Richmond Free Press Sept. 21-23, 2023 edition

On a mission Richmond Free Press

LifeNet’s quest to increase organ donations

By George Copeland Jr.

“Don’t take your organs to heaven — heaven knows we need them here.”

This phrase, commonly used by organ donation advocates, stuck with Donnetta Quarles-Reese when she first saw it on bumper stickers and license plates in her youth. It would stay with her in the decades that followed, when she agreed to donate the organs of her daughter Clarke Danielle and her husband Charles Michael after their deaths in 2007 and 2017, respectively.

“Something good has to come out of this,” said Ms. Quarles-Reese, who attempted to donate the fetal tissue of her first child who died early in life.

Since 2008, Ms. Quarles-Reese has worked to encourage others to become registered donors and spread awareness and information as part of LifeNet

Health, a nonprofit that provides organs for transplants. She credits the organization for helping her endure the grief she faced when her daughter passed.

“I want to dispel those myths and help us help ourselves.”

Ms. QuarlesReese

Ms. QuarlesReese, however, is a unique voice in a state where African-Americans are less likely to donate organs but are in greater need for these donations than other racial groups.

“There’s so many of us dying because we can’t get a kidney,” Ms. Quarles-Reese said. “There’s so many of us waiting because we can’t get a kidney, and we are the ones who are saying ‘no, no, no’ for whatever reason.”

According to LifeNet Health, Black Virginians make up half of the patients on the state’s organ transplant waiting list, despite accounting for 19 percent of the population. Black Virginians also are less likely to donate the organs of family members to those in need, according to the group.

Also, some majority-Black areas in the state only register about 25 percent of registered donors compared to roughly 50 percent registration across all areas and populations in Virginia. These disparities mean that Black Virginians feel the obstacles associated with organ transplants more acutely than other groups.

Kia White, community affairs director

RRHA gets REAL about reducing gun violence

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

A crime-reduction initiative that Mayor Levar M. Stoney has spurned apparently will come to Richmond after all.

The city’s housing authority is partnering with the nonprofit REAL LIFE to implement the same initiative in Richmond that is credited with dramatically cutting shootings and violent crime in Hopewell.

A nationally recognized approach, REAL LIFE’s Project Safe, Alive and Free seeks to identify individuals who are most likely to shoot a weapon and offer them a choice of resources such as life coaches, job training and after-school programs to help them change, or a credible, targeted effort by law enforcement to lock them up.

to employment training and jobs, mental health and health services, conflict resolution training and upgraded after-school programming, along with employing a nine-member private security force to patrol communities.

The announcement that Project Safe, Alive and Free would be part of the initiative came just two weeks after the mayor again rejected the program after meeting with members of the faith-based RISC, Richmonders Involved to Strengthen our Communities, which has been advocating for its acceptance and even gained federal grants to help pay for it.

Julianne Tripp

Richmonders Involved to Strengthen our Communities and Virginia Caucus of Rankand-File Educators gathered for a prayer vigil on Aug. 29 at City Hall to call attention to Richmond’s gun violence. Steven B. Nesmith, chief executive of the Richmond Redevelopment

Community day

Brittany Powell

Jacoby Grandison was among Richmond area youngsters who attended Upon This Rock World Ministries’ Community Day Saturday at Pine Camp Cultural and Arts Center. Volunteer Sherrelle Johnson serves food made by Holy Smoke. Other activities included inspiring ministries and baptismal ceremonies. More photos are on B3.

Steven B. Nesmith, chief executive of the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority, announced the partnership with REAL LIFE in officially launching RRHAs new “Hope, Jobs & Security” initiative to improve the lives of residents of public housing.

The partnership with REAL LIFE is just one element of the RRHA plan that includes steppedup efforts to link public housing adults and youths

Winter shelter’s opening may be delayed

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

A planned 150-bed winter shelter for Richmond’s homeless population may not open until Dec. 1, or well after freezing temperatures could hit the city, it has been learned.

As previously outlined, Mayor Levar M. Stoney’s administration plans this year to support the Salvation Army in opening one central inclement weather shelter at 1900 Chamberlayne Ave., a former church that the faith group purchased three years ago to provide expanded operations and shelter space.

However, the administration is focusing on ensuring the space is opened within 100 days, not 30 or 60 days.

Fifth District City Councilwoman Stephanie A. Lynch said that she “is pressing the administration” to have an alternative site available if temperatures plunge below

freezing.

Killing frosts in which temperatures drop into the lower 30s or even colder can occur as early as mid-October in the city, although in recent years, November has been more typical.

Ms. Lynch said she believes temporary space could easily be made available.

In 2020, council designated six community centers as emergency shelters during disasters, including Bellemeade, Hickory Hill, Hotchkiss, Pine Camp, Randolph and Southside.

However, that designation was included in an agreement with the American National Red Cross, which is not involved in providing cold-weather shelter for those living on the streets. One space not yet mentioned is the School

to A4

The RRHA partnership will be a major test for Project Safe, Alive and Free given that Richmond’s population overall is 10 times that of Hopewell and the 3,200 units RRHA manages are almost 10 times Hopewell’s public housing units.

“We’ll be up for it,” said Dr. Sarah Scarbrough, founder and director of REAL LIFE, an addiction treatment, counseling and housing program she created to serve people released from prison.

Dr. Scarbrough said it would take three to four

Early voting begins Sept. 22

The

VOTE

VCU names Faye Belgrave as vice president, chief diversity officer

Dr.

Michael Rao, Ph.D., president of VCU and VCU Health, said Dr. Belgrave has the right mix of qualities and experience to strengthen VCU’s campus climate.

“Dr. Belgrave’s experience, her dedication and her commitment to collaboration

across the university and health system make her the right person for this role,” Dr. Rao wrote. “She will advance VCU’s commitment to a campus climate that is welcoming, diverse and inclusive of all, and I look forward to working with my longtime colleague in a new way.”

Equity and inclusion have always been an essential element of Dr. Belgrave’s teaching, her research into health disparities

and her partnerships with the community.

In 2001, she founded the Center for Cultural Experiences in Prevention to work collaboratively with community partners, students, faculty and staff to promote health and social equity.

“When I joined VCU 26 years ago, I was excited to be at a diverse university

Ms. Lynch

Black Virginians make up half of the patients on the state’s organ transplant waiting list, despite accounting for 19% of the population

Saundra Rollins’ husband, the late Dr. Darrel Rollins Sr. who was the pastor of 31st Street Baptist Church for 25 years, received a life-saving liver transplant in November 1994 after being placed on a waiting list earlier that year. Dr. Rollins died in 2007.

Richmond employees gain new benefits

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

In a bid to ramp up retention of current workers and recruiting of new workers to fill hundreds of vacancies, City Hall plans to improve benefits offered to employees in the area of workforce training and home purchase assistance.

Topping the list is a new partnership between the city government and Reynolds Community College’s Community College Workforce Alliance.

As announced recently, the new program will allow Richmond employees to improve, broaden or gain new skills through specialized, short-term courses for which the city would pick up the cost. The promise is that training could be completed within a few months and result in recognized credentials to enable employees to improve their earnings.

The program includes courses in a variety of areas. Some examples are plumbing, welding and other skilled trades, commercial driving, customer service, information technology and project management, according to Reynolds and the city.

“We are creating pathways and opportunities for success for our city workforce,” Mayor Levar M. Stoney said. “I know our employees are eager to walk through the doors of Reynolds Community College to get their credentials and help Richmond grow.”

The program had already begun enrolling city employees prior to the announcement, according to Sabrina Joy-Hogg, deputy chief administrative officer for finance and administration. Interested employees can enroll without needing any special skills and will find variable schedules for courses to fit with their work schedules, Reynolds officials said. Further information available from Rachel Berry, (804) 646-5660 or HRTtrainingDivision@RVA.gov or at Reynolds.edu.

On the housing assistance front, the Stoney administration is proposing to revamp a program that has provided $25,000 to assist public safety employees and teachers with home purchases. The plan that just awaits anticipated City Council approval at the Sept. 25 meeting would open the program to all city employees.

RPS names new leadership at McClenney and OverbySheppard elementaries

Free Press staff report Richmond Public Schools recently announced two new interim principals.

Terri Anderson now leads Frances W. McClenney Elementary School, 3817 Chamberlayne Ave. Dr. Anderson, a 29-year educator, previously was an assistant principal at Linwood Holton Elementary and James H. Blackwell Elementary.

Ms. Anderson earned a bachelor’s of science degree from Howard University, a master’s of teaching and post-master’s certificate in educational leadership and supervision from Virginia Commonwealth University.

In addition, Charles L. Spain is the interim principal of Overby-Sheppard Elementary, 2300 1st Ave. Mr. Spain has spent 27 years of work in public education as a math teacher, coach, assistant principal in various parts of the United States. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Virginia State University, a post-master’s certificate in educational leadership from McDaniel College.

Free community testing for COVID-19 continues

The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:

• Thursday, Sept. 21, 1 to 5 p.m. - Henrico Arms Apartments, 1566 Edgelawn Circle.

• Friday, Sept. 22, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. - Southside Women, Infant and Children Office, 509 E. Southside Plaza.

• Wednesday, Sept. 27, 8 a.m. to 10 a.m., Eastern Henrico Recreation Center, 1440 N. Laburnum Ave.

Call the Richmond and Henrico COVID-19 Hotline at (804) 205-3501 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday for more information on testing sites, or go online at vax.rchd.com.

