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MAY 5-7, 2016
Ignoring call to duty Failure to sign up for Selective Service hurts thousands By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Register for Selective Service. Otherwise, you could ruin your life. Jacquel Parker wishes he could tell that to every young man turning 18. That’s because the Richmond resident knows firsthand about the dismal impact that can come from failing to register with the Selective Service System before age 26. Mr. Parker never did — one of the millions who fail to register for a military draft that will
never take place. So now at 35, “I can’t get any federal help to go to college,” Mr. Parker said. That includes Pell grants and federal student loans to help cover the cost of schooling. Mr. Parker also cannot qualify for a federal job or work for a company carrying out a federal contract. He is barred from job training services from the area Workforce Resource Center and other beneficial services. That’s the law, according to the Selective Service System, even though there has been no conscrip-
tion for the military since 1973. The draft was eliminated and the military has been a completely volunteer operation since then. According to the most recent Selective Service report, an estimated 95,000 Virginia men who currently are between 18 and a day shy of their 26 birthday have not registered. That’s 21 percent of the 440,000 men in that age range who are required to sign up. Nationally, about 17 million men are in the Please turn to A4
Mr. Parker
Henrico School Board chooses ‘Quioccasin’ Free Press staff report
Coach Barlow
VSU to name Barlow as new coach By Fred Jeter
Reggie Barlow, a former NFL player and Alabama State University football coach, will be introduced as the new football coach at Virginia State University, the Free Press has learned. The announcement is to be made Thursday, May 5, by VSU Athletic Director Peggy Davis at the university’s Gateway Dining and Events Center. The 43-year-old Coach Barlow posted a 49-42 record between 2007 and 2014 at his alma mater, Alabama State, located in his hometown of Montgomery, Ala. Under Coach Barlow, Alabama State won three consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Eastern Division titles from 2010 to 2012. While serving as assistant coach at Alabama State in 2005-06, Coach Barlow helped groom quarterback Tarvaris Jackson, now with the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks. Coach Barlow was a recordsetting receiver at Alabama State from 1992 to 1995, and was drafted in 1996 by the Jacksonville Jaguars. In 1997, with Jacksonville, Coach Barlow led the NFL in total yards Please turn to A4
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
Kathy Deshazo-Jackson, who said she was one of the first African-American students to attend the former Byrd Middle School, is elated by the vote last week to rename the Henrico County school.
Quioccasin Middle School. That’s the new name chosen by the Henrico County School Board for the former Harry F. Byrd Sr. Middle School. The board’s decision, coming on a 3-0 vote last Thursday was viewed as a “safe” choice by a panel looking to escape any further controversy. The new name rids the public school of honoring the late Mr. Byrd, a racist and segregationist who, as a U.S. senator, spearheaded Massive Resistance efforts in the 1950s to shut down public schools rather than desegregate them as the U.S. Supreme Court ordered. A successful student-led effort prompted the board’s unanimous vote March 10 to rename the middle school. But after receiving hundreds of suggestions, the board declined to name the school for another person. Instead, most members took their cue from board member Lisa A. Marshall, who represents the Tuckahoe District where the school is located and opted for Quioccasin, which is said to be of Native American origin. “There are so many worthy suggestions in honor of individuals who contributed greatly to our community,” Ms. Marshall said during a board work session before the formal meeting and vote. “It would be very difficult for me to pick between the individual names suggested.” Her sentiment was echoed by board member John W. Montgomery Jr., the Varina District representative, who backed Ms. Marshall’s motion in favor of the name Quioccasin. “Quioccasin is more than just a locaPlease turn to A4
$5.5M more found for city schools By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Parents and students may hate it. But Armstrong High School and four elementary school buildings — Cary, Overby-Sheppard, Southampton and Swansboro — are moving closer to the chopping block. While Richmond School Board Chairman Jeffrey M. Bourne told reporters Wednesday that he and his eight colleagues “will try to avoid closing schools at any and all costs” to avoid the community disruption
that it would cause, he indicated later the board might have little choice. The School Board is facing at least a $10.7 million shortfall between the revenue it expects and the spending it wants to undertake in the 2017 fiscal year that begins July 1 to upgrade Mr. Bourne long depressed teacher and staff pay and crank up an academic improvement plan.
Hopes that the Richmond City Council might come to the rescue evaporated this week after the governing body completed its work on an amended city budget for the 2017 fiscal year, including appropriating local tax dollars for public education. Though there are still a few steps left to official approval, the budget the council is poised to pass May 13 includes only $5.52 million in additional operating funds for the school system — far short Please turn to A4
School bus plan raises safety concerns By Joey Matthews
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
Tara Spencer sits on the porch of her apartment on Creighton Road with her daughters, from left, Dionicia, 8, La-Taja, 6, and Japria, 12.
Tara Spencer stands on her porch in the Creighton Court public housing community each school day and watches as her 12-year-old daughter, Japria, waits about 20 yards down the street to catch the bus to Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School where she is a sixth-grader. Ms. Spencer, a 32-year-old single mother of three, said she is concerned for her daughter’s future safety after Richmond Public Schools announced a new bus transportation plan for the school year starting in the fall. As approved by the Richmond School Board, the plan requires middle and high school students to go to the nearest elementary school to catch the bus to their respective schools. The move is among the cost-cutting measures taken by the School Board to balance the
2016-17 budget. Most students now catch the school bus at stops located much closer to their homes. School officials told the Free Press last week they intend to notify parents and other caretakers of thousands of affected students early this month. They plan to send letters, emails, newspaper advertisements and other communications with the details. Japria would have to walk about six blocks, or four-tenths of a mile, from her home on Creighton Road to Woodville Elementary School to catch a bus to Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, located a little over a mile away. While the distance isn’t far, safety is a major factor, Ms. Spencer said. “I don’t feel safe with that,” she told the Please turn to A4
A2 May 5-7, 2016
Richmond Free Press
Local News
City Public Works director revokes alternative work schedules With rare exceptions, employees in Richmond’s Department of Public Works no longer are permitted to work at home or have flexible work schedules. Effective April 4, the privilege was revoked for employees to telecommute — or work by computer and telephone from another location — or to secure alternative schedules. The action was taken by Emmanuel O. Adediran, the department’s director. In a March 22 memo, Mr. Adediran wrote to employees “that the department will maintain consistency and fairness across all divisions” by requiring employees to report “to work during normal operating hours throughout a five day workweek.” He stated the only exceptions would be for employees whose treating physician deemed “an alternative schedule medically necessary,” but added that such requests would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. The City of Richmond’s departments are allowed to offer telecommuting and alternative scheduling for workers, but directors can “revoke the privilege at any time,” according to the city’s administrative regulations. Mr. Adediran Department spokeswoman Sharon North quoted the policy but did not offer any other explanation for the change in policy in response to a Free Press query. She did state that “there is a formal process that employees may engage in if they have concerns/questions about any management decisions.” Asked Tuesday how this policy benefited the department, Mr. Adediran declined comment. Mr. Adediran has been under fire for doing volunteer work for his church, First Baptist Church of South Richmond, during regular work hours. He is a volunteer associate pastor at the church where Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones is senior pastor. City Auditor Umesh Dalal disclosed earlier this year that Mr. Adediran was managing the construction of a satellite sanctuary for the church in Chesterfield County on city time. That finding has sparked investigations by the FBI and Richmond Commonwealth’s Attorney Michael N. Herring, with support from the Virginia State Police. Mayor Jones requested the State Police probe in the wake of questions about whether he had used his city position to improperly benefit the church. The mayor has denied any wrongdoing. Ironically, Mr. Adediran apparently was allowed to work an alternative schedule to make up the hours he put into his work for the church, sources have told the Free Press. — JEREMY M. LAZARUS
Maggie Walker Class of 1967 starting cleanup effort at area cemeteries
Mr. Harris said the class is teaming with John Shuck, A renewed effort is being a genealogist and Iowa transmounted to clean up four plant who has spent the past long neglected, but historic seven years leading the largest African-American cemetereffort to improve the cemetery ies that sit on the eastern grounds, uncover hidden border between Richmond graves and repair a decaying and Henrico County. mausoleum on the site. In preparing for its 50th anMr. Shuck, as well as his niversary reunion, the Maggie wife, Debbie, have coordiWalker High School Class of nated volunteers and spent 1967 is taking up the cause time each weekend since 2008 of the overgrown Evergreen to improve the cemeteries on and East End cemeteries, behalf of Virginia Roots, a as well as two other burial nonprofit founded by Veronica grounds — one of which is Davis of Hampton to call atowned by the city. tention to neglected AfricanDespite heroic volunteer American cemeteries. Her efforts, only a small portion biggest success was to get the of the 70-acre Evergreen and City of Richmond to fence and East End cemeteries is still maintain the historic Barton in use and maintained. Heights cemeteries. The remainder — the Additional volunteers are resting place for such historic welcome to join the effort, Mr. figures as civic and business Harris said, adding that tools leader Maggie L. Walker, and gloves will be provided. crusading editor and politiHe also urges anyone who cian John Mitchell Jr. and can to bring weed-eaters, educators Andrew J. Bowler, chainsaws, bush hogs and Rosa Bowser and Virginia other power equipment, as Randolph — is returning to well as water coolers and Mrs. Walker’s gravesite forest, with headstones broken bug spray. or completely overgrown. Mr. Harris said this event “is just the starting Families who buried people there, as well as point.” the city, never provided funding for perpetual “We want to make progress, but anyone who care, and later generations are not tending the has visited the area knows that this is not a onegraves. The City of Richmond, which once day project. It could take up to two years to get buried the poor on a portion of the land, gave the job done, and we plan to stay with it.” up maintenance of its site years ago. He became motivated to make this a class The new effort to restore the cemeteries will project as a result of the push to erect a statue to begin Saturday, May 7, according to Marvin L. Mrs. Walker, the school’s namesake who is best Harris, a Realtor and property manager, who is known as the first African-American woman to leading the Class of 1967’s effort. found and lead a bank in the United States. He said nearly 100 volunteers armed with “People coming to Richmond ought to be able tools and other equipment will meet at 9 a.m. to learn as much as they can about her. But if they to work on clearing trees, brush, vines, poison tried to find her grave, they couldn’t because it is ivy and other vegetation. so overgrown,” he said. The cemeteries are located along Stony Run The class is taking on the effort because other Parkway, which can be reached off Nine Mile volunteer groups such as the national Maggie Road in Henrico County via Evergreen Road or Walker Alumni Association and the Maggie L. from East Richmond Road in the city. Walker Historical Foundation are no longer active The cemeteries include private Evergreen or involved in tending her grave. Cemetery, owned by UK Corp.; now abandoned Mr. Harris is recruiting others to take part in East End Cemetery; and the Colored Pauper’s the weeks ahead, including the multiracial One Cemetery owned by the City of Richmond; Voice Chorus and the Jewish Congregation Or and the Oakwood Colored Section, an aban- Ami. He’s also seeking resource donations from doned part of Oakwood Cemetery, an active landscaping firms. city-owned cemetery that lies west of Stony For more details, email Mr. Harris at mharris@ Run Parkway. mapinv.com or call (804) 240-1418. By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Photos by Clement Britt
Above, Spirited volunteers make repairs to a home on Ruffin Road during Rebuilding Together Richmond, the local volunteer effort during National Rebuilding Day. Nearly 1,000 people turned out
Cityscape Slices of life and scenes in Richmond
last Saturday to help low-income senior homeowners along the South Side corridor of Jefferson Davis Highway. Volunteers also revitalized the garden at T.B. Smith Recreation Center at 2015 Ruffin Road and the parking lot at Mount Olive Baptist Church at 2611 Bells Road. This was the 24th year for the event in Richmond, which was met with success. Volunteers helped spruce up about 39 homes.
Richmond Free Press
May 5-7, 2016
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GOP pushes back on restoring felons’ voting rights By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Only a trickle of former felons appear to be taking advantage of Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s historic order restoring the voting and civil rights of 206,000 people who have completed their prison sentences, along with any probation or parole requirements. As controversy ramps up and Republican leaders in the General Assembly prepare a legal attack on the governor’s April 22 order, reports from voter registrars around the state indicate only a few thousand of the newly eligible have rushed to register to vote. “We were told to expect a tsunami,” said Richmond Voter Registrar Kirk Showalter. “But so far, it hasn’t happened.” At this point, Ms. Showalter said her office has received about 200 applications to vote from former felons saying their rights have been restored. However, many of the applications cannot be verified, Ms. Showalter stated, indicating that there are misunderstandings over who is qualified to apply to vote. People still on parole or probation are not. The challenge of getting correct information
is the biggest glitch that has affected the registration process for those who have sought to take advantage of the governor’s order. It took a week for the 206,000 names of those whose rights were restored to be uploaded into the state Department of Elections’ Speaker Howell computer system, according to Secretary of the Commonwealth Kelly Thomasson and Department of Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortes. That was completed April 29, she said. “We couldn’t start doing it before the governor signed the order,” Secretary Thomasson said. Her office’s website was updated sooner, and registrars have been checking that site to determine if an applicant qualified. Secretary Thomasson’s office also is accepting emails of names of people directly from registrars. Ms. Showalter said she submitted the names of 142 people who filed voter registration applications, but are not showing up as having their rights restored on either website.
Meanwhile, Speaker of the House William J. Howell, a Republican from Stafford County, and state Sen. Thomas K. Norment, the Senate GOP majority leader from James City County, announced the Republican caucuses in both houses have retained high-powered conservaSen. Norment tive attorney Charles J. Cooper to file a legal attack on the governor’s action. Mr. Cooper is well known on the legal circuit, having represented opponents of same-sex marriage, Obamacare and the Voting Rights Act. In the Republican view, according Speaker Howell, “Gov. McAuliffe has adopted an unprecedented view of executive authority and exceeded the powers granted by the Constitution of Virginia when he issued the order restoring the rights of more than 200,000 felons.” Speaker Howell and other like-minded foes of the Democratic governor’s action believe that he could restore rights only on a case-by-case basis and would need to report his actions to
the General Assembly. However, Attorney General Mark Herring and other supporters are prepared to argue the Republican view involves a misreading of the state Constitution. Secretary Thomasson stated that the Virginia Constitution gives the governor complete authority to restore the political rights of felons. She said the governor is required to report case particulars to the General Assembly if he pardons or grants a reprieve to someone, commutes a sentence or reduces or eliminates a fine or a penalty. However, he “is not required to do so when he restores rights,” she said. In 2015, “the governor removed payment of court-imposed fines and fees from the eligibility criteria for restoration of rights,” she said. “Individuals are still required to pay those fines and fees. However nonpayment no longer serves as a barrier to restoration of civil rights.” As importantly, even though governors since A. Linwood Holton in the early 1970s have reported restoration rights on a case-by-case basis to the General Assembly, Secretary Thomasson noted that “the Constitution does not require that restoration of rights be communicated” to the legislature.
School Board chooses ‘Quioccasin’ Failure to sign up
for Selective Service hurts thousands
Continued from A1
tion or the name of the road on which Byrd sits,” Ms. Marshall said. Board member Roscoe D. Cooper III, who represents the Fairfield District and is the lone African-American on the fivemember board, said he wanted the building to be named for the Vandervalls, an AfricanAmerican family who donated some of their land — and had additional acreage taken later by the county through eminent domain — for what became Byrd Middle School and adjacent Pemberton Elementary School. When the vote was taken, he abstained. Board member Beverly L. Cocke of the Brookland District voted with Ms. Marshall and Mr. Montgomery to approve the name Quioccasin. Board Chairwoman Michelle F. “Micky” Ogburn was absent. While signs, stationery
Continued from A1
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
Janis Jones, right, and Mary Beth Joyner, librarians at the former Byrd Middle School, ask Henrico School Board members to change the school’s name on the county’s website and other online materials.
and scoreboards bearing the school’s old name are to be replaced at a previously estimated cost of $13,000,
Henrico schools officials said athletic uniforms and other gear bearing the old name will be replaced when the items
wear out. However, community efforts have started to raise money to pay for those replacements.
Bus plan raises safety concerns Continued from A1
Free Press, “When I was walking my two youngest children to Woodville in broad daylight one morning recently, people were shooting guns nearby on 29th Street. It happens all the time around here. It’s a long way for children to walk, especially on these treacherous streets.” To ease her concerns, Ms. Spencer said she would be forced to consider rearranging her morning schedule next school year. She would first wake her two younger daughters, Dionicia, 8, and La-Taja, 6, and they all would walk with Japria to catch her bus at Woodville. They would return home, and Ms. Spencer said she would dress her younger daughters, then walk them back to Woodville for classes. Assistant Superintendent Tommy Kranz, who introduced the proposal to the School Board at its April 18 meeting, and Superintendent Dana T. Bedden told the Free Press that community reaction to the plan so far has been muted. “I haven’t gotten many phone calls yet,
but I imagine that a lot of people have not heard about it yet,” Mr. Kranz said. Dr. Bedden downplayed the effect the change will have on students and their families. “Kids go to bus stops every day. This is just another version of a bus stop,” he said. “We want to work with (the community) to ensure we’re being efficient, effective and safe. All of those are priorities together. If there’s a safety issue, we’ll adjust and make sure that becomes a priority.” Mr. Kranz told School Board members that RPS would save about $800,000 annually under the new transportation plan by reducing the number of buses needed to transport students to schools across the city and reducing other costs. He said that school buses go on about 450 runs separately each morning and afternoon, not counting field trips and midday runs. The school district is cutting costs and wants additional funding from City Council as it attempts to help close an $18 million budget gap. Mr. Kranz told the Free Press that school
leaders proposed the new plan after transportation costs skyrocketed well beyond what RPS budgeted as the district added a substantial number of buses and drivers in order to pick up students closer to their homes. RPS also transported a growing number of students to schools outside of their school zones. Dr. Bedden said a chief reason for the switch to the new plan is, “We’re trying to make sure expenditures don’t exceed revenues.” Mr. Kranz said many bus drivers were overloaded with too many bus stops and would fall further behind as the day went on, which meant that many students would arrive to school late in the mornings and arrive home later in the afternoons. “Hub (the new system) allows us to reduce the number of buses,” Mr. Kranz said. “We know this will be a challenge for some of our families,” Mr. Kranz said. “If I had enough money in my budget and if I had enough drivers, we wouldn’t have been looking at it,” he added.
age range to register, the Selective Service reports. But at least 2 million, or 12 percent, likely will not, according to officials. Registration can be done online at www.SSS.gov, or forms may be filled out at post offices across the country or at the young men’s schools. The law requires that young men register within 30 days of their 18th birthday. Yet among the 2.1 million young men who turn 18 each year, 23 percent do not register, records show. Some states like Delaware have ensured nearly 100 percent compliance by making registration for the draft a requirement to obtain or renew a driver’s license. But Virginia has ignored that kind of easy fix. The Virginia Department of Education has never made draft registration a requirement for high school graduation for students who are 18. About 13 percent of high schools nationally never mention the draft requirement, the Selective Service notes. So far, Congress has refused to lighten the penalties or consider shutting down the standby draft and the requirement that men register. While women never had to register, legislation has been introduced in Congress to extend the requirement to young women now that the military has opened all of its posts, including combat, to females. But the legislation has yet to pass. People like Mr. Parker could go to prison. The Selective Service notes that failure to register is a felony that carries up to a five-year prison term and a $250,000 fine, though no one has been prosecuted in decades. Mr. Parker learned he had a problem when, at age 27, he sought to enroll at Virginia Commonwealth University to earn a degree in business administration. “All the paperwork was done, and then I got a call telling me I could not get a student loan because I hadn’t registered for the draft. I was shocked, but there was nothing to be done. I’ve tried and tried.” Mr. Parker remembers being advised by his high school guidance counselor to register before he graduated in 1998. “She didn’t explain it very well. I thought she was telling me I would have to go into the military,” said Mr. Parker, a graduate of Lindenhurst High School in New York City. He said he had relatives who had served, including his dad, who served in the Air Force, but “that was not for me.” Before Mr. Parker had finished high school, he had obtained his barber’s license and was working in his father’s shop. “I was making money, life was good and I didn’t want to have anything to do with military. I just didn’t understand what it meant to register.” Today, he would change that decision if he could. “I wish there was some way to appeal, to undo the mistake, but I’m too old,” he said. “I wish I could go back. But unless something changes, I will have to live with my situation the rest of my life.”
