March 30 april 1, 2017 issue

Meet basketball star Megan Walker B1

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Richmond Free Press © 2017 Paradigm Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

VOL. 26 NO. 13

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA

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c e l e b rat ing our 2 5 t h A nniv e rsar y

MARCH 30-April 1, 2017

Unequal punishment Rep. McEachin requests federal investigation into high suspension rates for African-American students and those with disabilties

By Holly Rodriguez

Obamacare lives; Trumpcare DOA Free Press staff, wire report

Obamacare lives!

That was the jubilant cry last week as President Trump’s attempt to roll back health insurance for millions of Americans suffered a stunning defeat.

Leaders in a Congress controlled by the president’s own Republican Party pulled his legislative proposal last Friday after it was clear they didn’t have the 216 votes needed to pass the measure in the House of Representatives.

The health insurance failure called into question President Trump’s ability to get other key parts of his agenda through Congress, including tax cuts and a boost in infrastructure spending, and the Republican Party’s capacity to govern effectively.

Trumpcare, as the bill was informally dubbed, would have eliminated insurance coverage for 14 million people next year and 24 million people within 10 years, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

Trumpcare also would have left the nation’s $3 trillion-a-year health care industry in disarray, other analysts said.

The legislation would have completely revamped Obamacare Please turn to A4

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Bubbles, bubbles everywhere Solomon and Sabrena Burison surround their 8-month-old son, Jacion, with a bevy of bubbles during the grand reopening of Maymont Farm last Sunday. The youngster carefully eyes the floating orbs. Please see more photos, B2.

Congressman A. Donald McEachin has asked the U.S. Department of Education to investigate the disproportionately high suspension rates for African-American students and students with disabilities in his district.

H i s request, made in a letter Monday to U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy D e Vo s , Rep. McEachin seeks a prompt review by the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights.

It also comes on the heels of a complaint filed in August with the Office for Civil Rights by the Richmond Branch NAACP claiming African-American students, particularly those with disabilities, are unfairly punished in Richmond Public Schools.

So far, there has been no response from the federal office.

“Unfair, unwarranted disparities in student treatment are completely unacceptable; the consequences for affected students are deeply harmful and, potentially, extremely longlasting,” Rep. McEachin stated in his letter to Ms. DeVos. “As you know, the federal Please turn to A4

Seed money stalled for city’s Whitcomb Court redevelopment

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

The proposal the administration has introduced seeks City Council’s approval to spend $250,000 to hire the With the transformation of the Creighton Court public nonprofit Better Housing Coalition to conduct a feasibility housing community underway, Richmond City Hall is analysis and to work with residents of the area. seeking to change a second public housing community, The aim is to create a strategic plan to “address Whitcomb Court, into a mixed-income community.

Eastview’s residential blight and decay,” as well as While heavy machinery clears away the former to start creating change in Whitcomb Court. Both are Armstrong High School and prepares the ground for located west of Mechanicsville Turnpike, about 3 miles development of new homes and apartments, the city is northwest of Creighton Court.

Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press asking for permission from a surprisingly balky City Nothing is set in stone and it could take years to Whitcomb Court in Richmond’s East End is home to roughly 1,300 Council to begin pre-development work for ushering in move from planning to construction. Yet, already there people living in 447 units. The city plans to demolish the public housing complex, and the nearby former juvenile court and detention complex, for change to Whitcomb Court and the Eastview neighbor- are visions of creating new apartments on the site of a mixed-income development. hood it abuts. the city’s former juvenile court and detention complex on Mecklenburg Street.

The largely vacant and increasingly bedraggled property is now owned largely by Pilgrim Baptist Church on adjacent Whitcomb Street, which has long hoped to use the former city property for community betterment.

A portion of the property

By Jeremy M. Lazarus how much is still needed. in the donor’s life.

According to people familiar with the project, less With every tribute donation, a certificate or hand- is occupied by SAARA of A new monument to Virginia women is planned than a third of the total is in hand. written card is to be sent with a personalized message Virginia, a grassroots, nonprofit addiction treatment program. to rise in about two-and-a-half years on the grounds To help stir interest and donations, organizations to the woman or women a donor wants to honor.

City Council previously emof the State Capitol to celebrate the impact women helping to make the monument a reality have created The campaign is a joint project of the Virginia have had on the commonwealth and the nation.

“March to Mothers’ Day,” an online opportunity to Women’s Monument Commission and its partners, braced the decision of former Mayor Dwight C. Jones to make It is to feature 12 women, including four African- contribute in honor of mothers, grandmothers, aunts, Whitcomb Court the second Americans, who have made a difference. sisters and other women who played a significant role Please turn to A4 community to be revitalized as Called “Voices from the Garden,” the monument part of a long-range effort to is described as the first of its kind in this country to reduce poverty in Richmond. recognize the full range of women’s achievements.

However, instead of sailing Much has been accomplished since the plan for through, the proposal to spend the monument was approved seven years ago. the $250,000 has stalled after The location has been selected — near the 9th meeting resistance from several Street entrance on the west side of the Capitol. of council members.

The design has been set — an oval-shaped stone For example, Councilman garden with 12 bronze statues of the honorees, a Parker C. Agelasto, 5th District, glass panel etched with the names of other Virginia objects to using capital funds women achievers and a bench listing milestones in to pay for the study. The city Virginia women’s history. borrows capital funds and then The only thing missing is money — the private repays them with interest. donations that will make the project happen.

He considers it financially The monument is expected to cost $3.7 million, and there is still a ways to go to reach that goal, although organizers have not publicly disclosed just Artist rendering of “Voices from the Garden.”

Please turn to A4

‘Voices from the Garden’ monument in Capitol Square to honor Va. women

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March 30-April 1, 2017

Richmond Free Press

Local News

Photos by Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney cuts the ribbon celebrating the completion of the $5 million renovation of the William Byrd Senior Apartments, a former hotel at 2501 W. Broad St. that now provides 104 rental units for the elderly and disabled. With him at the March 22 ceremony are Byrd resident Kate Anthony and Lee Householder, chief executive officer for project:HOMES, the nonprofit that Slices of life and scenes owns and operates the 11-story building that has been a city landmark since 1925. in Richmond The city contributed a grant from its Affordable Housing Trust Fund to support the 18-month renovation project undertaken while the building remained occupied.

Cityscape

2-year suspension for former Old Dominion Bar president

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

A two-year suspension of her license to practice law.

That was the sentence imposed on a remorseful Vinceretta Taylor Chiles, a former president of the Old Dominion Bar Association and a previously honored attorney.

A five-member Virginia State Bar panel led by Leesburg attorney William H. Atwill Jr. handed down the decision last Friday after nearly two hours of deliberation over her mishandling of the cases of two clients.

“These were decent people and I failed them,” Ms. Chiles told the panel in accepting responsibility. “I am not proud of what happened. This is not who I am. This is not why I became a lawyer.”

The panel allowed the 52-year-old Richmond attorney to complete two cases this week involving foster children. The 24-month license suspension begins Saturday, April 1, the panel told her.

Sheriff Woody launches re-election campaign

After the hearing, Ms. Chiles said she The bar found that Ms. Chiles botched the representation has not decided her next step after closing of a mother and daughter injured in a traffic accident. Hired to her office. She said that she might consider represent them, she filed suits on their behalf, but failed to concommunity advocacy or possibly seek to rep- tact the insurance company as required and the cases ultimately resent people in administrative proceedings were dismissed without any benefit to her client. where a licensed lawyer is not required.

The bar also showed that Ms. Chiles received a $15,000 reStill, she acknowledged the panel’s deci- tainer to represent another client in a Brunswick County criminal sion to suspend her license would result in matter, spent a majority of the money to benefit herself and never a severe financial hardship. She has been followed through on the case. practicing law for 20 years.

According to the bar, Ms. Chiles failed to submit a brief, The suspension could have been lon- appear at scheduled hearings or respond to calls from the court Ms. Chiles ger. or her clients seeking an explanation.

Edward L. Davis, counsel for the bar, recommended a susThe client, who was in jail awaiting a hearing on revocation pension of three to four years based on the multiple violations of a suspended sentence, ultimately was freed after another atinvolved in the two cases. torney represented him and got the issue dismissed that led to He argued there were aggravating circumstances that required the revocation hearing, the bar investigation found. a stiff suspension. He told the panel members that if they were Mr. Davis told the panel that only $6,500 of the $15,000 was inclined to support a one-year suspension, it should be accompanied found in Ms. Chiles’ trust account, but there was no evidence by conditions, including receiving a report from an independent the money was spent on behalf of the client. He also said that psychologist before her license is reinstated.

Ms. Chiles did not return the money to the client until after According to the bar, Ms. Chiles’ violations of the canons for she was brought up on charges and only with repayment help lawyers involve cases she handled at least two years ago. from a friend.

Trim: 7.278” x 10” | Bleed 7.528” x 10 1/4” | Color: 4cp | Pub: Richmond Free Press Monthly Ads | Insertion: Nov. 03, 2016

Richmond Sheriff C.T. Woody Jr. launched his campaign Tuesday for a fourth, four-year term.

Surrounded by supporters from Richmond City Council and the General Assembly, he announced plans to run at New Richmond Ventures in Shockoe Bottom.

Primarily involved in operating the city Justice Center, or jail, and providing courthouse security, the former Richmond Police detective oversees a multimillion-dollar operation and several hundred deputies and other employees. He was first elected in 2005.