The Virginia Department of Health also has a list of COVID-19 testing locations around the state at www.vdh.virginia.gov/ coronavirus/covid-19-testing/covid-19-testing-sites.

Want a COVID-19 vaccine or booster shot?

The Richmond and Henrico health districts are offering free vaccines for COVID-19 and more. Those interested can schedule an appointment online at vase.vdh.virginia.gov, vaccinate.virginia.gov or vax.rchd.com, or by calling (804) 2053501 or (877) VAX-IN-VA (1-877-829-4682). VaccineFinder.org and vaccines.gov also allow people to find nearby pharmacies and clinics that offer the COVID-19 vaccine and booster.

People who are getting a booster shot should bring their vaccine card to confirm the date and type of vaccine received. RHHD also offers at-home vaccinations by calling (804) 2053501 to schedule appointments.

The Pfizer booster is approved for ages 12 and up, while the new Moderna booster is for those who are 18 and older.

As with previous COVID-19 boosters, the new doses can only be received after an initial two vaccine shots, and those who qualify are instructed to wait at least two months after their second COVID-19 vaccine.

The Richmond and Henrico Health Districts also offer bivalent Pfizer and Moderna boosters to children between ages 5 and 11. Children in this age range will be eligible after at least two months since their last vaccine dose.

Cityscape

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Lo-Fab Pavilion, a robotically fabricated structure at the Branch Museum

RPS approves changes in selection process for three high schools

By George Copeland Jr.

In an effort to enable more underprivileged students to attend Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School, Richmond Community High School and Open High, the Richmond School Board approved changes for admissions to those schools on Monday.

The vote was seven-to-one vote, with board member Shonda Harris-Muhammed abstaining.

Under the new policy, the three highestscoring students from all eight Richmond middle schools and three highest-scoring applicants from private and home schools who apply for a specialty school will be offered a seat at those highly regarded schools.

Subsequent offers will go to the next highest-scoring students who are economically disadvantaged, until the total amount of offers account for 50 percent of the seats at each school. The remaining seats will go to the next highest-scoring students that apply.

The approved proposal was the third of three optional proposals presented to the Board, and combined aspects of the other two options.

Children from homes with low-incomes tend to “start the race several yards behind the starting line,” Superintendent Jason Kamras said in presenting the proposed change during the school board’s Monday night meeting. “The recommendation I put forth regarding specialty schools attempts to make the race a bit fairer.

“It does so by giving a small boost to the very talented low-income students who’ve been working themselves to the bone to win the race, despite starting well behind their higher-income peers.”

The vote ended weeks of heated discussion among education officials and the RPS community about the selection process for the city’s three top-ranked high schools.

Academic standards, test scores and graduation rates at the Maggie L. Walker Governor’s School, Richmond Community High School and Open High routinely surpass other Richmond high schools.

However, those disparities sparked concerns about who benefits most from such schools. An investigation by the Equity Commission on Enrollment found stark

contrasts between admissions for underprivileged students and families.

“As a whole, RPS specialty schools and the Governor’s schools do not reflect RPS’s enrollment, largely because of inequitable admissions processes,” the Equity Commission on Enrollment said in its final report. “In some cases, these specialty and Governor’s schools grossly underserve Economically Disadvantaged students, Black students, English Language Learners and students with Individualized Education Plans.”

TOp 10% of all schools in Virginia

education students’ applications that would be part of the admissions change.

Nearly two dozen parents, education officials and residents offered support or opposition to the admissions change during the nearly hourlong public comment period at the start of the meeting.

Those opposed echoed some of Mr. Young’s sentiments on how the change would disadvantage certain students, while adding other criticisms of the board’s focus on admissions over other school issues and questioning its legality.

TOp 20% of all schools in Virginia

proficiency is top 30%) for the 2020-21 school year, according to Public School Review.

While board members were in favor of ensuring more students could receive a quality education, not all agreed with the options presented. School Board member Jonathan Young voted against the proposal, saying it discriminates against students who lived in certain zip codes or have a higher family income.

As he did with last week’s board meeting, Mr. Young proposed a fourth option that would expand seats at all specialty schools for another 40 plus students. He also proposed the reconstitution of an RPS middle school into a specialty school, and a regional middle school built in collaboration with surrounding counties to give RPS students more resources to prepare students for specialty schools. A motion to amend the policy to this proposal failed two to seven.

Ms. Harris-Muhammed also expressed concern with whether the RPS community had meaningful input on the policy’s development, as well as the cap on private

5th BeST of high schools in the nation

Maggie Walker, ranked as the 5th best high school in America, as ranked by Newsweek and according to is website. In 2021, reading and math proficiency were 100% each.

“This will disenfranchise the middle class more. When the middle class is disenfranchised, they will not want to pay taxes to support something they will not be allowed to attend,” said Richmond resident Charles Frankenhoff. “This is an attack on middle-class taxpayers in the city of Richmond, and it is almost certainly unconstitutional.”

Supporters of the policy believe the admission change is long overdue and necessary to expand opportunities for education and properly reflect the missions and goals of the specialty schools, particularly Maggie L. Walker.

“You may hear tonight from speakers who feel that the new proposal is unfair,” said Adria Scharf, a parent of a junior student at Maggie Walker. “In my view, the real unfairness is the decades-long exclusion of gifted, intellectually curious, economically disadvantaged students from access to such an exceptional learning environment.”

Systems of support

In recognition of Sickle Cell Awareness Month, VCU Health’s Sickle Cell Program hosted a Career and Transition Fair for its sickle cell patients on Tuesday in the hospital’s Adult Outpatient Pavilion. Sickle Cell disease is a life-long, inherited blood disorder that can bring an abnormal amount of pain and weakness to the body as a result of jaundice or damage to organs.

disease primarily affects African-Americans. According to the Virginia Department of Health, 1 in 325 African-Americans are currently living with sickle cell disease in Virginia alone. Tuesday’s outreach and program was a way to encourage patients to confidently take their next steps in life whether that’s community college, vocational training, and/or employment.

of Architecture and Design on Monument Avenue. The structure, built by MASS Design Group and Virginia Tech Center for Design Research, is a part of the museum’s “Modeling a Vision: Design, Technology and Impact” exhibition.

George Copeland Jr./Richmond Free Press Reynolds Community College president paula p pando speaks during a press conference announcing a workforce partnership between Richmond and Reynolds Community College in Reynolds’ Downtown campus.

Sickle Cell

Photos by Clement Britt

Mr. Spain Ms. Anderson

Family of Irvo Otieno agrees to $8.5M settlement

The Associated Press

The family of a man who died while handcuffed and pinned to the floor for about 11 minutes as he was being admitted to a Virginia psychiatric hospital has reached an $8.5 million settlement with the state and the county and sheriff whose deputies were involved in restraining him.

A judge approved the out-of-court wrongful death settlement Tuesday, according to an agreement filed in Henrico County Circuit Court.

Irvo Otieno, a 28-year-old Black man, died in March after being pressed to the floor of Central State Hospital for about 11 minutes by a group of Henrico County sheriff’s deputies and hospital employees. Surveillance video that captured how Otieno was treated at the facility where he was set to receive care sparked outrage across the U.S. and calls for mental health

and policing reforms. His death was ruled a homicide by asphyxiation. Ten defendants were indicted on second-degree murder charges, but charges against two of the hospital employees were later dropped. Mr. Otieno’s family has said he had a long history of mental health problems and was struggling to breathe while he was being held down. Some of the defendants’ lawyers have said that Otieno was combative and they were simply trying to restrain him.

The settlement agreement says the state, county and the sheriff have not admitted any liability and deny that their actions caused Mr. Otieno’s death, but have agreed to collectively pay the $8.5 million to Otieno’s family and their attorneys.

Macaulay Porter, a spokeswoman for Gov. Glenn Youngkin, said Wednesday the governor pushed for a settlement “with the hope that doing so proactively and fairly might alleviate – in a small way – some of the suffering that Irvo’s mother and brother faced, recognizing that no settlement can take the place of a loved one.”

Attorneys for Mr. Otieno’s family, including prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump and Virginia attorney Mark Krudys, said in a statement the family “is pleased that they were able to find a resolution outside of court in a manner that honors Irvo’s life.”

While the statement from Crump and Krudys referred to the settlement as “confidential,” its terms were outlined in public records on file at the local courthouse.

It includes a payment of about $5 million to Otieno’s mother and siblings, after the payment of funeral and burial expenses and attorneys fees of over $3 million.

Continued from A1

for LifeNet Health, knows how important transplants are for those in need.

“Whenever I discuss what I do for a living, almost every conversation, there’s someone who has been impacted by donation,” Ms. White said. “The chances are (that) many of us know someone that is either in need of an organ, that is on dialysis, or who received a transplant.”

Saundra Rollins also knows firsthand the impact and value of organ donations for Black Virginians. Her husband, the late Dr. Darrel Rollins Sr. who was the pastor of 31st Street Baptist Church for 25 years, received a life-saving liver transplant in November 1994 after being placed on a waiting list earlier that year.

The experience led Dr. Rollins to become an enthusiastic advocate for organ donation in the Black community throughout his life. He died June 5, 2007.

Mrs. Rollins recalled that her husband had no hesitation in taking advantage of available transplants.

“We didn’t have a problem with it,” Ms. Rollins said. “Our view was if this helps someone else to live, we were for it.”

