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LOCAL
EDUCATION
SCHOOL’S BACK IN SESSION
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eaching another milestone in the slow return to normalcy, students across the region will be going back to school in the coming weeks — for some, it’ll be their first time in a classroom in more than a year. After Gov. Ralph Northam called on Virginia’s school districts to begin offering in-person instruction options by March 15, citing remote learning’s negative impacts on students’ educational and social development, legislation passed by the General Assembly this year takes things a step further by requiring divisions to begin face-to-face instruction for all students by July 1, though they can continue providing virtual options for students who want them. Over the summer, Richmond, Henrico, Chesterfield and Hanover schools offered families the choice between sending their students back to classrooms full time or
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continuing to learn at home. The decision is more binding in some school districts than in others: Richmond students can switch to face-to-face instruction at any time, while the decision to remain virtual is a semester-long commitment in Hanover and a yearlong commitment for Chesterfield high school students and all Henrico students. Chesterfield K-8 students can attend a synchronous online academy for the first semester or the entire school year. As of late June, 1,650 students were enrolled in the Henrico Virtual Academy, or just over 3% of the district’s approximately 50,000 students, while 490 Hanover students — 3% of the county’s students — were enrolled for remote learning. In Richmond Public Schools, 2,000 students were signed up for virtual classes — just under 10% of the district’s student body, Kindergarten teacher Courtney Gunn conducted a virtual lesson for her class at Henrico County’s Seven Pines Elementary School last September.
though RPS spokesperson Danielle Pierce said she expects the number to decrease as students return to in-person instruction throughout the year. Chesterfield County schools were unable to provide a breakdown of in-person vs. virtual enrollment by press time. Virtual instruction will vary by division, though most will use a blend of live instruction and asynchronous work for students to complete at their own pace. The Henrico school system is launching its Henrico Virtual Academy, a new model that aims to mirror the traditional school experience for its students as much as possible. Families who opted for the program cited health concerns or personal reasons that led some students to perform better in the virtual environment, HVA Principal Garry Marshall says. “There are other situations where it just might be a better fit for students, either for medical reasons or personal reasons,” Marshall says. “Some of our students have really thrived in that environment because of [fewer] distractions.” For students who will be meeting face to face, school divisions say they plan to follow state-mandated COVID-19 mitigation requirements, which will likely include physical distancing and disinfecting protocols. Students and teachers are required to wear face masks while inside school buildings regardless of vaccination status, though exceptions include eating and exercising, while the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that students be spaced at least 3 feet apart. Additionally, Richmond will require all in-person staff and students to complete a daily symptom questionnaire. Classes will start on Aug. 23 in Chesterfield, Sept. 7 in Hanover and Sept. 8 for Richmond and Henrico. —Rodrigo Arriaza
COURTESY HENRICO COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Area schools offer in-person and virtual options for the coming academic year
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LOCAL
NEWS
A HEAVY BURDEN Women have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic By Dina Weinstein
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“If you look at the Bureau of 3-year-olds this summer. ... Any The stress of COVID led Katie Labor Statistics, since February moms out there have any sugBiggers to quit her 2020, we have seen women exitgestions on night/weekend work job in May to care for her children ing the labor force more than or any work from home jobs that and her own men,” says Dr. Barbara Blake, pay decently?” mental health. chief administrative officer of The post evoked suggestions, the Dragas Center for Economic Analysympathy and support. sis and Policy at Old Dominion UniverShe was not alone. Postings on local moms’ groups over the course of the sity. “As you look at monthly job reports, pandemic spoke of isolation, loss of if you look at labor force participation income, children hating remote schoolrates and employment rates, we see the ing, and constant cooking and cleaning same story again and again — women are in cramped homes. Many women also impacted more.” experienced the loss of housing, mental According to the U.S. Department of health crises and food insecurity. Labor, in 2018, 1,464,000 women in Virginia were full-time workers. That was a 3.5% By the Numbers increase relative to the previous year. By The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disDecember 2020, this number decreased to proportionate impact on women, from 1,453,000, which is a 0.8% drop. job loss to evictions and foreclosures. Bureau of Labor Statistics data anaThe United Nations revealed that 40% lyzed by the Dragas Center shows that of all employed women globally work in women, and especially Black women, sufindustries hit hardest by the COVID-19 fered the most during the pandemic, espepandemic, including leisure and hospicially those with a high school education tality jobs, the travel industry, and food or less. Nationwide, from February 2020 services. to May 2021, there was a 7% decline in
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efore the coronavirus hit, Katie Biggers of Chesterfield County was a senior business support manager with a beer distribution company. When the pandemic kept people at home, beer consumption skyrocketed. “For 14 months, I did essentially two people’s jobs,” she says. “It got very stressful. I had a virtual learner at home. I was working 80 hours a week. I’m also in culinary school, so there was a lot going on. I had a really hard time.” Biggers’ husband’s job as a land surveyor took him out of the house every day while she juggled work and home. She felt her bosses did not understand the pressures placed upon mothers. On top of that, her extra work did not include extra pay. She was depressed and exhausted. “I was drinking too much because I was so frustrated, was being overworked and felt undervalued,” she says. Even though Biggers had her adult sister living with her to help, working from home while assisting her daughter with virtual school was overwhelming. Biggers had a mental breakdown in early March 2021 and was hospitalized. After her medical leave that followed, she had panic attacks when she thought about going back to work. On May 25, 2021, Biggers made public her struggles in the RVA Moms Facebook group: “I have made the incredible and terrifying decision to quit my STRESSFUL job and stay home with my 6- and
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COURTESY VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF HISTORY & CULTURE
The plan for the Arthur Ashe Jr. monument created by Earth Design Associates in 1995
appropriate, Ashe said. He specified that it was not to be an idealized portrait, but one that showed him wearing a warm-up suit with his shoestrings untied — DiPasquale later learned that the loose laces were due to bone spurs in Ashe’s feet. Ashe emphasized his belief in education for furthering the lives of children. He also mentioned including a tennis racket. DiPasquale began preliminary sketches, and Ashe prepared reference material to send to him. Within weeks, however, Ashe succumbed to pneumonia. His widow, Jeanne, sent along a packet of photos, and when DiPasquale saw them, he wept. Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder, the state’s first elected Black governor governor and a friend of Ashe’s, directed that his body lie in state at the Executive Mansion. Some 6,000 people attended Ashe’s memorial service in the athletic center named for him. He was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery next to his mother. DiPasquale soon began to work on the statue. Moutoussamy-Ashe and other Ashe family members approved the drawings and the full-scale 12-foot-high model of the statue. She directed DiPasquale toward the nonprofit mentoring organization Ashe founded, Virginia Heroes Inc., and the group agreed to raise $400,000 toward the completion and installation of the 24-foot-high monument. When Virginia Heroes publicly presented the plaster model in December 1993, Gov. Wilder made an astounding declaration. He stated of the five Confederate statues then present on Monument Avenue, “These are heroes from an era which would deny the aspirations of an Arthur Ashe. He would stand with them, saying, ‘I speak, too, for Virginia.’ ” Wilder’s pronouncement took everyone — even DiPasquale — by surprise. The endeavor to honor Ashe on Monument Avenue touched off a three-year
political, cultural and historical paroxysm. Ashe’s vision for a pantheon of Black athletes faded without his guidance. Yet the idea for an Ashe monument inspired lo n g t i me p ro po ne nts , i nclu d i n g then-Councilman Chuck Richardson, who sought civil rights representation to expand Monument Avenue’s historical framing. On July 17, 1995, more than 100 public speakers addressed a marathon City Council meeting. Pitchford offered a care-
“It’s incredible for me to think, 25 years later, that there’s a Black man, an athlete and a scholar on Monument Avenue.” —DeMario Pitchford
fully worded statement that his Mosby Middle School English teacher edited. “It was a tough school,” Pitchford says, “but I was a straight-A student. I definitely needed some positive stuff in my life.