At this point, his sole challenger is Antionette V. Irving, a retired major from the Henrico County Sheriff’s Department, who ran a distant second in 2013 as one of three independent challengers to Sheriff Woody. As the incumbent, Sheriff Woody is expected to easily secure the Democratic Sheriff Woody nomination.

The post of sheriff is one of three constitutional offices in Richmond that are up for election in November. The other two are commonwealth’s attorney and treasurer.

Michael N. Herring, who was first elected commonwealth’s attorney in 2005, has said he will be seeking a fourth, four-year term as Richmond’s chief prosecutor, although he has yet to formally announce.

The only question is Treasurer Eunice Wilder, who has held that post since the early 1990s. She has not said if she will seek a new term. Despite the title, she plays no role in city finances.

Her office primarily assists the state in collecting delinquent income taxes and helping people fill out tax returns. — JEREMY M. LAZARUS

This is where singular talents are amplified by collaboration. It’s where common knowledge is transformed by uncommon thinking. And it’s where the commitment to the greater good drives every endeavor, every day.

City Hall sponsors RVA Photog competition Want to win prizes for your photography?

You can by participating in Richmond City Hall’s second annual RVA Photog competition that will focus on Shockoe Bottom, it has been announced.

Open to amateurs and professionals, the competition will involve photos taken between 4 and 8 p.m. Thursday, March 30, and 4 and 8 p.m. Friday, March 31, inside and outside of businesses in the Farmers’ Market area of 17th Street between Main and Franklin streets.

Shutterbugs must first sign up at a booth at 100 N. 17th St. to participate, according to George Bolos, manager of the Farmers’ Market for the city Department of Economic and Community Development.

Businesses welcoming the photographers will have a sign posted in their windows, Mr. Bolos said.

Each day film will be accepted at the booth, while digital photography will be downloaded to a special website, he said.

The top photographs will earn prizes for their photographers, with the photos to be included in a video to promote the area and show it is open for business, he said.

He said the city is partnering with the Rebkee Company, Main Street Realty and the Enrichmond Foundation on the event.

Details: Mr. Bolos, (804) 646-0477 or George.Bolos@Richmondgov.com; or Paige Harris, (804) 646-0954, or pharris@ enrichmond.org.— JEREMY M. LAZARUS

WE PURSUE

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11/1/16 2:07 PM

Richmond Free Press

March 30-April 1, 2017

Congratulations to these outstanding principals – recipients of the

2017 r.E.B. awards for

distinguished Educational leadership

Jennifer Rudd Bellwood Elementary School Chesterfield

Caroline Harris Oak Knoll Middle School Hanover

Melissa Halquist-Pruden Glen Allen Elementary School Henrico

Indira Williams Ginter Park Elementary School Richmond

These educators exemplify leadership by supporting their teachers, inspiring their students and building positive relationships between their school and community.

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The awards program is administered by the R.E.B. Foundation and The Community Foundation. It is designed to recognize public school principals who go beyond the day-to-day demands of their position to create an exceptional learning environment.

The Foundations, together with the public school systems of the City of Richmond and Counties of Chesterfield, Hanover and Henrico, recognize the 2017 award recipients.

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Richmond Free Press

A4 March 30-April 1, 2017

News

Crusade weighs charter change to help replace decrepit city schools

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

The Richmond Crusade for Voters, the city’s oldest and largest African-American political group, is considering putting the city’s failure to overhaul its decaying public school buildings on the front burner.

The organization is considering leading a charter-change initiative that would force Mayor Levar M. Stoney and Richmond City Council to come up with the money to overhaul decaying public school buildings, the Free Press has learned.

Crusade President Bernice Travers confirmed Tuesday that the Crusade is weighing the campaign and has asked political strategist Paul Goldman to “develop an initiative for

consideration.”

The group began considering the action after Mr. Goldman spoke at its March 21 meeting about the city’s inaction and the need for people in the organization to get involved.

If the Crusade takes up this cause — and a decision could be made within a few weeks — the goal would be to have on the November ballot a proposed charter change that would require City Hall to come up with a strategy to provide full funding to renovate and replace deteriorating schools.

Of the city’s 45 school buildings, up to 40 need either substantial renovation or to be replaced, according to past engineering studies. The cost has been pegged at more than $500 million.

Should it be approved by Richmond voters,

the initiative would bypass City Council and go to the General Assembly in the 2018 session. The initiative would become law if the legislature voted to amend the Richmond City Charter and the governor signed the legislation.

An early draft of the proposed charter change would require the mayor “to present a fullyfunded plan to City Council to modernize the city’s K-12 educational infrastructure within 9 years or inform City Council such a plan is not feasible using acceptable national standards.” The mayor would have to present the plan within six months after the charter change goes into effect, according to the draft.

To get on the ballot, more than 11,000 registered voters would have to sign petitions.

Mr. Goldman is an expert in the process. He

nearly single-handedly secured the signatures and pushed the 2003 charter change that led to the citywide election of the mayor.

For years, he has pushed and prodded with little success to get Richmond to overhaul its decaying schools, citing research that obsolete schools make it harder for students to learn.

In his view, the city’s largely AfricanAmerican student population is a low priority for elected officials — African-Americans and white people — who make promises on the campaign trail, but never follow through.

“Richmond has the money,” he said, but he said both the council and the mayor keep putting other projects first. While the city built four new schools in recent years, little has been done to improve the remaining buildings.

Unequal punishment Continued from A1

James Haskins/Richmond Free Press

This view of the planned Whitcomb Court and Eastview neighborhood project shows the juvenile court and detention complex in the foreground, the Whitcomb Court public housing complex (brick buildings center right), Pilgrim Baptist Church (center left) and the vacant lot (left rear) where Whitcomb Court Elementary School formerly stood on an old landfill.

Seed money stalled for city’s Whitcomb Court redevelopment Continued from A1

unsound for the city to use its credit card for such pre-planning work.

“We’ll end up spending an additional $140,000 in paying this back over 20 years,” he said. “If we’re gong to do this, it should be paid from the general fund.”

Even though he voted with his colleagues to allow such uses in previous capital budgets, he said he thought Mayor Jones was wrong to used borrowed money for studies like the one now proposed.

Councilwoman Kristen N. Larson, 4th District, meanwhile, is seeking assurances that the planning work will not end up sitting on the shelf, but will result in development plans that will move ahead.

And Councilwoman Kim Gray, 2nd District, wants the administration to show that hiring the Better Housing Coalition is the least expensive way to handle the pre-development work.

The result: The proposal remains on hold in the council’s Finance and Economic Development Committee.

That’s frustrating for Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson, whose 6th District includes Whitcomb Court and Eastview.

While Creighton Court has gotten the attention and publicity, Ms. Robertson has spent the past two years working behind the scenes to move the Whitcomb Court transformation forward.

Last year, the city took the first step in demolishing the vacant Whitcomb Court Elementary School, which was built more than 50 years ago on a former landfill.

The Better Housing Coalition also has been eyeing property in the area that could be used as a starting point for redevelopment, including the juvenile detention center property.

“There is a lot of work to be done before anything can happen,” said Greta J. Harris, president and CEO of the housing coalition

that has undertaken millions of dollars in home development in Richmond.

She said the coalition would need to work with residents of the area in creating a plan and also be able to do the engineering work, including on the old landfill.

Ms. Harris said that the coalition “is interested,” but needs the kind of grant that the city can provide.

“We’re nonprofit, but we can’t undertake this kind of intensive effort for free.”

The coalition currently is involved in more than $80 million in development work in Church Hill and the West End, and so has plenty on its plate if the council is not interested in involving the coalition, she said.

She noted that redevelopment of areas like Whitcomb Court are not simple or easy and can take five to eight years to get off the ground.

Still, if the council approves the grant, Ms. Harris said the coalition is ready to begin.

Monument in Capitol Square to honor Va. women Continued from A1

the Virginia Capitol Foundation and the 2019 Commemoration.

The commission is spearheading the monument project, the foundation is handling the money and the commemoration group is making this project part of its plan for celebrating one of the most important years in state history — 1619.

Commemoration 2019 is heading efforts to mark the 400th anniversary of that milestone year that saw the arrival of the first Africans in British North America, the launch of the first elected legislature, the House of Burgesses, and the holding of the first sanctioned Thanksgiving prayer service.

The women’s monument is seen as giving more attention to the role that females played in establishing the colony.

The 12 women to be celebrated are a diverse group. They include Cockacoeske (1656- 1686), queen of the Pamunkey Indians who united tribes, ended the war with the English and accepted a reservation; and Ann Burras Laydon, mother of the first English child born in the Jamestown colony.

The four African-American women to be featured are: • Dr. Sarah Garland Boyd Jones of Richmond (1866-1905), one of the first women and the first African-American woman to be licensed as a physician in the state and the co-founder with her husband of a hospital serving AfricanAmericans that ultimately became Richmond Community Hospital.

• Elizabeth Hobbs Keckley of Dinwiddie (1818-1907), an enslaved woman who went

on to buy her freedom as a dress designer, including for First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln in the White House. She also organized a relief program for freed slaves and black soldiers during the Civil War. • Virginia Estelle Randolph of Henrico County (1870-1958), a pioneering educator for African-American children who developed a nationally recognized approach to vocational learning that involved practicality, creativity and the participation of parents and the community.