The process of organ donation and replacement has only improved in the decades since Dr. Rollins’ transplant. As explained by David Bruno, interim chair and liver transplant surgical director at VCU Health’s Hume-Lee Transplant Center,

Winter shelter’s opening may be delayed

Continued from A1

Board-operated Arthur Ashe Center. The center has heating and the city has used it during emergency situations in the past.

Ms. Deshazor made no promises last week about an earlier opening. She said the city has not completed the contract to memorialize the details of the operation that the Salvation Army would administer.

That has to happen, Ms. Deshazor said, before the council can be asked to approve the shelter plan. She declined to say when the ordinance would be introduced.

Stephen Batsche, executive director of the Richmond-based Salvation Army Central Virginia Area Command, said his organization would triple its shelter space in moving that operation from its longtime home at 2 W. Grace St. to the Chamberlayne Avenue building.

He said the Salvation Army will work with the city to establish at 2 W. Grace St. a housing resource center and initial point of entry for shelter services at 2 W. Grace St.

He said the goal is to have that center open Dec. 1, although it could later move to 1900 Chamberlayne Ave.

That location provided a 60-bed shelter last winter when Commonwealth Catholic Charities operated a shelter under a subcontract with the Salvation Army.

Unlike last year, there may be no food provided at the inclement weather shelter, something which the city insisted on in contracting with CCC, United Nations Church and My Sister’s Keeper to operate overflow shelter space.

“We do not have cooking facilities in the building,” Mr. Batsche told the committee. He said the Salvation Army would be willing to partner with other organizations who might deliver bagged lunches or hot meals, but would not be involved itself.

acquiring, approving and replacing organs has expanded across the years, thanks to better technology, improved organ screening and increased familiarity with the transplant process.

The end result of these changes has been largely positive, with nearly 43,000 organ transplants performed in the United States alone in 2022 according to the United Network for Organ Sharing. However, Dr. Bruno still sees a need for providers to ensure that marginalized people and communities are not left behind when it comes to life-saving procedures.

“We’ve known all along that we’ve got a problem in terms of disparities in health care,” Dr. Bruno said. “But really figuring out how to fix that, that should be hand-in-glove with the most important mission, which is saving someone’s life.”

Multiple causes for the disparity Black Virginians face with organ donations were suggested by Ms. Quarles-Reese, Ms. White and Ms. Rollins. This includes health conditions that are passed down through families, lack of access to health care and the presence of food deserts in certain communities that can lead to health issues or exacerbate already present issues.

Among reasons why so few Black Virginians agree to be organ donors may be due to a lack of experience and knowledge of the process, said Mrs. Rollins.

“It’s something relatively new when you think of the total scheme of things,” Ms. Rollins said. “Organ donations, I think, is something that people have to become accustomed to.”

Ms. Quarles-Reese said that some Black people also may be

reluctant to become organ donors due to their religious beliefs. She also pointed to longstanding distrust between marginalized communities and the medical industry.

Various myths and misconceptions about organ donations require face-to-face advocacy and honesty to resolve, agree Ms. Quarles-Reese, Dr. Bruno and Ms. White.

“We’ve got to shake the notions that that’s the case,” Ms. Quarles-Reese said. “I don’t think you can do it any other way – it’s got to be us talking to us.”

Recent advocacy and outreach for organ donations have helped close the gap and widen acceptance among Black Virginians. LifeNet Health has seen a 19 percent increase in donations in Richmond communities. According to Ms. White, 50 percent of the kidneys that LifeNet Health donates in its Richmond service area now go to Black recipients, compared to 34 percent for other organ procurement operations in the United States.

LifeNet Health also works to engage the community outside its health-focused programs by partnering with organizations such as the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia and sponsoring back-to-school events to connect with the public.

“I believe the most we’re going to see out of these efforts is down the line when people are making informed decisions or more people are aware of the impact donation has in their community,” Ms. White said. “I think once we make that shift to where organ donation is viewed in a more positive light… that’s where we’re going to see the most improvement.”

RRHA gets REAL about reducing gun violence

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months to get the program up and running in Richmond. That includes identifying the violence-prone individuals.

She said that research shows that the shootings and violence in communities generally involves a small fraction of people and often involves retaliatory shootings.

She added that research also suggests that just .05 percent of a community’s population are likely shooters and that for

every shooting there are four retaliatory shootings. In Hopewell, she said that 40 people were identified as the most violence-prone and her program was able to contact 30. She said the program now works with 15 of those individuals while still trying to get more to cooperate and engaged.

Hopewell already has reported an 80 percent drop in violent crime compared with a year earlier since the program launched last May.

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and in a place situated in a vibrant and culturally rich community of historical significance,” Dr. Belgrave said. “My excitement continues today, and I am dedicated to ensuring that One VCU is a place that is inclusive and respectful, and one in which all students, staff, faculty and patients are afforded the opportunity to achieve successful outcomes.”

Teaching and mentoring are especially rewarding to Dr. Belgrave, who has mentored and trained numerous undergraduate and graduate students, post-docs and junior faculty throughout her career. It is important to her that those she has mentored carry forward the practice of

centering inclusiveness and equity in their work at universities and other institutions throughout the United States.

Dr. Belgrave has received numerous awards and recognitions, including a VCU University Professorship, a lifetime achievement award and a distinguished leadership award from the American Psychological Association, the Association of Black Psychologists Distinguished Psychologist Award and an Outstanding Faculty Award from the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. She received VCU’s Presidential Medallion award in May 2023.

Dr. Belgrave said she is committed to systemic change at VCU as reflected in the university’s strategic plan.

“VCU’s Quest 2028 goal of ‘Diversity

Dr. Scarbrough said that program in Richmond would need to work with a larger population than in Hopewell.

Of the 10,000 residents of public housing, which will be the program’s main focus, she estimated the population of the violence-prone to be served would involve between 150 and 500 people.

Meanwhile, the new security officers already are patrolling communities, and a website has been launched to enable RRHA residents to access job training.

Driving Excellence’ is foundational,” Dr. Belgrave said. “It acknowledges that diversity of identities and perspectives generates innovation, creativity and a healthy organizational culture that strengthens productivity, wellness and positive outcomes.”

Dr. Belgrave is internationally renowned for work on health disparities, communityengaged and culturally informed research, and gender-specific research. She is the co-author of “African American Psychology,” the first such textbook and now in its fourth edition.

Dr. Belgrave received a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland College Park, a master’s degree from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and a bachelor’s degree from North Carolina A&T State University.

Black Virginians make up half of the patients on the state’s organ transplant waiting list, despite accounting for 19% of the population

VCU names Faye Belgrave as vice president, chief diversity officer

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Caroline A. Ouko, the mother of 28-year-old Irvo Noel Otieno stands at the pulpit speaking during her son’s funeral at First Baptist Church of South Richmond in North Chesterfield County Wednesday, March 29, 2023. Standing with her is her eldest son, left, Leon Ochieng, Rev. Al Sharpton and Atty. Benjamin Crump.

Mr. Otieno

New agreement appears to move forward Diamond District, stadium

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

A breakthrough in negotiations has put the $2.4 billion Diamond District deal back on track, the Free Press has learned.

While details have yet to be released, the Free Press has been told that an agreement has been reached on a centerpiece of the project, a new baseball stadium for the Richmond Flying Squirrels, the Double A affiliate of the major league San Francisco Giants.

Despite positive statements from City Hall, an agreement on the stadium remained incomplete and created a roadblock.

The new agreement appears to end an impasse over the size and financing for the stadium that will replace the current ballpark known as The Diamond, insiders explained. City Hall has not yet commented.

Along with the new stadium, the lead developer, RVA Diamond District LLC, is proposing a diverse array of offices, apartments, condos, retail outlets and a public park on the 67 acres of mostly city-owned land bounded by Arthur Ashe Boulevard, Robin Hood Road, Hermitage Road and railroad tracks.

The project is regarded as the largest single development project in city history, though most of the tax revenue to be derived is earmarked to repay the cost of the new stadium, expected to run $80 million or more.

Virginia Organizing challenges Youngkin’s voting rights move

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

The Charlottesville-based grassroots group Virginia Organizing plans to lead a public march and protest in Richmond at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, to protest Republican Gov. Glenn A. Youngkin’s rollback of the virtually automatic restoration of voting rights for released felons, it has been announced The group, which expects about 100 participants,

will march from St. Paul’s Episcopal Church at 815 E. Grace St. to the Governor’s Mansion on Capitol Square.

“Everyone should have the right to vote to hold our elected officials accountable. It is part of democracy,” said Terry White, whose rights were restored through the automatic restoration process. “I find it a shame that all the progress we have made over the years is being rolled back by this administration.”

Report details City jail stabbing

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

The dangers at the Richmond City Justice Center were re-emphasized Monday when one prisoner repeatedly stabbed another in the head around 6 a.m. Monday as breakfast was being served, according to internal reports the Free Press obtained.

The report states that Deputy K. Holmes was in the process of feeding when Andre E. Joyner

stabbed Jehmel A. Williams in the side of his head “with a visible shank.”

The wounded inmate was treated by a nurse at the jail, the report states. Mr. Joyner was charged internally with possession of a weapon or sharpened object, the report states.

Sheriff Antionette V. Irving has not issued any public comment on the case, and the court record as of Tuesday did not show any charges yet being filed with the city’s General District Court.

