operating budget the GRTC board of directors approved Tuesday for the 2020-21 fiscal year that begins July 1.

Julie Timm, GRTC’s chief executive officer, told the board that GRTC expects to be able cover the loss of fare revenue using about $29.7 million in federal CARES Act funding for increased costs due to the coronavirus.

The company already is using $3.6 million in CARES Act and state relief funds to fill a budget hole in the current 2019-20 budget that will end June 30.

It is unclear whether the newly approved 2020-21 budget incorporates possible salary hikes for bus drivers. The Amalgamated Transit Union and GRTC are set to negoti-

ate a new, three-year contract. The current contract expires in October.

The board has authorized Ms. Timm to award by July 4 a bonus of $750 to $1,000 to bus operators based on hours worked and to provide CARE van drivers, GRTC mechanics and other front line staff bonuses of $300 to $700.

Separately, Ms. Timm projected that Ms. Timm GRTC would receive about $10 million .from the new Central Virginia Transit Authority in fiscal year 2020-21. That funding, reduced from a projected $25 million, would come from an increase in the state tax on pumped fuel that is to go into effect July 1 and a nearly 1 percent increase in the state sales tax effective Oct. 1. The state sales tax will go from 5.3 percent to 6 percent.

Ms. Timm said that money would be kept in a reserve fund and not spent in the next fiscal year. GRTC also plans to create a $3.6 million reserve fund to meet future

pandemic-related expenses during the next fiscal year.

In other matters, the board: • Approved spending $541,000 to replace a Pulse bus set on fire and destroyed by protesters on May 29 during the first protests in the city over the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

• Approved a contract worth $145,973 with Ace Glass of Chesterfield County to retrofit buses and other equipment with specialty Plexiglas barriers to provide more protection for drivers against COVID-19 and other germs.

Ten bus operators have tested positive for the virus since April, but no new infections have been detected since GRTC started testing at its headquarters last week.

The retrofit project, which the board was told is taking longer than previously announced, now is expected to be completed by early August. Engineering requirements and difficulty in obtaining materials delayed the project, the board was told. GRTC has stated that 32 buses in the fleet of 119 have such shields. Shields also are to be placed in the 88 CARE vans, GRTC officials said.

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June 18-20, 2020

A4 June 18-20, 2020

Richmond Free Press

News

After days of protests and videos of police tear-gassing and pepper-spraying peaceful crowds, Richmond Police Chief Will Smith was asked to resign Tuesday by Mayor Levar M. Stoney Continued from A1

through the ranks during the past 23 years, previously managing the internal affairs department that investigates complaints against officers. Chief Blackwell also has commanded the Fourth Precinct on Chamberlayne Avenue in North Side.

“Interim Chief Blackwell is willing and able to focus on necessary public safety reform, healing and trust building within the community,” the mayor said.

Along with some policy changes, Mayor Stoney promised to work with City Council to develop a community-supported review board.

Mayor Stoney also announced he would create a 20-member task force to re-imagine and recommend changes to “build toward equity and justice. Using a restorative justice Mayor Stoney framework, we can re-imagine public safety to create a truly safer city for all.”

Ironically, just a few hours after the change, a crowd of about 250 protesters went to the Miller & Rhodes building in Downtown where the mayor lives and chanted his name outside one of the entrances. Someone also tagged the building with graffiti, including “WYA Stoney.”

According to a statement from police, several of the protesters got inside the building, but left peacefully after they were asked by security.

The crowd then marched uptown and tore down another Confederate statute, a memorial to the Richmond Howitzers artillery unit. The statue, near Park Avenue and Harrison Street, stood on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus.

Meanwhile, Chief Blackwell takes over amid continuing unrest and concerns about the potential arrival of heavily armed supporters of the Confederate statues on Saturday, June 20, which raises the prospect of a potential conflict with those seeking to bring the statues down.

The removal of Chief Smith was not unexpected. Police chiefs in Atlanta and other cities also have toppled like Confederate statues in the wake of the outrage and unrest unleashed since the release of a video of a Minneapolis police officer killing George Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed African-American, who, was made to lie face down handcuffed in the street while the officer kept his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds.

In Richmond, the marches and protests began May 29 and included two nights in which there was a rampage of glassbreaking, looting, vandalism and arson of a GRTC bus that Chief Smith and his officers appeared unable to impact or halt.

The chief’s support in the community began to go south on May 31 when officers conducted a dragnet to enforce curfew. While he claimed that the enforcement was directed mainly at those who would be violent, Chief Smith’s statement was undermined by social media reports from people dragged from cars or arrested walking home who had nothing to do with the protests.

Then came the evening of June 1, when Richmond officers fired tear gas and pepper spray into a peaceful protest crowd at the Lee statue nearly 30 minutes before the start of the city’s 8 p.m. curfew.

The department sought to claim the premature tear-gassing was justified but was forced to back down when it could not provide evidence.

The upshot: Chief Smith and Mayor Stoney were forced to publicly apologize, Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney Colette W. McEachin was called in to investigate and some of those who were tear-gassed or taken down have lined up lawyers who are filing lawsuits for violation of constitutional rights, including a class action suit filed this week.

The tear-gassing incident left the chief on shaky ground.

Then came the night of Saturday, June 13. A viral video shows a police SUV driving through a group of pedestrians and cyclists near the Lee statue on Monument Avenue.

The department quickly issued a statement that the driver and other officers were attacked and that the conflict happened when people tried block the officer from driving out of the protest zone. Others who were there have disputed the account.

But the image of the officer driving into people appeared to be the last straw for the mayor and others.

Two members of City Council issued sharp rebukes, including 9th District Councilman Michael J. Jones and 5th District Councilwoman Stephanie Lynch.

Expressing dismay, Dr. Jones, who has been the council

LGBT activists see hard work ahead despite U.S. Supreme Court victory Continued from A1

comprehensive anti-bias protections already provided to LGBT people in 21 mostly Democratic-governed states — addressing such sectors as housing, public accommodations and public services. (The Virginia General Assembly passed such a law earlier this year that was signed by Gov. Ralph S. Northam, called the Virginia Values Act, which goes into effect July 1.)

That goal will be difficult to accomplish, Mr. David said, unless President Trump is defeated in the November election and Democrats end Republican control of the Senate.

Former Vice President Joe Biden, President Trump’s likely election opponent, hailed the Supreme Court ruling as “a momentous step forward for our country,” and said he looked forward to signing the Equality Act. James Esseks, director of the American Civil Liberties Union’s LGBT and HIV Project, said Monday’s ruling — while momentous — was insufficient.

“There are important contexts where sex discrimination is still legal under federal law: Businesses open to the public and recipients of federal grants, like soup kitchens and drug treatment programs,” he said.

“The Equality Act would plug those holes,” he added. “It would also update the range of businesses covered under the federal civil rights law so that forms of discrimination like racial profiling in stores and by ride-sharing services become illegal.“ Shannon Minter, one of the lawyers challenging President Trump’s transgender/military policy, said Monday’s court decision will strengthen those challenges.

“This validates the rulings of four federal district courts that the military ban is impermissible sex discrimination,” said Mr. Minter, who is legal director for the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

Mr. Minter also depicted the court ruling as “an extremely forceful rebuke” to the administration’s efforts to justify stripping away health care protections for LGBT people under the Affordable Care Act. Courts also are dealing with cases about transgender students’ access to school bathrooms and locker rooms.

leader in seeking to dismantle the city’s Confederate statues, went further in accusing the department of interfering with the right of people to peacefully protest. Dr. Jones also called on City Council to cut the police department’s budget and to use those funds for other community services.

On Sunday evening, police fired tear gas into protesters gathered outside police headquarters at Jefferson and Grace streets to demand the firing and indictment of officers involved.

That protest resumed Monday night, when protesters were hit with rubber bullets, tear gas and pepper spray.

Maria Maurer, a 25-year-old digital technology saleswoman, said the crowd was standing and shouting and had thrown nothing when police began their attack. She said she heard the sound of

two gunshots and was hit in her neck by a rubber bullet. Her neck is now bruised and swollen. “It was traumatizing,” she said.

She said she then heard a volley and saw tear gas being deployed.

She said any rock throwing was in response to the police aggression, a divergent view from police officials, who reported that that officers were injured by violence initiated by the protesters.

Meanwhile, Interim Chief Blackwell is promising that the department will continue its community outreach and positive youth- and adult-oriented programs.

He also pledged a continued commitment to the department’s six core values: Community Focus, Accountability, Professionalism, Innovation, Shared Trust and Integrity.

RPS to review relationship with Richmond Police Continued from A1

questioning their ties with local police departments in the wake of the May 25 killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, raising questions about overzealous policing of young people that may be aiding a school-to-prison pipeline.

As it stands, 13 school resource officers were working in five high schools, four middle schools and at the Richmond Alternative School, school officials reported Monday. They made 121 arrests during the last school year, primarily for assault, drug possession and weapons possession, officials said.

The board is in the process of gathering data on the arrests to determine if they were necessary and warranted.

Board member Elizabeth Doerr, 1st District, reminded the board of an incident last year outside Albert Hill Middle School when a city police officer cursed at three students from his patrol car. It was caught on video by a student.

The officer, a 15-year veteran of the department, was removed from patrol in the area. He also met with the students, their parents and school officials and apologized.

“Although Albert Hill does not have a (school resource officer), as part of the scope of our relationship with the police department, we need to understand how the police are interacting with our students” even when the police “are not physically in the schools,” Ms. Doerr said.

RPS Superintendent Jason Kamras said his staff will conduct a 90-day review of

the district’s relationship Richmond Police, focusing their role and disciplinary function in schools, as well as researching potential alternatives.

The review will include feedback gathered from focus groups made up of principals, teachers, parents and students, with public hearings and data about disciplinary incidents over the years.

After the 90 days, the RPS administration will provide recommendations for the School Board to consider.

If school resource officers are eliminated, “what (security) would take its place to ensure that our students and schools are receiving the necessary daily safety and support?” Mr. Kamras asked, noting the questions that need to be addressed by the review.

The review also puts into question whether school resource officers will be used at the start of the 2020-21 school year.

Harry Hughes, RPS’ chief schools officer, said the resource officers are paid by the police department. RPS only pays overtime for the officers at after-school activities, such as football and basketball games, he said. That amounted to $48,000 last year, he said.

Ms. Gibson and Mr. Barlow said those dollars could be redirected to hiring more school counselors and mental health workers for the schools.

The School Board also received information from Mr. Kamras on reopening options under state COVID-19 guidelines.

The board concentrated on options for inperson instruction with social distancing in classrooms, where the city hopes to be

in September.

Surveys completed by parents, teachers and students indicated that most favor the option of having half the students in a school attend classes in the morning, and the other half in the afternoon, with a cleaning break in between.

The second most-favored option was for half of the students to attend classes on Monday and Tuesday, and the other half to attend on Wednesday and Thursday, with the school being cleaned on Tuesday evening. All students would have online virtual learning on Friday.

Another option is for half of the students to attend on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and the other half on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Officials said this schedule is contingent on a sufficient number of staff volunteering to work on Saturday.

The last option would have half the students learning in person, while the other half learn online for one week.

Then the groups would switch the following week.

For all of the scheduling options, cleaning would occur between each class and on weekends.

Ms. Doerr also cautioned that whatever option is chosen must adhere to state Department of Education guidelines as well as the ability of RPS to pay for the changes.

She said it is important for families to have an array of options to consider and to know “their voices have been heard.”

Reopening options will be discussed again at the board’s next meeting on June 29.

Juneteenth being recognized as holiday Continued from A1

significance. It says to black communities this is not just your history, it is everyone’s shared history.”

Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney also later announced on Tuesday that the City of Richmond will begin recognizing Juneteenth as a paid holiday for city workers this Friday.

“I urge everyone to use this day as an opportunity for reflection, service and healing,” Mayor Stoney said in a statement.

Juneteenth is the oldest known commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States.

If approved by the state legislature, Virginia would become the second state in the nation to recognize Juneteenth as an official state holiday, following Texas in 1980.

In previous years, the governor noted, Virginia recognized Juneteenth with an

annual proclamation. Commemorations were left up to local communities.

Janine Bell, president and artistic director of the Elegba Folklore Society in Richmond, which is hosting its 25th annual Juneteenth celebration this year, stood behind the governor as he made the announcement.