• Maggie Lena Walker of Richmond (18641934), leader of the Independent Order of St. Luke and developer through the mutual aid society of a department store, newspaper and a bank, the first in the nation to be chartered by an African-American woman.

The monument also will feature: • Adele Goodman Clark of Richmond (1882-1983), a leader in the fight for women’s voting rights who went on to head the League of Women Voters and pave the way for the creation of the state-supported Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

• Laura Lu Copenhaver of Smyth County (1868-1940), a businesswoman who established Rosemont Industries out of her home for the production of textiles and also pushed cooperative marketing of farm products to improve farmers’ earnings.

• Mary Draper Ingles of Ingles Ferry (1732-1815), creator of a New River ferry service that was a vital transportation link and who earlier escaped from Indian captors and trekked 800 miles to return to Virginia.

• Clementina Bird Rind of Williamsburg (1740-1774), who took over as editor and publisher of the Virginia Gazette after her husband died, enabling the newspaper to remain the colony’s official publisher.

• Capt. Sally Louisa Tompkins of Mathews

County (1833-1916), founder and operator of a hospital that treated wounded soldiers during the Civil War. • Martha Dandridge Custis Washington of Fairfax (1731-1802), wife of George Washington and the nation’s first First Lady during his presidency and representative of the wives of the seven other Virginia-born presidents.

government has a unique ability, and a correspondingly great responsibility, to help correct such injustices.

“Accordingly, I write to request that the Office for Civil Rights … investigate all documented disparities in the ways public schools in Virginia’s Fourth Congressional District treat their students.”

The district, which runs from Richmond to Chesapeake, also includes Henrico, Chesterfield and Petersburg.

In a phone interview with the Free Press, Rep. McEachin said his office made repeated requests to Henrico County Public Schools officials to provide reasons for the steady rise in the number of African-American students, some with disabilities, who are disciplined with suspensions and expulsions at a disproportionately higher number than non-African-American students.

“We tried to be proactive,” he said. “And despite inquiry after inquiry after inquiry, (HCPS) never provided an explanation for the continued rise or a plan of action to remedy this problem.”

As the son of a special education teacher, Rep. McEachin said his knowledge and work on disparities in education for African-American students with special needs goes back to the beginning of his political career in the Virginia General Assembly in the late 1990s.

“Unfortunately, the situation in many ways has worsened rather than improved,” he stated in his letter.

Data from reports by the Legal Aid Justice Center and the Virginia Department of Education bear that out.

In a review done at the request of Richmond schools Superintendent Dana T. Bedden of data collected from fall 2013 to spring 2016, the Virginia Department of Education found that city students with special needs were suspended or expelled at a rate 2.5 times that of their non-disabled peers.

Separately, data filed with the Richmond NAACP’s complaint indicated that while African-American students comprised 76 percent of RPS’ total student population in the 2014-15 school year, 93 percent of shortterm suspensions, 98 percent of long-term suspensions and 97 percent of expulsions involved African-American students.

Additionally, the Legal Aid Justice Center’s report shows that African-American students with disabilities in Henrico County were 6.7 Dr. Bedden times more likely to be disciplined with suspensions of 10 days or more. In Chesterfield, African-American students with disabilities are nearly four times more likely to be given long-term suspension that other students with disabilities.

“I am not in the mood to play racquetball,” Mr. McEachin said. “I need the federal government to come in and tell us what we need to do to clean up our act.”

Dr. Bedden said Wednesday that RPS is working with the Virginia Department of Education to develop a corrective action plan that includes professional development for teachers and improved services for students.

“We need to do better, and we recognize that,” he said. “That was why we requested analysis from the VDOE. But we also realize that we didn’t get here overnight, and we are not going to get out of this overnight.”

Dr. Bedden said some initiatives in place “are centered around cultural competence, dynamic multiple assessment and improving special instruction, while monitoring, to hold our students and staff accountable.”

While the problem may be complex, J.J. Minor, president of the Richmond Branch NAACP, said the solution is quite simple.

“The solution is a red sign with four letters — STOP. Stop discriminating against children with disabilities and AfricanAmerican students because, while we have issues going on, there have got to be better alternatives,” he said.

Mr. Minor said he stands behind Rep. McEachin’s call for an investigation and hopes the data will be made available to the public. By exposing the disparities, he said, the school boards within the 4th Congressional District will be held accountable and called upon to design ways to fix the problems.

“We’re going to be looking into this as well to help our children any way we can,” he said.

Mr. Minor also suggested that a board or committee be created specifically to investigate and monitor incidents across the state.

Yuri Gripas/Reuters

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California, center, proclaims victory with fellow Democratic members of the House of Representatives after a bill to repeal and replace Obamacare was pulled from consideration because the GOP lacked the votes for passage.

Obamacare lives; Trumpcare DOA Continued from A1

or the Affordable Care Act that was a signature legislative achievement of President Trump’s predecessor, President Obama.

That law, which remains undisturbed for now, provides health insurance coverage primarily for people who cannot get such coverage through their workplace or through another government program.

President Trump and his GOP allies generated a backlash from the public as well as doctors, hospital

groups and even some insurers.

As he had on during his campaign, President Trump came into office pledging to have Congress quickly “repeal and replace” the Affordable Care Act with something better, though the plan mostly provided major tax cuts for wealthier Americans.

A rebellion by Republican moderates and the party’s most conservative lawmakers left the GOP short of votes in the House, ensuring failure for President Trump’s first major legislative initiative. Democrats were unified against it.

Richmond Free Press

March 30-April 1, 2017

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Local News

Wilder School panel calls for renewed civic engagement

By Saraya Wintersmith

Former Virginia Gov. L. Douglas Wilder and a panel of political experts called for renewed hope and civic engagement as ways to heal the nation’s current divided political climate.

Their comments came as part of a public symposium, “Popular Politics, Populism and Donald Trump: Who Are ‘We the People’?” hosted March 22 by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs.

“I am convinced,” Mr. Wilder told the crowd of nearly 200 at VCU’s Grace Street Theater, “that the biggest enemy facing the American people today is the same enemy that’s been there all along — and that’s the enemy within.”

Mr. Wilder said the issues facing the nation, including President Trump and others like him, did not suddenly materialize, but have “been around for a while.”

“The richest, most powerful nation in the world has been there for some of its citizens, but is slow to recognize the needs of others,” he said.

Mr. Wilder, who was the nation’s first elected AfricanAmerican governor, emphasized the importance and impact of citizen involvement.

He pointed out that the only definition of citizenship written in the U.S. Constitution comes in the 14th Amendment. He reminded the audience that the Reconstruction-era change to the Constitution was made only “after the war was fought to preserve the Union.”

Political analyst Robert Holsworth, who is managing principal of DecideSmart, moderated the hour-and-a-half discussion, starting with musings about the political landscape that led to President Trump’s victory in November.

The panelists seemed to agree that public support for the anti-establishment sentiment expressed by both Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders on the political left and then-candidate Trump on the right was the result of years of dissatisfaction with Washington policies and partisanship. Dr. Holsworth concluded that such dissatisfaction among liberals contributed to the defeat of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton.

“What’s interesting now is we’re almost seeing a populist reaction on the other side,” Dr. Holsworth said. “The long-term question …is whether the political leadership in both parties has any real answers right now to those kind of anxieties that people have expressed” in the Democratic primaries and the November election.

Panelist Jack Trammell, a Randolph-Macon College professor and 2014 Democratic congressional candidate who lost to Republican Dave Brat, said he believes the country can return to full public confidence, “but I also think we have a lot of work to do.”

Responding to audience questions, Dr. Trammell urged young people to run for political office. He also told the crowd he currently has no plans to run again for public office.

The conversation briefly shifted to the racist elements of the 2016 election with an audience question that drew parallels between President Trump’s campaign and the Republican Southern Strategy of the late 1960s. GOP politicians, including President Richard Nixon and Barry Goldwater, employed the strategy that capitalized on racism against African-Americans to win white Southern voters. The questioner’s long inquiry seemed to irritate Mr. Wilder, who interrupted and tried to facilitate panel members’ responses.

“Certainly, I think that was an element in the Trump campaign,” Dr. Holsworth said. “At the same time …I just don’t think that that was the primary reason that Donald Trump was elected, though it is certainly

true that he had clear support from that.”

Panelist Alexandra Reckendorf, an assistant professor of political science at VCU, also pointed to the popularity of the Trump campaign’s repudiation of political correctness.

“I think you had a population who felt like a lot of things moved way too fast,” said Dr. Reckendorf, noting the increased attention given to Muslims, LGBTQ rights issues and the rise of the Black Lives

Matter movement during the last few years.

She said President Trump’s supporters didn’t necessarily agree with “the extremes” he expressed, but they liked that the businessman and television personality was willing to articulate unpopular things and was “strong enough to be immune” to criticism.

Panelists repeatedly offered as potential solutions education, restoration of public trust and reconciliation of the urban-rural

divide.

Other panelists included John Accordino, dean of VCU’s Wilder School, and Meghan Gough, chair of the VCU Urban and Regional Studies and Planning Program.

“We cannot afford to waste further time with wailing and gnashing of teeth,” Mr. Wilder said. “We are the people and I think it’s so important to understand that we need to ask the questions as to what can we do — what can you do?”

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Political analyst Robert Holsworth, standing, offers insight on the current political climate during a town hall March 22 by Virginia Commonwealth University’s Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs. Panelists included, from left, Alexandra Reckendorf, John Accordino, Meghan Gough, Jack Trammell and former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder.