$5.5M more found for city schools Continued from A1
of the request. “People keep saying we could easily come up with $18 million for schools if we wanted to, but it’s just not true,” said Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson, 6th District. The extra money that the council will provide includes $4.97 million to improve teacher pay, aiming to end the problem of having nine-year veterans on the same pay step as new teachers. The new funds also include $200,000 to enable Richmond Public Schools to reopen Summer Hill Elementary School to relieve overcrowding at other South Side schools and $347,346 for general operations. Mr. Bourne said he expects the School Board to deliberate on how to fill the remaining budget gap at its next meeting on Monday, May 16. “We have a lot of work to do,” he said. Initially short $22 million, the board has shrunk the total gap to $16.2 million, aided by increases in state spending on public education and some already approved cuts, including reducing bus service for high school and middle school students and closing two administrative buildings. The extra money from the council would reduce that gap to $10.7 million. The money has to come from somewhere, and
school closings are one of the few ways the board has to generate savings. For example, closing Armstrong, the oldest African-American high school in the Richmond area, is projected to free up $1 million and also move East End students to fill 1,000 of the current 2,000 empty high school seats in other buildings. While there is still some talk that Overby-Sheppard might be saved and get a $4 million facelift because of its lynchpin role in the city-backed redevelopment of the Dove Court area, the other three elementary schools lack that kind of city support. In addition to school closings, Superintendent Dana T. Bedden has proposed savings by eliminating some existing, but unspecified initiatives, outsourcing janitorial services and demolishing two vacant buildings. But his proposals would provide only about $7.6 million in savings, leaving the board $3.1 million short of completely filling the gap. For Mr. Bourne and his colleagues, that potentially means more pain. Surprisingly, members of the activist coalition of parents, students and teachers called “Support Our Schools” failed to show up for council’s crucial decision-making sessions that ended Tuesday. During its deliberations, City Council rejected proposals to raise larger sums for schools. The majority
refused to impose a 60-cent tax on cigarettes to raise up to $5 million in new funds and backed away from an additional 1 percent cut for city departments to raise $4.7 million — a move the Mayor Dwight C. Jones’ administration said would be disastrous given the 12 percent cut the mayor already is imposing. City employees also are not getting a pay increase, although police officers and firefighters will get a step increase. In the end, the only real additional money came from unexpected revenue increases that added $7.6 million to the city’s spending authority — 72 percent of which was provided to schools. However, in exchange for boosting funding for schools, the council agreed to slap new restrictions on the school system’s freedom to spend. The council plans to split the $151.5 million it is to deliver to schools into eight categories and require the School Board for the first time to seek permission to transfer funds between categories. Dr. Bedden and his predecessors were able to move money without any oversight. “It’s a slap in the face,” said School Board member and 2nd District City Council candidate Kim Gray. The school system has been a model of transparency in spending, while the city cannot produce an audit of its spending in a timely fashion, she said.
VSU to name Barlow as new coach Continued from A1
returning punts (555). He later earned a Super Bowl ring in 2003 while playing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Coach Barlow did not coach this past season while serving on the faculty of Montgomery’s Johnny Carr Middle School. At VSU, Coach Barlow will succeed Byron Thweatt, who resigned after posting a 6-4 record in one season. Coach Thweatt left to take an assistant coach position at James Madison University. Prior to Coach Thweatt’s short tenure, Latrell Scott was 19-3 in 2013 and 2014 as VSU coach. Coach Scott left VSU to become head coach at Norfolk State University.
Richmond Free Press
May 5-7, 2016
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Rep. Scott
Mayor Fraim
Dr. Dyson
Ms. Hunter-Gault
Mr. Jones
Dr. Hanna-Attisha
Ms. El
Delegate Aird
Gov. McAuliffe
Mr. Mahoney
Array of speakers slated for commencement ceremonies Graduates will jump for joy, parents will beam with pride and speakers will try to inspire a generation of future leaders. It’s graduation time at colleges and universities across Virginia and the nation. A diverse and accomplished group of speakers will be delivering commencement addresses. They include President Obama, Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, two professors who helped expose the water contamination crisis in Flint, Mich., and political analyst and author Michael Eric Dyson. Below is a partial listing of upcoming commencements in Richmond and nearby: Saturday, May 7 Virginia Union University, 10 a.m., Hovey Field on campus, 1500 N. Lombardy St. Speaker: Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, 3rd
District, the first African-American Gault, an award-winning journalist elected to Congress from Virginia who was the first African-American since the 1890s. to enroll at the University of Georgia Norfolk State University, 10 a.m., in 1961. Norfolk Scope, 215 E. Brambleton Friday, May 13 Ave., Norfolk. Speaker: Norfolk John Tyler Community College, Mayor Paul Fraim. 6:30 p.m., Midlothian campus at 800 Howard University, 10 a.m., the Charter Colony Parkway. Speaker: Upper Quadrangle of the main camMaurice Jones, Virginia secretary of pus, 2400 Sixth St. NW, Washington. commerce and trade. Speaker: President Obama. Virginia Tech, 8:30 a.m., Lane President Obama Sunday, May 8 Stadium, Blacksburg. Speakers: VirHampton University, 10 a.m., Armstrong ginia Tech professor Marc Edwards and Dr. Stadium on campus, Hampton. Speaker: Author, Mona Hanna-Attisha, whose research helped political analyst and Georgetown University expose the lead contamination of the public professor Michael Eric Dyson. water system in Flint, Mich. University of Richmond, 2 p.m., Robins Saturday, May 14 Center on campus. Speaker: Charlayne HunterVirginia Commonwealth University,
10 a.m., Richmond Coliseum, 601 E. Leigh St., in Downtown. Speaker: VCU alumnus Pamela El, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for the National Basketball Association. Sunday, May 15 Virginia State University, 10 a.m., Richmond Coliseum, 601 E. Leigh St., in Downtown. Speaker: VSU alumna Lashrecse Aird, who represents the 63rd District in the Virginia House of Delegates. J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, 2 p.m., Siegel Center, 1200 W. Broad St. Speaker: Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Sunday, May 22 University of Virginia, 9 a.m., the campus Lawn, Charlottesville. Speaker: U.Va. School of Law Dean Paul G. Mahoney.
Malia Obama headed to Harvard — in 2017 Free Press wire reports
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Malia Obama has chosen Harvard University to be her college home. The long-waited announcement came Sunday. The oldest daughter of President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama has elected to take a year off after high school, however, and will enter the prestigious university in Cambridge, Mass., in the fall of 2017. Harvard University, where both parents earned law degrees, encourages admitted students to take advantage of the institution’s “gap year” process and travel, pursue a special project or acquire intellectual enhancement outside of the classroom. During the year, the student must not enroll in another degree-granting college program. The gap year option is heavily favored by President Obama, who on more than one occasion has expressed his emotions over Malia leaving the Obama nest. In fact, President Obama declined an invitation to speak at his daughter’s high school graduation, saying he would be too emotional. “I’m going to be sitting there with dark glasses, sobbing,” he told TV host Ellen DeGeneres during an appearance on her talk show in February. The decision to take a gap year will keep Malia close to home for a while longer, especially during the period when the first family transitions back into civilian life. The decision also makes her eventual arrival on the Harvard campus easier for her parents, who have guarded both their daughters’ privacy. President Obama will be out of office and no longer trailed in the public by a contingent of news media when Malia moves into her dorm. The celebratory moment for the Obamas was marred by a host of vile, racist comments posted in response on social media, including on the conservative Fox News site. The comments, which included racial epithets, became so vicious and distasteful that Fox News removed them and disabled the commentary section on the webpage. However, screen shots were taken of the remarks and posted on other social network sites. Some printable comments called her admittance an example of “black privilege” and “affirmative action.” In their usual unflappable manner, President and Mrs. Obama gave no response to the hate-driven remarks. Instead, they appear to be steadfast in allowing nothing to dull the brilliance of their daughter’s moment. Malia, a 17-year-old high school senior, attends Sidwell Friends, an exclusive private school in Washington — the same school Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of former President Bill Clinton and Demo-
cratic presidential When she starts at candidate Hillary Harvard, Malia will Clinton, attended in join a long line of the 1990s. presidential children Malia visited at who have attended least a dozen public the Ivy League inand private colleges stitution, including before making her John Quincy Adams final choice. Six of II, Caroline Kenthe eight Ivy League nedy and George W. institutions were Bush. Malia Obama among them. She But that doesn’t also visited Stanford University make it any easier for Presiand the University of California, dent Obama, who also told Berkeley. Ms. DeGeneres, “She’s one The first lady has said that of my best friends. It’s going Malia wants to be a filmmaker. to be hard for me not to have She has interned on the set of her around all the time, but HBO’s “Girls,” starring Lena she’s ready to go. She’s just Dunham, as well as a now- a really smart, capable person canceled CBS sci-fi drama that and she is ready to make her starred Halle Berry. own way.”
Courtesy of Richmond Public Schools
Astronomical Role model Engineer Leland Melvin, a retired NASA astronaut from Lynchburg, signs autographs for Franklin Military Academy students during a program April 22 at the East End school marking the 100th anniversary of the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. During an assembly, Mr. Melvin talked about his role during two missions on the Space Shuttle Atlantis and his experiences as a football player and chemistry major at the University of Richmond. He also earned a master’s degree in materials science engineering from the University of Virginia. The JROTC celebration also featured robotics demonstrations, drone flying and military drills.
Congratulations to the Board and staff of the Black History Museum on Your grand reopening
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Richmond Free Press
A6 May 5-7, 2016
Local News
Nuns to sell St. Emma’s-St. Francis property in Powhatan By Jeremy M. Lazarus A religious order founded by an American saint plans to sell the 2,265-acre property in Powhatan County that once housed two Catholic boarding schools for AfricanAmerican youths. The announcement Tuesday rang the death knell on long-held hopes for restoring the St. Francis de Sales School for Girls and the St. Emma Military Academy for Boys, which together served more than 20,000 students before each closed by 1972. The news came as surprise to alumni such as Carolyn Morris Lambert of Richmond, who looks forward to the annual summer reunion that attracts 200 or so graduates to the peaceful site along the James River. “I am really saddened,” said Mrs. Lambert, after learning that the property could soon change hands, “but I understand.” A member of the 1958 Class of St. Francis, Mrs. Lambert said she hopes “some kind of monument can be put up to depict where the schools were located and to provide information on their history.” St. Francis was a life-changing experience for her, a teen from upstate New York, and led to her meeting her future husband, the late Benjamin J. Lambert III, a former Richmond optometrist and state senator. Mrs. Lambert’s sister, Betty Ann M. Sims, and a first cousin also graduated from the school. The leader of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament that St. Katharine Drexel founded 125 years ago issued the announcement that the order “would divest itself” of its two largest properties — the huge tract overlooking the James River 38 miles west of Richmond and the order’s headquarters or Motherhouse in Bensalem, Penn. “We know the time is right to make this decision,” stated Sister Donna Breslin, president of the order of nuns that St. Katharine founded in 1891. Powhatan County values the property at $7.9 million for tax purposes. Sister Breslin said the sale of the Motherhouse, a 44-acre complex of 10 buildings constructed largely between 1891 and 1933, will impact the 53 retired members of the order who live there and now must move. The sale also will mean the closure of the National Shrine of Katharine Drexel and the transfer of her remains to Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia, 20 miles southwest of Bensalem. St. Katharine, who was canonized by Pope John Paul II in October 2000, is the second American-born woman the Catholic Church has elevated to sainthood. Born into a wealthy but philanthropic family — her uncle founded Drexel University in Philadelphia — St. Katharine initially became a benefactor of Native
National Trust for Historic Preservation
Belmead, the main house that remains on the former St. Emma’s Military Academy property in Powhatan County, was listed on the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s 11 Most Endangered Places in 2011. The property is being sold by the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament.
Americans, creating missions and subsidizing missionaries to the Sioux, Navajo and other tribes facing hardships, before becoming a nun in 1891 and founding the order with 13 women. She also got involved in the education of African-American youths, then severely restricted by the bigotry of the times. She bought the former Mt. Pleasant plantation in Powhatan County and developed St. Francis school in 1899 on the land. The school, also known as “Rock Castle,” focused on developing teachers and nurses. The school sat across a creek from the St. Emma Military Academy, also called “Belmead,” which St. Katharine’s sister, Louise, and her husband, Col. Edward Morrell, opened in 1895 to train young AfricanAmerican men in farming and marketable skills. St. Emma’s later was donated to the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament. Since the closure of the schools 44 years ago, the order has sought ways to use the property. In 2004, Sister Jean Marie Craig led the effort to form a nonprofit, FrancisEmma Inc., to preserve and protect the land, create religious and educational programs, foster ecological social justice and restore the
buildings. About 1,000 acres of the property are wetlands and other areas considered off limits to development and protected by a conservation easement. The nonprofit has been financially responsible for all the costs and has sought to raise money to pay the bills, expand operations and maintain the buildings that remain, including St. Francis and the former main house at St. Emma’s. “I had just received information on fundraising,” Mrs. Lambert said, along with updates on the replacement in the roof of the chapel at St. Francis. “It seemed like things were going well.” However, despite the efforts, FrancisEmma Inc. largely had been a breakeven operation that boarded horses and rented space for weddings and events to cover costs. For the order, the large properties have become more than it can handle given the needs of other programs in the order’s social justice ministry, said Sister Sandra Schmidt, counselor and treasurer for the order. In large measure, the decision reflects the declining numbers of nuns in the order, she said.
Once a flourishing order of about 600 nuns, the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament are facing the same challenges as other orders of priests and nuns in recruiting new members. The order currently has 104 members, only 13 of whom are below age 65, Sister Schmidt said. The newest member joined the order 10 years ago, she said, noting that the order’s average age is 78. Although the Powhatan property covers its costs, she said that the four sisters who administer the properties are all elderly and “could not be replaced.” By shedding these properties, the order will better be able to focus on its other projects in the United States, Haiti and Jamaica, according to Sheila King of Chicago, whom the order has hired to handle public relations regarding the sale. “The order is still very active in education and other missions,” Ms. King said. According to the order’s website, the nuns work in various elementary and secondary schools serving African-Americans and Native Americans, minister to the poor in Haiti and serve at Xavier University in New Orleans and the Catholic College of Manderville, Jamaica.
African-American mayors elected in 3 cities By Jeremy M. Lazarus Voters in Norfolk and Roanoke elected African-American mayors in Tuesday’s municipal elections. And in Hampton, Mayor George Wallace lost his re-election bid to another African-American. The new mayor of Norfolk, one of the state’s largest cities, will be state Sen. Kenneth C. Alexander, a stalwart of the General Assembly’s Legislative Black Caucus. The 49-year-old funeral home owner won 51.6 percent
of the vote in Tuesday’s election to easily defeat two rivals, Norfolk Sheriff Bob McCabe and attorney and Norfolk City Councilman Andy Protogyrou, who received 22 percent and 25 percent of the vote, respectively. Sen. Alexander will take office July 1, replacing retiring Mayor Paul D. Fraim, who has held the post since 1994. The mayor-elect won the 5th Senate District seat in 2012 following the death of Sen. Yvonne B. Miller. He previously served five terms in the House of Delegates and also served as chair of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus. His victory
Lower electric bills expected Warmer winter weather and cheaper natural gas are fueling plans by Dominion Virginia Power to lower electricity costs for residents. On Wednesday, the company announced the adjustment would save the average resi-
dential customer’s bill 3.8 percent, or about $4.35 a month, based on using 1,000 kilowatt hours per month. Businesses, government and other commercial customers also would pay less once the adjustment is in place. The price reduction would become
effective July 1, the company stated in a filing seeking expected approval from the State Corporation Commission to lower the charge it imposes to cover the cost of fuel for its power plants.— JEREMY M. LAZARUS
will lead to a special election for a new senator. Separately, Roanoke City Councilman Sherman Lea, 63, will be that city’s new mayor on July 1. He was unopposed in his bid to succeed Mayor David Bowers, who did not seek re-election. Mr. Lea, who has served on the Roanoke City Council since 2004 and also is a minister and management consultant, earlier won the Democratic nomination over Vice Mayor David Trinkle, his only opposition. In Hampton, Donnie Tuck, who works for a private human relations firm, will be the next mayor on July 1. Mr. Tuck won 59 percent of the vote to easily defeat Mayor Wallace, a fixture in that city’s government for decades who received 45 percent of the vote. Mayor Wallace won a seat on the Hampton City Council in 2008, after a long career in government as an assistant city manager and city manager. He was elected to his first term as mayor in 2014, after serving two years as vice mayor. Mr. Tuck was first elected to the City Council in 2010, and often opposed Wallace administration initiatives, particularly those related to economic development.
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Michael S. Schechter, M.D., M.P.H. Professor and Chief, Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, Director of UCAN, The CHOR Community Asthma Program
Breathing. It’s a critical part of everyday life, yet we rarely think about it. Imagine a child playing outside with friends, having the best time ever. Suddenly their chest tightens up. They have to stop running because they can’t catch their breath. To them, it feels like they are breathing through a straw. For some kids in Richmond, that is real life—life with poorly managed asthma. What’s life like for children with well-man-
May 5-7, 2016
aged asthma? “If you could keep up with them on the basketball court or playground, you could ask,” said Michael Schechter, M.D., chief of pulmonary medicine at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU. Schechter, a pediatric lung doctor with extensive experience working with children with asthma, said in recent years, better ways to diagnose and treat asthma have significantly improved daily life for children living with asthma. Schechter explained, “With proper medication, severe flare-ups can be minimized—even prevented—and children with well-managed asthma care can lead active lives with minimal restrictions.” More than 23 million Americans have asthma, and more than one-quarter are children younger than age 18. Asthma is a condition that affects a person’s breathing. Inside the lungs are airways called bronchial tubes. In people with asthma, there is chronic irritation or inflammation of the bronchial tubes associated with swelling and increased mucus production. As a result of this inflammation, some people have frequent, even daily, symptoms such as a cough, wheezing or difficulties with exercise. Others with asthma only have these symptoms when exposure to certain triggers causes the muscle around the bronchial tubes to tighten up and narrow. Common causes of asthma flare-ups are known as “triggers.” Respiratory viral infec-
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tions like colds or flu, are by far the most common trigger of asthma flare-ups. Having a cold also makes a person with asthma more sensitive when exposed to other triggers, such as strenuous exercise, cigarette smoke, anything with a strong smell (good or bad) including perfume, paint or chemicals. Of course, that includes dust, pollen, mold and other allergens (which are the most common cause of the chronic airway inflammation seen in asthma). Intense exposure to allergens may also trigger an asthma flare-up. Generally speaking, the overall goal of managing asthma is to reduce daily symptoms while maintaining normal activity levels—minimizing exposure to triggers helps with this. In 2015, Richmond was named the country’s “sneeziest, wheeziest” city, by the Natural Resources Defense Council. The rating is no big surprise, as the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America has ranked Richmond as the top “most challenging city to live in with asthma”, in three of the last five years. While pollutions and pollens are important, the bigger triggers for most Richmond children are indoor allergies. “It’s mostly about the dust, mold and vermin,” said Schechter. “Another part of the problem,” he explained, “is that, people don’t seem to understand what they need to do and what their expectation should be for their asthma care.”
Schechter relocated to Richmond from Atlanta and has been here just over three years. He immediately noticed that asthma was a significant health problem for the children of Richmond. “In my first year here I saw two children die from asthma,” said Schechter. “In seven years of practice in Atlanta, which is a significantly larger city, I had not seen any children die from asthma.” Those two losses served as a wake-up call for Schechter. “I saw a large number of patients coming into our emergency room, into the hospital and the pediatric ICU.” Asthma and other respiratory diseases are the number one cause of hospitalization for children. According to Schechter, “It seems to be a much bigger problem here in Richmond, particularly in our minority population.” In 2014, 8.6 percent of children and 7.4 percent of adults in the U.S were known to have asthma. While asthma extends across the gender and racial demographic of the country, African-Americans had the highest percentage of asthma prevalence with 9.9 percent, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “It’s important that patients and families understand that just because you or your child has asthma, it doesn’t mean that you need to suffer,” said Schechter. “We have the right knowledge and tools, so someone with the condition can do anything that any other person can do.”