And Mr. D showed me that if you want something, and you’re dedicated to the goal, you can make it happen.” In a Jan. 1, 1996, Richmond Times-Dispatch editorial, Moutoussamy-Ashe stated that her late husband wanted a statue for a sports hall of fame. She wrote, “I am afraid that a statue of Arthur Ashe on Monument Avenue honors Richmond, Virginia, more than it does its son, his legacy, and his life’s work.” However, on July 10, 1996, several thousand spectators gathered on Monument Avenue to listen to songs from choirs and impassioned remarks. Protesters waving Confederate flags stood to one side. All watched the tarp drop to reveal Ashe — and the children. Pitchford says people didn’t believe he knew DiPasquale. “They thought that I’d entered some kind of contest,” he says, laughing. Pitchford now lives outside Richmond and operates a nonemergency medical transport service. He’s been married for 20 years and has two children who know that the boy who grew up to be their father is on Monument Avenue. “It’s incredible for me to think, 25 years later, that there’s a Black man, an athlete and a scholar on Monument Avenue,” he says. “It’s a beautiful thing.” R
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LIVING
Better, Longer Lives Medical care and treatment innovations have enhanced the odds for people with sickle cell disease By Tharon Giddens
Richmond resident Kenny Lane is receiving treatment through the Adult Sickle Cell Program at VCU Health and is a resident in its adult sickle cell medical home.
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ain is an inescapable part of life for Kenny Lane. It’s been so intense at times that he’s had to seek help in emergency rooms. Lane’s pain stems from sickle cell anemia, the most common inherited blood disease in the United States. It is a blood disorder in which red blood cells gain a sickle shape and become sticky and hard, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These sickle-shaped cells can get stuck in blood vessels, and that limits the flow of blood and oxygen, which can cause pain, damage organs, bring on infections or trigger a stroke. The disease occurs mostly in African Americans in this country, but it also
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HEALTH
impacts other groups of descent from tropical climes. Lane, 34, has been contending with intense, awful pain since he was a preschooler. His grandmother would take him to emergency rooms seeking relief. “I used to have a lot of aches and pains in my body, and we didn’t know exactly where the pain was coming from,” he says. “I didn’t learn about sickle cell until I was like 14 or 15 and understand it, what happens with my body and causes me to have so much pain.” Pain can strike anywhere at any time and be mild to severe. Episodes can be brief or prolonged. “The pain is just terrible, like somebody took a baseball bat to your shin and started whamming on it, and hours later they still haven’t stopped — just wham, wham, w h a m , w h a m , ” s ay s D r. Wa l ly Smith, director of VCU Health's adult Sickle Cell Program and the Florence Neal Cooper Smith Professor of Sickle Cell Disease for VCU. “Women who have it sometimes compare it to childbirth and say they’d rather have a baby.” There are 700 patients served through the VCU clinic. Sickle cell patients have long been
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7/14/21 11:13 AM
LIVING
TRAVEL
THE UPSIDE DOWN SOUTH Enjoy cool waters in the Appalachian Highlands of Southwest Virginia By Tharon Giddens
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ou can beat the August heat with a sweet respite weekend in the mountains and hills of Southwest Virginia. Some of the finest jewels of the commonwealth’s network of state parks are here, including one of the oldest, Hungry Mother State Park (dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/hungrymother), and the newest, Clinch River State Park (dcr.virginia.gov/stateparks/clinch-river), offering opportunities to swim, canoe, tube, hike and bike.
About 5 miles north of Marion, Hungry Mother is one of Virginia’s first six state parks. It opened in 1937 and features a 108-acre lake with a full-facility beach for swimming. You can rent watercraft or bring your own, and there’s a large network of trails, including a relatively flat one along the lakefront. Enjoy the ride on Virginia Highway 16 from Marion to the park and on into Tazewell County. This twisty, fun, beautiful road is known as the Back of the Dragon. There are some 300 curves along its 32 miles.
WHAT’S BLUE A ceremony was held in June to commemorate the opening of Clinch River State Park. Envisioned as a string of properties offering access along 100 miles of the river, making it Virginia’s first blueway state park, it’s only partially open for now, with its Sugar Hill Unit in St. Paul. There’s no parking fee, and you can leave your vehicle in an access area in a town park at Oxbow Lake and walk in to fish, picnic or tackle the 9 miles of trails, including the Sugar Hill Trail, which gets its name from maple trees that once graced the hill for sugar production. We walked the loop clockwise, and it parallels the river
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through cool woodlands, then turns upward across the broad, open field that offers great views of buzzards gliding on the updrafts against a mountain backdrop. There are also nearby access points to canoe, kayak or tube.