The Great Debaters

Photos by James Haskins/Richmond Free Press

Right, Jerry Ruffin and Riqia Taylor strategize before presenting their argument during “The Great Debate” sponsored by The Gloucester Institute Board of Directors and its president, Kay Coles James. Teams of college students who are part of the institute’s Emerging Leaders program debated the question of immigration over two days. The final event was held Sunday

in a Richmond courtroom at the John Marshall Courts Building Downtown.

Judges included Carlos Clanton, president of the National Urban League Young Professionals, Richmond radio personality Clovia Lawrence and Chika Anyadike, legislative assistant to Petersburg Delegate Lashrecse D. Aird. Mr. Ruffin and Ms. Taylor won the debate and each received $500.

For the sacrifices you make every day, we’re grateful in every way March 30 is National Doctors’ Day At VCU Health, we’re more thankful than most. Because when it comes to doctors, we’ve got the best – you. From teaching and research to compassionate caregiving, you’re a leader in your field, and we’re better because of it. You share our mission of making life better by design – and we’re honored to have you on our team. Thank you for all that you do.

Richmond Free Press

Tulips in the East End

Editorial Page

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March 30-April 1, 2017

Investigate, please Complaints continue about a reported regime of discipline within Richmond area public schools that unfairly targets African-American students and African-American students with disabilities.

The complaints are backed up by data in a May 2016 report by the Legal Aid Justice Center and from the Virginia Department of Education.

The data show that in Richmond, where nearly one in six public school students is in special education programs, AfricanAmerican students with disabilities are three times more likely to be suspended than other students with disabilities.

In Henrico County, African-American students with disabilities are 6.7 times more likely to be suspended for 10 or more days than other students with disabilities.

And in Chesterfield County, African-American students with disabilities are nearly four times more likely to be hit with long-term suspension that others.

Last August, the Richmond Branch NAACP and two African-American students filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights about the disparate treatment.

Experts have said the stringent discipline has harmful effects, including contributing to students failing classes and dropping out of school and into the prison pipeline.

The problem is serious and pernicious and pervasive enough that Congressman A. Donald McEachin requested an investigation by federal education officials into the disproportionately high suspension rates of African-American students, as well as those with disabilities.

We are grateful for broader attention to this issue, which has impacted thousands of youngsters in Richmond alone.

Unfortunately, with the Trump administration and Betsy DeVos now in charge of the U.S. Department of Education, we are uncertain what to expect or whether the federal Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights will be gutted like the U.S. Justice Department.

We only hope that Rep. McEachin’s request will result in a deeper probe of the problem by truly knowledgeable and caring federal officials, and that the investigation will encompass public school systems not only in Metro Richmond, but throughout Virginia.

We believe strategies are needed to solve this serious problem, and we hope an investigation will lead to such blueprints for change.

Trump unmasked

We learned with last week’s whopping defeat of Trumpcare that President Trump and the GOP leaders in Congress are frauds.

We use the word “frauds” specifically because the Republican leadership and backbenchers have bellyached for the last seven and a half years about how horrible former President Obama’s signature health insurance law is. They claimed to have a plan to make everything better.

The Trumpcare bill showed us they had nothing.

Frauds.

Then President Trump zigzagged across the country before and after his election telling people at his wild rallies that he would repeal and replace Obamacare with a plan that would cost less and cover all people.

Trumpcare did neither.

The Congressional Budget Office determined that 14 million people would have lost their health insurance coverage in the first year alone under Trumpcare, with 24 million people booted off within 10 years. Premiums also would have increased for senior citizens.

He also promised to protect Medicaid, the federally run health insurance program that mostly serves poor Americans.

But Trumpcare would have capped Medicaid payments to states, which would have cut health care services to millions of poor people and people in nursing homes across the nation.

The fraud President Trump tried to perpetrate through Trumpcare would have given millions of dollars in tax breaks to the nation’s wealthiest and left millions of people to fend for themselves.

President Trump is a fraud.

True to form, he tried to bully Republicans into supporting Trumpcare, despite the fact that thousands of people made calls, sent letters and emails and attended town halls and rallies to tell their Washington representatives about the harm Trumpcare would cause to them and their loved ones.

Did President Trump care?

No. The real Donald Trump is being unmasked.

We hope his supporters will finally see who he really is, what he’s really doing and join the groundswell of people who are turning out to oppose his fraudulent measures that will harm the American people.

Double congratulations Congratulations to Coach AnneMarie Gilbert and the Virginia Union University Lady Panthers, the Atlantic region champions who took it to the hoop all the way to the NCAA Division II finals!

Another congratulations to Megan Walker, the Monacan High School senior from Chesterfield County who is the top ranked female basketball player in the nation!

The remarkable achievements of these student athletes bring pride not only to the individuals and their teams, but to the entire Greater Richmond community. Their skill, focus, dedication and teamwork spotlight the excellence engendered and nurtured within our community and the vision and hard work that bodes well for their advancement and success in the years to come.

That’s good news for those who have helped them reach this point — parents, coaches, extended family and supporters.

Too often, athletes snag the headlines for some disturbance or petulant behavior. But not the Lady Panthers or Megan Walker.

We are proud of the way they have conducted themselves, bringing positive attention to themselves, their teams, their coaches, their schools and this community.

It’s a playbook from which we all can learn.

Double congratulations and continued success to all!

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Urban League says ‘no’ to Gorsuch “Overall, we conclude that there is an inadequate record to determine if Judge Gorsuch has a commitment to protecting and safeguarding civil rights and, therefore, we do not believe he satisfies the second prong of our requirement for endorsement. Based upon our review of Judge Gorsuch’s record, we have concerns that he has a narrow view of rights that are protected by the Constitution, as well as a skeptical view about the importance of protecting those rights in the courtroom.

In short, Judge Gorsuch’s record does not allow us to support his nomination for the Supreme Court at this time.”

— Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, report on the nomination of Judge Neil M. Gorsuch as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The importance of a U.S.

Supreme Court justice’s commitment to protecting civil rights cannot be overstated. Much of the progress this nation has made on issues of equal opportunity are due to Supreme Court rulings such as Brown v.

Board of Education, Loving v.

Virginia, Obergefell v. Hodges and Texas Department of Hous-

Marc H. Morial ing and Community Affairs v.

The Inclusive Communities Project Inc. The Supreme Court also has regressed on civil rights, as with Shelby County v. Holder, which struck down a key provision of the federal Voting Rights Act and led to a proliferation of racially motivated voter suppression laws throughout the nation.

More than most other communities, the future of AfricanAmericans’rights and opportunities hangs on the confirmation of a U.S. Supreme Court justice.

That’s why the National Urban League cannot support the nomi-

nation of Judge Neil Gorsuch.

Beyond the level of scholarship and judicial experience required of a justice, which Judge Gorsuch does appear to meet, a Supreme Court justice must have demonstrated what the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights called “a profound respect for the importance of protecting the civil rights afforded by the Constitution and the nation’s civil rights laws based on a large body of civil rights opinions or comparable information from statements and activities other than service on the bench.”

We see no such respect demonstrated by Judge Gorsuch.

As I have maintained since the announcement of his nomination, what I find most troubling in the record of Judge Gorsuch is his apparent criticism of those who have sought advancement of individual rights through the courts.

He consistently has ruled against the rights of workers and consumers who were harmed by employers and corporations, and against disabled students pursu-

Trail of tears Most people who are keenly observant of or listen closely to President Trump will recognize that he is a fan of President Andrew Jackson.

If “fan” is overzealous, it can be said that President Jackson is inspirational to his current successor in The Office. After all, President Trump is the first chief executive since President Ronald Reagan to honor President Jackson with a speech on his birthday — the 250th birthday. President Trump also boasts about his portrait of President Jackson in the Oval Office.

Before someone becomes sentimental about President Trump honoring President Jackson with his March 15 birthday visit to Nashville, Tenn., we need to refresh our collective memory about President Jackson. Known as a frontiersman who sprang to prominence from humble beginnings, he is arguably a polar opposite from President Trump in background and upbringing. I, and others, would argue that President Jackson and President Trump are “cut from the same cloth” and are more similar in background and character than commonly acknowledged.

With fame as a soldier, few, except historians, know that President Jackson, like President Trump, earned much of his wealth from the purchase and sale of property. In a partnership with two other investors, President Jackson acquired lands that had been reserved by treaty from the Cherokee and Chickasaw nations. Known as the “Jackson Purchase” in 1818, a portion

of those lands was used by the investors to found the city of Memphis in 1819.

President Jackson’s ascendancy to the presidency marked the beginning of the “spoils systems,” a derivation from a quotation attributed to New York Sen. William Marcy — “To the victor belongs the spoils.”

Under President Jackson, political patronage that rewarded

Dr. E. Faye Williams relatives, friends and supporters with government jobs and positions flourished. Without consideration for merit, these jobs were used as incentives to inspire continued loyalty and support.

President Trump’s positioning of his family, sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, daughter, Ivanka, and son-in-law, Jared Kushner; friends, Carl Icahn and Steve Bannon; financial contributors, Betsy DeVos, Linda McMahon and Steve Mnuchin; and political supporters, Jeff Sessions, Reince Prebus and others, reflect President Trump’s affinity for Jacksonian politics. Although reforms against this type of cronyism began in 1883, President Trump has used every legal consideration available to deflect the scrutiny from his more questionable appointments.