Also present for the announcement were Dr. Lauranett L. Lee, a University of Richmond professor who served on Mayor Stoney’s Monument Avenue Commission to recommend what should be done with the city statues honoring Confederates; Delegate Lamont Bagby of Henrico, chairman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus; Sen. Louise Lucas of Portsmouth, president pro temp of the Senate; Sen. Mamie Locke of Hampton, Senate Democratic Caucus leader; Delegate Charniele Herring of Northern Virginia, House majority leader; and Speaker of the House Delegate Eileen

Filler-Corn of Northern Virginia.

The proposal already has bipartisan support. In addition to support from the Democratic leaders who attended the news conference, GOP Delegate C. Todd Gilbert, the House minority leader, issued a statement expressing his support for a Juneteenth state holiday.

“July 4th is the birthday of our nation, but Juneteenth is the day where it truly began to fulfill its promise of freedom for all,” he stated.

Mr. Williams, who said he talked with Gov. Northam during the weekend about events, said the holiday has been “overlooked for so long.”

“This is our chance in Virginia to lead by example, to truly embrace the importance of Juneteenth,” he said, “and treat it as a celebration of freedom that black people deserve and the African diaspora deserves.”

Young people advocate for lasting change Continued from A1

the energy of recent protests and holding local leaders accountable for creating real change.

“We want to voice our opinions,” Ms. White said, stressing the need to include young people in the dialogues and debates spawned by protests over police violence and racial inequity following the killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

“This is for all the kids here today.”

Many of the signs and posters held by children and teens proclaimed, “We Are Your Future.”

The rally, organized with help from partner organizations including Art 180, Community 50/50 and Justice and Reformation for Marcus-David Peters, was just the latest effort from local youths against racism and white supremacy in the Richmond area. Last week, a rally at Douglas S. Freeman High School in Henrico County attracted students, parents and others who criticized racial inequalities in education. Students at the school also will hold a dialogue on changing the school’s mascot from the “Rebels.”

The rally, one of three on Saturday, ended a little under an hour before about a 1,000 participated in the 5000 Man March from the Lee statue on Monument Avenue, followed by a Creative Protest at the monument.

The 5000 Man March featured several speakers, including Tavares Floyd of Richmond, a cousin of the late Mr. Floyd who serves as the council liaison to City Councilwoman Ellen Robertson. The event, while larger, drew criticism on social media

because of the involvement of Richmond Police and corporate vendors.

The youth rally was more goal oriented, with several speakers talking about the need for transformative action and policy, particularly divesting funds from police departments and reinvesting in community services.

“I stand for defunding the police and investing in conflict resolution and health professionals and mentors who stand by black youths,” Ms. Young said.

Speakers also advocated for creation of an independent civilian review board of police misconduct and a re-examination of the death of Marcus-David Peters, a 24-year-old high school biology teacher who, naked, unarmed and experiencing what has been described as a mental crisis, was shot and killed by a Richmond Police officer in May 2018.

Many of the ideas supported by speakers echoed recent demands from the Peters family, who have continued to criticize the actions of local officials in response to the killing. In addition to creating a citizen review board of police, the family also has pushed for a “Marcus Alert” that could require mental health professionals to respond first, instead of police, to emergency calls involving someone undergoing a mental health crisis.

Mayor Stoney and some members of City Council have noted his support for both reforms.

Other groups, including the ACLU of Virginia, Richmond for All and Southerners on New Ground, also are seeking greater accountability for police who used tear gas and pepper spray on peaceful protesters in

the city. A coalition of 27 organizations also are calling for a special General Assembly session on police reform.

“This violence cannot be cured with diversity workshops,” said Yasmine Jaaber, 16, of Chesterfield County. “It cannot be cured with body cams and regulations and kneeling with those who are eager to hurt us.”

Ms. Jaaber and several others were critical of the wide-ranging “culture of racism” that goes beyond law enforcement and is “so rampant so many people don’t even notice it anymore.” It runs the gamut, from cultural appropriation to mass incarceration and wealth inequality and perpetuates the school-to-prison pipeline, several speakers said.

They also underscored the need for African-American trauma and comfort to be centered and considered, for white allies to address the complicity of their own communities in oppressive systems, and the need for self-care and inclusivity among those marginalized by those systems.

They also urged people to maintain the momentum around racial equality past the rally itself.

“As soon as we let our foot off the gas, things have a way of going back to the way they were,” said Richmond poet Douglas Powell, also known as Roscoe Burnems, “We cannot let that happen this time around.”

A BLM Children’s March is scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 20, from the Richmond Children’s Museum on West Broad Street to the Arthur Ashe Jr. Athletic Center on Arthur Ashe Boulevard.

Richmond Free Press

June 18-20, 2020

A5

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Richmond Free Press

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Richmond Free Press

Rain-kissed clematis in North Side

Editorial Page

A8

June 18-20, 2020

New leadership Richmond has a new police chief.

Chief Will Smith, who was asked this week by Mayor Levar M. Stoney to resign, was the casualty of his own weak leadership that enabled callous police officers to tear gas and pepper-spray peaceful crowds. One city police officer drove his police SUV into a group of bicyclists protesting near the Lee statue on Monument Avenue last Saturday.

Earlier this week, police also fired rubber bullets at the crowd outside police headquarters on Grace Street in Downtown, striking at least one young woman in the neck.

Mayor Stoney has asked city Commonwealth’s Attorney Colette W. McEachin to investigate expeditiously.

Thankfully, no one has been permanently injured, according to reports.

This is a turbulent time for the city. And the police chief must have his or her allegedly trained officers under control, even in the face of out-of-control protesters who are shouting and sometimes hostile and aggressive.

Richmond has seen daily demonstrations since May 29 by crowds that have numbered in the thousands, all exercising their First Amendment right to speak against police violence and abuse. The protests, spawned by the horrific Memorial Day murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis at the hands of police, call out for the treatment we expect — and demand — of those who are sworn to serve and protect us and our communities.

We also have seen nightly protests in Richmond that resulted early on in damage and looting at stores and property in Downtown, Jackson Ward and on Cary Street, the toppling of four statues honoring white supremacists and oppressors and angry mobs turning their attention on Richmond Police headquarters and Mayor Levar M. Stoney’s residence at a Downtown condominium building.

We don’t condone violence. Nor can we abide by the unprovoked abuse and violence by some officers and unchecked

by Chief Smith. That is wrong, intolerable and a sad irony as crowds protest abusive policing.

City Council members Michael Jones and Stephanie Lynch, who viewed the events outside police headquarters on Monday night, have called for it to end.

“Can’t believe what I saw…” Dr. Jones tweeted Monday night.

“This is absolutely unacceptable,” Ms. Lynch tweeted.

So it is no surprise that Chief Smith was asked to resign.

We hope Maj. William “Jody” Blackwell, who has been tapped as interim chief, will be able to handle his officers and the ongoing situation more deftly.

There is no end in sight for these protests. And with neoConfederates, Ku Klux Klan sympathizers and armed white supremacists factions threatening to converge on Richmond to protect the Monument Avenue statues honoring the Lost Cause, we don’t want to see another bloody and fatal attack in Richmond like the one in Charlottesville in 2017.

Right now, we need strong leadership from Chief Blackwell, as well as Mayor Stoney and City Council to defuse what could be a potentially explosive situation.

A new spirit Happy Juneteenth!

While we have celebrated Juneteenth in the past, largely through the annual programs put on by Janine Bell and the Elegba Folklore Society in Richmond, this year is a lot different.

The state of Virginia is joining the June 19 celebration with a paid holiday for most state employees. It’s the first step toward legislatively making Juneteenth an official holiday in the Commonwealth, according to Gov. Ralph S. Northam, who also called it “one step toward reconciliation.”

Mayor Levar M. Stoney followed with a paid holiday June 19 for all City of Richmond employees.

But more than that, a new spirit of freedom and liberation is sweeping our city, state and nation as the statues of Confederates, Columbus and other white supremacists are coming down — all symbols of racial and ethnic hatred and oppression that have long weighed down African-Americans, indigenous people and other people of conscience.

With the death of George Floyd, people of all colors are joining African-Americans to say enough is enough — of police violence and abuse against the unarmed and those experiencing mental health crises; of racist practices and policies that have resulted in young people of color being drowned in the school-to-prison pipeline; of inequities that have filled our courts and prisons with disproportionate numbers of people of color; of racist redlining and targeting that have denied African-Americans and people of color opportunities for education, jobs and homeownership; and of biased treatment in health care leading to high maternal and neonatal mortality rates and disproportionate rates of disease in communities of color.

Enough is enough.

Even the United Nations Human Rights Council has gotten involved. On Wednesday, the council held an urgent meeting to consider a resolution introduced by the 54 nations of Africa mandating an independent international inquiry into police brutality and structural racism in the United States and other parts of the world. In addition to investigating the murders of Mr. Floyd and many other African-Americans at the hands of police, the commission also would examine excessive force used against peaceful protesters, bystanders and journalists by local, state and federal law enforcement.

The importance of this moment in Virginia and around the nation cannot be overstated or ignored. But we cannot have its significance to be lost in simple holiday jubilation.

Our city, our state, our nation are at a turning point. The work of reform is just beginning. We have to work diligently, persistently and creatively to create systems of policing, education, government, health care, business and justice that respect and value all human beings. We have to carve out solutions that will bring about the fair, just and equitable systems that all people want and deserve.

Toppling a statue of Jefferson Davis is easy. Dismantling oppressive systems that have been in operation for centuries is harder.

With this new spirit and a commitment to what is right, we can all work to get it done.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Continuous traumatic stress disorder

Mental health practitioners define post traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, as a traumatic event that causes strain for an indefinite amount of time.

As we continue to see the murders of unarmed black men and women at the hands of police officers, we cannot say that Black America has PTSD. Black America has continuous traumatic stress disorder, or CTSD, and we all need therapy.

CTSD is triggered by a series of traumatic events that cause strife and strain for an indefinite amount of time. It’s especially heinous and unnatural to be continuously subjected to black death at the hands of those sworn to protect us.

Since the public lynching of George Floyd, I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time processing

our collective pain, strategizing and trying to find the words to convey my feelings of grief, trauma, frustration and fear. I found myself reflecting on other police brutality cases that have transpired during my life.

As a toddler, I remember hearing my father say that Rodney King could’ve been him.

Taikein M. Cooper My parents gave me “the talk” after seeing 19 bullets pierce the body of Amadou Diallo when he reached for his wallet. Bachelor parties never fail to make me think of Sean Bell. Even in 2020, New Year’s Eve made me leery because of Oscar Grant. I haven’t purchased Skittles since Trayvon Martin was killed. The list goes on and on.

Some of what should have been my most celebratory moments in life have been marred by the existential threat of my becoming the next hashtag all because I am a black man.

The great writer and activist James Baldwin said, “To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.” While I agree with Mr. Baldwin often, I have a new proclamation: “To be black in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in pain almost all the time, the pain inflicted by continuous traumatic stress disorder.”

The demonstrations that have transpired during the past few days are poignant and symbolic.

They aren’t exclusively about the senseless murder of George Floyd. These demonstrations are about Black America being continuously crushed under the proverbial knee of oppressive systems and people.

As a black man from Farmville, Va., I have been called the n-word. I have been told that I shouldn’t question white folks.

I have been told that I want progress too fast. I have been told not to wear a beard because it is threatening. I have been told to use an alias on my résumé

Now’s the time for police reform As the worldwide demonstrations continue three weeks after the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis policeman, the question is whether outrage will lead to real reforms.

Fundamental reforms would begin with en d i ng t he “qualified immunity” of police, curbing the militarization of police forces, transferring funds and functions to social agencies, imposing residency requirements and finally making lynching a hate crime.

There is good reason to be skeptical. After the remarkable Black Lives Matter demonstrations across the country in 2014, very little changed.

Police continue to kill more than 250 African-Americans a year. In most cities, racial profiling, constant harassment, routine brutality and mass arrests continue. Powerful police unions block reforms. Cynical politicians — in this case led

by President Trump who has been tweeting “more money for Law Enforcement” — fan fears. Callous officials like U.S. Attorney General William Barr deny the existence of systemic racism in our criminal justice system.

With 18,000 separate police organizations locally across the country, real reform is hard.

There also is reason for hope.

After dozens of commissions, beginning with the Kerner Commission in 1967 and moving forward, we know a lot about what needs to be done. What has been missing is will, not ideas.

And now, as the demonstrations reveal, Americans — black and white, young and old — are demanding change.