THE WESTERN FRONT If you don’t have a tube or other vessel for river exploration, you’ll find outfitters in the town of St. Paul, including Clinch River Adventures (clinchriveradventures.com) and Clinch Life Outfitters (clinchlifeout fitters.com). Clinch River Adventures is on the river in town. The compact downtown is well worth a stroll. Places to stay include The Western Front Hotel (westernfronthotel. com), its name a cheeky reference to the community’s wild past. A center for mining and railroads, it was also home to a host of saloons and other adult entertainment that earned a portion of the city a reputation as being more dangerous than the Western Front, the World War I battlefields in France and Belgium. Across the street is the Amira Co Café (facebook.com/amiracocafe). Open and airy, it features quirky, blown-up photos of St. Paul in its bawdier times, including men standing atop
Sugar Hill Brewing Co.
what looks like an overturned train. It seems every town now has at least one brewpub or microbrewery, and St. Paul’s Sugar Hill Brewing Co. (sugarhill brewing.com) is a fine one. We took home 2 liters of its Western Front, a pleasant, light German pilsner that provided perfect sipping while we enjoyed the firefly light show during an early summer evening on the front porch of a mountain cabin. R
SAVE THE DATE FIRST SATURDAYS: The Historic Lincoln Theater in Marion is home to the Song of the Mountains monthly concert series, featuring Americana, bluegrass and traditional music of the Southern Appalachians. songofthemoutains.org
FROM TOP: BRAD DEEL; SARAH HAUSER
WHAT’S OLD
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FIRST PL ACE
I Have Seen Richmond BY MICHAEL JONES
I have seen Richmond Stately old city Sitting on the Falls of the James River Where river, roads and train tracks met Commerce flourished Human beings bought and sold Slavery: Virginia’s largest industry I have seen Richmond I’ve seen it build roads and stores and even universities Over the graves of slaves and former slaves Over the places where they were bought, sold and killed I’ve seen the placards Tipping a cap to the inequities of slavery and oppression And in the shadow of the Auction Block Now stands the Justice Center: A great euphemistic monument To White Supremacy I have seen Richmond Where scenic boulevards course through its neighborhoods And highways, meant to bring people together, Were carefully placed To isolate the black and poor I have seen Richmond Where the privileged worry more about property values Than racial injustice Where an armed black man is a threat But an armed white man is a patriot Yes, I have seen Richmond
FROM ROSCOE BURNEMS: This is a poem that the world needs to see and hear. It is an unfiltered narrative of Richmond without revisionist whitewashing. I deeply identified with the pain and hurt as this poet journeyed around the city. I love the approach and candor of this piece ... a lot. I know reading it may be uncomfortable for some, but if we ever expect to move forward as a city, we must reconcile its dark past and accept it for what it is.
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FINALIST
Gold Ribbon BY L AURA BOYCOURT
When they met, she wore A gold ribbon in her raven black hair. That’s how he knew it was Her. He placed the token in a drawer where she would not see. Around her bouquet he fastened it, a streak of color Against the cascade of White lace. In their new home, it encircled a vase that had been her mother’s. They cannot recall who placed it there. When their firstborn arrived, without breath, she unpinned it from the receiving blanket. A keepsake that would not be Kept. It graced the threshold As their boys Took their first steps, first dates, first flights from the nest. It gently flapped in the breeze That skimmed the grandchildren’s pudgy fingers as they held the New fascination. Now faded and tattered, it and them, The fabric rested on the bedside table As his mind struggled to Remember. As her body struggled to Fight the malignancy. Two rooms, two call buttons. One love. One gold, tangible piece of their life Together. Removing it from his pocket, He took her in his arms one last time for One last dance To the music coming from down the hall. His feeble hands Tenderly tied it Around her snowy white Hair. That’s how he would know it was Her.
FROM ROSCOE BURNEMS: I love the storytelling of time through a single object. This feels like a fairy tale and captures some of the most important moments of one's life through the narrowed lens of the gold ribbon. I read the poem several times and nearly began weeping each time.
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FINALIST
Sonata BY CLAUDIA KESSEL
The reed at her lips, the strings in his hand, how making music resembles making love in its energy and rhythm, the listening and watching, eyes and mind in tune, the flirtation, crescendo, the peak, the ecstasy, the release into joy of two bodies, two forms in sacred symmetry, harmonious elegance, encased in their oblivious beauty, their world only sound, produced by mouths and by fingers, by flesh and breath, let me follow your phrase to that place where the notes lead me, tumbling forth, as if by some divine plan, let me meet you in that place, that trembling triad, that vibrating fifth, that cavern of delight, take me to the cliff, throw me over its precipice, your suspension dripping from my bow, embrace me with your voice, with your body of wood, of string, we need to touch each other with skin, with sound, gentle, tender, then fierce and enflamed, our love cascading in a flourish of sixteenths, releasing into euphoric unison, we make love in cathedrals, in classrooms and concert halls, bars and bedrooms, discipline coupled with abandon, math and poetry, numbers and hysteria, an impassioned merging, blending our timbres, give me your tongue and your bliss so I know not myself, or you, or any other than this dance of delirium, we follow like hypnotic monks to the altar, blindly and without knowing our purpose, drawn toward it as the flame, as the sea, the cross, as the crimson sun, a manifestation of life’s energy, of our love for all that is, a celebration of our own beauty, the man and the woman, of the rapture of God, of all of it, of citrus sweat and crushed violets, of bruised petals and black waters, of the sparrow interlacing with clouds, spirit blown from our center, sculpted by hands, by mouths, by breath falling on the world’s ears mildly as the creek’s gurgling legato, as the locust’s leaflets fluttering in autumn descent, or abruptly as an arrow piercing flesh with stinging staccato, it births new life, potent and dangerous, delightful and delirious, for a moment not held back by fear, by shame, by doubt which colors our prosaic lives, we may for once be present and fall into a poem, breathe through it, this ecstasy of minutes, mind sharp as fire, yet a blurring of forms, of limbs, voices aching like gulls, roaring as the sea, the body knows what to do, where to go, the music lives in our muscles and our minds, my voice swells with my blood, with yours, with our blue rapture. My heart—make love, make music, ravish me with those twelve tones, for soon we will be dead and buried in the solid and silent earth.
FROM ROSCOE BURNEMS: This narrative unpacks the human experience in a way that we can all identify with in some way, through music. The imagery in this poem is spectacular and refreshing and makes you want to dance. While the poem doesn't feel linear, in 4/4 time it takes you through the entirety of life and love and rhythm and ends on this hopeful but somber note about the silence of death.
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The River City Magnolias practice a pinwheel formation at Randolph Pool.
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SWIMMING IN SYNC The River City Magnolias combine friendship and fitness to showcase retro water ballet
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By Paula Peters Chambers ▬ Photography by Eric Foster
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a e s i Ra s! s a Gl Pop the champagne cork, cut the cake and turn up the music! The results of our 34th annual Best & Worst survey couldn’t have come at a better time. With pandemic restrictions lifting and life gearing back up, we’re eager to get out and celebrate all the best the region has to offer. Thousands of readers responded to our online ballot this spring, sharing their opinions in 194 categories. Check out their picks, from the best places to picnic, party or people watch to top spots to shop for a new outfit, grab a drink or see a concert. Plus, our staff members weigh in with some of their favorites. Get out and enjoy!