If one were to accurately characterize President Jackson, the label “inhumane” is easily applied. Other than the “It was the nature of the times!” defense, which is no defense at all, there is no excuse for President Jackson’s ownership of slaves and active participation in the slave trade.

In addition, President Jackson’s most infamous crime against humanity was his or-

chestration of Indian Removal policies. Commonly lumped under the title Trail of Tears, President Jackson’s policies of forcibly relocating native nations from traditional settlements included the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Seminole and Muscogee nations.

Contrary to the stereotypical “savage” image constructed to explain away and justify the brutal treatment of Native people, the Cherokee and affiliated nations were just as, if not more, civilized as the AngloEuropean oppressors. They had an organized system of government, written language and a printed newspaper, schools and institutions comparable to their invaders.

In violation of ratified treaties, Andrew Jackson orchestrated the removal and forced march of nations from their lands, some as far east as the Carolinas, to the Oklahoma territory. Their journey was notably brutal. They suffered from starvation, exposure and disease. Thousands died.

Although President Trump has not yet initiated acts of comparable brutality, his personal anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant and anti-Hispanic xenophobia has infected the national psyche. Travel bans, Trumpcare and the attempt to eliminate health insurance for 24 million Americans, subliminal appeals to we-against-them violence and the normalization of intolerance are all hallmarks of the new America by President Trump.

Only through our active resistance can we ensure that future generations will not read about a 21st century Trail of Tears.

The writer is national president of the National Congress of Black Women Inc.

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.

ing their right to a meaningful education.

In fact, even as he sat before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, the U.S. Supreme Court overwhelmingly rejected his opinion that a school district complies with the law so long as they provide educational benefits that “must merely be ‘more than de minimis.’ ” In other words, according to Judge Gorsuch, a school district can meet its obligation to disabled students with little more than nothing.

Of course, no serious discussion of Judge Gorsuch’s confirmation can ignore the fact that his nomination was the result of an egregious dereliction of duty by the U.S. Senate, which refused to give former President Obama’s nominee, Judge Merrick Garland, the hearing he was due. The Senate’s failure with regard to that nomination does not bode well for its ability to keep partisanship from tainting the process.

The writer is president of the National Urban League.

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Richmond Free Press

March 30-April 1, 2017

A7

Letters to the Editor

Stand and fight ‘evil trinity of racism, classism and sexism’ We must boldly declare and decree throughout the entire landscape of America that “Black Lives Matter” in this forward fight against the clear and present evil of overt and covert racism.

A white supremacist, James Harris Jackson of Baltimore, who went to New York City for the sole purpose of murdering black men with an 18-inch sword, actually believed he would get a rush by murdering a young black man.

Instead, Mr. Jackson was left in an deeply evil daze after realizing he murdered an older black man, 66-year-old Timothy Caughman, an autograph collector and can collector.

Silence means consent. Now is the time for a broad Christcentered coalition to stand up and fight the forward fight against the evil trinity of blatant racism, classism and sexism to prevent America from totally losing her soul and becoming “AmeriK-

KKa” in this Trump era, which has so sadly fueled this type of hatred and racism.

ARTHUR L. MACKEY JR. Roosevelt, N.Y. The writer is senior pastor of Mount Sinai Baptist Church Cathedral in Roosevelt, N.Y.

EPA cuts will have disproportionate impact on communities of color President Trump’s plan to make significant cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency shows not only a lack of concern for public health and safety, but perhaps more perniciously, a lack of understanding for environmental injustices faced by minorities in Virginia and across the country.

Environmental injustice occurs when local governments and corporations build environmentally harmful roads, buildings and power supplies that negatively impact minority communities and neighborhoods.

According to the NAACP, 78 percent of African-Americans live within 30 miles of coal-fired power plants, exposing them to toxic chemicals and air pollution that cause cardiovascular disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

In Newport News, respiratory disease rates among AfricanAmericans are nearly twice the average rate in Virginia.

Continued investments in fossil fuel production inevitably exacerbates cases in which communities of color are disproportionately burdened by environmental injustices. Among the top proponents of fossil fuel development in the United States is Koch Industries, a private corporation well known for massive investments in climate science denial and environmental injustice.

Charles and David Koch — more commonly referred to as the Koch brothers — have spent close to $90 million on efforts to deny climate science and force costly energy sources on communities. More recently, their strategy has shifted to exploit minorities living here in Virginia.

Fueling U.S. Forward, a Koch-funded campaign targeting minorities with fossil fuel propaganda, recently sponsored a host of gospel concert events around Richmond. The concerts were held in conjunction with panel discussions that argued that low-income minorities benefit most from cheap fossil fuels — an erroneous statement that is downright unethical.

In response to the Koch brothers’ blatant attack on Virginia’s minority communities, Congressman A. Donald McEachin, who represents Virginia’s 4th Congressional District, hosted an environmental justice roundtable where constituents expressed their concerns about the injustices faced by minorities in surrounding cities. The event was held in Petersburg last month and brought together environmental advocates and leaders of faith communities.

At the event, Rep. McEachin stated that communities of color are disproportionately impacted by bad public policy. Ministers in attendance suggested drafting an overall stewardship plan and

left excited to bring the conversation to their congregations.

Moving forward, Rep. McEachin plans to replicate a similar response roundtable event in Hampton Roads — an area second to New Orleans most vulnerable to relative sea level rise in the country.

As we move into an era where the future of public health and environmental protections remain uncertain, it is imperative that we stand together. Virginia’s representatives have made it clear that they will not put up with these unjust actions toward Virginia’s communities.

We thank Congressman McEachin for his response to the Koch brothers’ attempt at befriending the communities they invest directly against. The next four years will present many socioeconomic challenges, but with trusted leadership in Washington and public rejection of these exploitative campaigns, we might stand a chance against the industries that currently have major influence over public policy.

MARIAH DAVIS Richmond The writer is a conservation organizer with the Virginia Conservation Network.

Does Trump really want to hire Americans?

The H-2A visa guest worker program enables employers who anticipate a shortage of seasonal labor services to request to bring in foreign workers to do the labor.

Trump Vineyard estates property in Charlottesville is requesting these work visas to hire 29 non-immigrant foreign workers from other countries to perform agricultural work and labor in his winery vineyards.

What about President Trump’s “hire Americans program?” Are there not 29 domestic workers, Americans, who need a job for at least eight or nine months that can be found

in Virginia, Maryland or North Carolina to do that seasonal work?

The answer is yes and no!

Yes, 29 people can be found who need a job, but no, because Americans don’t want to do that type of labor.

The number 29 may seem small but across the 11 Southern states, for example, the numbers can be in the thousands.

Case in point: Until about 2011, the state of Alabama was using undocumented immigrants  to work their agricultural areas. Then the state passed an anti-immigrant bill, or law, which

Year-round April Fool’s Day April Fools’ Day can remind us that the meat, egg and dairy industries have been playing us for fools year-round.

Their more remarkable hoaxes include “California’s happy cows,” “free-range chickens” and “humane slaughter.” All are cruel lies.

Less amusing is the stuff they never talk about, like the millions of male baby chicks

ground up alive or suffocated slowly in plastic garbage bags because they don’t lay eggs. Or the millions of hens crammed seven to a small wire-mesh cage, unable to move or spread their wings. Or breeding sows locked in metal crates as their babies are castrated without anesthesia.

In the spirit of year-round April Fools’ Day, the meat

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industry has developed a whole dictionary designed to fool unwary consumers. Those filthy cesspools of animal waste that overflow into our drinking water supplies and poison downwind neighbors with putrid odors? They call them “lagoons.” And to make sure that kids don’t confuse pig flesh on their plate with “Babe” or “Wilbur,” they call it “pork.”

But their fooling days are about done. Many of us are replacing animal meat, as well as dairy milk, cheese and ice cream, with healthier nut and grain-based products available in every grocery store.

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drove the undocumented workers out of the state. Between the time they left the state and the law was declared unconstitutional, the state couldn’t get locals — white or black people — to labor in the agricultural areas. The business community was happy about the law being declared unconstitutional.

Will President Trump issue an executive order exempting guest worker entry into the country because of the country’s shortage of seasonal workers?

WALT HILL Petersburg

Robert Russa Moton

was one of a few well-respected black people heavily involved in politics during his time.

Having reached such significant political acclaim, his views on today’s presidential election results may be of great benefit to those within the black community who remain uncertain if they voted wisely.Tasked today with offering advice to African Americans who may still be in the process of discovering or reconstructing their political ideologies, Mr. Moton, having experienced Republicans’ neglect of black issues, would undoubtedly assert that Republicans cannot be trusted by any minority to lead America.

Mr. Moton ascended to such high stature within his party that he caught the attention of then Secretary of Commerce, Herbert Hoover. Faced with a reputation crisis during his campaign for the presidency, Hoover called on Mr. Moton, one of the most prominent black Republicans, to quell the critics of his management of refugee camps in which black people were horribly suffering. In return, Hoover promised Mr. Moton that he would offer much-needed support to black people during his presidency if his bid was successful. Once elected president, Hoover, showing further lack of concern for blacks, completely neglected his covenant with Mr. Moton. This was such a devastating blow to Mr. Moton’s confidence in the political party he had supported for decades that Mr. Moton withdrew his endorsements of Hoover, voting as a Democrat in the following election. Certainly, Hoover’s actions were not representative of an entire political party. Mr. Moton took this drastic course of action not only in response to Hoover’s betrayal, but in response to a pattern of disregard for blacks within the Republican Party of which he had finally grown intolerant (Colored Advisory Commission, 2013).