Your Journey to Wellness Starts Here
VCU HEALTH Yes, UCAN SYSTEM
Do you remember PSAs (public service announcements) like, NBC’s, “the more you know”, and “knowing is half the battle,” from G.I. Joe®? PSAs deliver valuable information, especially on health issues. In today’s world of growing health disparities—particularly among African-Americans—it’s important to give communities knowledge and resources, to help them live healthier lives. That’s where Dr. Michael Schechter, chief of pulmonary medicine at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, and UCAN come in. Dr. Schechter is a pediatric pulmonologist and with his UCAN team, he is working to change the face and expectations of self-managing asthma. UCAN, which is short for the YoU Can Control Asthma Now program, is empowering the communities of Richmond to combat the health disparities that exist for asthma in children. UCAN is supported by a grant from the Children’s Hospital Foundation. The funding helps provide the availability of a doctor, nurse and social worker, all dedicated to providing support to children with asthma and their families. The program provides a combination of medical care, education and social support to help children and their parents self-manage their asthma symptoms and live active, healthier lives. “The focus of UCAN is to assist patients who come from socially stressful environments to be able to do better, as these are the kids who are having the most trouble,” Schechter said, “these are the kids who are showing up in the emergency room and being hospitalized.” He attributes the problems being partly related to the difficulties of an overall stressful environment. Those stresses are usually related to things like housing, food, and transportation. “In many cases the housing is problematic. There may be a lot of mold. There may be vermin, like roaches and rodents that are significant sources of allergens.” Currently, Schechter and his team are connecting patients and families with UCAN when a child is hospitalized for asthma issues. “We get a history and find out what misunderstandings there may be about the way they should be treating their asthma,” said Schechter. “We also help make sure they have their health insurance, including Medicaid, setup.” Depending on the need the UCAN team coordinates with the Richmond Health Department and the Lead Safe and Healthy Homes Initiative (LSSHI). “We get the LSSHI to visit patients’ homes and check out if there are significant problems in the environment. They advise patients on how to remediate the home.” UCAN also provides assistance connecting patients to transportation resources and even connecting families to food resources if necessary. Another part of the program focuses on helping patients’ parents. “We screen the parents for mental health issues like depression,
which is an important cause of people having difficulty with disease self-management—taking care of themselves and their kids,” said Schechter. If needed, UCAN will connect them with mental health resources. According to Schechter, “Parents and children with chronic disease have a much higher prevalence of depression and anxiety.” There may be outside challenges that are not direct health issues, but can have an impact on the environment and overall health of patients and their families. “If there are legal issues—such as may occur when a landlord is pushing back on making needed repairs to an apartment—we connect with the Medical-Legal Partnership Richmond for help. We are trying very hard to eliminate the barriers in getting children the appropriate care for their asthma,” said Schechter. For some parents, the struggle with asthma didn’t just start with their kids, but with themselves, as asthma runs in families. These parents didn’t have the knowledge and resources to better manage their asthma. “The parents historically didn’t have good control of their asthma when they were growing up,” said Schechter. “They may have had lots of hospitalization and emergency room visits, and in fact they may still have their own problems with asthma. They expect that will be the case for their kids as well.” UCAN focuses on empowering and educating the community to change that perception and raise the expectation of managing asthma. Learn more about UCAN at chrichmond.org/UCAN or schedule an appointment at (804) 628-UCAN (8226).
Coughing, especially at night Wheezing or whistling sound, especially when exhaling Trouble breathing or fast breathing that causes the skin around the ribs or neck to pull in tightly Frequent colds that settle in the chest
• 17.7 million adults in the U.S. currently have asthma • 6.3 million children in the U.S. currently have asthma • 1.8 million visits to the emergency room with asthma diagnosis • 13.4 percent of African-American children under the age of 18 have asthma • 9.9 percent of African-American adults have asthma Sources: American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Richmond Free Press
Single rose in Church Hill
Editorial Page
A8
May 5-7, 2016
National nightmare On Tuesday night, the Republicans’ worst nightmare became the entire nation’s problem. That horror show, of course, is billionaire Donald Trump’s victory in the Indiana GOP primary. He is assured of being the Republicans’ nominee for president in November. The Trump win led Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas to bow out of the race Tuesday night, followed Wednesday by Ohio Gov. John Kasich. Unless a miracle happens before or during the GOP National Convention on July 18 in Cleveland, Republicans will be stuck with a racist, misogynistic, crude bully — who is big on mouth but short on knowledge and details about running a country. Perhaps sectors of the GOP are missing from The Almighty’s favored list. We understand that a sizeable Republican contingent fasted Monday and Tuesday to beseech divine intervention for Sen. Cruz to win Indiana and stall Mr. Trump’s hopes for being crowned the nominee. Alas, that didn’t happen. And now Mr. Trump almost assuredly will be thrust upon the nation’s voters — in a contest with the presumptive Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton. Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton? All we can say is: Game on.
World Press Freedom Day “At home and abroad, journalists like all of you engage in the dogged pursuit of informing citizens, and holding leaders accountable, and making our government of the people possible. And it’s an enormous responsibility. And I realize it’s an enormous challenge at a time when the economics of the business sometimes incentivize speed over depth; and when controversy and conflict are what most immediately attract readers and viewers. “The good news is there are so many of you that are pushing against those trends. And as a citizen of this great democracy, I am grateful for that. For this is also a time around the world when some of the fundamental ideals of liberal democracies are under attack, and when notions of objectivity, and of a free press, and of facts, and of evidence are trying to be undermined. Or, in some cases, ignored entirely. “And in such a climate, it’s not enough just to give people a megaphone. And that’s why your power and your responsibility to dig and to question and to counter distortions and untruths is more important than ever. Taking a stand on behalf of what is true does not require you shedding your objectivity. In fact, it is the essence of good journalism. It affirms the idea that the only way we can build consensus, the only way that we can move forward as a country, the only way we can help the world mend itself is by agreeing on a baseline of facts when it comes to the challenges that confront us all. “So this night is a testament to all of you who have devoted your lives to that idea, who push to shine a light on the truth every single day. So I want to close my final White House Correspondents’ Dinner by just saying thank you. I’m very proud of what you’ve done. It has been an honor and a privilege to work side by side with you to strengthen our democracy.” — President Obama
We highlight the remarks made by President Obama last Saturday at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner in Washington. The event, while known for its comedic “roast” style, turned sober when the president saluted the media and its role in our democracy. His thoughts were an apt prelude to World Press Freedom Day, which was Tuesday, May 3. The annual designation, initiated by the U.N. General Assembly in 1993, celebrates the fundamental principles of press freedom. It’s a time to pause and evaluate press freedom around the world, to defend the media from attacks on their independence and to pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the exercise of their profession. More than 100 national celebrations take place each year to commemorate this day. Around the world, 72 journalists were killed in 2015; 10 have been killed so far this year. From Syria to Somalia and Mexico, journalists have been murdered by governments and drug cartels alike simply for doing their job — informing the public. While journalists working inside the United States don't face as harsh a threat as their foreign counterparts, there are other powers that push back against the press freedoms we take for granted in this nation, chiefly business pressures that reduce staffs and curb coverage or attempts to control what is covered and how. We point out that the Richmond Free Press remains a rarity — an independently owned source of news and information in Greater Richmond. That gives us the freedom — and the power — to be unbossed and unbought in our news coverage and editorials. Truth is a critical component of a real democracy and a free people. And unvarnished truth is vital. The serious and urgent issues now confronting our city, state and nation demand that the public be informed and engaged. A free and unfettered press helps to bring transparency and accountability to government and the other institutions that impact our lives. We hope our readers will continue to value the Free Press and look to our publication as a source of truth and enlightenment. An enlightened community is a stronger community, with knowledge to face issues and bring about change. We hope our readers will continue to support our efforts in forging democracy.
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Our children pay the price Editor’s note: The 65th anniversary of the historic Moton School student strike in Prince Edward County over conditions at the deteriorating, unequally funded school for black children was marked recently in Farmville. The 1951 strike, led by 16-yearold Barbara Johns, resulted in the Virginia lawsuit that became part of the noted Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954. This column was written following the anniversary commemoration on April 24. On the manicured lawn of the state Capitol in the heart of Downtown Richmond, a young African-American woman stands her ground — stands our common ground, in truth, waiting for us to join her. Day and night, she never leaves, her left arm outstretched, trying desperately to get our attention. The statue of Barbara Johns is the centerpiece of the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial on Capitol Square. Sixty-five springtimes ago, the 16-year-old Miss Johns led her classmates at Robert Russa Moton High School in Prince Edward County in a strike against separate and
unequal school facilities for blacks. That nonviolent, twoweek mass protest on behalf of equality for African-Americans preceded Rosa Parks’ refusal to move to the back of an Alabama bus by more than four years. The modern Civil Rights Movement
Ken Woodley was born that day, April 23, 1951, in Farmville, the county seat. Miss Johns remembered praying to God, “We are your children, too.” Her words are the same heart cry filling the silence of studied indifference that remains in too many communities today — “Black Lives Matter.” Students at Moton High School attended class in tarpaper shacks built next to their high school building that was bursting at the seams with overcrowding. White students down the street attended a state-of-the-art school. While today there are no more tarpaper shacks among public school facilities, there are crumbling facilities, particularly in inner-cities, that effectively declare to African-American children, “No, your lives do not matter very much.” Such facilities speak a lie. The lives of those children do matter. All lives matter. Miss Johns’ words, “It felt
like reaching for the moon,” are carved into the Virginia Civil Rights Memorial behind her figure. The dream of equality seemed to Miss Johns beyond the reach of a black teenager living in the rural South in the 1950s. The same dream burning in the hearts of too many children today seems just as far away. The action of Miss Johns and her classmates led to a legal battle to end segregation that contributed heavily to the Brown v. Board of Education case and 1954 U.S. Supreme Court decision that outlawed separate and unequal schools as unconstitutional. Unfortunately, the condition of separate and not equal remains — both in the inner city and in rural America, where public school facilities and/or curricula are separate from their wellfunded, and generally white, suburban counterparts and not equal to the challenge of providing the education all of our children need and deserve. Too often lately, it seems the Civil Rights Movement struggles to survive, and our children always pay the most hurtful price when its heartbeat is allowed to flatline. As a nation of people, we are still very much in the course of our human event. We all need to become Founding Fathers and Founding Mothers, just as Miss Johns and her classmates did on
Stop whining, start grinding
It’s interesting how the young folks have started using a term that describes what the older folks should be doing. I hear young people saying, “I’m grinding,” and I hear older folks whining. Young people know they have to “just do it,” as the saying goes, in order to achieve their dreams. In many cases they are willing to take risks and forego the creature comforts that could accrue to them via high level corporate salaries. They are willing to sacrifice in order to pursue their own path in life, unconstrained by the “rules” someone else sets for them. We older folks are not as willing to do the work appertaining to progress. Instead, we are still relying on politicians to make things better for us. We do a lot more whining than grinding when it comes to our collective, and sometimes our individual, economic freedom. I hear it on the radio and on news shows all the time from so-called leaders and liberated black folks. They whine about what the “Man” is doing to us, how our collective fate is not in our own hands but someone else’s, what “we need to do,” how “unequal” we are in income, wealth and social opportunities, and how many of us are in prison.
They can recite all the stats and history surrounding our current demise. They reminisce about Kemet and other ancient African contributions to the world. They talk about “Black Wall Street” and invoke the names of our great icons, and they continue to lament and chronicle, as
James Clingman Maulana Karenga says, “litanies of lost battles.” While many of us are very adept at talking about our problems, far fewer of us are willing to get into the fray and do the work to ameliorate our problems, even though the solutions to our problems are relatively simple to implement. Rhetoric not followed by action is meaningless. And whining not supplanted by grinding only displays weakness and apathy. Booker T. Washington said, “The world might pity a whining nation, but it will never respect it” until it respects itself enough to do for itself. If we would turn our whining into grinding, not worrying as much about the external factors but concentrating on our internal resources with which to “accomplish what we will,” black people would be much better off. Black folks are now so engulfed in presidential candidates, thinking once again that our salvation somehow lies with them. Some of our black political
hacks are whining about which candidate will do the most for us, which is like two enslaved people arguing over which plantation and master are better. If we continue to seek the largess of a political candidate without having a reasonable assurance that he or she will do more than talk about our situation, we will continue to get the same thing we have always gotten from them — more rhetoric. Start demanding what we want, and then be prepared to respond with our votes and our dollars. The State of North Carolina currently is being punished economically because of its stand on which bathrooms transgender persons can use. Corporations are withdrawing their dollars and other threats abound by athletic groups and such. Question: Why isn’t the same thing happening on behalf of black folks when it comes to voter suppression in that state? Have you heard any corporation threaten to leave or boycott North Carolina on behalf of black people? President Obama even spoke up for transgender people. Similar to the Indianapolis, Ind., case and the purported discrimination against gay people by businesses, corporations said they would move and the NCAA said it would cancel its events in that city if the law was not reversed. Guess what? The law was changed. We are too busy counting votes to realize that our dollars count for more. Stop whining and start grinding.
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.
April 23, 1951. Look around this nation. So much “founding” of America remains undone. So let us not leave Barbara Johns standing alone on the Capitol grounds. Let us gather our own wrinkles and veins and walk forward together, hand in hand and heart to heart, a community of people in every corner of this Commonwealth and country. If we do so, the dream of every child to live a life that matters — the dream they feel shining deep inside them like a moon in the wide night sky — will be brought right where it should be, exactly where it must be. Right there, within their reach. The writer attended Richmond Public Schools during court-ordered busing for desegregation in the 1970s before graduating from Douglas Freeman High School in Henrico County. He is the former editor of The Farmville Herald newspaper in Prince Edward County.
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Richmond Free Press
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Letters to the Editor
Commitment to city children ‘shameful’ It is said that a government’s budget is an expression of its commitment to its citizens. Well, what’s clear is that Richmond’s commitment to our schoolchildren is shameful. When we consider local funding only, Richmond commits only half the percentage of its general fund revenue to our schools compared to our county neighbors. Hanover, with half of our student population and with revenues of $428 million, commits $176 million or 41 percent to its schools operating budget; Henrico, 36 percent; and Chesterfield, 39 percent. Sadly, Richmond commits a mere $145 million or 20 percent of its gross revenue of $709 million. That would double to about $290 million if it were comparable to what the surrounding counties spend. Thus, Richmond is structurally underfunded, which may go as far back as the days of segregation. Sadly, Richmond Public Schools only asks for an additional $18 million to, among other things, fund an academic improvement
plan demanded by the mayor, City Council and everyone else. And City Council can’t find the money? Shame on them. Well, Richmond took in $20 million more this year over last year, so there’s your $18 million right there. To add insult to injury, there is talk of closing historic Armstrong High School, which is the second most populated and second newest high school building of the five we have. And why would we close elementary schools when RPS projects rapid growth? Have our city leaders lost their minds to think that we the people will continue to take this idiocy? Mayor Dwight C. Jones, who thankfully leaves office soon, has sent City Council zero budget increases to schools for virtually all his eight years in office. To its credit, the council has added millions of dollars each year. And given that Richmond Public Schools is structurally underfunded, it should readily fund the additional $18 million for schools.
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Citizen Information Meeting Wednesday, May 18, 2016, 5-7 p.m. Eastside Enhancement Center 7301 Boydton Plank Road, Petersburg, VA 23803 Find out about plans to improve safety and traffic operations at the Ferndale Road (Route 600) and Cox Road (Route 226) intersection and the Boydton Plank Road (Route 1) and Cox Road (Route 226) intersection. The roundabout at Ferndale Road and Cox Road will address safety and road capacity needs, along with improving aesthetics. The Route 1 at Cox Road improvements will consist of minor widening to provide better turning movements and to accommodate bicyclists. Construction began spring 2016. The meeting will be held in an open house format from 5-7 p.m. with a general information presentation at 5:30 p.m. This format will provide the flexibility to allow participants to meet and discuss the project directly with project staff members. Review the project information at VDOT’s Richmond District Office located at 2430 Pine Forest Drive in Colonial Heights, 23834-9002, 804-524-6000, 1-800NFL should follow NBA Dr. McCreary to end D.C. pro team’s racism 367-7623 or mourned TTY/TDD 711. Please call ahead to ensure the availability of Free Press Richmond Free Press Richmondpersonnel Free Press to answerRichmond appropriate your questions. By David P. Baugh
NOVEMBER 13-15, 2014
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Stadium plan near death?
Is gay the new black?
lesbians the right to the majority do not get a Commentary marry. vote in the issue, regardIronically, it was less of their discomfort Virginia which, in 1967, had its ban on inter- about interracial relationships. racial marriage overturned. Loving v. Virginia Is gay the new black? No one can say with said that every citizen has the basic human right honesty that gays, like blacks, are not oppressed. to marry who they might choose. The state and Gays, though oppressed, were never enslaved,
wrenched from their homelands, raped and abused, as Africans. Being black is not a choice, and neither is being gay. Our Constitution was intended to protect the rights of anyone to pursue the realization of any right given to them by birth. If a person is born with the right from their Please turn to A6
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Is gay the new black? Have gays and lesbians supplanted African-Americans as the most oppressed American minority? Several African-Americans have asked me if the recent opinions granting gays and lesbians the right to marry will have any impact upon African-American civil rights. On Oct. 6, 2014, Virginia granted gays and
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OCTOBER 9-11, 2014
Virginia now Hampton provost to take reins for all lovers VDOT ensures nondiscrimination and equal employment in all programs and Free Press staff, wire reports
Council opposition threatens mayor’s dream
Dr. Hammond
President Obama has set yet another precedent with his choice to succeed U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder. Loretta Lynch, a 55-yearold Greensboro, N.C., native and Harvard educated lawyer, would be the nation’s first African-American female attorney general if confirmed by the U.S. Senate. As the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York since 2010, Ms. Lynch has worked on numerous high-profile cases involving Ms. Lynch police brutality, bank fraud and money laundering. Sources close to the Obama administration said they expected Ms. Lynch would generate little controversy, making for a smooth Senate confirmation process. The Senate twice previously has confirmed her nomination to federal prosecutor jobs, most recently in 2010. But senior Senate Democrats and White House aides said Ms. Lynch’s confirmation likely would be delayed until the new session of Congress starts in January. Her nomination then will rest in the hands of Republicans, who will control the upper chamber as a result of the Nov. 4 elections. Known for her low-key personality, Ms. Lynch has stirred little controversy during two tenures as U.S. attorney. She served in the position under President Bill Clinton from 1999 to 2001, before leaving for private practice. President Obama appointed her to the post once again in 2010. A Republican-majority Senate confirmed her 1999 appointment, while a Democraticmajority Senate confirmed her in 2010. Mr. Holder is the only attorney general to serve under President Obama, holding the job since 2009. He is the first African-American to hold the
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Pamela V. Hammond is on track to become the first woman to lead Virginia State University in the school’s 132-year history, the Free Press has learned. School sources said Dr. Hammond, the current provost or chief academic officer at Hampton University, has emerged as the board of visitors’ choice to become interim president to replace Dr. Keith T. Miller, who submitted his resignation Oct. 31. The sources said Dr. Hammond is scheduled to meet with the board this Thursday, Nov. 13 — the date the board set for choosing an interim leader for the university in Ettrick. If all goes well, the board is expected to vote approval and introduce her as the choice for interim chief executive during the session, the sources said. The sources said Dr. Hammond is expected to serve while the board conducts a national search for the school’s 14th president. She would be regarded as a potential candidate, sources said, depending on her work as interim. Her start date could not be learned, but it could be soon after Jan. 1. Dr. Miller is to officially leave the post Dec. 31. A former nurse educator, Dr. Hammond will take over a public university grappling with major budget troubles as a result of an enrollment drop of more than 1,000 students. The problems led to cuts in student services and could force faculty and staff layoffs. She will arrive as VSU experiments with a new schedule
Jubilant couples head to courthouse for marriage licenses
activities in accordance with Title VI and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. If you need more information in regards to your civil rights on this project or special assistance for persons with disabilities or limited English proficiency, contact the 8-year-old project manager at the telephone number hero listed above. Coach Michele Drayton enjoys being back with her players and assistant coach Wade Ellegood in the Albert H. Hill Middle School gymnasium Tuesday.