Contributors: Chad Anderson, Rodrigo Arriaza, Craig Belcher, Paul Blumer, Hunter Britt, Tayler Butters, Nicole Cohen, Stephanie Ganz, Tharon Giddens, Jessica Ronky Haddad, Ryan Hudgins, Harry Kollatz Jr., Mandy Loy, Eileen Mellon, Meredith Moran, Susan Morgan, Genevelyn Steele
*The staff compiled and vetted the survey results before they were shared with the advertising staff.
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NEWS & MEDIA P. 90 ▬ PLACES & SPACES P. 96 ▬ FOOD & DRINK P. 104 COMMUNITY & CLASSES P. 124 ▬ CULTURE P. 134 ▬ SHOPPING & SERVICES P. 142
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7/20/21 2:11 PM
PRIVATE SCHOOLS
SCHOOL NEWS The latest on the private education front
TECHNOLOGY
Filtering Knowledge Students build air filters at The Carmel School
COURTESY THE CARMEL SCHOOL
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ngineering and robotics students at The Carmel School helped keep their classmates and teachers safe from COVID-19 and allergens by making the air filters used in buildings on campus. The three Wildcat Air Filters, built by the students in February have been used in the lower, middle and upper schools and the athletic center at the K-12 Christian school located in Ruther Glen. The students worked on manufacturing workstations for two weeks to assemble the filters. Engineering and robotics teacher Kember Forcke says the units filter 60,000 cubic feet per hour and will last approximately six months. After building the filters, the students presented their product to the head of school, as well as the heads of the lower, middle and upper schools. At the presentation, they explained how the filters would be part of the school’s plan to protect students, faculty, and staff from COVID-19 and how they were assembled.
Engineering and robotics students at The Carmel School constructed air filters for buildings on the school’s campus.
“We prepare students to solve the problems of the future, and what better way to do that than by addressing the needs of the day.” The Carmel School has offered in-person classes since the beginning of the school year. Head of School Carolyn Williamson credits social distancing, masks, hand-washing and, now, the air filters built by students as essential in helping the school stay open during the pandemic. “We prepare students to solve the
problems of the future, and what better way to do that than by addressing the needs of the day,” Williamson says. “As our country shut down due to COVID-19, our students developed creative solutions that helped keep us on campus and learning in person. That’s who we are. That’s what we do.” —Jackie Llanos
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PRIVATE SCHOOLS
Supplying a School Year With Hope and Caution BY DINA WEINSTEIN
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Administrators await state guidance for safe instruction
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chool leaders spoke about their plans for the 2021-22 school year with precariousness, as well as ambiguity because of the uncertainty of COVID-19 and changing health guidelines. When students at St. Michael’s Episcopal School return to the classroom in September, it may feel quite different from last year. Wearing masks is a possibility, but there will be no more desk shields. Speaking in mid-June, St. Michael’s head of school says they fully intend to return to normal classroom density. “For next year, our plan right now is to resume normal operations for this school, with normal-size groups, in their regularly scheduled classrooms, moving around campus in a normal fashion,” says Bob Gregg, director of St. Michael’s Episcopal School. Almost 400 students in pre-K through eighth grade attend St. Michael’s, located in Bon Air on a 70-acre campus that includes a lake. During the 2020-2021 academic year, St. Michael’s staff and students went through a variety of setups, including learning
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virtually. When on campus, students and staff wore masks, used Plexiglas dividers in certain situations, and ate outside in tents to comply with COVID-19 physical distancing requirements. Those moves came in response to guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the Virginia Department of Health (VDOH) and the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE). As the school year ended, St. Michael’s put out an informative document for its families, addressing plans for the following year, but with coronavirus case numbers dropping and private school leaders anticipating new guidelines to come in late July, not all rules were finalized. “One of the things we’ve learned is how much we enjoy being together for meals, chapel or performances, and how much we have missed that over the course of this year,” Gregg says. “We’ve missed having parents on campus on a regular basis for any number of functions. So we’re eager to get back to hosting those events as well.” What set private schools around the Richmond area apart from their public-school counterparts last year was consistent
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As the 2021 school year came to an end, Frank imagined that the summer would include a large amount of planning to understand guidelines and needs for the upcoming academic year. “We’ll be thinking about what does it mean if we have to social distance at 3 feet?” Frank says. “What does it mean if we have no social distancing? What does it mean if ages 4 through 11 are still required to wear masks and the others are not?” Frank and his team will consider how they are going to space furniture as they also evaluate whether or not they will once again use cafeterias, their theater and social gathering spaces as classrooms or for their original purposes. Frank is also deliberately considering how the Steward School will communicate plans to current and prospective families. “So all that [planning] will continue as it did last summer, but our muscles are better fit,” Frank says. One change St. Michael’s instituted is an outdoor education class for every grade. “Our faculty have bent over backwards
to support the children and the families here at St. Michael’s,” Gregg says. “And it’s truly remarkable what they have done day in and day out to meet the in-person and virtual needs of these families. Faculty were really writing the playbook in
Eighth graders at St. Michael’s Episcopal School conducted water testing experiments on campus.