Prior to this particularly negative experience, one would have believed Mr. Moton to be a proud and loyal Republican. However, in the years leading up to his exodus from the Republican Party, Mr. Moton wrote his book What the Negro Thinks, which described the innumerable discriminations black people face in America (Heinemann, 2014). “To talk about the rights of citizenship does not mean the Negro – That was settled by disenfranchisement. ‘Good citizenship’ applies to white people; a black man is encouraged to be ‘a good Negro.’” (Richter, 1931) Mr. Moton was not only cognizant of, but fed up with the rampant prejudice. Mr. Moton would not be driven to make such bold declarations as a black Republican and peacemaker unless he were truly passionate about the issue. These brazen accusations also insisted that change must be made. Mr. Moton was enlisting the cooperation of those in leadership, the Republicans who held the presidency and majority in both houses of Congress for years, in order to end the systemic racism that infuriated him. Mr. Moton’s final plea for Republican sympathy toward his people must have gone ignored given that he later renounced his membership.

As Mr. Moton’s experience with the Republican Party increased, his confidence in their willingness and ability to address the needs of black people steadily decreased. Through What the Negro Thinks, he valiantly attempted to call the Republicans to action regarding the treatment of blacks. When this entreaty was refused, his scorn towards the Republican Party was sealed. Unable to salvage his own alignment with the party, Mr. Moton would never advise a black American to pledge allegiance to or even preserve any faith in the Republican Party that so relentlessly disappointed him.

Casey Overton is the Gloucester Institute’s 2017 Moton Essay Award winner. A member of this year’s Emerging Leaders Program, Ms. Overton was also awarded $500 for her winning essay. Ms. Overton is a sophomore, Strategic Communications Major in the Honors College at Hampton University and also resides with her family in Chesterfield County. paid advertisement

A8 March 30-April 1, 2017

Richmond Free Press

Sports Stories by Fred Jeter

VUU women return home to cheers despite loss in NCAA final In judging the stunning success of Virginia Union University women’s basketball, you hardly know where to begin.

Out of some 320 programs, the Lady Panthers finished second overall this season, losing last Friday in the NCAA Division II Tournament final 93-77 to undefeated Ashland University of Ohio.

Many would celebrate that — along with 28-5 record — as a crowning achievement. But ever the perfectionist, VUU Coach AnnMarie Gilbert still sees room for improvements.

“There’s still work to be done,” the Lady Panthers second-year coach said after returning to the Richmond campus via bus last Saturday from the Elite Eight in Columbus, Ohio.

Just moments after an impromptu news conference at BarcoStevens Hall, Coach Gilbert noted she would be back on the recruiting trail, striking while the iron is hot from rare national publicity. The CBS-Sports Network covered the women’s final.

“We took on the No. 3, 2 and 1 seeds and nearly pulled it off. We nearly shocked the world,” she said.

Photos by Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Virginia Union University’s Ashley Smith (in line from front to back), Jayda Luckie, Morgan Daniel and other members of the Lady Panthers basketball team return to campus Saturday from the NCAA Division II Tournament, where they finished second in the final. Loyal fans greeted them at Barco-Stevens Hall, with Larry Williford, president of the VUU Boosters Association, presenting each of the players with a rose. Coach AnneMarie Gilbert, sitting front right, received a full bouquet.

After a pause, she added, “But we need a few more pieces.

We’re looking to the future.”

Two-year tear: Inheriting a program that had been stuck in mediocrity for some 30 years, the Lady Panthers went 28-3 in Coach Gilbert’s first season (2015-16) with Kiana Johnson, the National Player of the Year, carrying the torch.

Coach Gilbert vowed not to be a “one year wonder” and created this year’s motto: “Unfinished Business.”

Without Johnson, the re-stocked current edition of the team went 28-5, advancing two rounds further in the NCAA Tournament than last season. Their two-season ledger is 56-8.

Gazing ahead: VUU’s list of 2017-18 returnees starts with the powerful and athletic 6-foot Alexis Johnson, who scored 70 points and grabbed 29 rebounds in Columbus.

Also expected back next season are guards Jayda Luckie, Rejoice Spivey, Kishona Sutton and 26-year-old, 3-point shooter Rachael Pecota who was recruited to VUU from a local rec league.

What about Brittany? Remarkably, the Lady Panthers soared higher without leading scorer Brittany Jackson, who was suspended from the team after the CIAA Tournament for a disciplinary infraction.

All-CIAA Jackson, a do-it-all junior guard/forward, was av-

New head coach, assistant at N.C. State

The North Carolina State University basketball coaching staff is taking on a new look.

The new Wolfpack head coach is Lynchburg native Kevin Keatts, a former player at E.C. Glass High School and Ferrum College. He also is a former coach at Hargrave Military Academy near Danville.

Keatts replaces fired Coach Mark Gottfried.

Before becoming coach at N.C. State, Keatts posted a 77-28 Kevin Keatts James Johnson record in three seasons at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, twice leading the Seahawks to the NCAA tournament. His players included Jordan Talley from Henrico High School.

Keatts also has named Powhatan native James Johnson as an assistant coach at the school in Raleigh, N.C. Johnson played at Powhatan High School and was a teammate of Keatts at Ferrum College. Johnson also was head coach at Virginia Tech from 2012 through 2014, and previously served as head coach at Hargrave Military Academy.

Most recently Johnson was director of basketball operations at the University of Miami.

There is a lack of African-American coaches at the NCAA’s more dominant basketball programs.

Keatts becomes the third African-American head coach in the Atlantic Coast Conference, joining Danny Manning at Wake Forest University and Leonard Hamilton at Florida State University.

There were no African-American coaches in this year’s NCAA Tournament Sweet 16. FSU’s Hamilton and Mike Anderson of the University of Arkansas were the lone African-American coaches whose teams advanced from the round of 64.

Black Widows have new home field

The Richmond Black Widows will have a new home field for their second season in the full contact Women’s Football Association.

The local pro squad will play all four home games at the Bon Secours Washington NFL Training Center, beginning with a game 4 p.m. Saturday, April 1, against the New York Sharks.

Other home games will be April 15, April 29 and May 5.

Seating is limited so spectators are urged to bring lawn chairs.

The Black Widows advanced to the WFL Division II championship last season. The team played its home games last year at Hovey Field at Virginia Union University.

For more information, contact Black Widows General Manager Lesa Williams at (804) 887-2702.

eraging 19 points a game at the time of her suspension.

Asked if she would return next season, Coach Gilbert responded, “Maybe. She’s still in school. It’s all up to Brittany.”

“The First Lady”: Lady Walker was the NCAA Atlantic Region MVP and never took her foot off the gas in Columbus.

The 6-foot-2 graduate student from Cleveland tallied 54 points and was relentless on the boards (41 rebounds) in Columbus.

The CIAA Player of the Year finishes as VUU’s all-time rebounder (1,204) and fourth all-time scorer (1,513 points). She also had 211career blocked shots.

Walker will be missed, along with outgoing seniors Ashley Smith, the star of the semifinal game victory over California Baptist University with 28 points, and valuable sub Jamica Ruffin.

Columbus, adieu: If the tournament’s final game had been anywhere else, VUU might have won it all. Finishing 37-0, Ashland University was fueled by a raucous “hometown” crowd that packed the 2,000-seat gymnasium at Ohio Dominican University.

VUU’s traveling party of about 30 was greatly outnumbered, kind of like Gen. Custer at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Helping hands: Coach Gilbert’s assistants are burly Jeff Edmonds, a former VUU player under Coach Dave Robbins, and Jasmine Young, among the all-time great players at Chesterfield’s Monacan High School and East Carolina University.

Future Panther? One of the Virginia’s premier eighth-grader players is Jada Walker, daughter of Coach Gilbert and her husband, Jonathan Walker.

An ultra-quick and savvy 5-foot-7 point guard, Walker attends Brookland Middle School in Henrico County and plays for Boo

Williams’ travel outfit.

She comes by her talent naturally. Coach Gilbert led the NCAA Division III in scoring at Oberlin College in Ohio and Walker had his number retired at VUU. It’s not uncommon to see Jada practicing with the Lady Panthers and holding her own.

Set your schedule: Without prodding, Coach Gilbert told the media that next year’s Elite Eight is moving from Columbus back to Sioux Falls, S.D., site of the 2015-16 event.

“Last year, we didn’t play well there,” she said. “We plan to go back.”

Business is still unfinished, you might say.

Tracking the VUU Lady Panthers postseason CIAA Tournament (Charlotte, N.C.) Defeated Winston-Salem State University, 68-54 Lost to Johnson C. Smith University, 81-75 (semifinals) NCAA Division II Atlantic Region (California University of Pennsylvania) Defeated Wheeling Jesuit University of West Virginia, 66-58 Defeated Indiana University of Pennsylvania, 62-58 Defeated California University of Pennsylvania, 85-69 NCAA Elite Eight (Columbus, Ohio) Defeated Columbus State University of Georgia, 78-73 (quarterfinals) Defeated California Baptist University, 86-81 (semifinals) Lost to Ashland University of Ohio, 93-77 (final)

Teams ready for Final Four in Arizona

Get ready for the NCAA Final Four.