Democrats, led by Rep. Karen Bass of California, chair of the

Congressional Black Caucus, and U.S. Sens. Corey Booker of New Jersey and Kamala Harris of California, have introduced The Justice in Policing Act of 2020 that calls for basic reforms.

It would revise the “qualified immunity,” which has protected police from liability for excessive use of force; curb the transfer of

Jesse L. Jackson Sr. military equipment to state and local law enforcement agencies; mandate data collection of police misconduct and a centralized registry of offenders; mandate racial training; and outlaw chokeholds and no-knock warrants. It finally would make lynching a hate crime, passing legislation that has been pending for more than 100 years. Many of these same reforms can and should be passed at the state level, not allowing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and President Trump to bottle up reform.

Similarly, as Campaign Zero has detailed in #8Can’tWait, local officials or city councils can simply order basic changes in police techniques: Outlawing chokeholds; mandating de-escalation efforts; requiring warning before shooting; creating a duty to intervene against excessive force by other officers; banning shooting at moving vehicles; and more.

“Defund the police” has been added to the massive “Black Lives Matter” painted on the road leading to the White House in Washington.

But the advocates of “defund the police” aren’t fools. They understand that the police will be with us — but that their role and their functions need to be dramatically rethought.

“We must end policing as we know it,” stated Lisa Bender, the Minneapolis City Council president who leads a veto-proof

majority of the city council dedicated to “recreating a system of public safety that will actually keep us safe.”

Defunding means transferring resources that now go to police into investments in communities in health care, schools and housing. It reflects the reality that in minority communities, particularly, over-criminalization has made virtually everyone a potential target. Police have gotten involved in areas better left to others, from school discipline, eviction enforcement, addiction and substance abuse.

Police are soldiers in the socalled “war on drugs” when it is fought in poor and minority communities while deferring to public health agencies to address opioid and drug abuse in suburban and exurban neighborhoods. Defunding would include organizing community groups to help intervene to de-escalate tense situations that can lead to violence.

Mayors in Los Angeles and New York have announced plans to transfer some funds from their police budgets to social services. But what’s required is a real commitment, like that of the Minneapolis City Council, to rethink public safety from top to bottom.

Real change won’t be easy.

The resistance will be fierce. At the national level, Senate Republicans will no doubt seek to block the reforms that pass the House.

President Trump will enlist the police unions to posture as a law-and-order strongman.

The demonstrators must build a political force able not only to defeat those who stand in the way, but to hold those promising change accountable. What is clear is that the abuses won’t stop, the police murders won’t end, until fundamental reforms are made.

The writer is founder and president of the national Rainbow PUSH Coalition.

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because my name is too ethnic.

A man even once told me that my body would make a nice landing zone for his bullets. Take a moment and imagine hearing these things all before the age of 30.

My lived experience is not an anomaly. I saw that firsthand working as a counselor. What I have described is just a small part of the pain that black Americans, specifically black men, are grappling with in this country.

Until we truly address the psychological impact of America’s original sin, chattel slavery, including its evolved forms of eugenic sterilization, Jim Crow, unpaid medical contributions, mass incarceration and redlining, America can never live up to her potential.

The writer is executive director of Virginia Excels, a nonprofit education advocacy organization.

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Richmond Free Press

June 18-20, 2020 A9

Letters to the Editor

‘Wake up, everybody’

Most of us know the song recorded by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes from the 1970s, with the lyrics, “Wake up everybody, no more sleeping in bed. No more backward thinking, time for thinking ahead.”

Those lyrics still ring true today, and unless we wake up, we will continue to repeat a painful history.

Several years ago, I was privileged to visit the International Slavery Museum in Liverpool, England. A delegation from Benin, West Africa, and I were invited to a private showing of some artifacts that were not on display. Among them were ledgers that showed the meticulous nature of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, maps of plantations in Virginia from 1700 and other

Know your rights and legal consequences A criminal conviction will have significant and life-altering consequences. A simple misdemeanor criminal conviction for an offense such as a curfew violation, disorderly conduct or other offenses can prevent or hamper future employment, access to public housing and eligibility for student loans.

Anyone arrested during the Black Lives Matter demonstrations in Richmond may avail themselves of legal representation, at no cost, by calling the RVA Legal Collaborative at (804) 404-8521. The collaborative will provide anyone arrested with trained and experienced lawyers to assist in Richmond courts.

Do not enter into any pleas, even if offered a suspended conviction or no incarceration,

until you have spoken to a legal representative.

All are entitled to the availability of attorney and client privilege and rights.

Call (804) 404-8521 and request assistance. If you have already been to court and entered into a conviction, you should immediately contact the collaborative to see if that conviction, even one with a suspended sentence or probation, may be able to get a new hearing or trial, this time with a lawyer to defend your rights.

DAVID P. BAUGH Richmond The writer is a former federal prosecutor, veteran criminal defense attorney and legal expert.

Fort Pickett needs new name I read about some people suggesting changing the names of Army and other military camps because the names they bear honor members of the Confederacy.

President Trump stated that his administration will not consider renaming the camps because they trained heroes on those hallowed grounds.

It’s telling that the article from which I learned this featured a photo of Confederate Gen. George Pickett, for whom Fort Pickett in Blackstone, Va., is named. He is famous for leading a failed Confederate charge that ended with most of his men dead. How he got a camp named after him, I don’t know.

It was said that after the Civil War, he fled to Canada then later returned to the Atlantic states where he conducted an insurance business. Earlier in his career, he nearly started a war between the United States and Great Britain. It is referred to as the Pig War. He occupied an island off the Northwest coast claimed by Great Britain in a dispute involving the shooting of a pig and would not depart until directly ordered.

Gen. Pickett also fought in the battle of Chapultepec during the Mexican-American War. He charged to the top of that citadel, which had been defended mostly by teenage cadets, and hung the American flag at the pinnacle.

His achievement was overshadowed by the fact that, at the same time he was raising the flag, U.S. Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock ordered13 members of the St. Patrick’s Battalion to be hung for treason because they fought for

Mexico. He ordered them hung at the precise moment that the American flag was aloft so that the last thing they saw was the American flag flying over Chapultepec Castle.

By the way, Robert E. Lee, then a captain, also was there.

Gen. Pickett had a colorful career that included the failed attack at Gettysburg. Later in the Civil War, he was involved in another bizarre incident in North Carolina, where many people would rather have remained in the Union. The state militia in the eastern part of North Carolina would only fight if they were directly attacked by Union forces. This made Gen. Pickett extremely angry. He had some of the militia rounded up and hung 13 of them at the same time in the square outside of the county seat in Kinston, N.C. Toward the end of the war, it is reported that Gen. Pickett sat down for oysters with Gen. George Washington Custis Lee and other officers. After finishing their picnic, they returned to their camps to find their men in heated battle because of a Union attack. The Confederates made a hasty retreat and precipitated Gen. Lee’s surrender and the end of the Confederate States of America.

Gen. Pickett also was responsible for hanging my direct ancestor at Kinston, N.C., so you can imagine I don’t think too much of him.

I believe Fort Pickett should be renamed.

tools of that trade.

As we were leaving, the curator said to us, “Seven or eight of these families are still very prominent in Liverpool today.” That was in 2004.

So more than 300 years after the slave trade, that power base was still in operation. At that moment, it dawned on me that we are dealing with an ideology that is designed to maintain the status quo, to support a hierarchy based on race and class.

The most encouraging thing that I am hearing from all sectors after the current protests is the need for systemic change. While changing laws and holding our political leaders accountable is important, providing additional police training and having community advisory boards also is important.

But to have real systemic change, any city or community needs to start with a five- to 10-year plan that should address the root cause of the system that we are trying to change, which is greed.

Greed drives every system that contributes to the divide we are trying to address. Greed is supported by a collection of social constructs designed to Paid Political Advertisement

sustain the ideology. To address those constructs, we must rewrite the narrative of the history that this country was built upon. That narrative has imprisoned all of us, but has had a greater impact on red, brown and black people.

When people start thinking differently, they can see differently. And when they see differently, they will act differently. The lie we are trying to address has been told for so long that it is the truth to so many.

Every social construct has similar make ups — the media, the police, our academic institutions, the banking institutions, our political community.

And when those constructs aren’t addressed, they support the ideology that keeps certain groups not only in power, but in control.

Wake up, everybody. We have an opportunity for real change. Let us not miss it nor settle for crumbs from the master’s table.

REV. SYLVESTER L. TURNER Richmond The writer is pastor of Pilgrim Baptist Church.

Paid Political Advertisement

A lifelong Democrat, Donald McEachin is paving the way for big, structural change in policing.

In Congress, Donald will continue his fight for our community and: Hold police accountable in courts by reforming qualified immunity and incentivizing states to conduct pattern and practice investigations Improve transparency in policing by collecting accurate data of police misconduct and excessive use-of-force through a National Police Misconduct Registry Improve police training and practices by mandating training on racial bias, banning choke-holds, no-knock warrants in drug cases, and requiring the use of police body cameras Make lynching a federal crime and prosecuting any such action that violates existing federal hate crimes laws

ALFRED LEE BROCK Wayne, Mich.

Why Lee statue should remain I am aghast at the performance of Gov. Ralph S. Northam. He has ordered the removal of and permitted the desecration of the statue of Robert E. Lee on Monument Avenue by a rowdy mob of anarchists.

The governor may not distort and obliterate the history of the United States of America.

He may not remove the memory of honorable men who are a significant part of her history and Virginia’s history.

When the Civil War was finally over, Gen. Lee, a good and godly man, a dedicated, care-giving son to his frail and ailing mother and, later, to his wife in deeply declining health, and a faithful father, was revered not only throughout the South, but also among many Americans of the Northern states.

When Gen. Lee became president of Washington College (later Washington and Lee University) in Lexington, he supported reconciliation between the North and the South. He accepted “the extinction of slavery” provided for by the 13th Amendment, but opposed immediate racial equality for African-Americans.

Gen. Lee supported a system of free public

schools for black people, but forthrightly opposed allowing them to vote, yes, evidence of an imperfect morality. His reason: “My own opinion is that, at this time, they (black Southerners) cannot vote intelligently, and that giving them the (vote) would lead to a great deal of demagogism, and lead to embarrassments in various ways.”

I implore my fellow Americans to look beyond a superficial and grossly incomplete picture that most people have of this man, this hero, this American, who made error — as we all do — but who rose again to bring Americans back together.

Peter failed the Lord three times at a most crucial time. Our Lord gave Peter the keys to His earthly kingdom. Is this not a lesson we can learn and adhere to?

Please, let us live with charity in our hearts. Let us not, in the heat of this moment, allow a form of blindness and anger to obliterate important historical elements of America’s history.

Do not tear down the memory of Robert E. Lee.

VOTE DONALD MCEACHIN for Congress Tuesday, June 23rd

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Richmond Free Press

A10 June 18-20, 2020

Local News

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Blue lights illuminate protesters who react after a police SUV runs into a cyclist on Monument Avenue around 9:30 p.m. Saturday.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

State Police in riot gear stand near an armored vehicle in front of Richmond Police headquarters at Jefferson and Grace streets Tuesday.

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

A North Side resident waves to members of the 381 Movement who marched Monday through the neighborhood, chanting “Black Lives Matter” and calling for education reform.

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Jeffrey L. Peters of Middlesex County holds a photo of his nephew, Marcus-David Peters, 24, a high school biology teacher who was fatally shot by a Richmond Police officer in 2018 during what has been described as a mental crisis. Mr. Peters was taking part in the 5000 Man March on Saturday at the Lee statue and raising awareness of the slaying. Below, heavy equipment is on the scene as concrete barriers are placed around the Lee statue on Wednesday. The state Department of General Services installed the barriers as a safety precaution while it maps out the removal of the statue under an order from Gov. Ralph S. Northam.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Members of the 381 Movement march along Hawthorne Avenue in North Side for education reform on Monday.

Court hearing Thursday on Confederate statue removal

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Can Gov. Ralph S. Northam use his authority to remove the huge, state-owned statue of traitorous and slavery-defending Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee from Monument Avenue?

All eyes will be on a Richmond courtroom Thursday where Circuit Court Judge Bradley B. Cavedo could clear the governor’s way or continue to halt the removal.

Judge Cavedo, who 10 days ago issued a temporary injunction blocking the statue’s removal, is to consider whether to continue his injunction or lift it in one of three lawsuits challenging Gov. Ralph S. Northam’s right to take down the Lee statue that he has labeled an icon of racism.