terms of how to do remote and in-person teaching, and sometimes simultaneously, because there was not a model.” Private schools such as Collegiate and Steward are strongly encouraging vaccination of faculty, staff and students 12 and older. “We are not yet requiring vaccines,” Frank says, speaking in June. “We are encouraging them, and we are asking families to self-report whether or not they have had their children vaccinated. As the state establishes its patterns and its guidelines, we will follow those.” Steward will continue to offer an asynchronous learning option next year for students who have medical needs. Collegiate’s Oliver says the school is “offering continuity of learning for those who are absent related to COVID-19. Each situation will be handled individually.” McCourt and Gregg say that Cristo Rey and St. Michael’s will not continue an online or virtual learning option in 2021. “We will continue to use Zoom as a way to address absences if students are out of school for an extended period of time due to illness,” McCourt says. “We’ll
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PRIVATE SCHOOLS
L AST LOOK
School leader considers importance of community building By Dan Frank
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here is a child standing alone on the playground looking uncertain as others play around her; this is the first time she has been around other kids in months. A teacher looks shell-shocked after teaching behind a mask to masked students, while simultaneously including a group of kids online, with no break during the day. Parents who have never been allowed to set foot on campus wave from the carpool line, representing the best that they have to give. This is what our campus looked like in August 2020 as we reopened school, and it illustrates the imperative under which we operated. As a school community, we believe that students — children — need to be surrounded by teachers, coaches, mentors and peers who will love, guide, push and connect with them. Our abiding goal was deceptively simple: to open school in person, safely. The Steward School is a coed, independent JK-12 secular college-prep school of about 700 students in Richmond’s West End. Like many of our peers, we completely re-imagined school in 2020. Many of our changes were directly related to the health of our community, and they included distancing, sanitization, masking and ventilation. These operational changes led to many other program constraints, and we are proud of our responses: We worked hard to keep up community spirit through pep parades and outdoor events; held athletic practices for every sport when we couldn’t compete and then developed protocols so that we could compete; sang
and played instruments outside, held small live theater events; created virtual arts productions, assemblies, and social events; prioritized mindfulness as well as diversity, equity and inclusion work; and kept academics rigorous but also responsive to the stressful conditions. As we prepare for this next school year, we — and I believe our colleagues throughout Virginia — are affirmed in our belief that brick-and-mortar school communities, with countless opportunities for learning and connection, are more important than ever. Thus, our abiding goal for this coming year is to build and rebuild community. Because of the pandemic, our schools have many students who have not experienced the full breadth of our communities. At Steward, we define community as culture with intent, and it includes: what we know about ourselves, what we believe about ourselves and the world, what we
Dan Frank is the Head of School at The Steward School.
COURTESY THE STEWARD SCHOOL
LESSONS ON THE PANDEMIC
teach and do, and an ethic — a means of knowing what is right and how to make those decisions. Any group of people will form a culture; a community is a culture with expressed values and beliefs. Students new to our communities will need help in building identities as they emerge from isolation, resuming pro-social agency as they interact in the wider community, building faith in their learning competency instead of focusing on their gaps from the prior 18 months, and importantly, marking connections. At The Steward School, examples of how we will accomplish this include hiring a new school counselor, creating The Center for Engagement (which combines our work in health and wellness; diversity, equity and inclusion; community service; and socio-emotional learning), and embracing a schoolwide theme of play, led by the Bryan Innovation Lab. We are who we are only because we live in community; community is not only our purpose, it is our definition. We are reliant on others in our understanding both of the world and our place in that world. This is perhaps the most important lesson of the pandemic.
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“In retrospect, I wish I had dressed up in some crazy costume for one of our Teams calls!”
Humor Was Her Coping Mechanism JULEE FLETCHER, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER, SOAR365 (FORMERLY GREATER RICHMOND ARC) SOAR365.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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WHEN THE SOAR 365 STAFF BEGAN
working remotely on March 16, 2020, Julee Fletcher, for the first time, worried about the organization’s future. A nonprofit that serves individuals with disabilities, SOAR365 has a human services division offering therapy and daily activities, as well as an employment division that provides workers, often in janitorial and custodial jobs. Both needed to continue. “We fl ipped very quickly to telehealth as a way to continue pediatric therapy,” Fletcher says. “We were also concerned about safety of our employees, because some federal offices and municipalities were still in motion.” Fletcher says the nonprofit relied on three guiding principles throughout the upheaval: Protect the health and wellbeing of clients and staff; do everything
possible to provide fi nancial stability to staff and their families; and ensure the long-term fi nancial health and viability of the organization. She credits the IT team for a seamless transition to a cloud-based platform. “You wouldn’t have thought we missed a beat,” she says. And where she could, Fletcher tried to lighten the mood. “Humor is my coping mechanism,” she says. “It was hard to bring that into the work setting, but even in the rough times, we would look for any nugget of humor. I work with a great team: We love our work, we’re passionate about our work and we want to laugh. In retrospect, I wish I had dressed up in some crazy costume for one of our Teams calls!”
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Strengthening Body, Mind and Spirit CATHY REDFORD, VICE PRESIDENT OF SALES, SYNERGY TECHNICAL
JAY PAUL
WHEN YOUR BUSINESS IS CLOUD
technologies, a global pandemic brings challenges, but not panic. “We were extremely well prepared,” Cathy Redford says of the Synergy Technical team. “We have the ability and the technology in place to work remotely in a very secure manner. Many of our clients were also well prepared, and we continued to grow at really strong levels.” Redford says Synergy’s focus on serving companies for the long haul is at the forefront of every conversation, noting that the company’s fi rst client, who signed on in 2011, is still with the fi rm. “We lead with solving people’s problems and want to sell them what they need, not as much as we can,” she says. “Because we’ve grown
globally, our clients are dealing with engineers who have done global rollouts; we can bring a lot of value because of the experience we have.” When the pandemic ended business travel, Redford took advantage of that time, very intentionally. “I hired a phenomenal [personal] trainer, started cycling and just signed up for a triathlon in August,” she says. “I really want to be positioned for a really healthy remainder of my life. “There were choices I made that I’m very glad I made — around my physical, mental and spiritual health,” she says. “I knew I had people who counted on me, and I didn’t want to let anyone down. I’m a lot stronger than I thought I was.”
“I really want to be positioned for a really healthy remainder of my life.”
Synergy Technical 2201 W. Broad St. 804-302-4943 synergy-technical.com
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“The most important selfcare superpower is paying attention in the moment and being curious about what you feel.”
Paying Attention to the Moment DR. NATALIE MAY, FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR, CHANGE THE WORLD RVA CHANGETHEWORLDRVA.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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DR. NATALIE MAY LEARNED
something interesting during the pandemic: She’s an introvert. A researcher at U.Va.’s School of Nursing, May founded and serves as director of Change the World RVA, a nonprofit that provides hands-on support to high school students experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity. Prepandemic, there were group gatherings twice a week. May realized connections could continue — but in a different way. “We are in fellowship with our students and volunteers and friends of the program; that’s the magic of our organization,” she says. “We couldn’t meet in person, [but] because we have relationships already established with our youth, it was easier for us to stay in touch and support them.” There is no “graduation” from the
program, May says, noting that the teens are encouraged to stay in touch. “We’re here as a parent would be — for emergencies, somebody to come celebrate a holiday with,” she says. “The trajectory is really like having children whose need for you is changed but not gone forever.” Working from home, May completed a book — “Self-Care for New and Student Nurses” — that was published with co-authors in April 2021. “The most important self-care superpower is paying attention in the moment and being curious about what you feel,” she says. “Ask yourself, ‘Why am I tense? What can I do to make that feel better?’ That curiosity extends to others and is especially important with teenagers, because teens sometimes do things that seem very weird.”