Here’s a primer on the four teams remaining in the March Madness competition.

Gonzaga University Bulldogs (a.k.a. Zags) Location: Spokane, Wash.

Conference: West Coast Record: 36-1 Coach: Mark Few, 18th season, 501-112 record Seed: No. 1 seed in the West Region Annual basketball budget: $7,261,657* Road to Arizona: defeated South Dakota 66-46; defeated Northwestern 79-73; defeated West Virginia 61-58; defeated Xavier 83-59 Top scorer: Nigel WilliamsGoss, 16.7 points per game Man in the middle: Przemek Karnowski, 7-foot-1, 300 pounds NCAA championships: 0 Previous Final Fours: 1 in 2017 Fun fact: The Zags are seeking to become the second straight Roman Catholic school to win the title following Villanova.

Destiny in the desert

University of South Carolina Gamecocks Location: Columbia, S.C. Conference: Southeast Record: 26-10 Coach: Frank Martin, fifth season, 96-73 Seed: No. 7 in East Region Annual basketball budget: $7,000,870* Road to Arizona: defeated Marquette 93-73; defeated Duke 88-81; defeated Baylor 70-50; defeated Florida 77-70 Top scorer: Sindarius Thornwell, 21.6 points per game average Man in middle: Mark Kotsar, 6-foot-10, 245 pounds NCAA championships: 0 Final Fours: 1 in 2017 Fun fact: Win or lose, University of South Carolina alumnus Darius Rucker of Hootie & the Blowfish is holding a concert April 5 at Colonial Life Arena; USC students admitted free.

University of Oregon Ducks Location: Eugene, Ore. Conference: Pacific 12 Record: 33-5 Coach: Dana Altman, seventh season, 187-69 Seed: No. 3 in the Midwest Region Annual basketball budget: $7,785,909* Road to Arizona: defeated Iona 93-77; defeated Rhode Island 75-72; defeated Michigan 69-68; defeated Kansas 74-60 Top scorer: Dillon Brooks, 16.3 points per game average Man in the middle: Jordan Bell, 6-foot-9, 225 pounds NCAA championships: 1 in 1939 Finals Fours: 2, in 1939 and 2017 Fun fact: The Ducks won their first NCAA Tournament in 1939, earning the nickname “Tall Firs.”

NCAA Division I Tournament Men’s Basketball Final Four University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.

Saturday, April 1 Semifinal games to be broadcast on CBS

Gonzaga University vs. University of South Carolina, 6:09 p.m.

University of Oregon vs. University of North Carolina, about 8:49 p.m.

Monday, April 3 Championship game to be broadcast at 9 p.m. on CBS

University of North Carolina Tar Heels Location: Chapel Hill, N.C. Conference: Atlantic Coast Record: 31-7 Coach: Roy Williams, 14th season, 396-115 Seed: No. 1 in the South Region Annual basketball budget: $8,667,111* Road to Arizona: defeated Texas Southern 103-64; defeated Arkansas 72-65; defeated Butler 92-80; defeated Kentucky 75-73 Top scorer: Justin Jackson, 18.2 points per game average Man in the middle: Kennedy Meeks, 6-foot-10, 260 pounds NCAA championships: Five, in 1957, 1982, 1993, 2005 and 2009 Final Fours: 20, stretching from 1946 to 2017 Fun fact: Native New Yorker Charlie Scott became UNC’s first African-American player in 1967 under former Coach Dean Smith.

Texas Two Step The 2018 Final Four will be in the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. *Figures compiled by U.S. Department of Education following the 2015-16 season.

March 30-April 1, 2017 B1

Section

B

Richmond Free Press

C.L. Belle’s

Happenings

E Z Car Rental 3101 W. Broad Street (804) 358-3406

Personality: Megan Walker

Spring Special

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Spotlight on nation’s No.1 ranked high school basketball player Megan Walker began playing basketball when she was 4 at a local YMCA. She loved basketball, but also had an affinity for softball.

In seventh grade, she realized she had a tough decision to make.

“It got to a point where schedules (for the two sports) conflicted,” she says. “I had more friends in basketball, so I chose basketball.”

That decision has taken the Chesterfield County resident all the way to the top.

Megan, a senior at Monacan High School, is the No.1 female basketball player in the nation.

The 6-foot-1 distinguished honor roll student has been showered with many of the nation’s top accolades and awards. She is the 2017 Naismith National Girls High School Player of the Year, the 2017 Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year and the Virginia High School League Player of the Year, among others.

Being No. 1 is the type of excellence Megan expects of herself.

“It feels kind of normal, actually,” she says. “I try not to let it get to my head.”

Earlier this week, she flew to Chicago for the 40th Annual McDonald’s All-American Games.

She is one of 24 female high school players across the nation selected for the award. In addition to the game, participation includes an awards ceremony and volunteer service at the Ronald McDonald House.

Megan takes the awards in stride.

“I am honored to be able to play,” she says.

Since making that choice in middle school, basketball has become Megan’s life, with workouts, drills and practices five days a week, training with professionals and her Amateur Athletic Union team, the Cap City Ballerz.

By last October, she had received letters of interest from more than 100 colleges and universities, including the schools she visited — the University of Texas, University of Connecticut and University of Notre Dame.

She accepted a full scholarship from the University of Connecticut, whose Huskies women’s team is the most successful in college basketball with a record of 11 NCAA Division I national championships.

She is looking forward to joining the Huskies in the fall.

Already, Megan has played ball across the United States and in Chile and Brazil. But that’s just the start. She is hoping for a career in the WNBA and as a college hoops coach.

And when that’s over, she wants to become an FBI agent.

Meet this week’s Personality and breakout basketball star, Megan Walker:

working with kids. Playing basketball since age 4, I’ve had an opportunity to play with a lot of girls and have established a platform to reach so many more. I try really hard to set positive examples both on and off the court.

Favorite subject: Practical law.

I picked up my first basketball: When I was 2.

My next goal: Success at UConn and to learn from the best — Coach Geno Auriemma — and win a college national championship.

Current residence: Chesterfield County.

Family: Parents, Keith and Johnetta Walker, and brother, Jonathan, a Virginia Tech graduate.

How I received the news that I was selected Gatorade National Player of the Year:

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Career goal: To become an FBI agent.

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Ultimate ambition: To play in the WNBA and coach college basketball.

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Favorite pig-out food: Buffalo Wild Wings.

The person who influenced

By Elena Delle Donne on the Jumbotron at the Washington Wizards game.

62Years

My reaction to this news: I was honored and excited. To have been nominated and considered for such a prestigious award is HUGE. Then to actually win just feels amazing! It is a blessing!

Robert and Bernice

What motivates me to excel: Kids really motivate me. I love

They have two children and two grandchildren.

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Mr. & Mrs.

Robert L. Botts, Sr. of Richmond, Virginia

of Richmond, Virginia

celebrated their Anniversary March 5, 2017

Celebrating their Anniversary April 3, 2017

They have six children, 17 grand children and 12 great grand children.

LET’S CELEBRATE It’s Doctor’s Day!

GPA at Monacan High School: 3.83.

Date and place of birth: Nov. 23 in Richmond.

$

The best thing my parents ever taught me: Always respect others.

Latest honor: 2017 Gatorade National Player of the Year.

Leadership roles in extracurricular school activities: Captain, Monacan High School Basketball Team; coach, Foundation Basketball Group for ages 5 and under; youth counselor, Ben Wallace Gym (a.k.a. Big Ben’s House); coach, Cap City Ballerz AAU Basketball, fifthgraders; basketball skills trainer for middle school girls.

29

SmallMediumLarge

me the most: Trainer David Anderson.

Thank you to all of our specialists and doctors in the community who go above and beyond every day for kids and families.

AboveMeetsBeyond.org

Richmond Free Press

B2 March 30-April 1, 2017

Happenings Sheila Johnson to speak at UR commencement Sheila Johnson, founding partner starring Forrest Whittaker and Oprah of Black Entertainment Television Winfrey. and founder and CEO of Salamander She began her Northern VirginiaHotels & Resorts, will deliver the main based hospitality company, Salacommencement address this year at mander Hotels & Resorts, in 2005. the University of Richmond.

One of her properties, Salamander The ceremony will take place Resort & Spa in Middleburg, was 2 p.m. Sunday, May 7, at the Robins recognized in 2014 by Condé Nast Center on the UR campus.

Traveler as one of the Top 10 ReMs. Johnson Ms. Johnson’s business career sorts in the South and by Travel + began when she and her ex-husband, Robert L. Leisure as one of the World’s Greatest Hotels.

Ms. Johnson is the first African-American woman Johnson, founded BET in 1980. BET was purto be an owner or partner of three professional chased by Viacom Inc. in 1999.

She also was executive producer of four sports franchises — the Washington Capitals of the documentary films and helped finance the feature National Hockey League, the NBA’s Washington film “The Butler,” directed by Lee Daniels and Wizards and the WNBA’s Washington Mystics.

VUU holds annual scholarship gala April 7

The fifth annual Virginia Union University Scholarship Gala and Masquerade Ball will be 6 p.m. Friday, April 7, at the Richmond Marriott, 500 E. Broad St. in Downtown.

The benefit, black-tie event will be hosted this year by Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney.

A reception starts at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and dancing, with music by Trademark.

Tickets are $200.

The event has raised more than $1 million for student scholarships since 2013.

For more information and tickets, visit www.vuu.edu or call (804) 342-3938.