Heartwarming return for Albert Hill coach By Joey Matthews
Coach Michele Drayton walked into the Albert H. Hill Middle School gym for the first time since suffering a stroke last month. The players on her girls’ basketball team excitedly ran over, showering her with hugs. Surrounding her, they applauded and yelled, “Let’s win this one for Coach Drayton!” Putting their hands together in a team huddle, they yelled, “Do it for Coach Drayton! One! Two! Three!” It was a heartwarming homecoming for the longtime Albert Hill hoops coach, who returned to the team Nov. 4. She suffered a stroke Oct. 2 at her North Side home.
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instead of coach. Albert Hill lost its next game to the team from Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School last Thursday in the playoff semifinals. But the Albert Hill players and Coach Drayton have much to be proud of. The team completed an 11-1 season, which included a 10-0 regular season. Under Coach Drayton, Albert Hill has recorded four consecutive unbeaten regular seasons and won the middle school league championship in 2011, finishing 13-0. Coach Drayton, 46, said she knew something was seriously amiss just prior to suffering the stroke. She had been experiencing a series of headaches and felt
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Young foodie Adilrah Johnson, 8, enjoys fresh-cut fries held by her mother, Shoshana. Mother and daughter tasted their way through Sunday’s GRAZE on Grace, a foodie’s delight. The first-time event featured nearly 30 restaurants and specialty food providers celebrating local and seasonal cuisine — from oysters on the half shell to banana tacos. Location: East Grace Street, between North 4th and North 7th streets.
‘Marty’ Cobb slain while defending 12-year-old sister By Joey Matthews
Eight-year-old Martin “Marty” Cobb and his 12-year-old sister had a special bond. They were by all accounts inseparable as siblings, best friends and playmates. “They were never apart,” said the Rev. Theodore L. Hughey, the pastor at Abundant Life Church of God in Christ, the family’s church. They would ride bikes and big wheelers together, play side by side with children in their South Side neighborhood and brag about their mother’s fine down-home cooking, he told the Free Press.
Marty had a special affinity for keys of any type, the pastor added. In a tragic event that has captured the nation’s heart, Marty now is being fondly remembered as a courageous hero. Local and national media are telling the heart-rending story of how Marty died last Thursday afternoon bravely trying to protect his beloved sister from a sexual predator as they played near railroad tracks behind the family’s home in the 200 block of Brandon Road. A 16-year-old boy was arrested Saturday and charged with Marty’s murder and the attack on his sister, who sur-
vived and is recovering at a local hospital. Marty died from severe head trauma, police later reported. Neighbors reported the attacker struck Marty in the head with a brick. Last Saturday evening, about 200 family members, friends, neighbors and other community members somberly gathered outside Abundant Life to honor the endearing child with the small frame, indomitable spirit and warm, loving smile. Prior to the vigil, loved ones assembled around a sign in Marty’s yard that read: “Martin: A real hero lived, fought and died here.”
“Little Marty is a hero,” stated City Council member Reva M. Trammell, who spoke at the vigil and represents the 8th District where the grieving family lives. “He was there when his sister needed him the most,” she added in response to a Free Press query. “Marty’s beautiful smile and his love for his sister will always be with us. Marty will always be in our hearts, and he will never, ever be forgotten.” Charles Willis, executive director of the Citizens Against Crime group that has helped lead vigils for more than 20 years in the city, said the turnout reflects a caring community. “Even though a crisis of this nature happens, this shows the strength of not only the city, but of the community,” Mr. Willis said. “When trouble comes to any community, we will respond in a positive fashion.” He described Marty’s mother, Sharain Spruill, as “very, very, very upset as well as hurt and trying to wrap her mind around why this happened her son.” Major Steve Drew, who directs Support Services with the Richmond Police Department, praised neighborhood residents
for providing information that resulted in the quick arrest. “The community really came together to seek justice for little Marty, the hero,” he said. Police said Marty’s sister first reported the attacker to be a white male, but later recanted and identified a black, 16-yearold neighbor as the attacker. She told police the teenager had threatened to hurt her if she told on him. It has been reported the suspect’s name is Mariese Washington. He has a history of violent behavior that includes a 2010 attack in the Mosby Court housing community on a 3-year-old boy. He hit the boy in the back of the head with a hammer. Th attack required the child to receive 100 staples and a metal plate in his head. The boy has spent four years in recovery, according to his family. The alleged killer of Marty made his first appearance in Richmond Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court on Monday in front of Judge Ashley K. Tunner. Authorities have declined to identify the suspect because
By Joey Matthews
Shamika Fauntleroy accompanied her father Tuesday morning from their hometown of Tappahannock to the VCU Medical Center, where he was to undergo surgery. “My father looked at me when we got there and told me to go take care of my business first,” Ms. Fauntleroy told the Free Press. She and her longtime partner, Kristea Thompson, then drove the short distance to the John Marshall Courts Building in Richmond’s Downtown, where they bought a marriage license around 10 a.m. The two Tappahannock residents became the first African-American couple and 12th overall to purchase a marriage license from the Richmond Circuit Court Clerk’s Office after the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for same-sex marriages in Virginia and four /A6 other states Monday. They told the Free Press they plan to wed as soon as they can make the arrangements. The partners of 10 years already had celebrated their union at a Sept. 6 commitment service with family and friends at a home off Riverside Drive on South Side. “We already had that bond, but we wanted to take care of it legally as well,” Ms. Fauntleroy said. On Monday, the Supreme Court effectively allowed same-sex marriage to proceed in Virginia when it refused to take up a 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that overturned the same-sex marriage ban. Gay and lesbian couples hurried to Virginia courthouses shortly after the news. Edward F. Jewett, clerk of the Richmond Circuit Court, said his office anticipated the change and, in August, changed gender references on marriage licenses to refer instead to spouses rather than husband and wife. Ms. Fauntleroy, 28, said she was on her job as an assistant manager at a Hardee’s restaurant in Warsaw when she heard the news that the marriage ban had been lifted. “I was like this,” she said, gleefully raising her arms with a mile-wide smile. “We had waited so long for this moment.” She called the Essex County Circuit Court about a license, “but they had no idea what had happened and could not help us,” she said. That’s when she and Ms. Thompson formulated plan B — to buy a license in Richmond. “This brings me the happiness I always wanted, to be able to legally say I’m going to share my life with her,” Ms. Fauntleroy said, sitting outside the John Marshall building with her future wife. “It’s a blessing,” Ms. Thompson, 30, an employee at June Parker Oil Co. in Tappahannock, added. “This shows things are changing in each and every way.”
Area ministers weigh in on gay marriage
Shamika Fauntleroy, left, and Kristea Thompson are planning a wedding ceremony after obtaining a marriage license Tuesday at the John Marshall Courts Building in Downtown.
Court ruling moves Va. to historic change By Jeremy M. Lazarus and Joey Matthews
Virginia joined the tidal wave of historic change this week, with the U.S. Supreme Court opening the door for same-sex marriage in the commonwealth. The nation’s highest court at its opening session Monday refused to take up a ruling by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that overturned Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban. By leaving intact Virginia’s lower court ruling striking down a ban on gay marriage, as well
State Project: 0600-026-268, 0001-026-107, P101, R201, C501 FederalBenProject: STP-5127 (762) (675)Federal judges order redrawing of Scott’s district Jealous in new position
“I felt loved and appreciated,” Coach Drayton told the Free Press Wednesday. “It was a special feeling for me to be back and get such a welcome. “It was like coming home,” she added. Parents of the players, along with her Albert Hill colleagues, walked over and welcomed her back with more hugs and well wishes. Although still weak from the stroke, Coach Drayton sat on the gymnasium bench and watched as her assistant, Wade Ellegood, coached Albert Hill to a win over Elkhardt in the Richmond Public Schools middle school playoff opener. “I felt like taking over, but he did a good job,” a happy Coach Drayton said afterward of her anxiety of having to watch,
This is a view of the decaying property Montoya D. Phipps bought from the City of Petersburg for $5,000 and recently sold for $50,000. Location: 530-32 Fleet St., just across the Appomattox River from Virginia State University.
Mr. Phipps, an adjunct design instructor at Virginia State University, also makes his home and operates his interior design
business out of an apartment he leases from Mr. Myers. The apartment is in a five-unit building that Mr. Myers owns and
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Quarterback sacked by DUI charge By Fred Jeter
where he, too, resides. There is no evidence that Mr. Myers pushed the sale of the property in the 500 block of Fleet Street to Mr. Phipps. Petersburg council records also support Mr. Myers’ assertion that “I had no involvement” in the vote approving the sale. Mr. Myers is listed as abstaining from the otherwise unanimous vote of support for the recommendation from City Manager William Johnson III to sell the Fleet Street property to Mr. Phipps without any strings attached. But even if there was no connection to Mr. Myers, this sale exemplifies the shortcomings of the program whose goal is to rev up development and job creation in a city that
Virginia State University is heading into its biggest game of the season minus a key component — quarterback Tarian Ayres. Mr. Ayres, a 20-year-old sophomore from Dillwyn, has been suspended from playing in the CIAA championship game Saturday against Winston-Salem State University, school officials announced. The school-mandated suspension stems from Mr. Ayres’ arrest Sunday, Nov. 9, on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, underage possession of alcohol and speeding. He was arrested 2:05 a.m. Sunday about 25 miles southeast of Ettrick in Waverly, where he was stopped on U.S. 460. Mr. Ayres was clocked driving 52 mph in a 35 mph zone, and was spotted crossing the highway’s double solid line near Main Street. Waverly Police Officer C.M. Washington said he determined Mr. Ayres was intoxicated after administering sobriety checks, including a breathalyzer test. There were two passengers in Mr. Ayres’ car at the time of the arrest. He is scheduled to appear Nov. 18 in Sussex County General District Court.
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Petersburg man lost dream, but made $45,000 profit Montague D. Phipps had big dreams three years ago when he bought a derelict duplex from the City of Petersburg for the rock-bottom price of $5,000. But when his dreams fell apart, he still came out ahead. He recently sold the still-ramshackle building for $50,000 — a far different outcome than he and the Petersburg government envisioned when Mr. Phipps was approved to buy the property in 2011. His case is attracting attention in part because he was able to flip the property for a profit and because of his ties to Petersburg City Councilman W. Howard Myers, who defeated a challenger Nov. 4 to win a second term as the Ward 5 representative.
Above, Martin “Marty” Cobb, 8, was killed while defending his beloved 12-year-old sister during a sexual assault on her last Thursday on South Side; right, grieving children comfort each other at Saturday evening’s community vigil to honor Marty.
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Will Mayor Dwight C. Jones be throwing out the first pitch at a new Shockoe Bottom baseball stadium two years from now? Not likely, if a City Council revolt against the stadium succeeds. Five members, led by Jonathan T. Baliles, the 1st District representative and potential 2016 mayoral candidate, undertook the revolt. They did so by removing from the proposed budget $12.6 million that was considered essential to creating a new home for the minor league Richmond Flying Squirrels in the low-lying area of Downtown where the city was born and that later became infamous as the largest slave market north of New Orleans. Sending shockwaves through City Hall, the five began the revolt against the stadium last Thursday as the nine council members worked to craft the next capital budget, the spending plan for city construction. The stadium money was earmarked to redo underground piping for flood control. Without the money, the work to meet federal regulations for building in a flood plain could not be done. The stadium site near 17th and East Broad streets is defined as being in the flood plain. Mr. Baliles was joined in the decision to remove the $12.6 million and reallocate it to other city needs, such as improvements for aging school buildings, by Council President Charles R. Samuels, 2nd District; Chris A. Hilbert, 3rd District; and the two staunch stadium foes, Parker C. Agelasto, 5th District, and Reva M. Trammell, 8th District. The four members who wanted to keep the stadium money in place included: Council Vice President Ellen F. Robertson, 6th District; Kathy C. Graziano, 4th District; Cynthia I. Newbille, 7th District, and Michelle R. Mosby, 9th District. The move is the first clear evidence that the mayor and his legion of business supporters
Free Press staff, wire reports
SAN JOSE, Calif. Just months after stepping down as head of the nation’s largest civil rights organization, former NAACP President Benjamin Jealous is changing his career from an East Coast political activist to a West Coast venture capitalist. It’s a switch he hopes will help further his goal of growing opportunities for black people and Latinos in the booming tech economy. “My life’s mission has been leveling the playing field and closing gaps in opportunity and success,” Mr. Jealous, 41, said. “I’m excited about trying a difMr. Jealous ferent approach.” The Northern California native and selfconfessed computer geek will be joining entrepreneurs Mitchell Kapor and Freada Kapor Klein at their venture capital investment firm that backs information technology start-ups committed to making a positive social impact. Fred Turner, who studies culture and technology as an associate professor at Stanford University, said it’s “fascinating that a person of his caliber and experience would move into this space.” Mr. Turner said there’s a deep question going on in the U.S. about how to accomplish positive social change. “In the Silicon Valley, they approach it entrepreneurially. In Washington, they approach it politically,” Mr. Turner said. “These are two very different modes.” Mr. Jealous said he and his family will remain in Silver Spring, Md., but he’ll commute to the West Coast about once a month. Mr. Jealous was named to the NAACP’s top post in 2008 after Free Press Editor/Publisher
Raymond H. Boone advocated on his behalf. He replaced former Verizon executive Bruce Gordon, who resigned under pressure from the NAACP board of directors in 2007 after Mr. Boone led a campaign showing Mr. Gordon favored corporate interests over those of the NAACP. Mr. Jealous was widely credited with improving the NAACP’s finances, donor base and outreach. He said he will never completely drop out Please turn to A4
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Nicole Pries, left, and Lindsey Oliver kiss after an impromptu ceremony outside the Downtown courthouse Monday. They became the first same-sex couple to wed in Richmond.
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Two years ago, the Republican-controlled General Assembly was accused of creating new congressional districts that packed Democratic-leaning black voters into the 3rd House District, reducing the influence of black voters on congressional elections in adjacent districts. This week, a divided federal court panel upheld critics’ complaints in finding that black voters were illegally overloaded into the district represented by
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Chris gets better news Free Press wire reports
¿Qué Pasa? in Richmond Latin Ballet members Monte Jones and Ana Ines King deliver a flashy dance move Saturday at the lively ¿Qué Pasa? Festival in Downtown. The event’s name translates to “what’s happening” in English, and there was plenty happening at this spring showcase of Latin American culture, music, art and food. Location: The Canal Walk near 14th and Canal streets.
LOS ANGELES R&B superstar Chris Brown finally got some good news. A Los Angeles judge has said that the Tappahannock, Va., native could be released as early as this week from jail if attorneys can agree to terms for his release. The news comes as the pop star deals with criminal cases on the East Coast and West Coast. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Brandlin had earlier indicated Mr. Brown could be facing anywhere from a few months to more than a year in jail. Unfortunately for him, Mr. Please turn to A4
Virginia’s lone black congressman, Rep. Robert C. “Bobby” Scott. Rep. Scott, a Democrat, has represented the district for 22 years. The district includes parts of Richmond, Newport News, Hampton and Norfolk and the counties of Henrico and Prince George, and all of Petersburg and Portsmouth and the counties of Rep. Scott Charles City and Surry. In a 2-1 decision, the panel deemed the current map in violation of the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause and ordered the state legislature to redraw the boundaries of the district by April 1. If not, the federal court panel will redraw the lines. Tuesday’s decision is expected to have a ripple effect and require redrawing the boundaries of the adjacent 2nd and 4th House districts and possibly others to rebalance populations.
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The 2nd and 4th districts are represented by Republican Reps. Scott Rigell and J. Randy Forbes, respectively. But the upcoming congressional elections scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 4, will go forward with the current district lines. Along with writing the opinion for the panel’s majority, Judge Allyson K. Duncan of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also issued a separate order allowing the November elections to “proceed as scheduled under the existing redistricting plan,” but she barred future elections until a new redistricting plan is adopted. She and U.S. District Judge Liam O’ Grady, who joined her opinion, deemed it too late to do anything for the current round of elections. The third member of the panel, U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne, found no reason to overturn the redistricting plan.
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Happy face Leoné Brunswick parties Saturday with balloon character SpongeBob SquarePants at the 26th annual 2nd Street Festival in Jackson Ward. Thousands of people turned out to enjoy the twoday festival. Please turn to B2 for more photos.
Free Press wire reports
on a Richmond radio talk show. “We’re going to work through the challenges we have today and come out of this a bigger, a better and a stronger university,” Dr. Miller told the audience of “The Jack Gravely Show.” In addition, Dr. Miller has announced he will hold separate meetings for students and faculty to provide more information on the school’s fiscal outlook and on the steps the university is taking to overcome what it now lists as a $19 million shortfall in revenue. He is slated to hold the town hall-style sessions Please turn to A4
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VSU president sets town hall meetings
Miller fighting to retain control Dr. Keith T. Miller is pushing back against perceptions that he has been secretive and lacks the leadership skills to overcome Virginia State University’s financial woes. Facing student protests, faculty grumbling and alumni concerns about the university’s money troubles, Dr. Miller is taking fresh steps to open lines of communication and to quell efforts to force him to resign. Last week, he appeared with Hyisheem Calier, president of VSU’s Student Government Association,
First Ebola patient dies in Dallas DALLAS The first person diagnosed with Ebola in the United States died Wednesday morning in a hospital here. The case of Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian who came to the United States on Sept. 20, put health authorities on alert for the deadly virus spreading outside of West Africa. About 48 people who Mr. Duncan had direct or indirect contact with Mr. Duncan since his arrival were being monitored, but none have shown any symptoms as of Wednesday evening, according to health officials. Mr. Duncan’s case has led to expanded efforts by U.S. authorities to combat the spread of Ebola at its source in West Africa — and raised questions about the effectiveness of airport screening and hospital preparedness. Mr. Duncan, 42, became ill after arriving in Dallas to visit family. He went to Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital on Sept. 25, but initially was sent home with antibiotics. His
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Federal appeals court gives workers greater protection against racial harassment By Jeremy M. Lazarus
A Maryland waitress who was fired after reporting that a manager twice called her “a porch monkey” has become a key figure in bolstering protections for workers who face racial harassment and abuse on the job. A federal appeals court in Richmond is using the civil rights lawsuit that Reya C. Boyer-Liberto filed against the resort hotel where she worked in 2010 to bolster efforts of workers who seek legal redress for a hostile workplace — even when their
complaint involves only one or two incidents. In a decision issued May 7, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that even isolated incidents of racial abuse such as the one Ms. Boyer-Liberto faced can be enough to allow workers to seek damages and also to create a cause of action against employers who terminate a worker for reporting such abuse. Essentially, the court sent a message that racial bigotry has no place in the workplace. All 15 sitting judges of the court participated in hearing the
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Community leaders, residents march in Mosby Court for peace
By Joey Matthews
“We take an all-hands-on-deck approach to educating our children.” That’s how George Washington Carver Elementary School Principal Kiwana Yates enthusiastically describes the full community involvement approach she and her staff utilize. With it, they have achieved academic success against tall odds in the largely impoverished community served by the school at 1110 W. Leigh St. “Each school faces different challenges,” the third-year Carver principal told the Free Press. “A kid is a kid, and it doesn’t really matter where they come from. It takes a level of excellence from the teacher and the ability of the school to meet the needs of each child.” Carver is among only 11 of Richmond’s 44 public schools to earn full accreditation from the Virginia Department of Education after surpassing state standards in four core Standards of Learning tests administered last spring. Carver, with 95 percent of its 592 students in kindergarten through fifth grade being African-American, scored an average of 90 in science, 88 in English and 84 each in math and history. At least 75 percent of a school’s students must pass English and at least 70 percent must pass the other three tests in order for the school to be fully accredited. Carver also has been recognized as a Title I Distinguished School by the Virginia Department of Education. To qualify, a disadvantaged school receiving additional federal aid must meet all state and federal accountability requirements for two years and achieve average reading and mathematic SOL scores at the 60th percentile or higher. The school’s theme this year is “The Jewel of the Carver Community.” Early in the school year, Ms. Yates and her staff organized an “SOLabration,” a day of creative learning activities capped by a family fun night to recognize their accreditation. Staff wore “SOLabration” shirts to mark the day.