Community festival with a focus on health

Free Press staff report

VCU’s Massey Cancer is throwing an open-to-everyone family-friendly carnival from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, at the Siegel Center, 1200 W. Broad St.

The purpose: To thank the community for helping the center gain in June the National Cancer Institute’s highest designation as a comprehensive cancer center, opening the door to increased research funding.

Along with free food and games, the event also will showcase the center’s mobile health vans that now sport the commissioned art of two of Richmond’s top muralists, Hamilton Glass and Sir James

Thornhill.

“We couldn’t have earned this comprehensive status without the partnership of our community members, who help us perform more targeted research to better meet our population’s specific needs,” said Dr. Robert A. Winn, Massey’s director and the Lipman Chair

in Oncology.

“This carnival is our way of saying thank you, celebrating and looking ahead to what accomplishments we can achieve together next,” Dr. Winn added.

Further details: Marianne Johnson (719) 322-6896 or Johnson41@vcu.edu

In April, the governor disclosed that he had halted the virtually automatic restoration begun under Republican Gov. Robert F. “Bob” McDonnell 10 years ago and expanded under two Democratic successors.

Instead, Gov. Youngkin has returned to the case-bycase restoration that was in place before the reforms. The Virginia State NAACP and the Virginia Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union also have attacked Gov. Youngkin’s action.

About 1 in 12 African Americans have Sickle Cell Trait.

Rendering of Diamond District plan

Gov. Youngkin

The doctors you chose, the plan to match

Keep your doctors with an in-network plan

You chose your Bon Secours care team — a team whose focus is, and always has been, on providing quality, compassionate care for those we serve. Now it’s time to choose the Medicare plan to match. Due to stalled negotiations between Bon Secours and Anthem (otherwise known as Elevance Health), your coverage may be impacted.

Our Medicare Advantage contract with Anthem Virginia was terminated effective August 1 and Bon Secours providers are considered out-of-network for nearly 13,000 Richmond-area patients who have Anthem Medicare Advantage health insurance.

If you are a Bon Secours patient with Anthem Medicare Advantage coverage, here is what you can do to make your voice heard:

1. Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment opens October 15. Talk to your broker, or call the Centers of Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) at 1-800-633-4227, and understand your options to pick a plan that keeps your Bon Secours providers in-network. Bon Secours remains in-network with all other major Medicare Advantage health plans in Virginia.

2. Call Anthem at the number on the back of your insurance card and tell them how important it is for you to keep you uninterrupted in-network access to Bon Secours.

Bon Secours is committed to continue doing our part and working hard to reach a new agreement with Anthem on behalf of our patients and the communities we serve — so nothing comes between you and the caregivers you know and trust.

Justice and accountability needed in Irvo Otieno’s death

Yesterday’s announcement about a settlement being reached in the case of Irvo Otieno, a 28-year-old Black man who died while being restrained at a Virginia psychiatric hospital, elevates discussions about the need for mental health and policing reforms.

While the $8.5 million settlement has brought some relief to Mr. Otieno’s family, it also raises important questions about accountability and the systemic issues that led to this tragic incident.

Irvo Otieno’s death occurred earlier this year in March when he was forcibly held down on the floor of Central State Hospital for approximately 11 minutes by a group of Henrico County sheriff’s deputies and hospital employees. The surveillance video capturing the incident shocked Virginia and the nation. Outrage and demands for justice followed when the video evidence clearly showed the excessive force used against Mr. Otieno, leading to his asphyxiation and subsequent death.

Following the incident, 10 defendants, including both sheriff’s deputies and hospital employees, were indicted on second-degree murder charges. However, it is disheartening to note that charges against two of the hospital employees were later dropped. This raises concerns about the thoroughness of the investigation and the potential for accountability to be undermined.

The $8.5 million settlement reached between Mr. Otieno’s family and the state, county, and sheriff’s office is a significant development in this case. Yet, the settlement fails to include an admission of liability from the defendants, who continue to deny that their actions caused Mr. Otieno’s death. While the settlement provides some financial relief to the family, it falls short of holding the responsible parties fully accountable.

Mr. Otieno’s tragic death has shed light on the urgent need for mental health and policing reforms. It is evident that individuals with mental health issues require specialized care and support, rather than being subjected to excessive force. Mr. Otieno’s case underscores the importance of training law enforcement officers and healthcare professionals to handle such situations with empathy, de-escalation techniques, and a focus on preserving life.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s pushed for a settlement in this case, stated his spokesperson, Macaulay Porter, “with the hope that doing so proactively and fairly might alleviate – in a small way – some of the suffering that Irvo’s mother and brother faced, recognizing that no settlement can take the place of a loved one.”

We can only hope that the governor gives further air to this tragedy by supporting efforts to expand access to mental health services. At the federal level, part of President Joe Biden’s Unity Agenda contains a comprehensive national strategy to transform how mental health is understood, accessed, treated, and integrated in and out of health care settings.

The President’s FY24 budget goes further, proposing tens of billions more to transform behavioral health services for all Americans.

Although the settlement reached in Mr. Otieno’s case may offer some degree of justice and financial support to his grieving family, it does not erase the larger issues of systemic racism, excessive force, and the urgent need for mental health and policing reforms.

To prevent such senseless tragedies, we must be vigilant in working to ensure that they are thoroughly investigated, responsible parties are held accountable and real reforms are enacted.

Vote early and make your voice heard

As the upcoming Nov. 7 elections in Virginia draw near, it is essential that every eligible citizen exercise his or her right to vote.

The good news is that you don’t have to wait until Nov. 7 to vote. Early voting begins tomorrow, Sept. 22, and allows you to cast your ballot sooner rather than later.

While there are several reasons to vote early, some important ones include:

• Greater accessibility and convenience for voters; Avoiding long lines and potential scheduling conflicts;

• Mitigating unforeseen circumstances, such as inclement weather or personal emergencies that can arise on Election Day;

• Bragging rights. Letting friends, family members and even foes know that you’ve already voted tends to inspire and encourage them to do the same. Your active participation can serve as a catalyst for increased civic engagement within your community.

In leading by example, you can help create a culture of early voting and strengthen the democratic process.

Hardball game of politics

Like numerous other folks who did not support Mitt Romney’s election when he was challenging then-President Barack Obama in 2012, I think he looks a lot better to me now than he did then — and not just because he decided to retire from the Sen ate.

Compared with what came after his candidacy — Donald Trump’s vic tory for the GOP in 2016 — Sen. Rom ney’s failed bid looks like the last days of polite politics.

But, as more than a few hardball politicians have said over the years, what good does politeness get you?

These days in Washington, it’s tit-for-tat time, often in brutal ways.

One prize target these days is Hunter Biden, the president’s son, who has been charged by federal prosecutors with lying about his drug use on a government form he was required to complete when he purchased a handgun in 2018, which he also is charged with possessing illegally.

And his case potentially could come to trial during the president’s re-election campaign.

Coincidence? I think not.

Before his indictment, House Republicans already were ramping up their efforts to use the younger Mr. Biden’s work abroad to build a case for the impeachment of his dad, whom the right wing media have hyped relentlessly as boss of the “Biden crime family.”

As scandals go, Hunter

Biden’s sad saga hardly matches the scope of the four indictments lodged against Mr. Trump. Mr. Biden publicly has acknowledged struggles with addiction to crack cocaine and alcohol, along with trips in and out of rehab at the time of the gun purchase.

Yet, any negative headlines are grist for the political mill, especially when they coincide with the Biden Justice Department’s prosecution of the president’s predecessor, Donald Trump. When confronted with Mr. Trump’s scandals, his defenders easily can retort, “Well, what about Hunter Biden?”

But when you ask for the evidence of the president’s alleged wrongdoing, you get a standard Washington answer: Deflect, deflect, deflect.

Still, some of us are waiting for such old-fashioned niceties as facts and evidence.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s dramatic announcement of an impeachment inquiry against President Biden contained more drama than evidence.

Meanwhile, it is reassuring to note that many mainstream Republicans have resisted the glittering lure of Huntergate when Congress appears to be approaching another shutdown over federal spending. But those mainstream Republicans are not enough.

Unfortunately, as Sen. Romney laments, sensible voices have largely been drowned out by the MAGA mob, which Romney prudently avoided mentioning by name. He didn’t have to, since members of the MAGA mob seem to have no trouble at all with making themselves heard.

Even as Speaker McCarthy announced the impeachment inquiry, for example, two MAGA stars, Florida U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz and Georgia U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, had a hissy fit and a fight on X (formerly known as Twitter) over who deserved credit for Speaker McCarthy’s decision.

Did I mention that no evidence has been released to date that backs up the Republicans’ allegations against the president? I can’t say that enough. Until they prove me wrong.

And there are darker signs

Saving planet matter of choice

There’s a phrase you hear from business schools to board rooms that comes from L. John Doerr, a legendary investor who backed Google, Amazon and Intuit: Measure what matters.

Those words certainly jumped to mind this summer as leaders from Washington to London sent signals that protecting a safe, livable planet hardly matters because it’s not worth accounting for accurately and honestly.

On Capitol Hill, the House committee that oversees financial markets held a hearing on “how mandates like ESG distort markets and drive up costs.” ESG is an abbreviation for environmental, social and corporate governance. The idea that performance on those factors should be part of investment decisions has been gaining momentum for more than 15 years. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is asking companies to report more about ESG, which prompted the hearing.