In this case, William Gregory, a descendant of a couple who in 1890 deeded to the state the land on which the statue sits, claims the state promised to preserve and protect the statue forever. Mr. Gregory also asserts his right to enforce the alleged deed restriction as an heir of the couple.

In response, state Solicitor General Toby J. Heytens, who is urging Judge Cavedo to lift the injunction and dismiss the Gregory lawsuit, cited three reasons for throwing out the case.

First, Mr. Heytens wrote in court documents, Mr. Gregory has no ownership interest in the land and, thus, no legal right to challenge the governor. Second, he cited a state law that at best allows such restrictions on property use to extend 90 years, a time limit that has long expired on the 130-year-old statue.

But more importantly, the state is immune

from suits to “restrain governmental action or compel such action,” Mr. Heytens wrote in court filings, and the suit must be dismissed for that reason alone.

The doctrine of sovereign immunity also is likely to impact the other lawsuit if it proceeds in federal court On Wednesday, a third suit, also filed in

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

federal court, was withdrawn and will not proceed, according to state Attorney General Mark Herring’s office. That suit was filed Monday by six Monument Avenue property owners led

by Helen Marie Taylor, a longtime Monument Avenue activist who decades ago blocked the city from paving the street’s cobblestones.

The second suit, filed June 9 by William Davis

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

View of toppled statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis that was pulled off its perch on Monument Avenue on June 10. A tow truck was called to lift and carry the statue away. This is one of four symbols of white supremacy and oppression that have been toppled in the city since demonstrations began on May 29.

of Henrico County, also is on hold. That suit claims the governor’s authority is subordinate to the federal law governing historic landmarks.

The Lee statue is on the federal and state historic registers.

Whichever way Judge Cavedo rules in the Gregory case, experts expect one side or the other to appeal the final order to the state Supreme Court, extending the time before any removal could take place.

Even so, the state Department of General Services on Wednesday installed concrete barriers around the Lee statue as a first step toward taking it down.

Whether the statue will last until DGS can plot a careful, engineered way to pluck it from its pedestal remains a question.

During Tuesday night’s soaking rain, protesters for racial equity, who have been out nightly for 19 straight days, toppled a third Confederate statue — a small statue on Park Avenue on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus that honored the Richmond Howitzer unit from the Civil War. Previously, protesters pulled down a statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis on Monument Avenue and Confederate Gen. Williams Carter Wickham in Monroe Park.

A statue of Christopher Columbus, who is viewed as an oppressor to indigenous communities, also was toppled in Byrd Park and dragged into Fountain Lake.

On Wednesday, the message “White lives matter,” painted in white, was discovered on the base of the statue of tennis great and humanitarian Arthur Ashe Jr. on Monument Avenue.

Richmond Free Press

June 18-20, 2020 A11

Sports

Stories by Fred Jeter

Tierra Terry selected as new coach of VUU Lady Panthers Tierra Terry has been selected as Virginia Union University’s new women’s basketball coach.

The official announcement is expected Thursday morning at the university.

She succeeds the highly successful Coach AnnMarie Gilbert, who resigned in late April to become coach at the University of Detroit Mercy.

Coach Terry comes to the Lady Panthers at Division II VUU with six years of coaching experience on the NCAA Division I level, while also having a background in HBCUs. She has spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach at the College of William & Mary of the Colonial Athletic Association. The Tribe went 21-8 this past season.

Before that, Coach Terry was an assistant for three seasons at Western Carolina University of the Southern Conference, where she served as recruiting coordinator.

She began her coaching career at her alma mater, WinstonSalem State University, which, like VUU, is a member of the

Coach Terry

CIAA. Coach Terry played four basketball seasons at Winston-Salem State while earning a degree in psychology with a minor in sociology in 2008. She earned a master’s in psychology in 2011 at the University of West Florida.

Prior to launching her coaching career, she worked one year as a counselor at Medifast Weight Control Centers in Orlando.

She married Patrick Terry in August 2019, and the couple

lives in Richmond.

Nicknamed “T,” she is the daughter of Janese and Delaney Rudd and starred at Robert Glenn High School in North Carolina before enrolling at Winston-Salem State. She learned the game from

her dad, who was an All-ACC guard at Wake Forest University and later played in the NBA with the Utah Jazz and the Portland Trail Blazers. She attended her dad’s annual basketball camps in the High Point-Triad area near Greensboro, N.C., beginning at age 6 and helped coach at the camps as a teenager.

Coach Terry has a tough act to follow at VUU. Coach Gilbert was a spectacular 135-18 in three seasons, with the Lady Panthers making it to the NCAA Division II finals in 2017.

Among the returning players Coach Terry will welcome are All-CIAA guards Shareka and Shameka McNeill. The twins are rising seniors.

VUU went 23-4 this past season, qualifying for the NCAAs a fifth straight year. However, because of the coronavirus pandemic, the NCAA Tournament was canceled.

VUU has a rich tradition in women’s hoops. The Lady Panthers won the NCAA women’s title in 1983 and lost in the NCAA finals in 1984 under Coach Lou Hearn.

Jayla Henderson and Kevin Gayles top city scholar-athletes for Class of 2020

By Ronald E. Carrington

Jayla Henderson, captain of the Thomas Jefferson High School girls’ basketball and volleyball teams, and Kevin Gayles, Huguenot High School’s football team captain, were honored as the Richmond Public Schools 2020 Scholar-Athletes for their athletic, academic and extracurricular achievements.

The two, both seniors, were recognized during a celebration June 4 at The Diamond.

Jayla, who is salutatorian of the Thomas Jefferson High Class of 2020 with a 4.94 GPA, helped lead the Lady Vikings to their first regional title in in the school’s history.

In a recent Free Press interview, she said she was caught off guard because she thought the event was to honor all RPS salutatorians. But receiving the award “made me feel good and it made me realize that all of the hard work paid off in the end.”

Jayla has lettered in both basketball and volleyball. She is a three-year letter winner in basketball and was selected to the All-Region 2 second team. She is a four-year letter winner in volleyball.

Away from sports, she is active in her community in a variety of projects, including as a camp leader at Broad Rock Elementary School and community outreach for the Thomas Jefferson’s Halloween Trunk or Treat event.

Jayla, who also will receive her International Baccalaureate diploma in July, plans to attend

the College of William & Mary in the fall on a full academic scholarship. She also will play basketball during the second semester as she works toward a degree in health sciences. She said her long-range plan is to become a physical therapist in sports.

As salutatorian, she will give a speech that will be delivered during the virtual commencement ceremony at 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 24.

Her advice to students is brief and straightforward: “In academics, as well as sports, it is important to keep pushing because it will all pay off in the end.”

As for Thomas Jefferson’s outdoor commencement ceremony on the school’s football field, Jayla said she plans to strut across the stage wearing her best dress and heels. But, she added, she’ll be so excited, “I might run.”

For Kevin, winning the Scholar-Athlete Award is very special because he always wanted to make his mark in his high school.

“This honor is a once-in-a-lifetime recognition for my family and my school. People will always remember me,” he said in a recent interview.

He said he has sought to be a role model for his younger siblings, Lamont Gayles, 15, and Gasias Gayles, 10. “This will give them a chance to do the same thing and make another mark for our family.”

He said he pushes them to be scholars even as they don’t play sports.

Kevin, who loves math, has a 3.6 GPA. He

Hampton University cuts golf teams Hampton University is discontinuing its men’s and women’s golf teams because of the financial impact of the coronavirus.

This past season, the teams included five men and four women under Coach Dennis Nelson.

According to HU’s website, it will take some $600,000 to fully reinstall the program. That would cover operational expenses, scholarships and salaries.

HU is not alone in trimming its list of sponsored athletics. Old Dominion University has dropped wrestling, a sport it has excelled at since 1957.

Washington NFL team to skip training in Richmond

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Following a decision from the National Football League, the Washington pro football team will not be traveling to Richmond to train in late July and early August.

Instead, the team will use the facilities at its Northern Virginia headquarters in Ashburn, previously the training camp before the team starting coming to Richmond in 2013.

This was to be the team’s eighth and final season of training in Richmond under the original contract.

The team and the city have not signed a new deal to extend the team’s summer use of the $10 million facility on West Leigh Street that also includes Bon Secours medical offices.

The team made its decision after the NFL issued notice to the 32 pro teams to train at their home facilities because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a bid to keep the athletes safe, most teams are likely to bar fans from attending the training exercises, it has been reported.

Keeping fans away would reduce the incentive for teams like Washington to travel for training.

The team already had modified the contract and agreed to drop a requirement for the city to cover $500,000 annually to bring the training camp to Richmond.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Washington NFL team training camp facility.

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Kevin Gayles of Huguenot High School and Jayla Henderson of Thomas Jefferson High School display their awards as the Richmond Public Schools 2020 Scholar-Athletes during a June 4 event at The Diamond.

plans to attend Norfolk State University in the fall on a full athletic scholarship. After earning a bachelor’s in business administration, he wants to play in the NFL and establish a sports equipment business.

On the gridiron, Kevin excels both on offense and defense. During his senior season with the Huguenot Falcons, he was selected to the All-Region 4 second team, as well as to play in the Virginia High School Coaches Association

All-Star Game, where he earned the 2019 Best Offensive Player Award.

In 2018, he was selected to the All-Region 4 first team, as well as the All-Metro team.

Kevin is an accomplished artist whose work has been displayed in a number of local exhibitions.

“No matter what others think, you can be successful if you put your mind to something,” he said.

7-foot senior at The Steward School sees his basketball prospects growing Efton Reid has grown out of all his old clothes while growing into being one of the nation’s top college basketball prospects.

The 7-foot rising senior at The Steward School is a coach’s dream but a tailor’s nightmare.

“I can’t go to regular stores,” he said, noting he wears size 17 sneakers. “I have to order online. And there is a store in Short Pump (DXL Big & Tall) that has my length.”

No matter how long Reid’s arms, legs and feet are, or how much the 18-year-old continues to sprout, college coaches all over America would love to find one of their uniforms to fit him.

“Efton is a special player,” said Steward School Coach Curt Kassab. “He has the work ethic and drive along with the size and talent. He has been fun to watch and fun to be around.

We’re all very proud of where he’s at.”

Reid has drawn rave reviews in playing both for Steward School and the powerful Team Loaded AAU travel team.

The son of Maria Reid of Eastern Hanover County is rated the nation’s 17th overall high school basketball prospect by ESPN100, 20th by 247Sports. com and 24th by Rivals.

With the coronavirus limiting travel, Reid has made official recruiting visits thus far to the University of Virginia, Ohio State University and the University of Louisville.

He is considered a member of the Class of 2021, but that isn’t set in stone, apparently.

Reid recently had a conversation with University of Michigan Coach Juwan Howard who may be offering Reid a scholarship as a member of the Class of 2020, meaning Reid would enroll at the Ann Arbor university this fall.

A recruiting visit to Michigan may be in the works.

“It’s called classifying up,” said Reid, who currently is taking one online class at Steward School. “It is something I’m considering but I haven’t made up my mind.”

While he has always been the tallest boy in his class, he hasn’t always excelled on the hardcourt. In fact, he didn’t even start as an eighth-grader on the Chickahominy Middle School team.

“I wasn’t that good, but I kept my head down and kept working,” Reid said. “I started to hit my stride when I came to Steward.”

As a junior, Reid averaged 19 points and 12 rebounds, helping the Spartans to a 27-6 record and to the semifinals of the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division II state tournament. He shot more than 70 percent from the field, an impressive 41 percent from behind the 3-point arc and 67 percent at the foul line.

Well-muscled at 235 pounds, Reid is powerful in the paint, with soft hands and excellent footwork. A natural righthander, he is nearly as proficient with his left hand as his right, making him that much more difficult to defend.

Reid and Coach Kassab, whom Reid calls “Coach K,” arrived at Steward School at the same time three years ago.

Previously, Coach Kassab had coached the Atlee High School girls in Hanover, had served as a women’s assistant coach at Virginia Commonwealth University and most recently had coached the boys at Deep Run High School in Henrico.

“I didn’t know Coach K, to be honest, before I got here” at Steward, Reid said. “But I trusted him from Day one.

I put myself in his hands to develop.”

Efton Reid

Reid is named after his maternal grandfather and has a younger brother, Alex, who is a rising sophomore at Atlee High. Alex is about 6-foot-1 and plays basketball for the Raiders.