Deputy Chief Durham
A new top cop in town By Joey Matthews
Rayvon Owen home own do m By Joey Matthews
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Carver Elementary teamwork fosters rewards for students
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case that dismantles a requirement that employees must show a persistent pattern of racial hostility in order to get their day in court and protection from being fired. Twelve judges joined in the majority opinion, which revived Ms. Boyer-Liberto’s lawsuit against the Clarion Resort Fontainebleau Hotel in Ocean City, Md., and its owner who fired her. A lower court and a panel of the 4th Circuit had tossed out her lawsuit on the grounds the racial slur she was subjected
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Rayvon Owen’s eyes sparkled with delight. When the limousine carrying Rayvon and his mother, Patrice Fitzgerald, pulled up to the James Center in Downtown last Friday, about 1,000 cheering fans were waiting for him in the rain. “It’s crazy! It’s an insane feeling! I’m overwhelmed by happiness!” he told a Free Press reporter. Rayvon, who attended the Center for the Arts at Henrico High School and sang in the Richmond Boys Choir, returned home to a hero’s welcome after earning a spot in the Top 4 in the popular “American Idol” nationally televised singing competition. It is broadcast locally on Fox’s WRLH-TV Channel 35 in the Richmond area. While he was eliminated Wednesday night, he elicited
cheers from audience members in the California studio and brought a positive spotlight to Richmond. “He has made our city and our region so very proud,” Richmond Mayor Dwight C. Jones told the cheering audience of fans of all ages gathered for his homecoming celebration — from adoring teens to joyous office workers, including a
The Richmond Police Department has stayed free of public accusations of police brutality as “Black Lives Matter” demonstrations grow locally and across the nation to protest atrocities by white police officers in the black community. The nearly 740-officer force has garnered mostly praise for its community policing efforts to gain closer ties with neighborhoods in the city it serves. Incoming Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham vows to take those efforts up a notch. “There’s always room for improvement,” the 51-year-old Washington native and current Richmond Police deputy chief of administration said Monday after he was introduced by Major Dwight C. Jones as the city’s next police chief in a news conference at City Hall. The mayor named his new top cop as a national furor grows over killings by white police officers of unarmed black men such as Eric Garner in New York City in July; Michael Brown Jr. in Ferguson, Mo., in August; and Rumain Brisbon in Phoenix in December. In Richmond, young people in recent weeks have demonstrated and staged “die-ins” in Downtown and in the Fan District to draw attention to the police killings and the overall neglect of the black community. “I want to acknowledge that
Carver Principal Kiwana yates gives kindergarten student Jajuan Dickerson a high-five for a job well done.
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Mayor touts anti-poverty efforts in city address By Joey Matthews
Mayor Dwight C. Jones spoke of “a tale of two cities” in his State of the City address. “Right now, one part of town is vibrant, prosperous and forward-looking,” he told an attentive audience of about 300 people Jan. 29 in the auditorium at Huguenot High School on South Side. “And then when you cross the Martin Luther King Bridge, you find another Richmond — one that has largely been ignored, overlooked and shunned. “The old Richmond allowed a generation of Richmonders to believe that they don’t have a chance to succeed,” he added. “Leaders made a decision to create public housing projects and push thousands of poor people into them.” The mayor spoke of a “resurgent” city early and often in his 22-minute speech that was greeted with
applause about a dozen times. However, he bluntly told the audience of city officials, politicos, community advocates and ordinary citizens, “We’ll reach our full potential only when we move beyond the tale of two cities.” He cited some of his administration’s povertyfighting efforts. Among those: • Opening the new Office of Community Wealth Building last June to spearhead the city’s anti-poverty initiatives. • Building new schools such as the $63 million Huguenot High School, the first new high school in the city since 1968. • Reducing concentrated pockets of poverty in the East End by transforming public housing communities into mixed-income neighborhoods. • Attracting new businesses, such as Stone Brewing Company in the Fulton neighborhood, to expand the city’s tax base and provide jobs. • Increasing workforce training. • Landing a $25 million federal grant for bus rapid transit along Broad Street from Rocketts Landing in the East End to Willow Lawn so people can get to jobs. • Opening the new Richmond Justice Center in Shockoe Valley and the Day Reporting Center in Downtown to provide more opportunities for offenders to gain rehabilitative services and decrease their prospects of returning to jail.
By Joey Matthews
For most of her adult life, Joyce Kenney has been an advocate for people living in the Mosby Court public housing community and other poor neighborhoods in the city. In that time, she has lobbied for more resources for people in disadvantaged communities. She also has attended countless vigils to comfort those mourning the deaths of their loved ones due to violence in the streets. On Tuesday night, it was Ms. Kenney’s turn to be consoled by community members. Her grandson, Ra’Keem Adkins, 22, was one of five shooting victims in Richmond May 7. He was shot multiple times and died on the sidewalk in the 1900 block of Redd Street shortly after 10 p.m. in Mosby Court in the city’s East End. Earlier in the day, Sylvester Nichols, 24, was fatally shot in the parking lot of the Family Dollar Store in the 6500 block of Midlothian Turnpike on South Side. A third man also was shot that night about three miles away and taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. Angered by the ongoing black-on-black violence in the city, community activist J.J. Minor said he began planning an anti-violence rally last Saturday with the Mosby Court Tenant Council and fellow activist Charles Willis, who grew up in Mosby Court. “I’m tired and frustrated by the blackon-black crime,” Mr. Minor told the Free Press prior to the rally as he and other volunteers prepared hamburgers and hot dogs to serve along with potato chips, soft drinks and water to rally attendees.
Joyce Kenney holds an image of her grandson, Ra’Keem Adkins, 22, who was shot and killed in the Mosby Court public housing community May 7. Right, more than 200 people, including Richmond Police Chief Alfred Durham, march from Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School to Mosby Court calling for an end to the violence.
New city CAO gets $5,700 raise before job start
He pointed to a decrepit basketball court a few yards from where Mr. Adkins was killed. The baskets had bent rims and no nets. “Look at that,” he said, shaking his head. “The city needs to step up to the plate and put more resources in impoverished communities.” He said he plans to contact community members, city officials, educators, business leaders and faith leaders to convene Please turn to A5
No charges filed against Wisconsin police officer in teen’s death Free Press wire reports
MADISON, Wis. A Wisconsin police officer who fatally shot an unarmed biracial teenager in March, prompting several days of peaceful protests, will not be charged, a prosecutor said Tuesday. Officer Matt Kenny used justified lethal force in the March 6 shooting of Tony Robinson, 19, Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne said. Mr. Ozanne said Officer Kenny shot Mr. Robinson after the teen struck him in the head and tried to knock the officer down a staircase. “I conclude that this tragic and unfortunate death was the result of a lawful Please turn to A5
Advocacy groups plan housing, services safety net for foster youths
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Petersburg jail to close
By Jeremy M. Lazarus until the Petersburg City Council decides whether to build a new The Petersburg City Jail is holding facility at a projected going to be shut down in March cost of $5 million. — forcing Petersburg Sheriff Sheriff Crawford, who has Vanessa Crawford to lay off the been fighting the decision, almajority of her staff of 98 depuready has warned that Petersburg ties and civilian employees. would have to pay Riverside Petersburg Mayor W. Howard nearly $3 million a year to house Myers announced Monday that the city’s inmates. That’s about the decision is final. as much as the city now spends Sheriff Crawford Saying Petersburg cannot afto operate its own jail. ford the $22 million to replace its antiquated The city also would incur a bigger bill for jail, Mayor Myers said that effective March prisoner transportation expenses and would 1, all new arrestees would be housed at the tie up police officers who will have to travel Riverside Regional Jail, located about 10 farther to book prisoners, she said. miles away in Prince George County. Sheriff Crawford said the decision would Current inmates would be transferred on force her to lay off at least 55 of her 78 or about March 15 to the regional facility deputies. She also will have to eliminate a that opened in 1997, was expanded in 2010 major share of the department’s 20 civiland can house up to 2,000 inmates. ian employees. The Petersburg jail, which houses about She and the remaining staff would be 200 inmates, dates to 1968. limited to providing security at the holding Petersburg is one of seven localities facility and the courthouse and serving civil that built and manages Riverside Regional papers. She noted that salaries of the half Jail. The city’s women prisoners already dozen deputies she would need to staff are housed there. the lockup would have to be paid by the After the transfer is complete, the city. The state only picks up the salaries mayor said the jail’s only use would be of deputies assigned to a jail. as a temporary lockup for inmates going Please turn to A4 to court or awaiting transfer to Riverside
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By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Mayor Jones at State of the City address.
“It’s new for all of us,” Mayor Jones said. “It’s never happened in my lifetime or yours. But I know this: If we unite together and look forward, and invite our neighbors to join us, then we’ll continue to shape the city and the region we all want to call home.” The mayor kicked off his address touting the RichPlease turn to A4
State Dems hit with voting rights suit By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Did the Democratic Party of Virginia violate the U.S. Constitution and the federal Voting Rights Act in choosing its nominee to compete in a recent special election for a House of Delegates seat? Yes, say three African-Americans, who are taking their case to federal court. The trio allege the party trampled on their voting rights and those of thousands of Democrats like them in its zeal to eliminate Henrico Delegate Joseph D. “Joe” Morrissey as a nominee in the election he went on to win Jan. 13 as an independent. David M. Lambert, Gary G. Hill Sr. and his sister-in-law, Linda D. Hill, filed the suit Friday. According to their suit, the Democrats’ method of nomination intentionally excluded them and other African-American voters living in the majority-black 74th House of Delegates District, which includes Charles City County, 26 precincts
in eastern Henrico County and a single precinct in Richmond’s North Side. The lawsuit charges that the party, fearing such voters “might use their First Amendment rights to support a candidate the DPVA and other local party officials didn’t want to win the Democratic nomination,” imposed rules that “intentionally disenfranchised them all.” The suit seeks to bar the party from ever using any procedure to “disenfranchise and discriminate” against African-Americans and other party members in the selection of its nominees, which the suit describes as “a critical element of the electoral process.” The case, which is assigned to senior U.S. Judge Robert E. Payne, is one of the most significant involving voting rights in recent years in Virginia. The suit also is a huge embarrassment for
Selena Cuffee-Glenn just received a $5,700 salary bump — from $203,000 a year to $208,700 — though she will not start work as the city’s top administrator until Monday, May 18. Her benefits package also has been sweetened with a $5,700 increase in a retirement benefit paid by the city. City Council asked no questions about the unexpected pay hike in voting 9-0 Monday to confirm the former Suffolk city manager as Richmond’s new chief administrative officer. In mid-April when Mayor Dwight C. Jones announced Ms. Cuffee-Glenn Ms. Cuffee-Glenn as his choice for the No. 2 post at City Hall, he said she would start at $203,000 a year. His staff even produced the offer letter she signed stipulating her salary and a host of other benefits, including a $950 monthly car allowance and $15,000 a year in deferred compensation, essentially a retirement savings plan. Her new starting pay of $208,700 is listed in the ordinance that council members approved without public comment. Her deferred pay now is shown as $20,700 a year, with a $1,000 increase for each year of service, according to the ordinance. One thing that was eliminated in the altered package is the $950 monthly car allowance, which would have totaled to $11,400 a year. Apparently, Ms. Cuffee-Glenn traded the car allowance for improved starting pay and an increase in deferred compensation. Asked about the changes, Tammy Hawley, the press secretary for Mayor Jones, responded that the mayor and Ms. Cuffee-Glenn “ended up renegotiating some things.”
By Joey Matthews
Janeva Smith has seen many of her friends in foster care suddenly become homeless when they turn 18. They have nowhere to go, few life skills and little hope for the future. “I’ve had many friends who tried to commit suicide,” said Ms. Smith, who was 18 months old when she initially was placed in foster care in Plainfield, N.J. She was 14 when she entered foster care in Virginia, moving between foster families, group homes and shelters.
Related story on B3
“I’ve tried to commit suicide multiple times,” she said. “I’ve had many friends who face homelessness, have been incarcerated, many who don’t graduate from high school and others who got pregnant. “Life’s rough when you don’t have any support,” she continued. “Imagine not having anybody to call on Mother’s Day.” Now 22, Ms. Smith lives in Hillside Court in South Richmond. She spoke with a Free Press reporter last week at the West End headquarters of the Children’s Home Society of Virginia, an organization that she credits with providing her with services and guidance. The organization is collaborating with the Better Housing Coalition in Richmond to provide housing and supportive services to young adults being booted out of foster care on their 18th birthday. The Possibilities Project, as the collaboration is called, would start by housing 20 young people early next year, then add more
young adults as the project develops. In Virginia, children automatically “age out” of foster care when they reach age 18. According to the Children’s Home Society, about 700 young people fall into that category Ms. Smith each year in Virginia. Within two years, according to the organization, one in four of those young people will be incarcerated, one in five will be homeless and fewer than one in six will graduate from high school. Advocates point out that housing is an
especially critical need for this young and vulnerable population. They provided sad and gripping accounts of how some teens in foster care are packed up and taken to homeless shelters when they turn 18. One available option is independent living programs that are coordinated through local social services departments in Virginia. Youths no longer eligible for foster care can get housing until age 21 as long as they adhere to a contract requiring they are enrolled in school, working or in a counseling or treatment program. The contracts are personalized, designed to meet the specific needs of the young person. While under contract, they can receive Please turn to A4
Like father, like son
Justin White holds two of his proud accomplishments — his son, Jeremiah, and his newly earned degree from Virginia Union University. The father and son celebrated in cap and gown Saturday at the university’s 117th commencement ceremony at Hovey Field. Please see article, more photos on Page B4.
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Those on City Council who don’t agree should be “expelled” for gross negligence come November. We don’t have a shortage of money — we have a shortage of moral courage. E. MARTIN “MARTY” JEWELL Richmond The writer is a former Richmond City Council member who now chairs the Education Committee of the Richmond Branch NAACP.
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The purpose of these elections is to nominate political party candidates to be on the ballot in the November general election for the office of U.S. House of Representatives, 4th District. Visit www.richmondgov.com to view sample ballots. THE DEADLINE TO REGISTER TO VOTE IS
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Persons with DMV issued ID CAN NOW REGISTER TO VOTE, UPDATE their voter registration or apply for an absentee ballot ONLINE and paperlessly at www.elections.virginia.gov. Register in person in room 105, City Hall, 900 East Broad Street between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday, except holidays. Applications are also in all city post offices, libraries, and DMV. The Office of the General Registrar will mail applications upon request. Voter registration applications must either be postmarked or in the Office of the General Registrar by 5 PM on the deadline date. The deadline to apply for an absentee ballot through the mail for his election is Tuesday June 7, 2016. The deadline to apply for and vote an absentee ballot in person is 5:00 PM, Saturday, June 11, 2016, except in the case of certain emergencies. The Office of the General Registrar will be open for absentee voting during regular business hours, and from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM on Saturday, June 11, 2016. Call (804) 646-5950 for more information.
Richmond Free Press
A10 May 5-7, 2016
Sports Stories by Fred Jeter
Charles Oakley, fifth VUU inductee into Virginia Sports Hall of Fame Charles Oakley has completed the journey. Also a member of the VUU and A native of Cleveland, Oakley arrived in CIAA halls of fame, Oakley played Virginia in 1981 as an 18-year-old freshman in 1,282 NBA regular-season games basketball player at Virginia Union University. and 144 playoff contests. It was the start of great things. The consistent forward known for Last Saturday, the powerful 6-foot-8 athlete his rugged style under the boards known as “Oak” was inducted into the Virginia averaged 9.7 points and 9.5 rebounds Sports Hall of Fame in Portsmouth. for his career. “It’s a great moment,” he said in his inducHe becomes the fifth person from tion speech. VUU to enter the Virginia Sports “Family, friends, people who cheered me on, Hall of Fame. Previous inductees are people who watched me play … they get a chance athlete/coach Henry Hucles, football to see me in person, to come to the Virginia great Herb Scott, Coach Robbins and Hall of Fame. It’s a beautiful thing.” basketball standout Ben Wallace. Playing under former VUU Coach In addition to Oakley, others inDave Robbins, Oakley accumulated ducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of 2,273 points and grabbed 1,664 reFame’s Class of 2016 included Charlie bounds in four brilliant, All-CIAA Stukes, a defensive back from Maryland seasons. State (now University of Maryland, As a VUU senior in 1984-85, Eastern Shore), who went on to stardom Oakley led the NCAA Division with the NFL Baltimore Colts. II in rebounding and was named The Chesapeake native had 32 National Player of the Year career NFL interceptions and was a Photo by David Ferraro while helping VUU to a 30-1 member of the Baltimore Colts’ 1971 Retired NBA star Charles Oakley is presented with an award record. Super Bowl championship team. last Saturday during his induction into the Virginia Sports Hall The Panthers were ranked of Fame in Portsmouth by Joel Rubin, chairman of the Hall of Also inducted was football lineNo. 1 nationally all season Fame board. backer James Farrior, who starred at before being upset by WinstonMatoaca High School in Chesterfield Salem State University in the County, the University of Virginia and then with the of his era. first round of NCAAs. In 18 NBA seasons, mostly with the Chicago New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers in the NFL. From VUU, Oakley became Bulls and the New York Knicks, Oakley had 12,417 Nicknamed “Potsie” by his parents, Farrior was a NBA first-round draft choice points, 12,225 rebounds and 3,217 assists. a defensive stalwart on the Steelers’ 2006 and 2009 by the Cleveland Cavaliers and Five times between 1987 and 1994, he ranked Super Bowl championship teams. In 230 career was among the top rebounders in the NBA’s Top 10 in rebounding. games, he is credited with 1,415 tackles.
Washington NFL team signs new players in draft When Washington’s NFL team arrives in Richmond for training camp in late July, two potential game changers will be introduced. Coincidentally, both are named Josh. With the 22nd pick in last week’s NFL draft, Washington selected wide receiver Josh Doctson out of Texas Christian University. Perhaps more noteworthy was an April 22 transaction in which Washington inked ace cornerback Josh Norman to a five-year, $75 million free agent pact. Doctson figures to become a favorite target for Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins, while Norman, in his fifth season with the Carolina Panthers out of Coastal Carolina University, shapes up as foil to the opponent’s passing schemes. The 6-foot-2, 202-pound Doctson snared 79 passes for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns last season for TCU. The epitome of the “shutdown corner,” Norman earned All-Pro honors and was essential in Carolina’s drive to the Super Bowl. While Norman appears to be a solid investment, Washington has had dismal success with previous, high-dollar free agents. Noted failures were Deion Sanders, Bruce Smith, Jeff George, Adam Archuleta and Albert Haynesworth. With less fanfare, Washington also signed defensive back Greg Toler in April. Toler, who has eight career interceptions with the Arizona Cardinals and the India-
Kendall Fuller
Dahon Taylor
napolis Colts, is the only athlete from the former St. Paul’s College in Lawrenceville to reach the NFL. Another fresh defensive back in camp at the Bon Secours Training Facility in Richmond will be Kendall Fuller, Washington’s third round pick out of Virginia Tech. He becomes the fourth Fuller sibling to reach the NFL, following Kyle, Vincent and Corey. The only other family placing four brothers in the NFL is the Browners — Jim, Joey, Keith and Ross. With its seventh round pick, Washington tabbed running back Keith Marshall from the University of Georgia. Among ball carriers, Marshall posted the fastest 40-yard dash (4.31 seconds) at the NFL Combine. This year’s NFL draft was disappointing for HBCUs. Out of 252 picks, only three players were from historically black colleges and universities. Two of the three players were
from South Carolina State University. They were defensive lineman Javon Hargrove, chosen in the third round by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and tight end Tamarric Hemingway, selected in the sixth round by the Los Angeles Rams. Also picked was North Carolina Central University defensive back Ryan Smith in the fourth round by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. A free agent signee with the Miami Dolphins was Florida A&M University linebacker Akil Blount, son of NFL Hall of Famer Mel Blount. HBCU players have become rare picks in the NFL draft in recent years. It wasn’t always that way. Twice, HBCU athletes were the first pick overall — Tennessee State University’s Ed “Too Tall” Jones by the Dallas Cowboys in 1974, and Grambling State University’s Buck Buchanan by the Kansas City Chiefs in 1963. Locally, Virginia Union University All-CIAA offensive lineman Dahon Taylor has signed a free agent pact with the New York Jets. From Florence, N.J., the 6-foot-5, 307-pound Taylor helped VUU to 4,833 yards total offense and a NCAA Division II playoff berth. Norfolk State University linebacker Deon King, who led the NCAA FCS in tackles with 161, has signed as a free agent with the Dallas Cowboys. King is from Reston in Northern Virginia.