The event had an Alice in Wonderland feel as it happened as homeowners in places like Florida, California, and Louisiana were learning of insurers raising already high rates or leaving the states altogether

because of climate-driven risks. The financial implications of climate change couldn’t have been clearer.

The House Republicans who called the hearing made no mention of studies by consulting firms like PWC and McKinsey that have found huge majorities want to do business with and work at companies that lead on ESG, or that consumer products tied to those factors are outgrowing those that don’t.

Across the Atlantic, the Reuters news service reported that global bankers want to divorce themselves from accountability for two-thirds of the carbon pollution that comes from the stock and bond sales their banks underwrite. Those who profit from dirty fuels rely on those stocks and bond sales to expand. Almost half of the financing from top U.S. banks to fossil fuel companies since 2016 came from those kinds of sales and not direct loans, for example. Without those investments, carbon emissions would decline as fossil fuel production and processing was starved of that money.

This kind of shortsightedness isn’t new. Our economy always has been built on ignoring people and places deemed

disposable.

Measure what matters – people in front-line communities flooded by more intense storms, choked by industrial pollution, and scorched by wildfires have no choice. Their property loss and health problems are the metrics we use. They must take that measure all the time, and they always come out on the short end.

For his part, John Doerr has placed his bets. He’s been investing in zero carbon technologies since 2006. Last year, he and his wife gave Stanford University more than $1 billion to launch a sustainability school.

Mr. Doerr’s most recent book, “Speed and Scale,” calls itself “an action plan to solve the climate crisis.” He notes that the Greek root for the word crisis means “to choose.” The good news is we’ve never had more opportunity to make the right choices. From less costly renewable energy to the availability of affordable electric vehicles, we have options to end our addiction to fossil fuels.

Making the right choices means making informed choices. We can’t permit the powerful to withhold what we need to decide what’s best for us and for the planet.

The writer is executive director of the Sierra Club, a grassroots environmental organization.

The Free Press welcomes letters

The Richmond Free Press respects the opinions of its readers. We want to hear from you. We invite you to write the editor. All letters will be considered for publication. Concise, typewritten letters related to public matters are preferred. Also include your telephone number(s). Letters should be addressed to: Letters to the Editor, Richmond Free Press, P.O. Box 27709, 422 East Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23261, or faxed to: (804) 643-7519 or e-mail: letters@richmondfreepress.com.

on the horizon. For a new bi-

ography by journalist McKay Coppins, with Sen. Romney’s cooperation, the departing senator confided that he wanted to vote for Mr. Trump’s second impeachment but chose not to out of fear for his family’s safety

“A very large portion of my party,” Sen. Romney tells Coppins of The Atlantic, “really doesn’t believe in the Constitution.”

That’s why he spends $5,000 a day since the insurrection on private security for his family, Sen. Romney said. Now, that’s a real scandal. Something very dangerous has happened to our politics, as Sen. Romney notes. We may need, as he suggests, to look to the next generation to dig us out.

The writer is a columnist for the Chicago Tribune.

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Clarence Page

Ben Jealous

VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center’s new designation driven by the community

Building engines for General Motors was going to be my oneway ticket to the other side of the tracks. Growing up, I dreamt of getting that job at the plant in my working class Buffalo, N.Y., neighborhood, earning a steady paycheck and setting myself up for life. It didn’t even occur to me to look beyond the borders of familiarity because I had no idea how I would get there. Eventually higher education came into play and medicine found me. But I’m still one part M.D. and one part M.C., connected to that kid down the block who knew there was something bigger out there, even if it seemed out of reach.

I followed my North Star to Richmond in December 2019 when I became the director of what is now VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, an institution only 50 or so miles from my grandmother’s Middle Peninsula hometown. Hearing her tell stories, I came to recognize early on how segregation shaped her and how the experiences she shared during my rearing would shape me. While a divide dictated where Black people could go during the era, commonality and unconditional belonging enveloped them once they arrived at their destination. They developed a strong sense of community, one that still is apparent in many of our underserved populations today.

Massey is determined to give even greater meaning to our new National Cancer Institute (NCI) comprehensive designation for the people living in our catchment. If health equity is the bullseye, comprehensive is the arrow about to land within it.

Systems that were developed during my grandmother’s upbringing and decades before led to the disparities we see in the three lowest localities in the Robert Wood Johnson 2023 County Health Rankings, which are all located in Massey’s service area. Elsewhere in Virginia, the mortality rates of lung and colorectal cancer are higher in our rural communities, 22% and 40% respectively, versus our urban communities. AfricanAmerican women have a 45% higher breast cancer burden, compared to white women. The prostate cancer mortality rate in African- American men is 153% greater than in white men. It will not always be this way. Hold me to that statement.

The NCI determined that Massey is making strides in research, community outreach and engagement and in the training of health care’s next generation. Now, what we do with the accolades and the distinction matters. At Massey, our center serves as the inter-

section of science and society, and members of the community drive it. We refuse to have the same conversation in 10 years, five years, two years that we are having today. To do that, we must give all people representation at the research bench. Speak “with” instead of “at” them and move away from the alphabet soup of science that defined us until this point.

Like the kid in Buffalo I once

Dr. Robert A. Winn

was, people in disenfranchised communities often do not look beyond their walls because they don’t know what is outside and how to access it. With Massey’s community-to-bench model, we are flipping the idea of social determinants to social drivers of health. Instead of keeping much of our research inside the laboratory, we meet individuals where they are to involve them in the design, implementation, evaluation and dissemination. It also allows for the development of clinical trials to serve specific needs and a more diverse enrollment. We are confident this model will help us to refine our scientific questions in order to have a greater impact on overall health, which is what we all want at the end of the day.

I am the first Black man to lead a cancer center to comprehensive status in the United

States, and that responsibility is not lost on me. Getting here is the first step. Ensuring all people feel unconditional belonging outside their comfort zone is the next. The true work begins now. Like rapper RZA of WuTang Clan said, I know “it’s harder to make the glass than break the glass.” But I always was and always will be up for the challenge.

I know you are, too. Together, we can look the fight against cancer in the eye and say we are ready to give it all we have. Learn about prevention and screening and have some fun along the way at the Massey Comprehensive Carnival on Saturday, Sept. 23 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Stuart C. Siegel Center. Stop by for free food, beverages, games and entertainment for the whole family. You can park for free in the deck across the street or ride the GRTC Pulse, so no excuses! We want to see you there. Massey is the community’s cancer center, your cancer center. We are honored to have you as boots on the ground in this cancer battle.

Robert A. Winn, M.D., is director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center. In his former life, Dr. Winn was a music producer, having once worked with creatives such as Mos Def.

New plans in place for 2 Richmond cemeteries

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

Richmond is getting a thumbs up from the community for its plan to take over the historic Evergreen and East End cemeteries on the city’s East Side, but only if volunteer groups are kept in the loop.

As the Free Press first reported, the city has signed a letter of intent to accept the cemeteries that previously belonged to the now defunct Enrichmond Foundation, which collapsed last year, once the titles are cleared.

The city also promises that this will be a collaborative effort with volunteer groups such as the Friends of East End, which has been heavily involved in clearing overgrown vegetation from that cemetery, and The Descendants Council, whose members have relatives buried in the two Black cemeteries.

City Councilwoman Cynthia I. Newbille, 7th District, and Christopher Frelke, the city’s director of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities, met with more than 40 people Saturday

to offer assurances that nothing would be done without them.

“We don’t want a plan that is our plan; we don’t want a plan that is the administration’s plan; we want a plan that involves directing us,” Mr. Frelke said, though he noted that substantial legal work is still needed to remove Enrichmond and a private company it created, Parity LLC, from ownership.

To show good faith, Ms. Newbille said a council resolution that she has introduced supporting the administration’s proposal to take over those cemeteries would be rewritten to include a pledge that the volunteers would help plan the two burial grounds.

She promised the rewritten resolution would first be shared with the volunteer groups before going to the council. She also said that could delay council consideration until November.

Meanwhile, the city could face significant expenses in absorbing the cemeteries that are the last resting place of Richmond greats like nonprofit administrator and businesswoman Maggie L. Walker, newspaper editor John Mitchell Jr. and lawyers, doctors and educators.

Run Richmond 2023 is a race for Black history

RUN RICHMOND 16.19, the cultural running and walking event hosted by the Djimon Hounsou Foundation in collaboration with the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia and Sports Backers takes place Sept. 30.

Run Richmond takes participants through over 400 years of Black history on courses of 16.19 kilometers (10 miles) and 6.19 kilometers (3.85 miles) to acknowledge the sacrifices and achievements of the African-American community, connects its shared history, and contribute to healing and reconciliation, according to the

Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia.

Along the course, participants will encounter historical signs with QR codes, which allow them to access short educational videos. In addition, they can use the RaceJoy mobile app as an outdoor audio guide. Doing so, they will receive short audio messages narrated by twotime Oscar-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou as they pass significant landmarks.

For more information, contact the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia at (804) 780-9093.

VCU forum addresses HBCUs

“HBCUs and the Absence of Support” will address the funding gap for Historically Black Colleges and Universities during the 2023 Wilder Symposium Sept. 28 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the W.E. Singleton Center for the Performing Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Presented by VCU’s L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs, the event’s featured speakers include former Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick, president of Howard University, Na-

keina E. DouglasGlenn, director of the Wilder School Research Institute for Social Equity, Judge Roger L. Gregory, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and Jason Miyares, attorney general of the Commonwealth. Bob Holsworth, political analyst and managing partner of the consulting firm DecideSmart, will moderate the discussion.