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Growth Through Honesty and Openness SHAREEMA WILLIAMS, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, COMMERCIAL LENDING, ESSEX BANK
JAY PAUL
SHAREEMA WILLIAMS RECALLS THE
“frenzy” that began when the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program was announced. Community banks had to choose to participate, and Williams called Essex Bank CEO Rex Smith to make the case. “It was more so about advocating, for choosing the right thing to do, because the pandemic was no one’s fault.” Instrumental in getting that program off the ground with her team, Williams conveyed to current and new business clients that the bank was going to be a partner for them through it all. And now, as she’s completing the PPP loan forgiveness process with these clients, Williams can’t wait to get back to “the core business of banking” — sitting down with customers and planning for the future. Essex Bank recently announced a merger deal with United Bank, and Williams embraces what lies ahead. “I’m looking forward to
competing in spaces and on a scale we haven’t been able to in the past.” Williams helps new bank associates with planning for professional growth. She coaches, as her own bank mentor Bill O’Connor did, through transparency, honest feedback and an open-door policy. “How do we get better if no one’s being honest with you?” she says. As member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Incorporated, a River City Rotary Club board member and young professionals chair of Richmond’s Risk Management Association chapter, Williams thrives on giving back to her community, but with a pandemic caveat. With a renewed focus on personal relationships, Williams reevaluated how she set priorities. “I realized that sometimes I can’t work, because I need to do something else, when in the past I put off personal and family obligations for the sake of work demands.”
“It was more so about advocating, for choosing the right thing to do, because the pandemic was no one’s fault.”
Essex Bank 9954 Mayland Drive 804-934-9999 essexbank.com
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“This year, I got to know myself better, what my boundaries are, what my limits are.”
President of W.E.B. DuBois Honor Society Focuses on Varying Viewpoints ANGELINA HENDREN, MEADOWBROOK HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATE, BOUND FOR VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH UNIVERSITY
SPONSORED BY
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ANGELINA HENDREN’S SENIOR YEAR
looked very different from the ones that came before. While schoolwork and activities continued, having them online meant she had more time for other pursuits. “I kept connections with a small group of friends, and I expanded my content — I consumed more news,” she says. “For me, it was about seeing different points of view and seeing what’s going on in the world. I had time to think about how I could help as a person, and how I could be a better person.” As president of the W.E.B. DuBois Honor Society, Hendren led the group through biweekly meetings with mentor partners from DuPont, during which students worked on resume and interview skills, as well as their college applications.
“It was the only leadership position I took — I wanted to focus on that,” she says. “I wanted to be active, be organized and be present. It helped me organize my priorities and my time.” To relax, Hendren focused on music and writing. Instead of keeping music in the background, she made a point of sitting and reading song lyrics and seeking out new genres. She also spent time writing, primarily fiction. “I’m excited to fi nally be 18, to be able to do things on my own,” she says, noting that she plans to study business and communications at VCU. “This year, I got to know myself better, what my boundaries are, what my limits are,” she says. “I learned that being present in the moment is so important.”
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Coaching More Leaders Through the Pandemic CARMEN C. NEFF, SITE TURNAROUND LEADER, DUPONT
JAY PAUL
FOR CARMEN C. NEFF, THE
pandemic meant more work, not less. As a “project manager on steroids” for DuPont’s manufacturing of Tyvek®, a synthetic material used in the manufacture of medical packaging and hazmat suits, Neff was tasked with keeping equipment, staffi ng and scheduling on track. “Tyvek is very important to frontline workers in the medical field; products we make have been used even more during the pandemic,” she says. “We really cranked up production. We had to be creative in getting teams together, and our plans had to be more crisp than ever.” Because of the increased need, Neff asked people who didn’t usually have a leadership role to take on more
responsibility, with her coaching and mentoring as support. “I’m used to being a leader and delegating here and there, but we needed more leaders,” she says. “Giving them the opportunity to shine has been so important to me.” Neff and her husband both work for DuPont, so they both understood the increasing demands of the other’s job. Neff also relied on a group of five women friends, using Friday Zoom calls and bicycle rides to connect and de-stress. “We made a decision early on that we would talk about how we feel, and a lot of things happened — we’ve lost loved ones, babies have been born,” she says. “Through it all, we have been supportive of one another. I really don’t keep anything bottled up any more.”
“Giving [new leaders] the opportunity to shine has been so important to me.”
DuPont 5200 DuPont Site Road 804-383-2000 dupont.com
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“The biggest lesson I learned was how to give myself and others grace and space.”
Grace and Space Given to Staff, Self LINDA TISSIERE, CEO, YWCA OF RICHMOND YWCARICHMOND.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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YWCA STAFF HIT A WALL LAST
October, Linda Tissiere says. “It was before vaccines were announced, before the election, when winter was starting to set in, [a division head] came and said everyone is exhausted mentally, physically and emotionally,” she says. “The staff had leaned in quickly, with the mission of continuing to be able to provide programs and services seamlessly, but it took a tremendous toll on them individually.” Tissiere responded by bringing in mental health professionals for staff, encouraging team members to take time off and suggesting they fi nd places other than their homes to work. She also began a weekly email that included links to resources as well as a “spot of humor” — a song she’d heard or a personal story that might bring a smile.
“The biggest lesson I learned was how to give myself and others grace and space,” she says. “Sometimes, you don’t even realize how hard you’re working or how stressed you are until you get to a breaking point.” At the same time, Tissiere says, the YWCA continued with its capital campaign, which included a “major transformation” of its downtown building. “We had good momentum and were able to get the preschool opened only a couple of months later than anticipated,” she says. Another bright spot: “I was impressed by the generosity and compassion of the region we live in,” she says. “No sooner had we entered the dark days of the pandemic, the philanthropic community rallied, reaching out to nonprofits that provided safety nets. I’m not sure all these nonprofits could have made it through.”