VCU’s Alie-Cox mentioned as NFL prospect Virginia Commonwealth University doesn’t have an intercollegiate football team. But surprisingly, it may have an NFL prospect. Rising senior basketball center Mo Alie-Cox was mentioned during the NFL Network’s coverage of last weekend’s college draft. Here’s what commentator Charles Davis said: “Go back and watch some footage from the NCAA tournament. You see Mo Alie-Cox dreads flying, people hitting the floor, people getting out of the way. He’s going to be a guy we test out and make a football player.” Davis is a former defensive back at the University of Tennessee who played the 1987 NFL season with the Dallas Cowboys. Listed at 6-foot-7 and 250 pounds, the powerfully built AlieCox averaged 10.4 points and 5.1 rebounds, while blocking 68 shots for Coach Will Wade’s Rams during the 2015-16 basketball season. Alie-Cox was redshirted as a Ram freshman and will be a fifth-year senior for 2016-17. Alie-Cox was signed out of Middleburg Academy in Northern Virginia by former VCU Coach Shaka Smart. Middleburg, like VCU, has no football program. Some people are comparing Alie-Cox to Jimmy Graham and Antonio Gates, who have become NFL stalwarts despite a limited college football background. Graham played one year of football at the University of Miami in Florida. Gates never played college football, but originally was signed by Michigan State University for football. He wound up playing basketball only at Eastern Michigan and Kent State University. VCU had a club football team in the early 1970s, but never has competed on an intercollegiate level. Following the 2007 basketball season, which is recalled as the year the Rams upset Duke University in the NCAA Tournament, VCU basketball standout Jesse Pellot-Rosa signed a free agent contract with the New York Jets but failed to make the team. Pellot-Rosa starred in basketball and football at Richmond’s George Wythe High School and played football at Fork Union Military Academy before becoming a VCU basketball player.
TJ’s new football coach trying to ‘translate talent into more wins’ Chad Hornik scored noteworthy victories, both on and off the field, as football coach at Richmond’s Thomas Jefferson High School from 2012 to 2015. Now his successor, Chris Mitchell, intends to build on that momentum. “I’m excited about the opportunity,” said the burly 44-year-old Roanoke native. Coach Mitchell insists TJ’s long-struggling program no longer represents “mission impossible.” “There’s a ton of talent here. We just need to translate that talent into more wins,” said the new coach. In seven seasons prior to Coach Hornik’s arrival, TJ was 1-69, with the lone win over Henrico’s J.R. Tucker High School in 2007. Under Coach Hornik, the Vikings were 9-32, including 3-7 a year ago. In 2012, TJ qualified for the Regional playoffs for the first time in 37 years. Perhaps more importantly, Coach Hornik spearheaded fundraising for the team with
creation of the TJ Vikings Fund. This resulted in new uniforms, a locker room makeover and upgrades in equipment and the school’s football field. The enthusiasm also enabled TJ to add a junior varsity football squad. Coach Hornik left Thomas Jefferson to become coach at Deep Run High School in Henrico County. He also owns a group of restaurants on West Broad Street. “Coach Hornik’s contributions are unbelievable,” said Coach Mitchell, who served two years under Coach Hornik. Coach Mitchell was a lineman/linebacker at Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke and played one season at Emory & Henry College. He was assistant coach at Chesterfield’s Manchester High School from 2002 to 2007, before operating his own business, Inflation Nation, a playgroundparty center, until 2014. While in private business, Coach Mitchell coached in the Alberta Smith Association of the Chesterfield Quarterback League and with the Metro
Coach Mitchell
Association Giants. After closing his business, Coach Mitchell was hired as a teacher-coach at TJ. His wife, Stephanie, serves as an administrative assistant at the school. Coach Mitchell inherits a challenging schedule that includes just one home date —
Johnson and Dickson have been invited to Virginia Richmond high school 2016 coaching lineup Tech’s summer camp. School Coach Year Record Coach Mitchell’s staff includes several newcomers, Armstrong McDaniel Anderson Second 2-9 including offensive coor Huguenot Bryan Jennings Third 3-18 Thomas Jefferson Chris Mitchell First 0-0 dinator Tony Whittingham John Marshall Redd Thompson Third 3-17 from Chesterfield County’s George Wythe Dion Foxx Second 0-10 Meadowbrook High School staff and Marques Ruffin from the staff of State DiOct. 7 against John Marshall Aug. 26 season opener — and High School. Caroline High School in Caro- vision 5 champion Highland Springs High School in Henrico Thomas Jefferson High, line County. which opened in 1930, has never The Vikings fill out the slate County. had lights for evening games. with trips to 3AArmstrong High Neither do John Marshall and School in Richmond and to St. George Wythe high schools. Christopher’s, a private school County schools couldn’t powerhouse. imagine operating with no Conceding there are “all “Friday Night Lights” to pump kinds of issues” at the inner-city enthusiasm. school, Coach Mitchell would Based on enrollment, Thom- rather accentuate the positive as Jefferson is classified 3A than dwell on negatives. He by the Virginia High School is quick to sing the praises League. The scale runs from of his young athletes, starting 1 through 6. with Jalen Johnson, who was The fall 2016 schedule in- named the All-Conference 26 cludes five road games against quarterback as a sophomore. 5A schools in Henrico County Another player he described Meet sexy friends — Mills Godwin, Douglas Free- as “dynamic” is Melvin Dickwho really get your vibe... man, Glen Allen, J.R. Tucker son, a versatile back that Coach and Deep Run — plus two more Mitchell feels can be a game Try FREE: 804-278-6045 More Local Numbers: 1-800-811-1633 games at 4A schools, Huguenot breaker. vibeline.com 18+ High School in Richmond — the The Vikings coach says
May 5-7, 2016 B1
Richmond Free Press
Section
Happenings Personality: Susan G. Quisenberry B
Spotlight on Central VA affiliate leader of Race for the Cure Susan G. Quisenberry volunteered to help with Richmond’s very first Race for the Cure in 1998 after both of her parents succumbed to cancer during a nine-month span. “A friend asked me to volunteer and I have been involved ever since,” she says. Ms. Quisenberry will be pitching in again Saturday morning, May 7 — along with about 350 other volunteers on Brown’s Island in Downtown — when more than 4,5000 people are expected to gather for the 19th Annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure to raise money for the fight against breast cancer. The usual 5K recreational run-walk will start at 9 a.m. New to the event is a 5K competitive run-walk that will start at 7:30 a.m. For more information, call (804) 320-1772 or go to www. komencentralva.org. Ms. Quisenberry’s depth of involvement as a volunteer with the organization has grown through the years. She now serves as board president for the Central Virginia affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. She was elected to serve a two-year term in April 2015. She says the communityunifying Race for the Cure is important because “it helps to increase awareness and raises funds to support breast cancer education, screening and treatment within Central Virginia.” Ms. Quisenberry says this year’s goal is to raise $400,000 at the event. “Anyone is invited who wants to support our mission, run or walk a beautiful 5K course that twice crosses the James River,” Ms. Quisenberry notes, “as well as celebrate the women and men who are breast cancer survivors and remember those who have lost their lives to breast cancer.” While she encourages participation, she has never actually walked or run in the event. “I’m always too busy with my volunteer responsibilities,” she acknowledges. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to connect with others who are currently going or have gone through the same thing and to feel the support of all who have come out to participate in the
Richmond.
minutes.
How I will feel the morning of the race: Proud of all the hard work by the affiliate staff and our wonderful volunteers. And a little sleepy.
If money is a barrier, a woman should: There are numerous organizations in our area that offer assitance. Check out the Komen Central Virginia website, www.komencentralva.org for more information.
After: Time to relax! Who and what sparked the founding of the Race for the Cure: Jennifer Norvell Saunders began the first Race for the Cure in Richmond. It was held in 1998 to honor Jennifer’s mother, Joanne B. Norvell, and other Virginians who had lost their lives to breast cancer and to celebrate those who are survivors.
event,” she says. This week’s Personality, Susan G. Quisenberry, is a vital volunteer for Race for the Cure: Place of birth: Richmond. Current residence: Richmond. Family: Husband, Bob Quisenberry. Occupation: IT consultant. Alma mater: Bachelor’s degree, University of Richmond. What makes the Race for the Cure so important and how would you describe the atmosphere as the event unfolds: The race is our largest fundraiser of the year. The atmosphere is one of celebration and remembrance. It’s a fun event for those who want to do a timed run, as well as for those who want to run or walk in support of the cause. The breast cancer survivor walk before the start of the recreational 5K is a very moving event and the post-race fun on Brown’s Island has something for all ages. How much has been raised since the Central Virginia Race for the Cure started in 1998: We have provided more than $5.8 million to local community programs that provide education, screening and treatment for those in need and $1.9 million to the Susan G. Komen Research Grants Program. Other community volunteer position: Member of the board of trustees of the University of
Who is Susan G. Komen: In 1982, Nancy G. Brinker promised her dying sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would do everything in her power to end breast cancer forever.
DiamonDs • Watches JeWelry • repairs 19 East Broad strEEt richmond, Va 23219 (804) 648-1044
www.wallErjEwElry.com
How I unwind: Playing with my dog. Nobody knows I’m: A Kakuro puzzle fan. The best thing my parents ever taught me: Don’t give up. The person who influenced me the most: I don’t think I can name just one person. The book that influenced me the most: “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. What I’m reading now: “Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption” by Bryan Stevenson.
How affiliates act to fulfill mission: 75 percent of the funds raised through the Race for the Cure and other fundraising efforts go toward education, treatment and screening in Central Virginia and the remaining 25 percent helps fund breast cancer research through Komen’s National Research Grant Funding. How to deal with breast cancer diagnosis: Educate yourself and rely on the support of your physicians, family and friends. In Virginia: There are 5,420 new diagnoses in Virginia each year. In Richmond: In our service area, there are 1,861 new diagnoses each year. What needs to be done to help underserved areas: Continue to raise funds to not only support those who are underserved and uninsured, but also to support the leading edge research that ultimately will end breast cancer forever. A mammogram is: An X-ray image of the breast that is used to detect breast cancer. Mammograms play a key role in early breast cancer detection and help decrease breast cancer deaths. How long it takes: Just a few sponsors
Upcoming Free Health Seminars
suntrust genworth financial the city of richmond the e. rhodes and leona b. carpenter foundation the richard and caroline t. gwathmey memorial trust the beirne carter foundation vcu health
VCU Health will be offering the following free health seminars at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s Kelly Education Center, located at 1800 Lakeside Avenue. Registration is recommended. Free parking available.
rotary club of richmond
free outdoor festival
may 20-22 at abner clay park
hardywood park craft brewery richmond times-dispatch nbc12
friday 5-7:30 pm | saturday 12-8:30 pm | sunday 12-6 pm
performances vendors
food trucks
walking tours
beer garden on saturday
visit celebratejacksonwardrva.com
Thursday, May 12 | 5:30 p.m.
10 Things to Share With Your Gynecologist Women generally see their gynecologist once a year. This is the best time to ask personal health questions, no matter how uncomfortable or embarrassing. Walk away less anxious and more knowledgeable about your health by joining Dr. Mireille Truong as she discusses these personal, but important health issues.
Thursday, May 19 | 5:30 p.m.
A-fib Patients: Reduce Your Stroke Risk For anyone living with atrial fibrillation (a-fib), the risk of stroke is much greater and blood thinners are often part of the treatment. Join Dr. Jayanthi Koneru to learn more about a new, non-drug treatment that lowers the risk of stroke for patients with non-valvular a-fib.
RVA EAST END FESTIVAL 2016 THE GIFT OF
Music • FREE OUTDOOR FESTIVAL I MAY 6-8 AT CHIMBORAZO PARK PERFORMANCES KIDS ZONE FOOD TRUCKS VENDORS BEER GARDEN FOR MORE INFO, VISIT RVAEASTENDFEST.COM
Tuesday, May 24 | 5:30 p.m.
Breast Imaging: Truths About Mammograms Screening or diagnostic? Which one do you need? And at what age? What about dense tissue? How do ultrasound and MRI fit in the equation? Join Dr. Priti Shah as she answers your questions about mammograms.
Register online at vcuhealth.org/events or call (804) 828-0123 for more information.
sponsors | bon secours richmond health system | the city of richmond | bank of america the e. rhodes and leona b. carpenter foundation | the richard and caroline t. gwathmey memorial trust | rotary club of richmond | stone brewing | rvanews | nbc12
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Richmond Free Press
B2 May 5-7, 2016
Happenings
Mother’s Day
Gift-giving during the annual tribute made the Mother’s Day will be celebrated Sunday, May 8, with people across the country presenting bouquets, Free Press think about all the gifts our mothers candy and other presents to the woman who bears give to us. We put the following question to several people: a special place in their hearts and lives.
What wisdom did your mother impart to you? Kelvin White of the West End: “My mother taught me to always be respectful of women. When I was a kid, I always gave up my seat for the ladies when the bus was crowded.”
Carrie Latimer of the Fan District: “My mother taught me how to appreciate beauty in everything because beauty is all around us.”
Joseph Drogaris of Midlothian: “My mom was a single mother and she taught me how to be myself and be a gentleman. She was very ladylike and would say, ‘Hold the door open for your girlfriend.’ ”
Howard Kistler of the West End: “She gave me the knowledge that everyone has reasons for doing what they do, and that we should not be so quick to judge others without walking in their shoes.”
Brittney Williams of Chesterfield: “My mom taught me how to be a lady. She taught me that life couldn’t be all play and no work.”
Interviews and photos by Sandra Sellars for Richmond Free Press
Obama drops mic at correspondents’ dinner Free Press wire reports
WASHINGTON President Obama took aim at Democrats and Republicans alike last Saturday in his final appearance headlining the star-studded White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner. However, he saved his sharpest barbs for Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump. “The Republican establishment is incredulous that he’s their most likely nominee,” President Obama told attendees at the black-tie event, which brought together journalists and media moguls with Hollywood stars and power brokers from Capitol Hill and beyond. “They say Donald lacks the foreign policy experience to be president. But in fairness, he has spent years meeting with leaders from around the world — Miss Sweden, Miss Argentina, Miss Azerbaijan,” the president said to howls of laughter, referring to contestants on the Miss Universe pageant that Mr. Trump formerly co-owned. President Obama made fun of the angst many in the Republican establishment have expressed at the prospect that Mr. Trump or Tea Party candidate U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz could win the party’s nomination to run in the Nov. 8 presidential election. “Guests were asked to check whether they wanted steak or fish. But instead, a whole bunch of you wrote in Paul Ryan,” President Obama said, referring to the top Republican in the House of Representatives, who many have hoped could be lured into running for president. “That’s not an option people,” President Obama said, displaying comedic chops perfected through seven previous appearances at the annual dinner. “You may not like steak or fish, but that’s your choice.” In his remarks, the president looked back on
President Obama greets comedian Larry Wilmore after the “Comedy Central” host ended last Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner with remarks that later drew criticism.
his years in office and jokingly predicted the country may be nearing its doom. “The end of the republic has never looked better,” the tuxedo-clad president said, looking out at the well-groomed crowd as he blasted Republican Party Chairman Reince Priebus. “Congratulations on all your success,” the president told Mr. Priebus, while wearing a sarcastic grin. “The Republican Party, the nomination process — it’s all going great.” Larry Wilmore, the host of a show on cable outlet “Comedy Central,” took his own shots at Mr. Trump when he took the podium after President Obama, joking that, next year, the dinner will be called: “Donald Trump presents
Photography exhibit to open May 13 at Pine Camp The city’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities is celebrating National Photography Month with an exhibit at the Pine Camp Cultural Arts and Community Center. The exhibit, “Slices of Life: RVA,” will open with a reception 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, May 13, and run through June 17 at the Spotlight Gallery, 4901 Old Brook Road. The exhibit highlights the work of area photographers in digital, film and pinhole photographs. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, call Shaunn Casselle at (804) 646-6722 or go to www.richmondgov.com/parks.
a luxurious evening paid for by Mexico.” Mr. Trump has promised to build a wall between the United States and Mexico to prevent illegal immigration, and he has said he would force Mexico to pay for it. Mr. Wilmore’s remarks at the end of the event have drawn criticism from several quarters, however, because of the way he referred to the president. “All jokes aside, let me just say how much it means for me to be here tonight,” he said wrapping up. “I’ve always joked that I voted for the president because he’s black. “But behind that joke is the humble appreciation for the historical implications for what your
presidency means,” Mr. Wilmore added. “When I was a kid, I lived in a country where people couldn’t accept a black quarterback. Now think about that. A black man was thought by his mere color not good enough to lead a football team. And now to live in your time, Mr. President, when a black man can lead the entire free world. “Words alone do me no justice,” he concluded. “So, Mr. President, if I’m going to keep it 100,” Mr. Wilmore said, before pounding his chest. “Yo, Barry, you did it, my nigga!” Mr. Wilmore’s use of the word shed light on a debate among many in the African-American community: Those who feel it is an offensive slur and shouldn’t be used in any context, and others — including Mr. Wilmore — who feel that using it as a term of endearment among African-Americans robs the word of its negative power. “I knew that it would be provocative and, yes, I was taking a big chance,” Wilmore told the Associated Press in an interview Tuesday. “But you know what, it was just a creative expression that I made at the time. I don’t know if I would take it back.” He said that “at this point, I think it may open up a dialogue that at the end of the day is probably pretty good. And if I have to take the heat for it, that’s OK. Part of my job is to take the heat. I certainly dished out a lot of stuff.” Mr. Wilmore said the president was “very kind and very warm” to him and the White House said Monday that President Obama wasn’t offended. With a bit of nostalgia, President Obama reflected on his more than seven years in office, saying he had been a young man of idealism and vigor before he became president. “Eight years ago, I said it was time to change the tone of our politics,” President Obama said. “In hindsight, I clearly should have been more specific.”
Friday Cheers starts this week at Brown’s Island
Warmer temperatures, longer days and that dusting of pollen on the cars can only mean one thing: The return of Friday Cheers. Venture Richmond’s outdoor concert series returns to Brown’s Island in Downtown with an offering of music accompanied by delicious food and beverages. The event, which runs each
Friday for seven weeks, begins Friday, May 6, with performances at 6:30 p.m. by Mighty Joshua & the Zion #5 and the Soul Rebels at 8 p.m. Considered one of New Orleans’ finest brass ensembles, the eight-member Soul Rebels combine the brass tradition of the Big Easy with mainstream funk, soul, jazz, hip-hop and
Remembering Richmond’s first black police officers
Rudolph Powell/Richmond Free Press
Lillian Randolph, center, accepts a bouquet of roses Saturday during a dinner commemorating the 70th anniversary of the hiring of the first African-American police officers in Richmond. Mrs. Randolph’s late husband, Frank S. Randolph, was among the four first officers hired by the city and remembered at the event at a Downtown hotel attended by 150 people. The other trailblazing officers honored were John W. Vann, Doctor P. Day and Howard T. Braxton. They were hired May 1, 1946. Richmond Police ChiefAlfred Durham gave the keynote address, while Mayor Dwight C. Jones offered remarks. With Mrs. Randolph are her daughters, Patricia Randolph Myers, left, and Renda Randolph, right. The event was organized by Richmond Police Sgt. Carol D. Adams, second from left, and sponsored by the Richmond Black Police Officers Association and Engine Company #9.
rock. The result: High octane dance music. Richmond-based musician Mighty Joshua will seek to expand your mind with what he calls reggae for the modern day. Heavily rhythmic, Mighty Joshua and his back-up band the Zion #5 create a sound that encourages reflection and empowerment for oneself, the community and beyond. Another Virginia native, Natalie Prass, will perform May 27. One of Rolling Stone’s “Ten New Artists You Need to Know,” Ms. Prass, who lives in Richmond, completed her debut album in the area, where she says, “The trees are tall, the buildings old, and friends near.” The series winds up June 24 with Drew Holcomb & The
Mighty Joshua & the Zion #5
Neighbors, along with opening act Major and the Moonbacks. Concerts will end at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $5 or $10, depending on the show. Children under 12 are admitted free. For more details, including the full concert lineup, go to www.venturerichmond.com or call (804) 788-6466.