Away from class and the court, Efton and Alex enjoy fresh water fishing at various streams and ponds around the area.

“All I really do is work out and stay home,” he said. “I like

to hang out with family. That’s about all I do.”

Steward School, founded in 1972, is located on 37 acres in a leafy, affluent section of Western Henrico County. With just 630 students in grades pre-K to 12, its motto is, “Smaller is better.”

That term applies to enrollment and class size, but with a 7-foot student on campus, certainly not to its basketball team.

A12 June 18-20, 2020

Richmond Free Press

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June 18-20, 2020 B1

Richmond Free Press

Section

Happenings

B

Personality: Wanda S. Hunt Spotlight on founder and coordinator of ‘Purple Sunday’ Alzheimer’s awareness program During the months of June, July and August, Alzheimer’s disease education will be part of church services at congregations around the state.

It’s part of the “Purple Sunday” campaign started last year by Wanda Smith Hunt at Good Shepherd Baptist Church in Richmond.

Begun as a small church fundraiser for the Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Richmond’s annual The Longest Day event in June, the campaign has now expanded across Virginia through collaboration between the Alzheimer’s Association and the Virginia Department of Health’s Office of Health Equity.

It’s a welcome step, Mrs. Hunt says.

“My whole goal, whole purpose is to get the information out there,” Mrs. Hunt says. “I felt like the churches were a good place to start because you can reach so many people at one time, especially in the minority population.”

“Purple Sunday,” as Mrs. Hunt describes it, is a churchwide “education program to raise awareness and understanding of Alzheimer’s disease and to give support to persons living with dementia and their caregivers.”

As originally planned, each Sunday in June would see education on Alzheimer’s shared and dispensed through church functions like morning worship services and bulletins. On the final Sunday of June, people would be asked to wear purple to church – the Alzheimer’s Association’s color – and to make a donation that would go to the association’s Greater Richmond chapter.

Because of COVID-19, “Purple Sunday” will be largely a virtual affair this year, Mrs. Hunt says, with the education component about lifestyle choices that can improve health to be delivered mostly through online video and social media.

Some materials provided by the Alzheimer’s Association also will be mailed.

Still, according to Tina R. Thomas, senior director of programs and services for the Alzheimer’s Association, “Purple Sunday” so far has been featured in about 30 of the 100 churches set to be part of the event.

Mrs. Hunt prefers in-person advocacy and information sessions, talking with people directly about how to approach

and handle Alzheimer’s. She sees it as a more effective method of education, particularly for minority communities that might need a familiar face to assist and guide them.

“It’s just so important that people know about this and get this information,” Mrs. Hunt says.

In addition to coordinating the “Purple Sunday” program, Mrs. Hunt volunteers with the Alzheimer’s Association as a member of its leadership board for the Greater Richmond chapter, as part of its Longest Day committee and as a support group facilitator.

Her deep connection with the association started seven years ago when her husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Looking for answers and support, she found it from the association and its services, that include a 24/7 hotline, free family consultations and support groups.

“The Alzheimer’s Association supported me as I held papers that relayed a life-changing diagnosis but no directions or guidance as to what to do next,” Mrs. Hunt says.

Looking ahead, Mrs. Hunt is working to recruit other churches in the Richmond area to join the “Purple Sunday” program once the pandemic subsides.

A similar effort is underway on the state level, according to Mrs. Thomas, with a four-part online seminar hosted with the African Methodist Episcopal church beyond the Commonwealth. Plans also are being made to expand through other faith denominations.

For now, Mrs. Hunt is focused on helping her husband through this disease and doing her part “to work toward a world without Alzheimer’s.”

Meet an advocate for Alzheimer’s awareness, education and caregivers, and this week’s Personality, Wanda Smith Hunt: No. 1 volunteer position: Coordinator of Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Richmond’s “Purple Sunday” program.

Date and place of birth: April 20 in Goldsboro, N.C. Current residence: Henrico County.

Education: Bachelor’s in sociology, University of Virginia.

Family: Husband, James Will Hunt Jr. Why I became involved in

with Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Richmond: My husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease seven years ago. The Alzheimer’s Association supported me as I held papers that relayed a life-changing diagnosis but no directions or guidance as to what to do next.

“Purple Sunday” is: A churchwide Alzheimer’s education program to raise the awareness and understanding of Alzheimer’s disease and to give support to persons living with dementia and their caregivers. It is comprised of educational moments that are presented each Sunday in June during morning worship service and included in the church bulletin. Educational materials and bulletin boards also are available throughout the church building.

The color for the Alzheimer’s Association is purple, so we called it “Purple Sunday” and ask everyone to wear purple on the final Sunday in June when an offering is collected, with all contributions donated to the Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Richmond.

How I came up with the idea: Our Good Shepherd Baptist Church Dementia Support Group wanted to do a fundraiser for The Longest Day, an annual fundraiser for Alzheimer’s held June 20 on the summer solstice to fight the darkness of Alzheimer’s. I felt “Purple Sunday” would be a great opportunity to educate the congregation about Alzheimer’s as well as raise money. We have several members suffering from the disease and many caregivers in our congregation.

How it will be recognized virtually this year because of COVID-19: Through our church Facebook page and by a short education piece being shared at our weekly prayer meeting teleconference.

The educational topic this year is on lifestyle changes we can make to improve our health.

African-Americans have higher rates of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease, which significantly increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Those with both risk factors are four times as likely to suffer from the disease. We also have a Longest Day page for our church team – GSBC Vision to Victory. Members and friends will go the page to make an online donation.

Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Richmond’s mission: The Alzheimer’s Association leads the way to end Alzheimer’s and all other dementia by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support.

Services Alzheimer’s Association provides: A nationwide 24/7 Helpline staffed by specialists and master’s level clinicians — (800) 272-3900. And free one-on-one care consultations; information and referral resources; support groups; and community programs.

What is Alzheimer’s disease: It is the most common type of dementia, affecting an estimated 5 million people in the United States. Alzheimer’s disease is irreversible and slowly gets worse as the disease destroys the brain’s memory and thinking skills and eventually prevents the ability for a person to carry out the simplest tasks. It begins to damage the brain before signs are seen in most people. This disease causes plaque to form in the brain that stops parts of the brain from communicating and connecting with each other. The damage eventually causes brain tissues to die. There is no cure for this debilitating disease.

What is dementia: It is not a single disease in itself, but a general term to describe symptoms of impairment in memory, communication and thinking to such an extent that it interferes with a person’s daily life and activities.

Importance of family support:

About 1 in 12 African Americans have

Sickle Cell Trait.

What is it? Who is it?

What does the movement want?

The Koinonia School of Race & Justice at Richmond Hill presents an educational gathering on Black Lives Matter (BLM).

In this historic moment, join us as we explore the origin and goals of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Participate with your insights and questions.

Register at www.richmondhillva.org.

For more information: psmith@richmondhillva.org or call 804-783-7903.

When two people with Sickle Cell Trait have a child, there is a 1 in 4 chance with each pregnancy, that the child will have a painful life threatening disease called Sickle Cell Disease.

Do you have Sickle Cell Trait?

GET TESTED! For more information, call

SICKLE CELL ASSOCIATION OF RICHMOND - OSCAR

804-321-3311

This is not a disease to face alone. Things will be much more bearable if family members work together. Unfortunately, this disease often causes division and fractures of the family unit because of the tough decisions and time requirements that are a part of supporting someone with the disease.

Foremost challenge facing underserved areas: The cost of health care and long-term care for individuals living with Alzheimer’s or other dementias is substantial. Therefore, the lack of resources and health insurance is a tremendous barrier. People in underserved areas are less likely to have a diagnosis of their condition, resulting in less time for treatment and planning.

What needs to be done: Education, education, education. The more you know about the disease, the easier it is to navigate the journey. Secondly, find ways to make everyone aware of the Alzheimer’s Association and the many services it provides.

I think of the Alzheimer’s Association as the Google link for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. Thirdly, remove the stigma and shame of Alzheimer’s so it is seen as just another disease.

Alzheimer’s and dementia caregiver tips: Educate yourself about the disease. Don’t argue; accept the Alzheimer’s patient’s reality. And practice self-care.

Impact of Alzheimer’s on caregivers: The stress of caregiving often leads to negative health effects. There also is usually a loss of friends and their social support system. Many caregivers predecease the individual they are caring for. The care and support services provided by the Alzheimer’s Association offer the support caregivers need to address the stress and impact

of caregiving.

How I start the day: I begin the day using the youversion Bible app. I meditate on the verse of the day and then read a devotional. It sets my mood to positivity for the day.

Three words that best describe me: Kind, organized and committed.

Best late-night snack: Kettle chips.

How I unwind: Taking walks and enjoying nature.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: When I need to add laughter to my life, I go to TikTok. There are some funny and creative people in the world with way too much time on their hands.

A quote that I am inspired by: “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” — Oscar Wilde.

At the top of my “to-do” list: To support my husband as he progresses through this awful disease and continue to do what I can to work toward a world without Alzheimer’s disease.

The best thing my mom ever taught me: Put God first and remember to be independent and think for yourself.

Person who influenced me the most: My mother, Bettie Jean Smith. She modeled being giving, hard-working, keeping your commitments and serving God. Book that influenced me the most: “Who Moved My Cheese?”

by Dr. Spencer Johnson.

What I’m reading now: “Crushing: God Turns Pressure into Power” by Bishop T. D. Jakes.

Next goal: To duplicate my effort by recruiting other churches in the area to participate in the “Purple Sunday” program.

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Richmond Free Press

B2 June 18-20, 2020

Happenings Venture Richmond cancels festivals

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Unicia R. Buster displays some of her art quilts as she works from the front porch of her East End home on her poster design for the 32nd Annual 2nd Street Festival.

Unicia Buster’s quilt art paints perfect perfect for 2nd Street Festival poster design

By George Copeland Jr.

Artist Unicia R. Buster’s quilt art has been seen for years around Richmond and elsewhere.

Her work has been exhibited everywhere from Pine Camp’s Spotlight Gallery and VCU Health System in Downtown to galleries in Long Island City, N.Y., and Rome.

One of her early pieces, an 8 feet-by11 feet quilt featuring 100-plus photos of families, was a vibrant and highly visible centerpiece for more than a decade at the Richmond Public Library’s Main Branch in Downtown.

Now Ms. Buster’s list of honors includes being selected to design the poster for the 32nd Annual 2nd Street Festival that celebrates the culture of historic Jackson Ward, at one time the center of black commerce and entertainment.

Traditionally, a painting done by the selected artist was turned into the festival’s poster. But Ms. Buster is designing a quilt that will become the festival’s poster. She also will be using her graphic design skills for the poster’s layout.

It’s a rare opportunity for Ms. Buster, who was contacted in February by Venture Richmond, the festival’s organizer.

Her work will be completed and released

virtually to the public, organizers said, despite the free, two-day event slated for October being canceled this week because of the coronavirus.

As both an artist and the great-granddaughter of the late Jackson Ward resident Beatrice Lewis Jackson, Ms. Buster views the project as the confluence of her two major interests in a whole new way on a whole new stage.

“I love Jackson Ward,” Ms. Buster said, describing the neighborhood as a “building block” that continues to inspire to this day. “I love the historic nature of Jackson Ward. I love that it’s being preserved in that way. I love that our culture has a strong foundation for community that came out of that area.”

Organizers were pleased that Ms. Buster agreed to play a substantial role in their initial plans.

“You clearly see her passion, inspiration, beautiful colors and textures in her drawings, paintings, wall hangings and dolls,” wrote Sharon Bassard, booking and events manager for Venture Richmond, in an email. “Ms. Buster will be a great asset to the festival.”

A Richmond native, Ms. Buster was a fine arts major in photography at Cornell University, where she combined photography with fabric art to produce her senior

thesis as a quilt.

She used a traditional process of photo transfer onto the fabric to produce her unique pieces. Now, printable fabrics and inkjet printers make the process easier, she said, with the colors more vibrant.

She is inspired, too, by the work of Faith Ringgold, a noted art quilts artist who often will paint fabric and then quilt it. A piece Ms. Ringgold was commissioned to do by Oprah Winfrey for poet Maya Angelou’s 61st birthday, called “Maya’ Quilt of Life,” sold at auction for $461,000 in 2015 after Ms. Angelou’s death. It was a record for a narrative quilt by the artist.