The event also will be livestreamed. For more information, please contact Katherine Huynh, events and messaging strategist, at huynhkp@ vcu.edu

Richmond International Film Festival returns

Free Press staff report

Filmmaking and musical guests from around the world will be in Richmond for the 12th Annual Richmond International Film Festival (RIFF). The six-day festival will kick off on Tuesday, Sept. 26, with film premieres, live music performances, panel discussions and more.

The Byrd Theatre will screen the opening night’s feature, “Double Down South,” a drama/ thriller set in the high-stakes world of illegal pool gambling. The film’s writer and director, Tom Schulman, will be in attendance, as well as producer, Rick Wallace and actor Kim Coates.

After the premiere, Mr. Schulman will be honored with the 2023 RIFF Legacy Award for his contributions in film and his dedication to the industry. He is an Academy Award winner for his screenplay, “Dead Poets Society,” which starred

Robin Williams and also was nominated for Best Picture and Best Director. Mr. Schulman also wrote or co-wrote the family adventure “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” “Holy Man” starring Eddie Murphy and the

Sean Connery drama “Medicine Man,” among others.

To learn more about the festival’s nearly 200 films being premiered or to purchase tickets, badges or passes visit rvafilmfestival.com

Finding a safe space

Free Press staff report

Virginia State University will host a free discussion focused on African-American men and mental health as part of several HBCU Across America forums participating in Real Talk Drives Real Change events.

The VSU discussion, “Safe Spaces for Black Men,” is part of the larger event by NewsOne in partnership with Chevrolet, and will feature a panel conversation hosted by Mike Muse at 3:30 p.m Friday, Sept. 22 at VSU’s Virginia Hall.

Actor Dondre Whitfield, actor and singer Rotimi, Ellery Lundy, founder and president, Broken Men Foundation, and Richard Gray, deputy director at New York University Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity are panel participants.

Real Talk Drives Real Change also will showcase live performance from artist Rotimi and community building events, with an eye toward not just impactful discussions but solutions.

Other stops include Baltimore, Dallas and Raleigh, N.C. For more information, visit change.newsone.com.

Brian Palmer of the Friends of East End and others said that once ownership is untangled, the city would need to do a cultural survey of both sites to provide the information on which a plan could be based.

Such an in-depth survey could cost $2 million or more, Mr. Frelke said.

Kevin Banks, owner and operator of American Burial Services, separately said that the maintenance and restoration of the cemeteries also would not be cheap.

He estimated that it could cost $3 million a year to properly maintain the cemeteries, remove overgrowth, and restore graves that have sunken or been damaged since the cemeteries were established. “If you want to do it right, it’s going to take resources,” he said.

The 60-acre Evergreen dates to the early 1890s, while the 16-acre East End that abuts Evergreen, began operations in 1916. Given that both cemeteries are considered full, the city would need to find a way to deal with potential expenses.

Actor and humanitarian Djimon Hounsou joins runners during the inaugural RUN RICHMOND 16.19 that started and ended at Kanawha Plaza last year in Downtown Richmond. This year’s event is Sept. 30.

Photos by Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Judge Gregory Mr. Wilder Mr. Frederick

PLAY FROM ANYWHERE

Willard Bailey Classic

Panthers return for first home game of season

Bye bye cramped bus seat. Hello Hovey Field.

Finally, the road-weary, yet road-conquering Virginia Union University Panthers will merely have to stroll across Lombardy Street to play a football game.

Now 3-0 after three long bus rides, Coach Alvin Parker’s squad will play host to Fayetteville State 6 p.m. Saturday under the Hovey lights.

It also will serve as the Willard Bailey Classic, honoring the former (and still avid supporter) who posted a 157-73-6 record in two stints of duty, 1971-1983 and 1995-03.

Coach Bailey’s Panthers won seven CIAA titles, most recently in 2001 when current Coach Parker was a star running back.

The current edition comes home hot but hobbling a bit due to an injury to star Jada Byers.

VUU opened in Canton, Ohio, routing Morehouse 45-13 on national TV. Then came a 26-13 win in Raleigh over Shaw, and a 28-20 decision this past week at Livingstone in Salisbury.

This Saturday’s home opener may offer a preview of the CIAA title game in November. Fayetteville’s Broncos are the defending CIAA champs, but off to a wobbly start this season under veteran Coach Richard Hayes.

Fayetteville opened with losses to Pembroke and Lenoir-

Rhyne and needed a last-gasp 40-yard field goal to nip Lincoln, 20-17, this past week.

VUU defeated the Broncos last year in Fayetteville, 3128, with All-American Byers running for 161 yards and three touchdowns.

A legitimate candidate for NCAA Division II Player of Year, Byers has a nagging injury and did not play at Livingstone and sat out the second half of the Shaw game the week before. Byers’ status for Fayetteville will be a game-time decision.

Still, VUU has an overwhelming offensive line and it showed. Rashard Jackson ran for 185 yards and two touchdowns on

Hall of Fame to honor Black tennis

Richmond is about to become a mecca for Black tennis history.

Black Tennis Hall of Fame CEO Shelia Curry, a local resident, has announced the organization will move its physical headquarters from Bradenton, Fla., to Richmond “as soon as we can.”

She’s looking closely into the proposed Diamond District north of Broad but is leaving all options open.

The group isn’t wasting time putting its plan into action.

This Saturday, from 6 to 9 p.m., the Hall of Fame Class of 2023 will be inducted in a ceremony at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, 428 N. Arthur Ashe Boulevard.

Among the inductees will be the late Dr.

John A. Watson Jr., who coached tennis at Virginia Union University for 47 years and was instrumental in the early development of the iconic Arthur Ashe.

Dr. Watson will be going into the Hall as a “pioneer and contributor.”

Others in the new class are contributor Cecil Hollins, the late Edward John Davis, his son, Eddie Davis, and Ronald Landflair.

Starting in 2008, this will be the Hall of Fame’s 15th annual induction. Previous inductees include Arthur Ashe and another famous Richmonder, Rodney Harmon.

A lot will be going on Saturday, starting with a free to the public “Celebration Clinic” at Battery Park, 2510 Montrose

Ave. from 8 a.m. to noon.

While the event is free, organizers have asked participants to call 804-332-0871 in advance.

Conducting the clinic will be MaliVai Washington, a former pro standout who reached the singles final at Wimbledon in 1996. In 1992 he was ranked as high as 12th in the world.

Mr. Washington also will be the keynote speaker at the induction ceremony that evening. He is currently the director of the Washington Youth Foundation in Jacksonville, Fla.

Tickets for the induction are available at www.BlackTennisHallofFame.com. The cost is $150 for an individual ticket and $1,300 for a table of 10.

Trojans’transfer sparks hot start

Romelo Williams is starting to pile up statistics while Virginia State University is piling up victories.

Now 3-0 following a dominating 5512 win at St. Augustine’s, the Trojans return home 6 p.m. Saturday to play 0-3 Livingstone under the Rogers Stadium lights.

A transfer from Central Connecticut State University, Williams is a dual-threat quarterback who punished St. Augustine’s with his arm and legs.

Originally from Miramar, Fla., the 6-foot-1, 185-pound Williams hit 18 of 34 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns against the Falcons while also running eight times for 52 yards.

Williams connected with Roy Jackson III and Malik Hunter for touchdowns while 150-pound OBJ Lightbourne, another

Floridian, was the top rusher with 75 yards on just six tries.

Williams, with two seasons of VSU eligibility, was the starting QB at Central Connecticut in 2021, passing for 1,452 yards and 10 scores.

Central Connecticut plays in the FCS Northeast conference.

Upton Bailey, who raced for 214 yards in the opener at Norfolk State, was used sparingly for a second straight week due to a minor injury.

Tyrone Fisher, a graduate student from South Hill, led the defense with seven tackles while Alex White and Willie Drew contributed six stops. As a

preseason All-CIAA pick, Drew also had an interception.

Coach Henry Frazier III’s squad has an excellent chance to improve to 4-0 this Saturday. The Trojans trounced the Blue Bears, 37-7, last year in Salisbury.

VSU’s glowing statistics reflect the 4-0 start in the standings.

Through three outings, VSU has averaged 370 yards per game while allowing 233; has 16 TDs to the opponent’s seven; and has averaged 5.4 points per game compared to 3.5 for its foes.

Coach Frazier, a longtime head coach and assistant at Bowie State, has done an efficient job of turning around a program that was just 3-6 in 2021.

Gazing ahead, VSU is the likely favorite in every game except perhaps at Bowie State Oct. 7 and at Virginia Union Nov. 4.

NCAA rules against VCU’s Joe Bamisile

The VCU basketball team will likely be missing a key ingredient this upcoming season.

Joe Bamisile’s waiver for eligibility has been rejected by the NCAA. That means he will not be permitted to suit up for the 2023-24 season.

VCU is appealing the decision.

If the NCAA’s decision holds, Bamisile would then have two seasons of eligibility starting with the 2024-25 campaign.

After starring at Monacan High in Chesterfield County, the 6-foot-4 wing has played at three Division I schools – Virginia Tech in 2020-21, George Washington in 2021-22 and Oklahoma in 2022-23. He was most impressive at GW (At-

lantic-10 foe of VCU), averaging 16.3 points and five rebounds in 31.4 minutes per contest.