Soul Rebels
Afeni Shakur, mother of rapper Tupac, dies at 69 Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO Afeni Shakur, the former Black Panther who inspired the work of her son, rap icon Tupac Shakur, and fostered his legacy for decades after he was slain, has died of an apparent heart attack, authorities said Tuesday. She was 69. Responding to a 911 call to Ms. Shakur’s home in Sausalito, Calif., Monday night, deputies and firefighters performed CPR, rushed her to a hospital and tried to revive her for
about an hour, but “she had a more peaceful world,” it in fact died from what is read in part. “Her spirit will believed to be some kind forever inspire all of those of cardiac event,” Marin who had the honor and priviCounty Sheriff’s Lt. Doug lege of knowing her.” Pittman said. Born Alice Faye WilA statement from her liams, Mrs. Shakur changed family and the Tupac Shakur her name when she became politically active in the estate, Amaru Entertain1960s and joined the Black ment, mourned her loss. Panther movement. By “Afeni embodied Mrs. Shakur 1971, she was pregnant and strength, resilience, wisdom and love. She was a pioneer for social behind bars, accused of conspiring to change and was committed to building bomb New York City landmarks.
She said the charges were brought after the Panthers took over a school to make a point about continuing to educate children during a teachers’ strike in 1968. All the charges ultimately were dismissed, and her son was born soon after she left jail. As Afeni Shakur bounced from New York City to Baltimore to California, she became addicted to drugs and struggled as a single mother. Still, she managed to enroll Tupac in arts schools and other programs where he honed the musical and acting skills that
would make him a hip-hop icon. Tupac, in turn, revered his mother, praising her in his 1995 elegy, “Dear Mama,” a hit song many fans recalled Tuesday in tweets and posts. Tupac died in a still-unsolved drive-by shooting in 1996, at age 25. Ms. Shakur focused on keeping her son’s legacy alive while managing his musical catalog. She also served as executive producer on a film about Tupac Shakur’s life, “All Eyez on Me,” which is set to be released in the fall, with Demetrius Shipp Jr., playing her son.
Richmond Free Press
May 5-7, 2016
B3
Happenings
Telling the story
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
View of the home of the Rev. William Washington Browne, founder of the Grand Fountain of the United Order of True Reformers. Location: 105 W. Jackson St. in Jackson Ward. The house also was the original location of the order’s savings bank, which opened April 3, 1889.
Black History Museum & Cultural Center opens in new Jackson Ward home By Thomas Kidd
The Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia opens this week in its newly renovated space, featuring exhibitions and a photography display telling the story of African-Americans in Virginia. More than $8 million has been poured into renovating the museum’s new space in the historic Leigh Street Armory, originally home to African-American militia units and later to African-American students and World War II soldiers. The museum officially opens next Tuesday, May 10, at the new site at 122 W. Leigh St., just across from Abner Clay Park and next
Photo provided by Library of Congress c. 1899
The Thompson and Benson Pharmacy enjoyed a large white clientele and carried an extraordinarily large inventory of stock. One of the owners, Dr. John M. Benson, made history in 1895 when he became the first African-American to pass the Virginia Pharmacy boards, a certification test.
door to Ebenezer Baptist Church. However, the museum will offer an early look during three days of events, including a ribbon-cutting ceremony set for Thursday, May 5. The new location provides the museum with 12,000 square feet on two floors dedicated to the African-American experience in Richmond and beyond, according to a museum release. The firstfloor will feature permanent exhibitions, and the second floor will provide space for traveling exhibitions, the release states. Highlights include an installation of photographs depicting African-American achievements in business, finance and education. Two of the photographs the museum is displaying were featured in the Exhibit of American Negroes at the1900 World’s Fair in Paris. Noted educator W.E.B. Dubois and attorney Thomas Calloway collaborated on the World’s Fair display. “Dr. Dubois and Mr. Calloway were able to offer an incredibly rich narrative of black Americans rarely depicted,” said Elvatrice Belsches, co-founder of the Central Virginia African-American Genealogicial and Historical Society who has served as a historical consultant with the Black History Museum. “As a result, the (World’s Fair) collection altered popular thought about the progress and contribution of blacks in America at that time,” Ms. Belsches said. Among the photographs is an 1899 image of the S. J. Gilpin Shoe Store in Jackson Ward. Owned by shoemaker St. James Gilpin, the photograph
documents the early roots of AfricanAmerican entrepreneurship. There also is a photo of the Thompson and Benson Pharmacy that, pharmacists George Thompson and John M. Benson owned. Dr. Benson would make history in 1895 as the first African-American to pass the Virginia Pharmacy boards, the certification tests for a license. Such individuals enabled Jackson Ward to earn the sobriquet as “the cradle of black capitalism.” That view also is supported with other photos, including one from a publication titled “Twenty-five Year History of the Grand Fountain of the United Order of The Black History Museum True Reformers, 1881-1905.” This was a fraternal organization The Rev. headquartered in Richmond. By the early 20th century, the organization William Washington Browne (1849-1897) was among the most influential AfricanAmerican civic and social groups in the country, with a membership approaching 100,000 in 20 states. The True Reformers would make history in 1888 by organizing a savings bank in Richmond, the first bank chartered by AfricanAmericans in the nation. The museum will feature a photo of the organization’s founder, the Rev. William Washington Brown, who filed for the charter and opened the bank in his home, which still stands at 105 W. Jackson St. Another photograph of interest is of the Richmond Colored Normal and High School. “The Freedmen’s Bureau organized schools,” Ms. Belsches said. “One of the most stellar of these schools was Richmond Colored Normal,” organized in 1867. Some of the graduates of the school include banker Maggie L. Walker, crusading journalist John Mitchell Jr. and pioneering physician Sarah Garland Jones. Built around 1873, the school was deeded to the City of Richmond in 1876. Its name was changed to Armstrong High School in 1909, when the school was moved to a city school building at 1st and Leigh streets.
Opening celebration events for the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia Location: 122 W. Leigh St. in Jackson Ward at the former Leigh Street Armory. Thursday, May 5 Ribbon-cutting ceremony at 5:45 p.m., followed by a cocktail reception and music. Hosted by Daphne Maxwell Reid, with special guest Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Tickets: $100. Friday, May 6 First Fridays poetry event with Tuesday Verses, 7 to 9 p.m. Music by Plunky & Oneness. Free. Saturday, May 7 Open house with tours of the museum, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Performance for children by Culture Queen at noon and 2 p.m. Free. Starting Tuesday, May 10 Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and by appointment on Sunday. Admission: $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and students with ID; $6 for children ages 3 to 12; and children 2 and under free. Membership: Starts at $35 per year. D e t a i l s : w w w. b l a c k historymuseum.org or (804) 780-9093.
ngress c. 1899 by Library of Co Photo provided
Front of the S.J. Gilpin Shoe Store at 506 E. Broad Street. The establishment was owned by St. James Gilpin, whose retail success allowed him to become a wholesaler to stores in other states.
Clement Britt/Richmond Free Press
Visitors get a first look and touch of the new interactive displays installed at the Black History Museum Cultural Center of Virginia during a media tour last week. The screens are positioned throughout the museum, which also features a 55-inch touch table.
Richmond Free Press
B4 May 5-7, 2016
Faith Directory
Sharon Baptist Church 22 E. Leigh Street, Richmond, VA 23219 • 643-3825 thesharonbaptistchurch.com Rev. Dr. Paul A. Coles, Pastor
HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY Sunday, May 8, 2016 Theme: “The Power Of I AM”
8:00 AM - Morning Worship • 9:30 AM – Sunday School 11:00 AM - Morning Worship Speaker: Rev. Shamara Haynes, Swansboro Baptist Church
Wednesday 6:00 PM - Prayer Service 6:30 PM - Bible Study
Thursday 1:30 PM - Bible Study
Good Shepherd Baptist Church
Broad Rock Baptist Church
1127 North 28th St., Richmond, VA 23223-6624 • Office: (804) 644-1402 Dr. Sylvester T. Smith, Pastor “There’s A Place for You”
Early Morning Worship ~ 8 a.m. Sunday School ~ 9:30 a.m. Morning Worship ~ 11 a.m. 4th Sunday Unified Worship Service ~ 9:30 a.m. Bible Study: Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m. & 7 p.m. Sermons Available at BRBCONLINE.org
Tuesday Sunday 10:30 AM Bible Study 9:30 AM Church School 6:30 PM Church-wide Bible Study 11:00 AM Worship Service 6:30 PM Men's Bible Study (Each 2nd and 4th) (Holy Communion Thursday each 2nd Sunday) Wednesday (Following 2nd Sunday) 6:30 PM Prayer Meeting
5106 Walmsley Blvd., Richmond, VA 23224 804-276-2740 • 804-276-6535 (fax) www.BRBCONLINE.org
11:00 AM Mid-day Meditation
“MAKE IT HAPPEN” Pastor Kevin Cook
Triumphant
Baptist Church
2003 Lamb Avenue Dr. Arthur M. Jones, Sr., Pastor (804) 321-7622
Ebenezer Baptist Church 216 W. Leigh St. • Richmond, Va. 23220 • Tel: 804-643-3366 Fax: 804-643-3367 • Email: ebcoffice1@comcast.net • web: ebcrichmond.org Sunday Worship Sunday Church School Service of Holy Communion Service of Baptism Life Application Bible Class Mid-Week Senior Adult Fellowship Wednesday Meditation & Bible Study Homework & Tutoring Scouting Program Thursday Bible Study
Church School - 9:30 a.m. Worship Service - 11:15 a.m. Bible Study: Tuesday - 9 a.m. Wednesday - 7 p.m. Prayer Services: Wednesday (1st & 3rd ) 7 a.m. Every Wednesday 8 p.m. Communion - 1st Sunday
Mosby Memorial Baptist Church
“A Caring Community Committed to Listening, Loving, Learning and Leaning While Launching into our Future.”
May 8, 2016
Join us for morning worship at 10:30 A.M. as we celebrate Mother’s Day.
Thirty-first Street Baptist Church C
o
everence e with e evanc R g in Dr. Morris Henderson, Senior Pastor bin ❖
WOMEN’S DAY Sunday, May 8 10:30 a.m. Speaker: Rev. Dr. Sharon Campbell Theme: “The Total Woman”
2016 Theme: The Year of Restoration
11:00 a.m. 9:30 a.m. Every 3rd Sunday 2nd Sunday, 11 a.m. Mon. 6:30 p.m. Tues. 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. Wed. 7:45 p.m. Wed. 4:30 p.m. Wed. 6:00 p.m. Thurs., 11:45 a.m.
8:00 a.m. Early Morning Worship 9:30 a.m. Sunday School 11:00 a.m. Morning Worship
8775 Mount Olive Avenue Glen Allen, Virginia 23060 (804) 262-9614 Phone (804) 262-2397 Fax www.mobcva.org
Sixth Baptist Church
Tuesdays
Noon Day Bible Study
Wednesdays
6:30 p.m. Prayer and Praise 7:00 p.m. Adult Bible Study
St. Peter Baptist Church
Dr. Kirkland R. Walton, Pastor
Theme for 2016: Becoming a Five-Star Church of Excellence With Mission, Growth, Prayer, Purpose, Vision We Are Growing In The Kingdom 15th Anniversary Banquet As We Grow The Kingdom with Word, Worship and Witness Friday, May 6th – 6:30 PM Belmont Recreation Center
Come and Join us in Worship as we Celebrate
Spring Revival
Sunday, May 8, 2016
“Under Grace We Walk By Faith” · 2 Corinthians 5:7
Happy Mother’s Day!
Monday, May 16, 2016 • Rev. Gregory Washington St. Mark Baptist Church, Maidens, VA
9:00 AM – Mother/Child Breakfast Message by: Rev. Cheryl Harris 10:45 AM – Mother’s Day Worship Speaker: Rev. Dr. Sharon Siler First Shiloh Baptist Church Mechanicsville, VA
Revival ~ May 16 - May 19 7:00 P.M. Nightly Guest Ministers for the week:
2901 Mechanicsville Turnpike, Richmond, VA 23223 (804) 648-2472 ~ www.mmbcrva.org Dr. Price London Davis, Senior Pastor
Rev. Darryl G. Thompson, Pastor
Sundays
Dr. Levy M. Armwood, Pastor Dr. Wallace J. Cook, Pastor Emeritus
Upcoming Events Family Night ~ May 6 @ 6:30 P.M. Family & Friends Day ~ May 15
Rev. Dr. Adam L. Bond Providence Baptist Church, Ashland Rev. Kimberly Ridley The Light Community Church, Richmond
Mount Olive Baptist Church
1858
“The People’s Church”
Twitter sixthbaptistrva
Rev. Dr. Yvonne Jones Bibbs, Pastor
Facebook sixthbaptistrva
Tuesday, May 17, 2016 • Rev. Kenneth E. Rioland, Union Branch Baptist Church, Chesterfield, VA
Jr.
Wednesday, May 18, 2016 • Rev. Michael R. Lomax Westwood Baptist Church, Richmond, VA
400 South Addison Street Richmond, Va. 23220 (near Byrd Park) (804) 359-1691 or 359-3498 Fax (804) 359-3798 www.sixthbaptistchurch.org
Worship at 7:00 p.m. Nightly 2040 Mountain Road • Glen Allen, Virginia 23060 Office 804-262-0230 • Fax 804-262-4651 • www.stpeterbaptist.net
Riverview
Baptist Church Mother's Day 2016 "A Mother's Heart is a garden of Love!"
Sunday, May 8, 2016 9:45 AM
Sunday School 11:00 AM
Morning Worship Guest Speaker: Rev. Kimberly A. Clark
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Each Wednesday during the month of May at 7:00 p.m. we Rev. Dr. Price L. Davis,will Pastor be studying the Book of Esther. Don’t miss this exciting month of Power and Praise! ❖
823 North 31st Street Richmond, VA 23223 (804) 226-0150 Office www.31sbc.org
New Deliverance Evangelistic Church
1701 Turner Road, North Chesterfield, Virginia 23225 (804) 276-0791 office (804)276-5272 fax www.ndec.net
Remember... At New Deliverance, You Are Home! See you there and bring a friend
Moore Street Missionary
Baptist Church
1408 W. Leigh Street • 358-6403
Dr. Alonza Lawrence Pastor
Sundays
Church School 8:30 A.M. Morning Worship 10:00 A.M.
Tuesdays
Bible Study 12 noon
Wednesdays
New Mercies Ministry 6:00 A.M. Youth Bible Study 6:00 P.M. Adult Bible Study 6:30 P.M.
CITY PARK CHURCH & LABURNUM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PTA INVITES YOU TO A
Bishop G. O. Glenn D. Min., Pastor Mother Marcietia S. Glenn First Lady
Monday March 7, 2016 Corporate Prayer Attendance - 167
Sunday 8:00 a.m. Sunday School 9:00 a.m. Worship Service
Wednesday Services Noonday Bible Study 12noon-1:00 p.m. Attendance Sanctuary - All Are Welcome! Wednesday Evening Bible Study 7 p.m. Attendance -
Saturday 8:30 a.m. Intercessory Prayer
You can now view Sunday Morning Service “AS IT HAPPENS” online! Also, for your convenience.
MOTHER'S DAY WEEKEND CELEBRATION
Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: Hebrews 12:14 (KJV) www.ndec.net Tune in on Sunday Morning to WTVR-Channel 6 - 8:30 a.m. THE NEW DELIVERANCE CHRISTIAN ACADEMY (NDCA)
ENROLL NOW!!! Accepting applications for children 2 yrs. old to 3rd Grade Our NDCA curriculum also consists of a Before and After program. Now Enrolling for our Nursery Ages 6 weeks - 2yrs. old. For more information Please call (804) 276-4433 Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm
Theme: "She believed she could and she did!"
SATURDAY, MAY 7, 2016 12:00 NOON - 2:00 P.M.
MOTHER AND DAUGHTER LUNCHEON SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER,
THE HONORABLE MRS. SHONDA HARRIS- MUHAMMAD,
Spread theWord To advertise your church: Worship Service Gospel Concert Vacation Bible School Homecoming Revival
call 804-644-0496 Richmond Free Press The People's Paper
6TH DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD MEMBER
Must RSVP for Mother and Daughter luncheon by May 6th, 2016
SUNDAY, MAY 8, 2016 11:00 A.M.
MOTHER'S DAY WORSHIP SERVICE SPECIAL GUEST SPEAKER,
CHIEF ODETTA JOHNSON,
CHIEF OF POLICE, NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY AND FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF, CITY OF RICHMOND POLICE DEPARTMENT Continental Breakfast at 10:00 a.m. Both events are FREE!