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Human Resources, Front and Center SUE DAVIES, CHIEF HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICER, MARKEL
JAY PAUL
SUE DAVIES SAYS THE PANDEMIC
revealed how flexibility can emerge when it’s required. “At the end of 2019, our HR team had a wonderful plan for 2020, but at the middle of March, we had to coursecorrect,” she says. “We pushed for clarity of purpose, because when you’re not all together [in a physical space], the things that happen by osmosis just don’t take place. We have to be clear on what to concentrate and focus on.” Davies and her team continued to hire and onboard employees, and they also moved nearly 40 summer interns to a virtual program, which she says was “highly successful.” Her own role also shifted. “As a leader, I’ve had to be much more visible, implementing biweekly pulse surveys and fi nding different ways
to connect,” she says. “I had to play a more strategic role with the larger management team, because this was a human crisis in so many ways.” At home, Davies worked to maintain familial ties. “Other than my husband and three children, my family is in the United Kingdom, Canada and South Africa,” she says. “We’ve really missed the whole family piece; we can’t wait for travel to open up.” Looking ahead, Davies sees both recovery and renewal. "The challenges over the last 14 months have pushed us to thrive in different ways," she says. “How do we fi nd the best of both worlds and determine what the future looks like? This is an opportunity to make some significant changes.”
“This was a human crisis in so many ways.”
Markel Corp. 4521 Highwoods Parkway 800-446-6671 markel.com
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“We needed to take a moment and breathe to get through our emotions.”
Cuing Up to Adjust the Sails MYRA GOODMAN SMITH, PRESIDENT AND CEO, LEADERSHIP METRO RICHMOND LMRONLINE.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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AS THE PANDEMIC TOOK HOLD,
Myra Goodman Smith turned to a quotation from 20th-century motivational writer and speaker William Arthur Ward — “The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails” — inserting “leader” in place of “realist.” LMR’s signature program, Leadership Quest — which seeks to build relationships among business and nonprofit professionals — quickly shifted to a hybrid platform and added workshops, open to anyone, on sustainability, nonprofit board work, and inclusion and diversity. “We recognized that leadership development needed to continue,” she says. “We didn’t fold up the tent.” Goodman also began hearing from people in the community, expressing
concern in the wake of the George Floyd murder and asking how to take action. “We got calls from people saying, ‘I want to do something,’ ” she says. “But we needed to take a moment and breathe to get through our emotions. As an African American woman, I had to manage myself … while helping people understand what was happening. I told [inquirers] to look at your resources, your networks, your abilities to make a difference.” At home, Goodman and her husband cleared furniture from a rarely used living room and bought a pool table — replacing one they had years ago. Now, she says, their daily game is a welcome source of relaxation. “I do walk a lot, but this is something my husband and I share,” she says. “It’s something to take my mind off the world.”
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Fenty and her team quickly recognized that the mental health of their students was suffering.
Recruiting and Supporting, From 6 Feet Away SHION FENTY, P.O.W.E.R. CAREER COACH, PATHWAYS PATHWAYS.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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PATHWAYS IS A NONPROFIT
dedicated to assisting those in need, whether it be with education, financial literacy or health and wellness. One extension of Pathways is its P.O.W.E.R. program, which stands for promoting outstanding work ethics and responsibility. Shion Fenty and her team of fellow career coaches work throughout the year in Central Virginia, recruiting individuals between the ages of 16 and 24 for the program. Once a student has been recruited, the program then sets them up with counseling and assessments designed to help them determine a career path; helps them prepare for the GED, if needed; assists with vocational certifications; facilitates tutoring; and offers other help. In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, Fenty grappled with how to do her job in the face of growing restrictions and uncertainty. With schools and churches closed
and gatherings called off, Fenty took matters into her own hands. “Whenever I’d go to the grocery store and I saw someone, I said, ‘Hey, this is what we do, would you be interested?’ And I would recruit that way, 6 feet away.” During the pandemic, in addition to the early recruiting challenges, Fenty and her team quickly recognized that the mental health of their students was suffering. She sometimes received calls at 2 or 3 a.m. from students in need of help and support. She realized that something had to be done to help them and began holding outdoor classes and meetings while incorporating social distancing measures. “They’re outside, they’re in masks, they’re super far apart,” she recalls. “We had a little megaphone.” Noting the severity of the students’ declining mental health, Fenty recognized that in order for her work to be effective, “we’re going to have to shift gears and get these kids out in the open.”
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“Ultimately, we want to influence students’ ability to graduate on time and to thrive.”
The Beyondthe-Classroom Learning Lifeline BARBARA COUTO SIPE, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NEXT-UP NEXTUPRVA.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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WHEN THE COVID -19 PANDEMIC HIT,
Barbara Couto Sipe and her team at Next-Up had no virtual programming. Within two weeks, they brought their after-school offerings online to Richmond middle schoolers when these students needed them the most. Created in 2013, Next-Up is a network of individuals and small businesses holding after-school enrichment classes for middle schoolers. Kids can take classes in things such as the culinary arts or robotics or yoga and wellness. “We think of ourselves as a system,” says Couto, president and CEO. “We aren’t a direct-service provider. We do the marketing and the outreach and the data collection. ... [The instructors] really do the magical work of touching kids and inspiring them.” Next-Up is now in five middle schools across the city, and it’s had more than 1,800 participants. Over
seven years, Sipe and her team have found that Next-Up participants also have improved school attendance, behavior and grades. “Ultimately, we want to influence students’ ability to graduate on time and to thrive.” While dealing with the limitations set by the pandemic, Sipe and her team began to notice that more students were joining their programs virtually. Some students were logged in all day last summer. “It provided a real unexpected connection for the kids,” she says. Some kids began to comment that they now had friends all over the city. In looking toward the future, Sipe says that Next-Up is readying for what students are going to need. “We know that there is going to be a sizable learning loss from this last year. We know that the emotional health and the social health for students is going to be really important to help kids rebound.”
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Tending to What Matters Most RACHAEL LAPE, GENERAL COUNSEL, ATLANTIC UNION BANK
JAY PAUL
FOR ATLANTIC UNION BANK GENERAL
Counsel Rachael Lape, tending to the green inside her home became a grounding task during the pandemic, especially in the early days when COVID-19 tested how agile she and her colleagues could be with enacting the Paycheck Protection Program. Lape is a self-described houseplant fanatic, often with more than 30 plants scattered throughout her house. During the pandemic, she spent extra time tending to their needs: repotting them, making sure the soil was fresh and fertilized, trimming their dead leaves, watering them just right. “It is almost meditative,” she says. “I do not think I would have weathered the pandemic quite as well without my plants.” Lape takes the same care with her work. She is gratified by how she and
her banking teammates were able to help so many small businesses during the crisis. "With very little information on how to operationalize the [Paycheck Protection] program, AUB figured it out on the fly, and my team was part of that figuring it out.” In addition, Lape is proud of the meetings she had with her team, making sure that she talked more openly about her mental health and encouraged others to discuss the stress that they were feeling. “We are under a lot of pressure to be perfect, not to show any cracks,” Lape says. “But everyone was fl ipped upside down [in spring 2020].” She looks forward to seeing her colleagues in person, at the office, after Labor Day. “I feel that we need that as a society, we need that connective tissue.”