On Jan. 11, 2022, Bamisile scored 11 points for GW in an 84-57 Rams win at the Siegel Center.

With a wide range of talents, many felt Bamisile might be the leading scorer for this season’s Rams. Bamisile’s appeal for immediate eligibility at VCU was based on a desire to address his father’s health issues and mental health concerns of his own. John

Bamisile, Joe’s dad, underwent open heart surgery in recent years.

If the appeal fails, Coach Ryan Odom’s Rams will have 10 scholarship players to start the season but at least two walk-ons.

The NCAA allows 13. There also is concern that 6-foot-9 Kuany Kuany, a transfer from California, may be late joining the team due to a shoulder injury.

Even without Bamisile, VCU will have three local players – redshirt freshman Alphonzo Billups from Varina and sophomore Jason Nelson and junior Roosevelt Wheeler, both from John Marshall.

VCU opens its season Nov. 6 at home against McNeese, La., State, coached by former VCU head coach Will Wade.

32 carries and Curtis Allen carried eight times for 53 yards.

Jackson, a senior who had been waiting his turn, had just 35 yards on the ground in the first two games, playing behind Byers.

Ephraim Moore, a senior cornerback from Maryland had two interceptions, broke up another pass and made six tackles. It wasn’t the cleanest of efforts, however.

VUU was penalized 15 times for a whopping 149 yards. The officials’ whistles were making more noise than the school band.

The Panthers should enjoy Hovey Field while they can.

It’s back on the bus Sept. 30 to St. Augustine’s and Oct. 7 to Elizabeth City. The Panthers have just four home games.

Opening in 1907, Hovey is among the oldest, still in-use facilities in the nation, and among the best from which to watch a game.

That’s because there is no running track surrounding the gridiron. A standard eight- or nine-lane track pushes the stands back some 15 yards. VUU utilizes Sports Backers Stadium for track.

Huguenot High School gymnasium honors Bo Jones Sr.

From now on, every time a basketball fan enters the Huguenot High School gym, they will be reminded of one of the Falcons’ most successful and beloved coaches.

Welcome to Leroy “Bo” Jones Sr. Gymnasium.

On Sept. 11, Richmond Public Schools Superintendent Jason Kamras announced that the board has unanimously approved naming the school gym in honor of the late Mr. Jones.

Both the gym and the Three Street Loop on campus will carry his name.

Huguenot Athletic Director Richard Farquharson confirmed the honor but said details regarding a formal ceremony have not been released.

Mr. Jones, who died in 2021, coached basketball as both head coach and assistant for 40 years, mostly at Huguenot and Jefferson-Huguenot-Wythe.

He also briefly coached at Benedictine Prep.

Before his career in coaching and education, Mr. Jones was a standout football running back at Maggie L. Walker High and Virginia State University.

He was inducted into the VSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008.

His Falcons teams on Forest Hill were perennial winners, usually advancing well into district and regional competition. His squads were well-trained, disciplined and rarely failed to excite their fans.

Mr. Jones’ myriad of stars included Isaiah Morris, who went on to play in the NBA, and David Terrell, who played in the NFL.

Many others went on to college greatness, with Pete Woolfolk (Richmond), Ricky Stokes (Virginia) Vernon Hamilton (Clemson), Ray Neblett and Sean Miller (Virginia Union), Ted “Fats” Berry (Christopher Newport) and his son, all-time Falcons’ scorer Bo Jr. (VCU). Bo Jr. also coached the Huguenot girls’ teams at one time, with much success.

Soccer takes off at VSU

Virginia State University women’s soccer is kicking off a new era in Ettrick … and even has an early victory and a tie to its credit.

Coach Anthony Andrews’ fledgling, firstyear program got it’s first win – a 4-0 decision Sept. 6 at Sweet Briar College in Amherst County – in just its second game.

“We’ve already improved by leaps and bounds,” said Coach Andrews, who is assisted by Frazier Brickhouse III.

Freshman forward Alana Martin, from Lanham, Md., scored VSU’s first goal in history, and then for good measure added a second. Danica Carter and Ava Stewart also scored for the Trojans.

It hasn’t been a totally smooth ride, however.

VSU lost its first game, 14-0, at Belmont Abbey, N.C., Sept. 2, and then lost 9-0 on Sept. 9 to visiting Howard in the inaugural home game at Rogers Stadium.

On Sept. 16, VSU fell 6-1 to visiting Shaw despite a goal by Morgan Paris, the first Trojans home goal in history.

It got better Sept. 17 with a 1-1 tie against invading Eastern Mennonite from Harrisonburg.

The soccer team practices and plays on the same field used by the football squad.

Still on training wheels, the Trojans were outshot 45-1 against Howard. Under constant pressure, goalkeeper Maya Cajachun registered 12 saves in the loss to the Division 1 Bison.

VSU will compete as an NCAA Division II independent for the first few years.

Coach Andrews noted that about nine of the women were on partial scholarship, including Suhaad Awudu from Accra, Ghana.

Stories by Fred Jeter

Coach Bailey Coach Parker Coach Hayes Rashard Jackson

Bo Jones Sr.

Romelo Williams

Joe Bamilsile

Suhaad Awudu

Dr. Watson Mr. Hollins

Mr. Davis

Mr. E.J. Davis

Mr. Landfair

When former trial attorney Sylvia Clute read the book “A Course in Miracles” in 1987, her concept of justice shifted.

“I interviewed a woman who said she had taken three months off to read a book,” Ms. Clute recalled. “I had to read it after that because I thought it must be an important book.”

In the book, she said one message came through to her clearly — that there are two models of justice. One is a model of vengeance and the other is a model of love.

“I immediately knew what justice as vengeance is,” Ms. Clute said. “That is what I learned in law school. Our legal system is a retributive model of justice.

“What I didn’t know was what justice as love was or how it could be implemented. As soon as I had that thought in my mind, I was determined to find out.”

Finding out has been an ongoing journey for Ms. Clute who developed the Unitive Justice Theory to be “a model of justice with no punitive elements and grounded in the moral principle of lovingkindness.” The one-word spelling, lovingkindness, comes from its use in the King James version of the Bible.

In 2011, she and Donna Chewning co-founded Restorative Youth Services in Virginia to provide services for Richmond Public Schools’pilot restorative justice program at Armstrong High School. The program demonstrated great success in reducing disciplinary incidents, Ms. Clute said.

A move from a youth focus to the broader community led to a name change. Today the Alliance for Unitive Justice seeks to provide services and training in any setting that can benefit from using the principles of unitive justice to resolve conflict, transform relationships and build community.

Personality: Sylvia Clute

Spotlight on The Alliance for Unitive Justice president

Ms. Clute says meeting former prisoners Paul Taylor and Weldon “Prince” Bunn in December 2018 helped to both further her work and once more change her life. Although both men had committed serious crimes that earned them life sentences, they took action to help teach prisoners self-governance and ways to change the jail and prison culture.

Over three years, Ms. Clute worked with them, and filmmaker Patrick Gregory, to create the Unitive Prison Culture Change program, a series of 30 videos using the pedagogy of unitive justice.

This year, the AUJ is teaching leadership teams in Hopewell City Public Schools about unitive justice and how it can be implemented and sustained in an educational setting.

In preparing for its first Unitive Justice International Conference scheduled for Oct. 2-4, Ms. Clute hopes that it will be a call to action for anyone who is interested in system change and social justice.

“We are capable of so much better than we are doing,” Ms. Clute said. “Unitive justice provides a pathway to do it.”

Meet an advocate for unitive justice and this week’s Personality Sylvia Clute:

Volunteer position: President of the Alliance for Unitive Justice.

Occupation: Executive director of the nonprofit Alliance for Unitive Justice, author.

Date and place of birth: April 15 in Rocky Ford, Col.

Where I live now: Richmond.

Education: Bachelor’s degree, University of Colorado at

Boulder, MPA, University of California at Berkeley, juris doctorate, Boston University School of Law.

Family: Husband, Eric W. Johnson. We have three children and six grandchildren.

The Alliance for Unitive Justice is: A nonprofit headquartered in Richmond. It was founded in 2011 as Restorative Youth Services of Virginia to provide restorative justice services for Richmond Public School’s pilot restorative justice program at Armstrong High School. We were at Armstrong High School from 2011-2013. The school year before we began working at Armstrong there were a total of 583 disciplinary incidents. The second year of our program at Armstrong, there were only 150 disciplinary incidents.

Our mission: The mission of the Alliance for Unitive Justice is to provide services that resolve conflict, transform relationships, and build

community in ways that are consistent with the principles of Unitive Justice. AUJ is committed to serving neighborhoods, schools, courts, detention centers and other organizations and agencies.

Core values: Being present to our shared humanity. This means being connected on a level where our differences, while they do not disappear, they are not a cause for judgment or separation. This permits us to discover unified goals so we can go forward together.

No. 1 challenge: Our most significant hurdle is definitely funding. The people and the agencies that we serve are not wealthy. We presently are able to offer the programs we offer because they are staffed by people who often volunteer or are paid very little, but that limits those who can do this important work. We need to produce a revenue stream that can fund programs in communities, in schools and jails and prisons and that pay a living wage.

How funding will help: A former student of mine at Va. Union Univ. demonstrated a unique ability to do this work. We hired her to work in our youth program and trained her in Unitive Justice and in UJ Circle Facilitation. We could only pay her a small salary, so she had to take a full-time job elsewhere. If we had the money, we would offer her a job with a good salary and ask her to come back to do what she loves and does so well.