Early on, when Ms. Buster was 10, her aunt, Juanita Buster, took her to the Chrysler Museum in Norfolk for a quilting exhibition, where she recalls being mesmerized by a quilt that also served as a Parcheesi board. In the museum’s gift shop, her aunt bought her a children’s book written and illustrated by Ms. Ringgold.

Ms. Buster, who has a master’s in graphic design from George Mason University and previously worked as a graphic designer at the Richmond Free Press, is now inspiring people on her own.

“It is important to keep our heritage going,” Ms. Buster said.

The poster reveal is tentatively scheduled for September.

October will come and go in Richmond without two of its largest people-attracting events, the 2nd Street Festival and the Richmond Folk Festival.

Venture Richmond announced Tuesday it has canceled this year’s editions of the back-to-back free festivals that have dominated the first two weekends of October, though it hopes to offer “virtual” programming of some kind.

The Downtown marketing and promotion group explained the cancellation is because of the “unpredictable and ongoing threat posed by the spread of COVID-19.”

Venture Richmond, which was in the midst of preparations, described the cancellation as a necessary precaution “for the safety of our patrons, volunteers, artists and staff.”

The announcement came in a statement from Venture Richmond that included the message, “Music and culture bring RVA together. This year, we’ll be together in spirit.”

The scheduled Oct. 3-4 event would have been the 32nd edition of the 2nd Street Festival that celebrates the heyday of Jackson Ward as a business, social and economic center of Richmond’s black community. With fair weather, the event has attracted 60,000 people during two days.

The only item of the festival that will remain intact is the poster. Local artist Unicia R. Buster, who was commissioned to do the festival poster, said her commission remains in force. She said Venture Richmond told her to complete the work, which will be posted online and on social media.

The festival and its music is now slated to return Oct. 2-3, 2021, Venture Richmond noted.

The Richmond Folk Festival, which can draw up to 220,000 people, has filled the second weekend of October since 2005, and was set to go on Oct. 9-11 this year. The three-day event is now scheduled to return Oct. 8-10, 2021.

The festival celebrates the music and culture of groups from across the country and around the world.

Venture Richmond said the decision was “not reached easily,” but could not wait until the last minute. “Developments related to state, national and international events in 2020 made it clear that as the organizer of these two free, large-scale community festivals, the necessary health precautions cannot be taken with radically changing the nature and scope of the events.”

Still, Venture Richmond is trying to find some way to create community gatherings on those weekends, though details are still being worked out.

“We are working with our sponsors and partners to determine the most meaningful and safe way we can bring the community together, even if only virtually,” the organization stated, promising further announcements.

Juneteenth events planned for Friday and Saturday Free Press staff report

Talk about timing.

Amid the upheaval over racial equity and police brutality, the Juneteenth celebration of freedom arrives Friday, June 19, and the once little-known holiday is suddenly gaining huge recognition in Richmond and Virginia.

For the first time, state executive offices and city offices will close on that day, according to announcements on Tuesday from Virginia Gov. Ralph S. Northam and Mayor Levar M. Stoney, who each made it an official holiday.

Here is a roundup of upcoming Juneteenth events:

Friday, June 19 • 10 a.m to 8:30 p.m. Lee statue, Monument and Allen avenues.

Music and other activities, closing with a candlelight vigil in which R&B star Trey Songz of Petersburg is to participate. Richmond Action Alliance is the lead organizer.

• Noon to 1 p.m. “Self Preservation,” an online discussion of the Virginia African-American Cultural Resources Task Force to promote increased focus on the African-American experience in Virginia. Task force chair and Richmond Delegate Delores L. McQuinn; Norfolk State University professor Colita Nichols Fairfax, chair of the Virginia Board of Historic Resources and president of the Barrett-Peake Heritage Foundation in Hampton; and preservationist Niya Bates, board member of the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center in Charlottesville, will lead the conversation with moderator Justin E. Reid of Virginia Humanities. Online access: bit.ly/2UBDmB9.

• 6 p.m. Black Lives Matter rally in Monroe Park.

Saturday, June 20 • 1 to 5 p.m. Virginia Union University, Hovey Field. “Juneteenth Rally for Justice.” The public is welcome, but the event primarily is for members of black fraternities and sororities to craft policies for police reform, according to F.W. “Fred” Scott, president of the Virginia Association of Chapters of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.

To include remarks and dialogue with U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, U.S. Rep. A. Donald McEachin, Richmond Delegate Jeff M. Bourne and other elected officials.

• 5 to 8 p.m. “Independence Day Our Way.” Virtual celebration to include performances by Plunky Branch, Sam Reed, DJ Drake and Elegba Folklore Society’s African dance troupe, plus cooking demonstrations and craft-making for children. This is the 25th annual Juneteenth celebration staged by the Elegba Folklore Society. Details on virtual access to the celebration at www.efsinc.org or contact Janine Bell, artistic director, (804) 644-3900 or story1@efsinc.org.

Delroy Lindo gives riveting performance in Spike Lee’s ‘Da 5 Bloods’ NEW YORK In the jungle of Spike Lee’s sprawling and anguished “Da 5 Bloods,” Delroy Lindo’s titanic performance as a Vietnam veteran rises to a ferocious, even Shakespearean pinnacle.

Mr. Lee’s film, now streaming on Netflix, follows four African-American veterans who decades later return to Vietnam to find the remains of their fallen squad leader (Chadwick Boseman) and lost gold. Mr. Lindo plays Paul, the most tragic figure of the bunch, a soldier haunted by PTSD. Mangled by disappointment, xenophobia and rage, he has turned into a supporter of President Trump and wears a “Make American Great Again” hat.

In Mr. Lindo’s intense performance, “Da 5 Bloods” turns almost mythic in its deconstruction of African-American history in U.S. combat and in war films. For the 67-year-old Mr. Lindo, it’s a mountain-peak performance in a career, first established on the stage, that began with a trio of films with Mr. Lee (1992’s “Malcolm X,” 1994’s “Crooklyn” and 1995’s “Clockers”).

Mr. Lindo’s gravity has long been felt in roles large and small, from “Get Shorty” to “Heist,” but “Da 5 Bloods” gives Mr. Lindo one of his fullest showcases. If there’s Oscar buzz this year, he’ll have it.

“I am deeply proud of this work,” Mr. Lindo said in a recent phone interview from the Bay Area home he shares with his wife and 18year-old son.

Mr. Lindo built his performance on research, meeting with two cousins who served and a number of Vietnam vets. He re-read the oral history of African-Americans in the Vietnam War, “Bloods,” and watched the 1974 documentary “Hearts and Minds.” And he attempted to funnel centuries of pain for black American soldiers into a colossal, larger-than-life character.

embrace for them as vets. Cumulatively, these betrayals add up to feeling disenfranchised that could result in this individual coming along in 2016 and saying, “I can make it better.” I can see how one could get sucked into drink that particular cup of Kool-Aid. And Paul drank a pitcher of Kool-Aid, man. Not just a cup.

Q: You’ve spoken about being particularly bothered by the depiction of black soldiers in “Platoon.” Why do you think African-American veterans are so rarely seen in film?

Clarke Peters and Delroy Lindo confront memories in the jungle of Vietnam.

David Lee/Netflix

Mr. Lindo felt the role closely enough that, in an interview, he sometimes drifted into referring to his character as himself. In the Q&A below, his answers have been edited for brevity and clarity.

me creatively, as a creative worker. The overall experience was enhanced by the 20-plus years that had passed since we worked together. We’re both 25 years older but still on a similar track, creatively.

Q: It had been 25 years since you worked with Spike. Did you notice anything different about him?

Q: You and Spike initially disagreed about making Paul a Trump supporter.

Mr. Lindo: He first called me when I was in the car. He said some things that really moved me in terms of his respect for me, his regard for me. That was different. I have to say that there were disagreements that we had. I’m not going to tell you exactly what they were, but there were a couple of bumpy moments when we disagreed about a couple things, a couple very, very important things. But, A, we were able to move on and, B, he apologized. That for me was a manifestation of his regard for

Mr. Lindo: I remember saying to Spike, “Spike, I’m a father and a parent. I don’t want my son to see me doing that.” But once Spike made it clear to me, “I need this, man. I need this to be a component of the story,” then my job was to get my head around it and rationalize it. It had to do with the depth of the betrayal that Paul has experienced, the loss that Paul has experienced. One of the largest betrayals had to do with the betrayal by my country when I got back from the war. My two cousins said to me they were stunned by the reaction, the lack of

Mr. Lindo: There is a tradition of black soldiers being marginalized at best, expurgated at worst. This film addresses that from the standpoint that we are front and center. We’re seeing the Vietnam experience through the lens of these brothers. It’s important from a historical point of view to tell these stories. I was born in England and my family is Caribbean. Both in World War I and World War II, Caribbean soldiers fought for the British, with the British, and generally speaking that contribution has been virtually expurgated. Generally, there’s this tradition of not focusing on us and our achievements and our contributions.

Q: The scenes toward the end of the film, with Paul alone in the jungle, are remarkable.

Mr. Lindo: We shot those scenes toward the end of our time in Thailand, before we went to Vietnam. We were probably six, seven weeks in. That was to my advantage. I was sufficiently plugged in to the work and to Paul. I had enough of a foundation underneath me that there was a connection I felt inside the work. Expressing what I had to express in those scenes was just really rich for me as an actor. And Spike let me go, man. It wasn’t long. It wasn’t like I was adding a page of dialogue. But he let me go.

Richmond Free Press

June 18-20, 2020

B3

Faith News/Directory

Clergy testify to outrage, hope in D.C. demonstrations Religion News Service

A series of religious demonstrations in Washington last weekend mixed prayerful calls for racial equality with frustration with law enforcement, lawmakers and the Trump administration.

Thousands of churchgoers and clergy, most of them African-American, assembled last Sunday at the National Museum of African American History and Culture to march to the newly christened Black Lives Matter Plaza — previously known as 16th Street Northwest at it passes the White House.

Once there, participants organized by the NAACP and Alfred Street Baptist Church, a prominent black church in Alexandria, Va., prayed and kneeled along the street, which is currently painted with the words “Black Lives Matter.�

“We’re here because of what happened with Ahmaud, Breonna, with George, (and) Rayshard,â€? the Rev. HowardJohn Wesley, pastor of Alfred Street Baptist, told the crowd, listing the names of AfricanAmericans who have been killed recently in encounters with the police and alleged vigilantes. “We know that, sadly, that’s what we’ve been living with for the entirety of our time in this nation. ‌ It’s important that this nation know that we have not forgotten, that we do not have racial amnesia.â€?

Just before noon, the Rev. William J. Barber II, co-chair of the Poor People’s Campaign and pastor of Greenleaf Christian Church in Goldsboro, N.C., delivered the sermon at the Washington National Cathedral’s Sunday Eucharist service. A few hours later, Rev. Barber appeared in front of

BUILDING OR RENOVATING A CHURCH IN THE FUTURE?

St. John’s Episcopal Church, across Lafayette Square from the White House, to deliver a similar message alongside Sikh, Christian, Muslim and Jewish leaders who gathered to protest racism, police brutality and President Trump.

Rev. Barber highlighted the recent killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, who begged for breath as a police officer kneeled on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. “Every time the church and religious people have seen these deaths and buried folk and sent them to heaven but did not fight for change here — that keeps this stuff alive,� Rev. Barber said.

He said the killing of African-Americans by police is only one form of racism, pointing to disparities in health care access, wages and the treatment of indigenous people. “What George Floyd spoke

Barky’s

is shorthand for all our pain: I can’t breathe,� he said.

He criticized the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic as “negligent,� noting that the poor and people of color are disproportionately represented among its victims — including George Floyd. “If we had had cameras in hospitals, how many times would we have heard ‘I can’t breathe’?�

Rev. Barber also lauded activists who have been marching for weeks, citing in particular those who are not motivated by faith. “Sometimes the people in the street have been more prophetic than the religious folk! We must repent of that!�

Among the faith leaders at the gathering was Bishop Mariann Budde, the Episcopal Bishop of Washington who fiercely criticized President Usher Badges • Clergy Shirts • Collars • Communion Supplies • Much More!

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Trump after demonstrators — including clergy — were cleared from Lafayette Square by law enforcement on June 1 shortly before the president posed for cameras in front of St. John’s Church while holding a Bible aloft.