“As a society, we need that connective tissue.”
Atlantic Union Bank 1051 E. Cary St., Suite 1200 800-990-4828 atlanticunionbank.com
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“We made a really important decision to start providing the highest level of financial assistance.”
A NONPROFIT FOUNDED IN
Reaching Out With Care Packages CELIA TETLOW MARTIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CONNOR’S HEROES CONNORSHEROES.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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2006,
Connor’s Heroes is named in honor of Connor Goodwin, a childhood cancer survivor. The group is dedicated to supporting childhood cancer families, from diagnosis to treatment and beyond. “Our mission is to provide hope, guidance and support,” says Celia Tetlow Martin, the organization’s executive director. “We are right by their side.” At the onset of COVID-19, Martin focused on what she could control. “I frequently tried to remind myself that there were things that I could do to ease the burden for those around me, especially our childhood cancer families, as well as my staff.” Despite the challenges the pandemic presented, Martin and her “small but mighty team” of four were able to provide care to families in need. “I think the hardest part was not being able to see our families in person,” she says. With socialdistancing restrictions in place, their volunteer program was put on pause, and Martin and her team were unable to hold
events or gatherings in support of their families. Tasked with figuring out how to show support from afar, Martin went to the board of directors and asked for a big move. “We made a really important decision to start providing the highest level of financial assistance to our families in the organization’s history,” she says. These funds went to meal deliveries, gas and grocery gift cards, and “family fun packs,” which are movie and game nights delivered right to a family’s doorstep. Though their fundraiser The Heroes Art Ball was cancelled, Martin and her team channeled their energies into a new initiative. They have started to fundraise and plan for Rooms Filled With Hope, five rooms on the children’s oncology and hematology floor in the Wonder Tower, which is an extension of The Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU, scheduled for completion in 2023. The Rooms Filled With Hope will provide safe and quiet spaces for childhood cancer families to unwind or gather in private areas away from the hub of hospital waiting rooms.
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Engaging More Women in Financial Services Careers REBECCA FELTON, SENIOR MARKET STRATEGIST, RIVERFRONT INVESTMENT GROUP
JAY PAUL
REBECCA FELTON HAS BEEN IN THE
fi nancial services industry since 1983. “When I started in the business, for many years I was the only woman on the investment team,” recalls Felton, who’s now a senior market strategist for Riverfront Investment Group. With the creation of the fi rm’s new women’s initiative Engage in 2019, Felton and her team hope to encourage and mentor women in the fi nancial services fields and bridge the gender gap in the office. In a post-pandemic world, she is even more hopeful about the future of women in her field. “I think this past year has taught us that there’s a great amount of flexibility in terms of various roles, everything from a fi nancial advisor to being a portfolio manager.” In her role at Riverfront, Felton provides external communications of the fi rm's investment strategy
for both clients and media. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, she was encouraged by her team’s response. “There was more intentional collaboration — there was a desire to connect with your teammate,” Felton says. “You saw everyone come together around that. Each and every person stepped up and supported one another. Not just from a professional standpoint but from a personal standpoint.” Felton looks forward to having the Engage initiative back in person. “I think the key to it is mentorship,” she says. “It is very empowering when women really think about their strengths around planning and process orientation and oftentimes more rational thinking. … It makes them better investors, generally.”
“I think this past year has taught us that there’s a great amount of flexibility in terms of various roles.”
RiverFront Investment Group 1214 E. Cary St. 866-583-0744 riverfrontig.com
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“We did the best we could by focusing on what we could control and what was in front of us.”
Continuing the Magic in the Dining Room STACY BRINKLEY, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE DOORWAYS THEDOORWAYS.ORG
SPONSORED BY
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THE DOORWAYS IS AN EIGHT-STORY
former hotel with 117 rooms that has been renovated into a guesthouse for patients and family members who have to travel for here medical treatment. Located a few blocks from Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, The Doorways is run by Stacy Brinkley and her sevenmember team, who support more than 10,000 guests a year coming to them for a safe and comfortable stay. “We say the magic happens in the dining room, where the guests get to know each other, because it’s a place where compassion, camaraderie and community all come together,” Brinkley says. When word of the pandemic began to spread, Brinkley knew that she and her team had a responsibility to patients to keep their doors open. “We felt that it was vital for guests that they be able
to access the health care that they needed,” she says. While most elective procedures were paused, cancer and transplant patients were still in need of treatment and oftentimes found refuge at The Doorways. Brinkley, an “eternal optimist,” says that she is ever grateful for her team and their drive to carry out The Doorways’ mission, despite the challenges that came their way. “There was a lot of uncertainty and a lot of fear,” she says, “but we did the best we could by focusing on what we could control and what was in front of us.” Looking ahead, she and her team are in the planning phase for a new building, noting that by 2024, they hope to relocate to a space with larger rooms and more amenities that will be in even closer proximity to the hospital in order to better serve their guests.
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Cutting the Rope With God in Control LYNN GREEN, PRESIDENT, DAVIS & GREEN ELECTRICAL
JAY PAUL
LYNN GREEN KNEW WHAT STEADY
growth meant for her residential and commercial electrical and HVAC fi rm. She and her husband, George, founded their company out of their home in 1984 with one service truck, and today they have nearly 200 employees. COVID-19 brought them all to a new playing field — one with much more communication and collaboration. “Initially, daily Zoom meetings at 3 p.m. were about keeping our employees and customers safe,” Green says, but she adds that they were also about quick brainstorming and problemsolving, like fi guring out how to bottle and distribute hand-sanitizer to all their job sites around the state. Now the entire leadership team meets on a monthly basis for two to three hours. Green also found inspiration from “Win the Day,” a book by Mark Batterson. “My pastor recommended
that I read it,” she says. Batterson encourages his readers to challenge the status quo and take calculated risks or, he says, “cut the rope.” A self-admitted risk-averse person, Green realized that she must surround herself with others who balance her and challenge her. “You need to take chances, and if you don’t take chances, you aren’t going to grow.” So, in the middle of COVID, Davis & Green did two big things: They opened an accredited, four-year electrical training program, which Green wants to see more women join, and they began planning a new plumbing department and a new office. Green, a deacon at West End Assembly of God, says she knows that God wanted “to use us where we were. … God is in control.”
“You need to take chances, and if you don’t take chances, you aren’t going to grow.”
Davis & Green Electrical 132 Brandon Road 804-312-5422 dgelectrical.com
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