A proud moment for The Alliance for Unitive Justice:

The proudest and most impactful moment for the Alliance for Unitive Justice is going to occur on Oct. 2-4 at the 1st Unitive Justice International Conference at the Roslyn Retreat Center in Richmond and streaming online. Presenters are coming from Uganda, the Philippines, Gibraltar and across the United States. The first two days will feature Unitive Justice programs for diverse environments and the third day is a post-conference called Lawyers as Justice System Changemakers. The presenters for all three days are leaders in transforming our understanding of justice and even transforming the justice system.

Ways to volunteer: An exciting new opportunity to work with the Alliance for Unitive Justice occur at the 1st Unitive Justice International conference Oct. 2-4 where we will be launching UJ Accelerators. This is a new membership level that is designed to further implement Unitive Justice initiatives wherever AUJ’s members are. This membership level will serve people who want to do UJ work, but would like guidance, training and support in this endeavor. This is an opportunity to build support and be part of a growing community for implementing Unitive Justice right where you are with what you have. More information about the conference is available on the AUJ website homepage at www.a4uj.org.

As a client: Our clients are most often institutions that are seeking culture change. Much more information about these programs will be available at that 1st Unitive Justice International Conference Oct. 2-4.

How I start the day: On my best days, I start the day full of joy.

The music I listen to most is: I like to listen to Susan Boyle radio on Pandora as background music while I work on my computer. A song that I especially like is “Hallelujah” sung by Andrea Bocelli.

A quote that I am most inspired by: Kabir, a Sufi poet who wrote in the 15th century, said: In your veins, and in mine, there is only one blood, the same life that animates us all! Since one unique mother earth begat us all, where did we learn to divide ourselves?

At the top of my “to-do” list: Get everything done I have to get done by the Oct. 2-4 conference. That is a very long list. After the conference I will work on letting people know about my new book, “Unitive Justice: Bending the Arc of Justice Toward Love.”

The best thing my parents ever taught me: Work hard, be a person of integrity and get good grades.

The person who influenced me the most: No one person stands out. It has been more like a little here and a little there from so many people I have met on this journey. Book that influenced me the most and how: “A Course in Miracles.” It is attributed to Helen Schucman.

What I’m reading now: I am not reading a book now. I am doing research in criminology because I am preparing a handbook on Unitive Justice Criminology theory that predicts the conditions in which those who were the problem (those behind bars) become the solution. This is how we make what Paul Taylor and Prince Bunn did in prison replicable. I hope to have this handbook done before the Oct. 2-4 conference.

Next goal: Get a lot of rest after the conference.

‘Walk Through Fire’

Sheila Johnson’s memoir explores love, loss and triumph

By Debora Timms Middleburg, VA.

For four days and three nights in mid-August, Sheila Crump Johnson, cofounder of Black Entertainment Television and CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts, hosted hundreds of guests at her 340-acre Salamander Resort and Spa near Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

The occasion was the third year of her “Kwame Onwuachi Presents The Family Reunion,” a gathering that celebrates diversity in the hospitality and culinary communities with panel discussions, cooking demonstrations, and activities such as zip-lining, axe throwing, field games and a survival course.

Add to that more than a dozen celebrity chefs, including Jessica B. Harris, Toni TiptonMartin, Carla Hall and the Family Reunion’s namesake, Kwame Onwuachi. Panel topics covered “The Rise of Soul Food & Fine Dining,” “Wine & Culture”

“Jerk: The Dish that Freed a Nation,” and “Weed…Wasn’t

So Bad Mom, Was It?”

Equally fitting were topics that made the Family Reunion possible: “Building Wealth and Maintaining Your Identity,” “The Art of the Pitch: Selling The Story of Your Business.”

Throughout the fun-filled event, Ms. Johnson danced to funk, hip-hop and R&B music, or posed for photos with guests who traveled from Atlanta, California, Maryland, Richmond, Va., Texas, Washington, D.C., and other parts of the country.

But none of it – Salamander’s breathtaking views, pristine gardens, luxury hotel rooms, and status as the first destination resort in the D.C. area to receive the Forbes Five-Star Award and the only Forbes Five-Star spa in Virginia—was possible without a fight.

In her new book, “Walk Through Fire: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Triumph” Mrs. Johnson details the battles she endured when married to her ex-husband Robert L. “Bob” Johnson, with whom she founded BET. Her war with the town of Middleburg when she sought to build Salamander is legend.

In 2002, when she bought the Salamander property to build a resort, she said “I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into.”

In her book she recounts a woman in a local shop who yelled at her daughter: “How dare your mother come in here and destroy this beautiful area? Who does she think she is?”

Also, her struggle to get bankers to take her seriously, despite her being the first Black woman billionaire in the United States, is shocking. Eventually, things started to fall in place. Salamander opened 10 years ago and now is an economic boon to the town. And last year Mrs. Johnson purchased the Mandarin Oriental in D.C. in partnership with a private equity real estate group. Ms. Johnson also is the only Black woman to be a principal stakeholder in three professional sports teams: the Washington Mystics, Wizards and Capitals.

It is a surprise to no one that her book launch last Saturday at Salamander drew a sell-out crowd.

Speaking candidly, Ms. John-

son, 74, broke her life down like a play in three acts — the first beginning with the fact that racism meant her family had moved 13 times by the time she was 10. Her father, a prominent neurosurgeon, had trouble securing a permanent position since he wasn’t allowed to operate on white patients.

When the family finally settled in Maywood, Ill., young Sheila took up the violin at school and was good at both. Life changed drastically, however, when one day, her father left her mother for another woman, she

tor helped her secure an audition that earned her a full scholarship to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. It also brought her together with her first husband, Bob Johnson.

The relationship was controlling from the outset, she said, but she ignored all the warning signs. The two married in 1969, and Ms. Johnson says she spent the next 30 years, the second act of her life story, trying to make a relationship that “constantly got worse” work.

In her book, Ms. Johnson talks about how the couple cofounded BET. She also details her ex-husband’s numerous affairs and emotional abuse she experienced throughout their marriage. She was pushed out of BET in 1999 and many of its revelations were played out in the media at the time.

“I still suffer from posttraumatic stress. It will never leave me,” Ms. Johnson said. “By the time he finished with me, I felt like a piece of lint and almost committed suicide… it was that bad.”

Ms. Johnson said it was her mother who gave her strength and support over the next few years. She also told her she “could finally live again” when she divorced in 2002.

And live again she has.

acknowledged recently on “CBS News Sunday Morning.”

“Women did not have a lot of power back then,” Ms. Johnson said. “[My mother] didn’t have credit cards, her name wasn’t on the bank account and she couldn’t file for child support. I mean women had nothing and this was the first lesson that I learned about.”

Still in high school, Ms. Johnson said she had to “take over the family.” She took a job mopping floors in a JCPenney. She came home one night to her younger brother screaming and their mother convulsing on the floor in the middle of an emotional breakdown.

Music became her lifeline. Her high school orchestra direc-

Ms. Johnson’s third act has taken place in Middleburg. Her farm there became her escape from the gossip and glare in Washington, D.C. It was once named Salamander and she shared the story of previous owner — former Rhode Island governor Bruce Sundlun - and why she asked to use the name herself — because “mythically it is the only animal that walks through fire and still comes out alive.”

“It was just fitting,” Ms. Johnson explained.

She also found true love again — coincidentally with the judge who presided over her divorce, William T. Newman Jr. The two had first met some 30

years before as cast mates in the same play. They were married in 2005.

Shortly before the book launch ended, Ms. Johnson pulled out her memoir and turned to the epilogue. She said there was a message there that she wanted everyone to take with them.

“Trust your instincts. Get to know who you are before you give yourself to someone else. Believe that you can find happiness, and that you deserve it,” she read. “You are going to be OK.”

Bonnie Newman Davis contributed to this article.

Chinae Renee

Sheila Johnson, CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts, signs a copy of her new book, “Walk Through Fire,” for Hillari Hawkins of Alexandria.

Clay Williams Rodney Scott of Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ in Charleston, S.C., Atlanta and Alabama, slathers sauce on some mouthwatering ribs. Below, other menu items include lima bean salad, herb roasted chicken thighs, roasted cauliflower steak, white Georgia shrimp, Atlantic salmon and vegan ice cream sandwiches.

Clay Williams

Sheila Johnson poses with culinary experts Dr. Jessica B. Harris and Kwame Onwuachi during this year’s “Kwame Onwuachi Presents The Family Reunion” Aug. 17-20. Right: Performers including Juvenile and Joe turned up for this year’s family reunion to the delight of partiers of all ages.

Clay Williams

Clay Williams

Church)

Broad Rock Baptist Church 5106 Walmsley Blvd., Richmond, VA 23224 804-276-2740 • 804-276-6535 (fax) www.BRBCONLINE.org

“Please come and join us” Every Sunday @ 11:00 am. Live Streaming Every Sunday At: BRBConline.org or YouTube(Broad Rock Baptist Church) Bible Study online and in person Wednesday 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

“MAKE IT HAPPEN”

Pastor Kevin Cook

St. Peter Baptist Church

Photos by Brittany Powell Pastor Latara Grandison leads a prayer tent.

Virgil Mitchell encourages children to never give up.

Councilwoman AnnFrances Lambert brings greetings.

Apostle Sheniqua Mitchell baptizes Ella Robinson.