LOCATION FOR BOTH EVENTS: LABURNUM ELEMENTARY SCHOOL 500 MERIWETHER AVENUE RICHMOND, VIRGINIA 23222
For more information call: Dr. & Mrs. Joe Ellison, Jr - City Park Church 804-937-1356
Richmond Free Press
May 5-7, 2016
B5
Legal Notices/Employment Opportunities 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, May 16, 2016 at 1:30 p.m. in the Fifth Floor Conference Room of City Hall and the Council of the City of Richmond has scheduled a public hearing on Monday, May 23, 2016 at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chamber on the Second Floor of City Hall, located at 900 East Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia, to consider the following ordinances: Ordinance No. 2016-131 To close, to public use and travel, a portion of North 32nd Street, located south of East Franklin Street and north of Williamsburg Avenue and consisting of 5,418± square feet, upon certain terms and conditions. Ordinance No. 2016-132 To authorize the special use of the property known as 1702 Floyd Avenue for the purpose of permitting one two-family attached dwelling with accessory parking, upon certain terms and conditions. The Richmond Master Plan designates this property as Single-Family (medium density) in the Near West Planning District. “Primary uses are 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. Typical zoning classifications that may accommodate this land use category are R-43 and R-48” (133). Ordinance No. 2016-133 To amend and reordain Ord. No. 80-103-90, adopted Jun. 16, 1980, as previously amended by Ord. No. 2003-26-24, adopted Feb. 10, 2003, and Ord. No. 2007-264-231, adopted Oct. 22, 2007, which authorized the special use of the property known as 1617 Monument Avenue as a day nursery, to authorize expansion of the existing day nursery and accessory parking on the properties known as 1617 Monument Avenue, 1627 Monument Avenue, and 1627 Rear Monument Avenue, upon certain terms and conditions. The City of Richmond’s Master Plan recommends Singlefamily (Medium Density) land use for the property. The Master Plan defines the primary uses for this category as single-family and two-family detached and attached dwellings at densities of 8 to 20 units per acre, and includes residential support uses such as schools, places of worship, and neighborhood parks, among others. Interested citizens who wish to speak will be given an opportunity to do so. Copies of the full text of all ordinances are available by visiting the City Clerk’s page on the City’s Website at www.Richmondgov. com and in the Office of the City Clerk, City Hall, 900 East Broad Street, Suite 200, Richmond, VA 23219, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Jean V. Capel City Clerk
Divorce VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER MONICA BROWN, Plaintiff v. MARK BROWN, Defendant. Case No.: CL15000497-00 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 15th day of June, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect his interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667
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It is ORDERED that the defendant, whose whereabouts are unknown, appear here on or before the 15th day of June, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect his interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667
defendant, whose whereabouts are unknown, appear here on or before the 27th day of May, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect his interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667
is to: Determine custody of Kristopher Lamont Brooks ( D O B : 11 / 0 9 / 0 0 ) , a n d Kennedy Lynnea Brooks (DOB: 10/19/99), whose parents are Robinett Pittman Brooks and Keith Lamont Brooks, pursuant to Virginia Code Section 16.1-241(A3). It is ORDERED that the defendant Keith Lamont Brooks appear at the abovenamed Court and protect his interests on or before July 11, 2016 at 9:00 A.M. virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt IN the COunty of Chesterfield Commonwealth of Virginia, in re LYNIAH MARIE DABNEY CRYSTAL DABNEY v. CIARA DABNEY and LYNWOOD WYNN Case No. JJ087614-01-00, -02-00 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit is to: Determine custody and visitation of Lyniah Marie Dabney (DOB: 1/25/12), whose mother is Ciara Dabney and whose putative father is Lynwood Earl Wynn, pursuant to Virginia Code Section 16.1-241(A3). It is ORDERED that the defendant Ciara Dabney appear at the above-named Court and protect her interests on or before June 3, 2016 at 9:00 A.M.
individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Reginald A. Dymally’s last known address is 4508 8th Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90043. 16. The Respondent, Linda M. Clark, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Linda M. Clark’s last known address is 4508 8th Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90043. 17. The Respondent, Angela L. W. Whitaker, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Angela L. W. Whitaker’s last known address is 818 N. Eucalyptus Avenue, #11, Inglewood, CA 90302. 18. There may be persons other than those named in the Amended Petition for Aid and Guidance filed in the abovestyled case who have an interest in the Estate of Edith R. Jackson, deceased, whose identities and whereabouts are not known, and their heirs, devisees, assigns, surviving spouses, and successors in interest, if any, whose names and whereabouts are unknown and who are made Respondents herein by the general description of PARTIES UNKNOWN, because the Petitioner, has used diligence without effect to ascertain their identities or location, but have been unable to do so. It is hereby ORDERED that the aforesaid respondents do appear on or before March 20, 2016 in the Clerk’s office of the Circuit Court for the City of Richmond, Virginia, and do what is necessary to protect their interests. Hon. William R. Marchant FloranceGordonBrown A Professinal Corporation 1900 One James Center 901 East Cary Street Richmond, VA 23219 Telephone: (804) 697-5118
COUNTY OF HENRICO, VIRGINIA HENRICO COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS CONSTRUCTION BID ITB# 16-1187-4JK Ridge Elementary School Parking Lot Expansion Due 1:30 pm, May 24, 2016 Additional information available at: http://www.henrico.us/ departments/purchasing/ bids-and-proposals/
VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER EDWARD MARROW, SR., Plaintiff v. KHRISTY MARROW, Defendant. Case No.: CL16000988-00 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 27th day of May, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect her interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667
virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt IN the COunty of Chesterfield Commonwealth of Virginia, in re KRISTOPHER L. & KENNEDY L. BROOKS ANGELIQUE PITTMAN SKIPPER v. ROBINETT BROOKS & KEITH BROOKS Case No. JJ048485-03-00, -04-00; JJ048482-03-00, -04-00 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit
V I R G I N I A: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND TERRY T. HUGHES, Administrator Of the Estate of Edith R. Jackson, Deceased, PETITIONER, v. Case No.: CL13-3435 TRUSTEES OF VIRGINIA UNION UNIVERSITY, et al., RESPONDENTS. ORDER OF PUBLICATION In this proceeding, the Petitioner requests that the Court provide her aid and direction in determining who are the heirs or beneficiaries of the Estate of Edith R. Jackson, Deceased, and each heir or beneficiary’s share of the Estate of Edith R. Jackson, with such findings and conclusions of law and fact, directives and orders as are necessary to make such determination (including without limitation, a declaration of whether Edith R. Jackson died intestate or whether she died leaving a Last Will and Testament, and, if there is a Last Will and Testament, what said Last Will and Testament consists of and what its terms are, and if not, who the heirs of her intestate Estate are and what each of their respective shares are), that she receive a reasonable sum from the Estate of Edith
R. Jackson for the expenses, costs and attorney’s fees she has expended in her efforts to locate the heirs of beneficiaries of the Estate of Edith R. Jackson and to pursue the instant litigation, that she receive her costs expended herein, that a guardian ad litem be appointed to represent and protect the interest of any infant or incapacitated persons, that those who are unknown, whose addresses or whereabouts are unknown, or who are nonresidents may be proceeded against by Order of Publication, and grant her such further relief as the Court deems appropriate. And it appearing by affidavit filed according to law that: 1. The Respondent, Alfred Cary, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because he is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.21426. Alfred Cary’s last known address is 170 Sungold Way, Fairfield, CA 94533. 2. The Respondent, Brenda J. Pierce-Ince, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Brenda J. Pierce-Ince’s last known address is 220 Varnum Street, Washington, D.C. 20011. 3. The Respondent, Shirley V. Douglas, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Shirley V. Douglas’s last known address is 16820 Coronado Road, Apt. 206, Eagle River, AK 99577. 4. The Respondent, John K. Adams, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because the Petitioner has used diligence without effect to ascertain his location, but has been unable to do so. 5. The Respondent, Iris Cecilia Green, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because the Petitioner has used diligence without effect to ascertain her location, but has been unable to do so. 6. The Respondent, Marilyn Green, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because the Petitioner has used diligence without effect to ascertain her location, but has been unable to do so. 7. The Respondent, Mable S. Mills, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because the Petitioner has used diligence without effect to ascertain her location, but has been unable to do so. 8. The Respondent, Williana Harris, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Williana Harris’ last known address is 423 Blake Avenue, Apt. 1E, Brooklyn, NY 11212. 9. The Respondent, Gertrude Minor, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because the Petitioner has used diligence without effect to ascertain her location, but has been unable to do so. 10. The Respondent, Harold Lucas, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because he is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Harold Lucas’s last known address is 87 Wedgefield, Drive, Hilton Head, SC 20026. 11. The Respondent, Herbert J. Ramsey, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because he is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Herbert J. Ramsey’s last known address is 5722 9th Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046. 12. The Respondent, Michael A. Dymally, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because he is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Michael A. Dymally’s last known address is 4508 8th Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90043. 13. The Respondent, Lenora C. Evans, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Lenora C. Evans’s last known address is 22628 Radnor Lane, Moreno Valley, CA 92557. 14. The Respondent, Regina E. Dymally-Wilson, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because she is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident individual fiduciary who has appointed a statutory agent under § 64.2-1426. Regina E. Dymally-Wilson’s last known address is 14193 Casa Blanca Court, Fontana, CA 92336. 15. The Respondent, Reginald A. Dymally, is being proceeded against herein by Order of Publication because he is a nonresident individual, other than a nonresident
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VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER LYLE BRADBY, Plaintiff v. ANNA BRADBY, Defendant. Case No.: CL16001220-00 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 10th day of June, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect her interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667 VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER EVELYN CANALES, Plaintiff v. EDGAR LEMUS, Defendant. Case No.: CL16000884-00 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 27th day of May, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect his interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667 VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER BERTA HERRERA, Plaintiff v. ANGEL COBARRUVIAS, Defendant. Case No.: CL15002074-00 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 27th day of May, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect his interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667 VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER ANGELA MULLINGS, Plaintiff v. LARRY WILSON, Defendant. Case No.: CL15-2232 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 27th day of May, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect his interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667
VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER SHARON BOBB, Plaintiff v. JUNIE BOBB, Defendant. Case No.: CL16001274-00 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.
VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER ANGELA LEWIS, Plaintiff v. OKEMA LEWIS, Defendant. Case No.: CL16001068-00 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
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VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER EARL BREWSTER, Plaintiff v. CATHY BREWSTER, Defendant. Case No.: CL16001138-00 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 27th day of May, 2016 at 9:00 a.m. and protect her interests. A Copy, Teste: FRANK D. HARGROVE, JR., Clerk I ask for this: Dorothy M. Eure Counsel for Plaintiff VSB# 27724 8460 Mount Eagle Road Ashland, VA 23005 (804) 798-9667
CUSTODY virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt Of the City of Richmond Commonwealth of Virginia, in re AIDEN KNIGHT, Juvenile Case No. JJ091018-06, JJ091018-07 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit is to: Terminate the residual parental rights (“RPR”) of Amy Dean, (Mother), Unknown, (Father), of Aiden Knight, child, DOB 11/28/2014, “RPR” means all rights and responsibilities remaining with parent after transfer of legal custody or guardianship of the person, including but not limited to rights of: visitation; adoption consent; determination of religious affiliation; and responsibility for support. It is ORDERED that the defendant Unknown (Father), Amy Dean (Mother), appear at the above-named Court and protect his/her interests on or before 7/11/16, at 9:20 AM, Court Room #1. An Extract, Teste: EDWARD F. JEWETT,Clerk virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt IN the COunty of Chesterfield Commonwealth of Virginia, in re Dixie Marie Alley JACE & COURTNEY GOODNIGHT v. WESLEY ALLEY, JR. & TIFFany kelley Case No. JJ055211-15-00, -16-00, -17-00,-18-00 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit is to: Determine custody and visitation of Dixie Marie Alley (DOB: 9/28/02), whose parents are Wesley Franklin Alley, Jr. and Tiffany Lee Kelley (last known address 621 Westover Hills Blvd. Apt. B, Richmond, Va.), pursuant to Virginia Code Section 16.1-241(A3). It is ORDERED that the defendant Tiffany Lee Kelley appear at the above-named Court and protect her interests on or before June 22, 2016 at 12:00 P.M.
virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt Of the City of Richmond Commonwealth of Virginia, in re Kentre tavon harris, Juvenile Case No. CL16000983-00 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit is to: Change minor child’s name. It is ORDERED that the defendants Michael Rogers, appear at the above-named court and protect his/her interests on or before May 26, 2016. An Extract, Teste: EDWARD F. JEWETT,Clerk virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt IN the COunty of Chesterfield Commonwealth of Virginia, in re niKKOLE ANTONETTE MCDONALD Jessica sedonia mayo v. etta mcdonald, tony mcdonald & desiree mcdonald Case No. JJ071612-05-00, -06-00 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit is to: Determine custody and visitation of Nikkole Antonette McDonald (DOB: 9/28/09), whose parents are Desiree Dominica McDonald and Tony Vashara McDonald, Jr., pursuant to Virginia Code Section 16.1-241(A3). It is ORDERED that the defendant Tony Vashara McDonald, Jr. appear at the above-named Court and protect his interests on or before June 6, 2016 at 10:00 A.M. virgiNia: iN thE JuvENiLE aND DOmEstic rELatiONs District cOurt IN the COunty of Chesterfield Commonwealth of Virginia, in re SHUNTI DESHELLE WASHINGTON MELVIN & VERNICE WASHINGTON v. DAVID HALL & SHAMEKA WASHINGTON Case No. JJ087959-01-00 OrDEr Of puBLicatiON The object of this suit is to: Determine custody of Shunti Deshelle Washington (DOB: 10/7/2000),whose whose parents are David Hall and Shameka Washington, pursuant to Virginia Code Section 16.1-241(A3). It is ORDERED that the defendants David Hall and Shameka Washington appear at the above-named Court and protect his or her interests on or before May 25, 2016 at 12:00 P.M.
Estate
License Nisa Thai Cuisine Corp Trading as: Nisa Thai Cuisine Corp, 118 S. Belvidere Street, Richmond, Virginia 23220 The above establishment is applying to the Virginia D epartment of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) for a Wine and Beer license to sell or manufacture alcoholic beverages. Owner NOTE: Objections to the issuance of this license must be submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www. abc.virginia.gov or 800-5523200.
BID COUNTY OF HENRICO, VIRGINIA CONSTRUCTION BID ITB# 16-1189-4PW Lighting and Ceiling Replacement at Adams ES, Davis ES, Dumbarton ES, Longan ES, Seven Pines ES and Skipwith ES – Replacement of lighting and ceiling grids. Due 2:00 pm, May 19, 2016 Additional information available at: http://www.henrico.us/ purchasing/. Continued on next column
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
The University of Virginia seeks a firm to provide: Research and Development Goods and Services To view a copy of RFP# KF042916 go to Procurement Services Site: http://www.procurement. virginia.edu/main/ publicpostings/RFP.html, or email pur-rfp@virginia.edu
St. Peter Baptist Church A progressive suburban church is seeking grant writers and a video media technician. Interested persons please forward resumes to spbcoffice@verizon.net. Salaries are negotiable.
The City of Richmond is seeking to fill the following positions: Corrosion Technician I Gas & Water Division 35M00000208 Public Utilities Apply by 5/15/16
Construction Inspector II 29M00000564 Public Works Apply by 05/15/16
Equipment Operator II Buildings & Grounds 35M00000327 Public Utilities Apply by 5/15/16
Maintenance Technician III Buildings & Grounds 35M00000613 Public Utilities Apply by 5/15/16
Management Analyst II Utilities Asset Management 35M00000139 Public Utilities Apply by 5/22/16
Operations Manager Fleet Division 29M00001074 Public Works Apply by 05/15/16
Pressure Control Technician I 35M00000346 Public Utilities Apply by 5/15/16
Systems Operations Analyst II Utilities Asset Management 35M00000722 Public Utilities Apply by 5/22/16
For an exciting career with the City of Richmond, visit our website for additional information and apply today! www.richmondgov.com EOE M/F/D/V
BUSINESS ATTRACTION MANAGER Richmond, Virginia
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) is seeking an experienced sales and marketing professional for the Business Attraction team to build corporate and consulting relationships and aggressively promote Virginia as a suitable location for establishment of new business facilities. The Business Attraction Manager will generate projects by conducting extensive marketing outreach to prospective companies, site selection consultants, and commercial real estate brokers. This position will work with interested company executives and regional and local economic developers to successfully locate new business operations to Virginia. Private-sector experience or relevant economic development experience preferred, as well as a demonstrated ability to aggressively sell and close deals while effectively providing client support. Candidates must possess considerable successful, executive level sales and marketing experience in a corporate business environment or in a local or regional economic development office, including demonstrated experience in developing and implementing a sales and marketing plan to effectively close deals. Candidates are expected to demonstrate the ability to manage in a team environment and leverage partners in the public and private sectors, including higher education partners, and local and regional economic development partners. The Business Attraction Manager must have excellent written and verbal communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills. Applicants must also have strong organizational skills and be able to plan and successfully manage multiple marketing projects. Proficiency in using multiple PC software packages is required. Experience with Salesforce is a plus. Frequent travel is required. A valid driver’s license is required. Undergraduate degree in marketing, business administration or economics or equivalent work experience is required. Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) designation or other industry certification is a plus. Hiring Range: $64,300 - $75,000. All candidates must apply through our website http://www.yesvirginia. org/AboutUs/Employment. Application deadline: May 6, 2016. VEDP is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All applicants are considered for employment without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, age, veteran status, political affiliation, genetics, or against otherwise qualified individuals with disabilities. It is VEDP’s intent that its employment and personnel policies and practices conform to all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations regarding non-discrimination and affirmative action. Applicants requiring more information or requiring assistance may contact VEDP Human Resources at 1-804-545-5630 or vedphr@ yesvirginia.org. TDD 1-800-828-1120
Richmond Free Press
B6 May 5-7, 2016
Sports Plus
Lisa Borders is new president of WNBA By Fred Jeter
The decades old Women’s National Basketball Association has passed the more established pro leagues in terms of administrative diversity. In fact, the WNBA, which was founded in 1996, is lapping the field in that regard. Earlier this year, Lisa Michelle Borders became the WNBA’s second consecutive African-American president when she succeeded Laurel Richie. Major League Baseball, founded in
1869; the National Hockey president while other sports League,1917; the National leagues label the position Football League, 1920; the as commissioner. National Basketball AssoThe 58-year-old Borciation, 1946; and Major ders, hired Feb. 10 as the League Soccer, 1993; have WNBA’s fourth president, never had an Africanhad her public coming American lead executive. out party as mistress of That comes despite the ceremonies of the WNBA fact that, for many years, draft in mid-April in Cona majority of players in necticut. Ms. Borders the NFL and NBA have Borders introduced the been African-American. draftees at the podium with her own The WNBA is avant-garde also in personal touch. Instead of the customthat its No. 1 executive has the title of ary hugging and high-fiving, Borders
greeted each woman with a pound and then a “W” three-finger gesture, short for WNBA. In turn, the young athletes respectfully returned the “W” sign to their president. Most recently, Borders, an Atlanta native, was vice president for Global Community Affairs at The Coca-Cola Company. From 2004 to 2010, she served as president of the Atlanta City Council and was a candidate for Atlanta’s mayor in 2009. She was instrumental in 2007
in the Atlanta Dream becoming an expansion member of the WNBA, with co-female owners Mary Brock and Kelly Loeffler. Ms. Borders received her bachelor’s degree from Duke University and master’s degree from the University of Colorado. She is a member of Duke University’s Board of Trustees. She is the granddaughter of the Rev. William Holmes Borders Sr., a civil rights activist, radio host and pastor at Atlanta’s Wheat Street Baptist Church from 1937 to 1988.
VCU Rams lose another player by transfer By Fred Jeter
Virginia Commonwealth University’s list of basketball players who are transferring continues to grow. Michael Gilmore, a 6-foot-9 sophomore from Jacksonville, Fla., is the latest Ram to depart. Nephew of NBA great Artis Gilmore, the forward was used sparingly during the second half of last season, but he erupted for 12 points in the Rams’ NCAA Tournament loss to the University of Oklahoma. For the season, Gilmore averaged 3.2 points and 2.8 rebounds. He failed to appear in six games late in the season. He is the third VCU player to transfer this year, following freshman Gerron Scissum and redshirt freshman Jon Nwankwo, both of whom were recruited by Coach Will Wade. This follows a disturbing nationwide trend.
In recent years, about 700 athletes transfer each year at the 351 NCAA Division I schools. That’s an average of about two transfers per school per season. Since 2009-10, when former Coach Shaka Smart arrived at VCU, here is a list of players who transferred from VCU and the schools in which they enrolled: • Jairus Lyles, University of MaryMichael Gilmore land-Baltimore County • Antravious Simmons, Florida Gulf Coast University • Justin Tuoyo, University of Tennessee, Chattanooga • D.J. Haley, University of Southern California • Teddy Okereafor, Rider University in New Jersey • Reco McCarter, Campbell University in North Carolina
• • • •
Jay Gavin, Bowie State University in Maryland Terrance Saintil, University of Pikeville in Kentucky Issiah Grayson, University of California-Bakersfield Terry Larrier, University of Connecticut Also, Toby Veal and Terrance Shannon left VCU without finishing their eligibility. Heath Houston dropped off the team because of health concerns. On the plus side, Coach Wade has brought in Issac Vann after one season at the University of Maine. The 6-foot-6 Vann averaged 16.4 points for the Black Bears while making the America-East All-Rookie team. Vann, from Bridgeport, Conn., will sit out 2016-17 then have three seasons of eligibility. For the upcoming season, Coach Wade will greet three incoming freshmen — 6-foot-6 De’Riante Jenkins, 6-foot-5 Marquell Fraser and 6-foot-4 Malik Crowfield. Plus, redshirted freshman Samir Doughty becomes active.
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Loan Program Underwriter VHDA has a unique opportunity for an experienced mortgage loan underwriter to utilize skills and knowledge to support our affordable housing mission. Responsibilities include: review and analysis of credit packages and appraisals to assess risk and ensure compliance with requirements of VHDA, investors, regulatory agencies and mortgage insurers; provide support to lending partners; and respond to customer inquiries. Candidates must possess recent experience underwriting FHA/VA/RD/Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac loans (minimum of 5 years preferred) and have FHA Direct Endorsement authority and VA automatic and Staff Appraisal Reviewer (SAR) approval. Extensive knowledge in current mortgage standards and practices with experience using industry automated underwriting systems and loan origination systems is required. Experience underwriting VHDA and other affordable housing programs loans preferred. Associates degree preferred. Ideal candidates will have strong communication skills and proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint. Candidates should be able to work independently and in a team environment. We offer a competitive salary with a generous benefits package. Submit resume with cover letter stating salary requirements online only at: http://www.vhda.com/about/careers an eoe this position closes at midnight on wednesday, may 18, 2016. Background and credit checks will be performed as a condition of employment. Hiring range: $59,439 – 77,271
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