St. John’s Church has become the epicenter of protests in Washington ever since, and Bishop Budde, who prayed at the gathering, said religious leaders have a role to play. “The church has left the building,� she told RNS. “We’re not just in the building. We

never were, but now we’re like: This is God’s sanctuary, and let’s be here.� “The United Methodist Imam Talib M. Shareef, president of the Nation’s Mosque, Masjid Muhammad, in Washington, said people of faith should lend a hand by helping demonstrators channel frustration into a positive force for good. “The role of people in faith ought to help us keep our humanity,� he said. “If we are consumed by the anger, (then) we will lose our humanity.�

Moore Street Missionary

2IVERVIEW

"APTIST #HURCH

Baptist Church

1408 W. Leigh Street ¡ Richmond, Va. 23220 (804) 358—6403

Dr. Alonza L. Lawrence, Pastor

All church ac�vi�es are canceled un�l further no�ce.

Follow us on Facebook for “A Word from Moore Street’s Pastor� and weekly Zoom worship info.

Drive-thru giving will be available the 1st and 3rd Saturday from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the church. (Bowe Street side) You also may give through Givelify.

“The Church With A Welcome�

Be safe. Be blessed.

3HARON "APTIST #HURCH

Sunday School – 9:45 AM Sunday Services – 11:00 AM Via Conference Call (515) 606-5187 Pin 572890# Also Visit Us On Facebook Sunday Service – 11:00 AM 2604 Idlewood Avenue Richmond, Va. 23220 (804) 353-6135 www.riverviewbaptistch.org Rev. Dr. Stephen L. Hewlett, Pastor Rev. Dr. Ralph Reavis, Sr. Pastor Emeritus

500 E. Laburnum Avenue, Richmond, VA 23222 www.sharonbaptistchurchrichmond.org (804) 643-3825

Contact Davis Brothers Construction Company, Inc.,

Rev. Dr. Paul A. Coles, Pastor

Building Churches for over 100 years.

Est. 1908

See you there!

SUNDAY, JUNE 21, 2020 Morning Worship 10:00 AM Drive-In Service in our Parking Lot

Good Shepherd Baptist Church 1127 North 28th St., Richmond, VA 23223 s Office: (804) 644-1402 Dr. Sylvester T. Smith, Pastor “There’s A Place for You�

Corporate Office Richmond, Va.: s &AX

Langston R. Davis email: ldavis@davisbrotherscc.com

Atlanta, Ga. Office: s &AX

Langston R. Davis Jr. email: ldavisjr@davisbrotherscc.com

Broad Rock Baptist Church 5106 Walmsley Blvd., Richmond, VA 23224 804-276-2740 • 804-276-6535 (fax) www.BRBCONLINE.org Early Morning Worship ~ 8 a.m.

“Due to the Corona All services Sunday SchoolVirus: ~ 9:30 a.m.

Morning Worship ~ 11 a.m. at Broad Rock Baptist Church 4th Sunday UniďŹ ed Worship Service ~ 9:30 a.m. are until further notice.â€?

Biblecancelled, Study: Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m. & 7 p.m.

Due to the COVID-19 Corona Virus All regular activities have been suspended until further notice.

Visit https://youtu.be/qqzhnIEQyQc for inspirational messages from Pastor Smith

8LIQI JSV 1SFMPM^MRK *SV 1MRMWXV] 6IJVIWLMRK 8LI 3PH ERH )QIVKMRK 8LI 2I[ We Embrace Diversity — Love For All!

A 21st Century Church With Ministry For Everyone

Come worship with us!

“MAKE IT HAPPEN�

Pastor Kevin Cook

$R +IRKLAND 2 7ALTON 0ASTOR

Worship Opportunities Sundays: All Sunday services have been suspended for the remainder of the month. Join us for online streaming this Sunday at 10 AM. Visit our WEBSITE, look under “/NLINE 3ERVICES,� and access the “0ASTOR S -ESSAGE.�

Bible Study Opportunities Thursdays: All Bible Study sessions have been suspended for the remainder of the month.

Tithing Opportunities Download the Tithe.ly giving app for Apple and Android devices. Your gift is safe/secure and goes directly to our church.

-OUNTAIN 2OAD s 'LEN !LLEN 6IRGINIA /FlCE s &AX s WWW STPETERBAPTIST NET

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e with Reverence elevanc R in g Rev. Dr. Joshua Mitchell, Pastor-Elect bin m â?– o

SUNDAYS

Sunday Service will not be held in our sanctuary.

Join us for 11:00 AM Worship by going to our website www.sixthbaptistchurch.org

Sermons Available at BRBCONLINE.org

St. Peter Baptist Church

Thirty-first Street Baptist Church

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g ratin eleb

151 years of Christian Ser Twitter sixthbaptistrva

Rev.CDr. Yvonne Jones Bibbs, Pastor

Facebook sixthbaptistrva

Church School 9:30 a.m.

Morning Worship 10:30 a.m. â?–

WEDNESDAYS Bible Study 7:00 p.m.

400 South Addison Street Richmond, Va. 23220

â?–

vic359-3498 (804) 359-1691 or e

THIRD SUNDAY 10:30 a.m.

Children’s Church Higher Achievement

(near Byrd Park)

Fax (804) 359-3798 www.sixthbaptistchurch.org

Ebenezer Baptist Church

823 North 31st Street Richmond, VA 23223 (804) 226-0150 Office

1858

¹4HE 0EOPLE´S #HURCH²

216 W. Leigh St. • Richmond, Va. 23220 Tel: 804-643-3366 • Fax: 804-643-3367 Email: ebcofďŹ ce1@yahoo.com • web: www.richmondebenezer.com

For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.

(Jeremiah 29:11, NRSV)

New Deliverance Evangelistic Church

1701 Turner Road, North Chesterfield, Virginia 23225 (804) 276-0791 office (804)276-5272 fax www.ndec.net

Please visit our website Ebenezer Baptist Church Richmond, VA for updates http://www.richmondebenezer.com

JUNE 28, 2020 9:30AM

Dr. Wallace J. Cook, Pastor Emeritus

Rev. Dr. Adam L. Bond, Pastor-Elect

Antioch Baptist Church “Redeeming God’s People for Gods Purpose�

1384 New Market Road, Richmond, Virginia 23231 | 804-222-8835

SERVICES

SUNDAY WORSHIP HOUR – 10:00 A.M. CHILDREN’S CHURCH & BUS MINISTRY AVAILABLE SUNDAY SCHOOL (FOR ALL AGES) – 9:00 A.M. TUESDAY MID-DAY BIBLE STUDY – 12 NOON WEDNESDAY MID-WEEK PRAYER & BIBLE STUDY – 7:00 P.M. A MISSION BASED CHURCH FAMILY EXCITING MINISTRIES FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH, YOUNG ADULTS & SENIOR ADULTS BIBLE REVELATION TEACHING DIVERSE MUSIC MINISTRY LOVING, CARING ENVIRONMENT

Service

Bishop G. O. Glenn

s -ASK AND FACE COVERINGS must be worn

First Lady

s 0RACTICE SOCIAL DISTANCING BY REMAINING six (6) feet distance

SUNDAY

s !LL ATTENDEES must REMAIN in their vehicles�

Mother Marcietia S. Glenn

8:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:30 a.m. Worship Service

DR. JAMES L. SAILES PASTOR

Following COVID-19 guidelines:

D. Min., Pastor

Follow peace with all WEDNESDAY SERVICES men, and holiness, Noonday Bible without which Study no man 12:00 p.m. (Noon) shall see the Lord: Sanctuary - All Are Welcome!

Hebrew 12:14 (KJV) Wednesday Evening Bible Study 7:00 p.m.

(Bible Study) www.ndec.net

Tune in on Sunday Morning to WTVR - Channel 6 - 8:30 a.m.

SATURDAY

6 weeks to 4th grade Before and After Care

8:30 a.m. Intercessory Prayer

You can now view Sunday Morning Service “AS IT HAPPENS� online!

Also, for your convenience, we now offer “full online giving.�

Visit www.ndec.net.

CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (NDCA) NOW ENROLLING!!!

For more information Please call

(804) 276-4433

Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

Richmond Free Press

B4 June 18-20, 2020

Legal Notices/Employment Opportunities Continued from previous column

To advertise in the

Richmond Free Press call

644-0496 Follow the Free Press on @FreePressRVA @RichmondFreePressUSA

City of Richmond, Virginia CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC NOTICE Notice is hereby given that the City of Richmond Planning Commission has scheduled a public hearing, open to all interested citizens, on Monday, July 6, 2020 at 1:30 p.m. and the Council of the City of Richmond has scheduled a public hearing on Monday, July 27, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. to consider the following ordinances: Ordinance No. 2020-140 To amend and reordain Ord. No. 85-77-79, adopted Apr. 15, 1985, as amended by Ord. No. 2001-169-164, adopted May 28, 2001, which authorized the special use of the property known as 3103 Ellwood Avenue, to authorize the elimination of the operator occupied residency requirement of the second floor dwelling unit, additional signage and awning installation, to authorize an office use, upon certain terms and conditions.

The property is within the R‑48 Multi‑Family Residential District. The City of Richmond’s Master Plan designates a future land use category for the subject property as Single‑Family Medium Density. Primary uses for this category include single‑family and two‑family dwellings, both detached and attached, at densities of 8 to 20 units per acre. Includes residential support uses such as schools, places of worship, neighborhood parks and recreation facilities, and limited public and semi‑public uses.

Ordinance No. 2020-141 To authorize the special use of the property known as 1110 North 35th Street for the purpose of two single-family detached dwellings, upon certain terms and conditions. The property is located within the R‑5 Single‑Family Residential zoning district.

The City of Richmond’s Master Plan designates the subject property for Single‑Family (Low Density) uses. Primary use is single‑family detached dwellings at densities up to seven units per acre. Includes residential support uses such as schools, places of worship, neighborhood parks and recreation facilities, and limited public and semi‑public uses. The density of the parcel if developed as proposed would be a ratio of approximately 12 units per acre.

Ordinance No. 2020-142 To authorize the special use of the properties known as 1705, 1707, and 1711 Westover Hills Boulevard, and 4922 New Kent Road for the purpose of retail, office, and commercial uses accessory to an existing church, upon certain terms and conditions. The property is located within the R‑5 Single‑Family Residential zoning district.

The City of Richmond’s Master Plan designates the subject property for Single‑Family (Low Density) uses. Primary use is single‑family detached dwellings at densities up to seven units per acre. Includes residential support uses such as schools, places of worship, neighborhood parks and recreation facilities, and limited public and semi‑public uses.

Ordinance No. 2020-143 To authorize the special use of the property known as 3416 East Broad Street for the purpose of a twofamily attached dwelling, upon certain terms and conditions. The property is currently located in the R-8 Urban Residential District.

The City of Richmond’s Master Plan designates a future land use category for the subject property as Single‑Family Medium Density. Primary uses for this category include single‑family and two‑family dwellings, both detached and attached, at densities of 8 to 20 units per acre. The density of the parcel if developed as proposed would be approximately 29 units per acre.

Ordinance No. 2020-144 To conditionally rezone the properties known as 3307 Cutshaw Avenue and 3311 Cutshaw Avenue from the R-48 Multifamily Residential District to Continued on next column

the R-63 Multifamily Urban Residential District (Conditional), upon certain proffered conditions. The City of Richmond’s Pulse Corridor Plan designates a future land use category for this property as Tr a n s i t i o n a l . T h e s e areas provide a gradual transition between intense commercial areas and primarily single‑family residential areas. No residential density is specified for this land use designation.

The meetings will be held through electronic communication means pursuant to and in compliance with Ordinance No. 2020093, adopted April 9, 2020. The meetings will be open to participation through electronic communication means by the public and closed to in-person participation by the public. Less than a quorum of Richmond City Planning Commission members and Richmond City Council will assemble in City Hall, located at 900 East Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia, and most members and other staff will participate by teleconference/ videoconference via Microsoft Teams.

The meetings will be streamed live online at the following web address: https://richmondva. legistar.com/Calendar. a s p x . To w a t c h a meeting’s live stream at the web address provided, find and click the link that reads, “In Progress� in the farthest right hand column entitled, “Video�.

The agenda for the Richmond City Council meeting is accessible through the City’s legislative website at the following web address: https://richmondva. legistar.com/Calendar. aspx. To view the agenda at the web address provided, find and click the link that reads, “Agenda� associated with the July 27, 2020 Richmond City Council Formal meeting listed in the calendar.

Interested citizens who wish to speak at the Richmond City Council meeting will be given an opportunity to do so by following the “Formal Meeting Access and Public Participation Instructions� attached to the July 27, 2020 Richmond City Council Formal meeting agenda.

Citizens are encouraged to provide their comments in writing to CityClerksOffice@ richmondgov.com in lieu of calling in. The person responsible for receiving comments in writing is Candice D. Reid, City Clerk. All comments received prior to 10:00 a.m. on Monday, July 27, 2020, will be provided to Council members prior to the meeting and will be included in the record of the meeting.

Copies of the full text of all ordinances are available by visiting the City Clerk’s page on the City’s Website at http:// www.richmondgov.com/ CityClerk/index.aspx.

Candice D. Reid City Clerk

Divorce VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER MWILA BATES Plaintiff v.

TYRELLE BATES Defendant.

Case No.: CL20001683-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to obtain a divorce from the bond of matrimony from the defendant on the ground of living separate and apart without any cohabitation and without interruption for a period exceeding twelve months.

It is ORDERED that the defendant, whose whereabouts are unknown, appear here on or before the 20th day of July, 2020 at 9:00 AM, and protect his interests.

A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Law Office of Dorothy M. Eure, P.C. Dorothy M. Eure, Plaintiff’s Attorney VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667

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a period exceeding twelve months.

It is ORDERED that the defendant, whose whereabouts are unknown, appear here on or before the 20th day of July, 2020 at 9:00 AM, and protect his interests.

A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Law Office of Dorothy M. Eure, P.C. Dorothy M. Eure, Plaintiff’s Attorney VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667 VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER DANIELLE SIMMONS Plaintiff v.

JAMES SIMMONS Defendant.

Case No.: CL19001047-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to obtain a divorce from the bond of matrimony from the defendant on the ground of living separate and apart without any cohabitation and without interruption for a period exceeding twelve months.

It is ORDERED that the defendant, who is a nonresident, appear here on or before the 20th day of July, 2020 at 9:00 AM, and protect his interests.

A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure, Esquire VSB# 27724 Law Office of Dorothy M. Eure, P.C. 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667 Virginia: In the Circuit Court of the COUNty of HENRICO ESTHER OKOROAFO RUFFIN, Plaintiff, v.

MAURICE STEPHFAN RUFFIN, Defendant.

Civil Law No.: CL20-2664 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of the abovestyled suit is to obtain a divorce from the bonds of matrimony from the defendant on the grounds that the parties have lived separate and apart without interruption and without cohabitation for a period of more than one year, since April 15, 2015.

And it appearing by Affidavit filed according to law that Maurice Stephfan Ruffin, the above-named defendant, is not a resident of this state and that due diligence has been used by or in behalf of plaintiff to ascertain in what county or city the defendant is, without effect.

It is therefore ORDERED that the said Maurice Stephfan Ruffin do appear in the Clerk’s Office of the Law Division of the Circuit Court of Henrico County, 4301 East Parham Road, Richmond, Virginia 23273, on or before July 13, 2020 and do whatever necessary to protect her interest in this suit.

An Extract, Teste: HEIDI S. BARSHINGER, Clerk I ask for this: Rudolph C. McCollum, Jr. VSB #32825 P.O. Box 4595 Richmond, Virginia 23220 Phone (804) 523-3900 Fax (804) 523-3901 VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER LAURETTE ORELIA, Plaintiff v.

MICHEL SYLVAIN, Defendant.

Case No.: CL20000421-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to obtain a divorce from the bond of matrimony from the defendant on the ground of living separate and apart without any cohabitation and without interruption for a period exceeding twelve months.

It is ORDERED that the defendant, who is a nonresident, appear here on or before the 9th day of July, 2020 at 9:00 AM, and protect his interests.

A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure, Esquire VSB# 27724 Law Office of Dorothy M. Eure, P.C. 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667

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Clerk I ask for this: Law Office of Dorothy M. Eure, P.C. Dorothy M. Eure, Plaintiff’s Attorney VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667

CUSTODY VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING In the matter of the adoption of a child to be known as Shevontae Alexis Crutchfield (Virginia Birth Registration Number 145-06-080646)

by Nicole Angela Johnson.

Case No.: CA20-16 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to: 1. Terminate the parental rights of the birth mother, Shanta Alexus Crutchfield, the punitive birth father, Timothy Dillard and/or any unknown father whose whereabouts are unknown; 2. To grant leave to Nicole Angela Johnson to adopt, Shevontae Alexis Crutchfield date of birth October 10, 2006; and 3. To have the name of said child changed to Nicole Angela Johnson.

It is ORDERED that Shanta Alexus Crutchfield, Timothy Dillard and/or any unknown father appear at the above-named Court and protect her interests on or before July 15, 2020 at 1:00 p.m.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk I ask for this: Lynn L. Robinson, Esquire (VSB #43143) 8 West Leigh Street Richmond, Virginia 23220 TEL: (804) 225-9027 FAX: (804) 225-9076

PROPERTIES VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

NATHANIEL PORTER, JR, et al Defendants.

CL19-5446 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 1407 Bryan Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0000606016, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, Nathaniel Porter, Jr, Ronald Lee Porter, and Tonya Townsell aka Tonya L. Porter .

An Affidavit having been filed that said owners, NATHANIEL PORTER, JR and TONYA TOWNSELL aka TONYA L. PORTER, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known address, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RONALD LEE PORTER, upon information and belief deceased, or his heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that N AT H A N I E L P O R T E R , JR, TONYA TOWNSELL aka TONYA L. PORTER, RONALD LEE PORTER, upon information and belief deceased, or his heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER ERICA BROADFOOT Plaintiff v.

TYLER BITTEL Defendant.

Case No.: CL20001682-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to obtain a divorce from the bond of matrimony from the defendant on the ground of living separate and apart without any cohabitation and without interruption for

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER TIA CORBIN-MYERS, Plaintiff v.

KEITH MYERS, Defendant.

Case No.: CL20001639-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to obtain a divorce from the bond of matrimony from the defendant on the ground of living separate and apart without any cohabitation and without interruption for a period exceeding twelve months.

It is ORDERED that the defendant, whose whereabouts are unknown, appear here on or before the 9th day of July, 2020 at 9:00 AM, and protect his interests.

A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR.,

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

VIRGINIA L. TURNER, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL20-137 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 3324 Belmont Road, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number C0080939008 to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, Virginia L. Turner and Osborne L. Turner.

An Affidavit having been filed that JAMES A. BECK, Beneficiary of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 08-32136 on December 31, 2008, who has been served by posting and by mailing a copy

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of the complaint to his last known address, has not been personally located and has not filed a response to this action, and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that that JAMES A. BECK, Beneficiary of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 08-32136 on December 31, 2008, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

JAMES B. PETTIS, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL20-1321 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 1904 North 25th Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0120397006, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, James B. Pettis and Estelle Pettis.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owners, JAMES B. PETTIS, upon information and belief deceased, or his heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, and ESTELLE PETTIS, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that EDWARD E. BERLING, TRUSTEE of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 0437165 on November 5, 2004, said deed of trust per its terms maturing on January 2, 2006, who has been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to his last known address, has not been personally located and has not filed a response to this action; that DAVID N. JONES, Beneficiary of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 04-37165 on November 5, 2004, said deed of trust per its terms maturing on January 2, 2006, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that JAMES B. PETTIS, upon information and belief deceased, or his heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, ESTELLE PETTIS, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, EDWARD E. BERLING, TRUSTEE of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 0437165 on November 5, 2004, said deed of trust per its terms maturing on January 2, 2006, DAVID N. JONES, Beneficiary of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 04-37165 on November 5, 2004, said deed of trust per its terms maturing on January 2, 2006, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

AGNES V. KEILHACKER, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL20-1650 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the properties briefly described as 4107 Lynhaven Avenue, Tax Map Number S0090224012 and 4109 Lynhaven Avenue, Tax Map Number S0090224013, Richmond, Virginia, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, Agnes V. Keilhacker and Anna Keilhacker Corrado.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owners, AGNES V. KEILHACKER, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest and ANNA KEILHACKER CORRADO, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action, and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that AGNES V. KEILHACKER, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, ANNA KEILHACKER CORRADO, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

REGINALD L. DUCKETT, JR, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL20-902 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 3102 Columbia Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number S0080632004 to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, Reginald L. Duckett, Jr.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owner, REGINALD L. DUCKETT, JR who has been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to his last known address, has not been personally located and has not filed a response to this action; that JOHN C. LUMPKIN, REGISTERED AGENT for EVFS, LLC, TRUSTEE of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 0726803 on August 7, 2007, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that REGINALD L. DUCKETT, JR, JOHN C. LUMPKIN, REGISTERED AGENT for EVFS, LLC, TRUSTEE of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 07-26803 on August 7, 2007, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

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VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

CESCA JANECE WATERFIELD, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL20-263 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 14 West 24th Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number S0000685015, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, Cesca Janece Waterfield.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owner, CESCA JANECE WATERFIELD, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action, and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that CESCA JANECE WATERFIELD, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

MAMIE M. ELLEBY, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL19-5650 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 3113 5th Avenue, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number N0050999007, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, Mamie M. Elleby.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owner, MAMIE M. ELLEBY, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that WILLIAM ADAM WHITE, Registered Agent for SAMUEL I. WHITE, PC, TRUSTEE, on a Substitution of Trustee filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 01-5515 on March 7, 2001, has not been located and has filed a response to this action; that SALOMON BROTHERS REALTY CORP, a corporation not registered with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Beneficiary of an Assignment of Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 0225637 on August 16, 2002, has not been located and has filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that MAMIE M. ELLEBY, upon information and belief deceased, or her heirs, devisees, assignees or successors in interest, WILLIAM ADAM WHITE, Registered Agent for SAMUEL I. WHITE, PC, TRUSTEE, on a Substitution of Trustee filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 01-5515 on March 7, 2001, SALOMON BROTHERS REALTY CORP, a corporation not registered with the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Beneficiary of an Assignment of Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Instrument Number 0225637 on August 16, 2002, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before AUGUST 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

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VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

GERTRUDE L. HINES, et al, Defendants.

Case No.: CL20-623 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 708 Kaki Drive, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number C007-0193/001, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, Gertrude L. Hines.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owner, GERTRUDE L. HINES, who has been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to her last known address, has not been personally located and has not filed a response to this action; that HOUSEHOLD REALTY CORP. OF VIRGINIA, an entity listed as inactive in the records of the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Beneficiary of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Deed Book 179 page 516 on September 15, 1988, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.�

IT IS ORDERED that GERTRUDE L. HINES, H O U S E H O L D R E A LT Y CORP. OF VIRGINIA, an entity listed as inactive in the records of the Virginia State Corporation Commission, Beneficiary of a Deed of Trust filed in the records of the Richmond Circuit Court at Deed Book 179 page 516 on September 15, 1988, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before august 13, 2020 and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7949

BID COUNTY OF HENRICO, VIRGINIA CONSTRUCTION BID ITB No. 20-1988-2JOK Dabbs House Road Improvements Due: July 7, 2020 at 2:00 p.m.

For additional information visit: https://henrico.us/ finance/divisions/purchasing/ solicitations/

“Notice of Nondiscriminatory Policy As to Students�

Anna Julia Cooper Episcopal School admits students of any race, color, national, and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other schooladministered programs.

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Thank you for your interest in applying for opportunities with The City of Richmond.

To see what opportunities are available, please refer to our website at www.richmondgov.com.

EOE M/F/D/V CDA USA seeks Business Manager, Labeling & Filling Machines to direct/coordinate activities of manufacturing facility w/ respect to production, manufacturing, pricing, sales, & distribution of automatic & semi-automatic labeling & filling machines. Travel 1 wk/month all over Eastern part of USA to attend trade shows & visit customers. REQ: Associate’s or foreign equiv. in Business Admin or closely related & 6 months exp as Technical Engineer or Technician in manufacturing industry w/ 6 months concurrent exp building, designing, & maintaining automatic & semi-automatic labeling &filling machines; investigating failures of & repairing automatic & semi-automatic labeling &filling machines; & using Omron programmable logic controller (PLC) or Allen Bradley PLC. LOC: Henrico, VA. Send cvr ltr, CV, salary rqmt & refs to: C. Gore, Office Manager, 4310 Eubank Rd, Henrico, VA 23231.

AVAILABLE Downtown Richmond first floor office suite 5th and Franklin Streets 422 East Franklin Street Richmond, Virginia 23219

804.358.5543 Bedros Bandazian

Associate Broker, Chairman

Raffi Bandazian

Principal Broker, GRI

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