School Board approves new Boys & Girls Club at MLK Middle School

Photos by Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Family fun at Maymont Farm Children feed and pet a goat at the newly renovated Maymont Farm. Thousands of families turned out Sunday for the grand reopening of the farm, which was closed for the last 10 months for a $3 million renovation. New farm features include a renovated barn, allowing visitors easier access to feed and pet animals, and a hand-washing station for use afterward. Maymont also has two new retired racehorses in residence and five black faced sheep.

A new Boys & Girls Club is to be built on the grounds of the Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School in the East End. The Richmond School Board cleared the way March 6 for the project by approving the administration’s plan to lease vacant land at the school to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Richmond.

“We believe this would be a great addition,” said School Board member Felicia Cosby, 6th District, which includes the middle school.

While a construction timetable has not been set, the group is planning a 20,000-square-foot building to serve 500 to 600 teens.

The proposed facility, expected to cost around $3 million to build and equip, would be designed to aid students ages 13 to 18 to focus on their career or college goals through after-school and summer programs.

Among other offerings, the center is expected to provide internships and other hands-on work experiences for participating youths.

Carillon event to commemorate 100th anniversary of World War I The Virginia World War I and World War II Commemoration Commission will recognize the 100th anniversary of the United States entering World War I with an event Thursday, April 6, at Richmond’s WWI memorial — the Carillon in Byrd Park.

The Carillon, a 240-foot bell tower at 1300 Blanton Ave. in the city’s West End, was dedicated in 1932 to honor the 3,700 Virginians who died in the war.

The free public ceremony will include a bell concert and wreath-laying at 11:45 a.m., followed by the commemoration program at noon.

Speakers include Gov. Terry McAuliffe; Maj. Gen. Timothy P. Williams, Virginia’s adjutant general; and historian Lynn Rainville of Sweet Briar College.

Delegate Kirk Cox of Chesterfield County, chairman of the commission, will serve as master of ceremonies.

Music will be provided by John Marshall Regimental Band Alumni, which organizers said played 85 years ago at the Carillon’s dedication.

Richmond’s Franklin Military Academy also

will participate.

“Profiles of Honor,” a mobile exhibition of

memorabilia and artifacts from WWI and WWII, will be open for visitors following the ceremony.

People are asked to bring photos and artifacts from both wars to be scanned and added to the exhibition that will be become part of the Library of Virginia’s collection. A booth also will be available for oral histories.

Listed as a Virginia Historic Landmark and on the National Register of Historic Places, the stateowned Carillon will be closed after the ceremony for an 18-month renovation.

Organizers of the event said plans are to reopen it by November 2018, the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day, now known as Veterans Day, which marked the signing in France of the armistice between the Allied nations and Germany ending WWI. A plaque at the Carillon includes the names of Virginians killed during WWI, including 537 African-Americans.

For details about the Carillon commemoration and other events, go to www.VirginiaWorldWarI. org/2017.

Upcoming Free Health Seminars We’ll 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.

Wednesday, April 12, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.

is calling on parents of 5th graders to help them

Colon Cancer: Know Your Risk, Change Your History

to 6th grade by getting their required Tdap vaccination!

All RPS students who return a completed LEVEL UP parental consent form giving permission for them to receive a free Tdap vaccination at their school or a commitment to have them vaccinated by their physician, will be eligible to enter a contest to win a .

Wednesday, April 26, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.

The Biological Clock: Is It for Real?

Thursday, May 18, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.

Rooting For a Cure

The top four RPS classes with the most returned form will receive a .

Register online at vcuhealth.org/events or call (804) 628-0041 for more information.

Tdap booster vaccination is required by State law for all children age 11 and entering the 6th grade. There is no grace period. Students without vaccination documentation on the first day of school will not be allowed to attend class.

LEVEL UP CHALLENGE vaccination permission forms will be sent home with students. Obtain more information by contacting your elementary school or visiting Richmond Public Schools and Richmond City Health District websites.

170330-FreePress.indd 1

3/28/17 11:52 AM

Richmond Free Press

March 30-April 1, 2017

B3

Happenings VSU president tells vision for ‘opportunity university’ at investiture

By Holly Rodriguez

The mood was light and upbeat, hopeful yet determined at the investiture service last Friday for Dr. Makola M. Abdullah, Virginia State University’s 14th president.

“I first met him … as a dashiki-wearing dude from Chicago,” said Dr. Henry Lewis, former president of Florida Memorial University and a former boss of Dr. Abdullah, who served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at the Miami Gardens, Fla., institution during Dr. Lewis’ tenure.

“You’ve picked the right man.”

Dr. Abdullah is a Howard University alumnus and the youngest African-American to receive a Ph.D. in engineering from Northwestern University at age 24.

Before taking over the helm at VSU in February 2016, Dr. Abdullah also served as provost and senior vice president at Bethune-Cookman University and dean of the College of Engineering Sciences, Technology and Agriculture at Florida A&M University.

Last week’s ceremony, held in the university’s Multi-Purpose Center before a crowd of several hundred students, professors, visiting dignitaries, family members, friends and well-wishers, was the official inauguration of Dr. Abdullah, who took the oath of office and received the symbols of authority — presidential regalia, a medallion and mace — from VSU Rector Harry Black.

Speakers — from Virginia Secretary of Education Dietra Trent to his wife, Ahkinyala Cobb-Abdullah — spoke about his drive, dedication and relatability.

“I can call him, tweet him, text him, and he’ll respond,” said Franklin Johnson Jr., president of the VSU National Alumni Association.

“He and I laugh about everything — it’s our workout plan,” said Tracy Carter, a family member. “He has loyalty, integrity and love, and he can dance, too.”

During the weekend, VSU students and alumni circulated on social media a cellphone video of Dr. Abdullah hitting all the right moves in a dance routine with two others at a VSU student celebration on Friday night.

“It’s official y’all. My president is so dope!” said the accompanying tweet.

Among the dignitaries attending the investiture were state Sen. Rosalyn R. Dance of Petersburg; Petersburg Mayor Samuel Parham; Richmond Mayor Levar M. Stoney; Petersburg schools Superintendent Marcus Newsome; Norfolk State University President Eddie N. Moore Jr., a former president of VSU; Virginia Commonwealth University President Michael Rao; and Virginia Union University interim President Joseph F. Johnson.

“While it is no secret that VSU has seen its fair share of hard times, they have emerged stronger than ever with President Abdullah at the helm,” Secretary Trent said in a statement.

“His inauguration represents a new day for the VSU family and I look forward to continuing to work with the new president and his administration to address the issues facing our HBCUs and all of the Commonwealth’s colleges and universities.”

Dr. Lewis advised the VSU community to stand together to support the new president to continue the university’s progress.

Photos by Regina H. Boone/Richmond Free Press

Dr. Makola M. Abdullah, the 14th president of Virginia State University, addresses the audience during his investiture ceremony last Friday at the university’s Multi-Purpose Center. Below, the Virginia State University Concert Choir and the university’s Gospel Chorale perform during the president’s investiture, including the black national anthem, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” and the VSU alma mater.

“A university’s board of visitors, faculty and staff, alumni and friends are the four-legged stool that must support the president so the student can sit there properly.”

During his remarks, Dr. Abdullah outlined his vision for VSU, which he calls Virginia’s “opportunity university.”

“I am thankful to those who fought and died, and fought and lived, so we could have a better day here at Virginia State University,” he said.

He talked about the four core principles upon which his

presidency is based: Belief in God, family, the transformative nature of education and VSU. In a telephone interview, he said fiscal efficiency and focusing on stories of accomplishment are key in moving the university forward.

“We need to become more efficient, and maximize how we use tuition and state funding so we can invest more in our students,” he said. “The admissions staff is doing a great job getting out and speaking to young people about the quality of education we offer and the fun we have while doing it.”

The efforts of this renewed focus are beginning to bear fruit.

Last April, ESSENCE magazine named VSU one of the nation’s top 20 “Best Colleges for African-Americans.” In the fall, the university had a 30 percent increase in freshman enrollment over the previous year.

Creating great students begins long before they arrive at VSU, Dr. Abdullah told the audience. He charged parents with requiring students to do their best in math, for example.

“Don’t give them permission to not like math — they have to do it,” he said, adding that the university must nurture student math readiness to produce more STEM professionals as well as greater investment in the humanities and social sciences.

Dr. Abdullah said he is excited about VSU’s future and sees the “opportunity university” as its own unique institution.

“We don’t need to be looking at what everyone else is doing because we don’t have competitors,” he said. “We have collaborators and partners that will help us continue to build upon our success.”

THEN I DECIDED TO

CHANGE MY LIFE.

Don’t miss this rare opportunity to learn about all of things that make Bryant & Stratton College unique. Especially our exclusive Career LifePrep™ program. Thanks to Career LifePrep, you’ll have a team to help chart your path, learn the soft skills employers are looking for, gain valuable professional connections and enjoy career services support for life.

While here, you’ll also get a chance to tour the campus as well as our childcare center, meet admissions and financial aid staff and network with area professionals.

EVENT: April Career LifePrep Open House WHEN: April 15th from 10am to 1pm WHERE: Richmond campus

Demetrius B. Business Graduate

R S V P T O D AY AT 8 0 4 -74 5 - 2 4 4 4 R I C H M O N D C A M PU S | 8 1 41 H U L L S T R E E T R OA D, N O R T H C H E S T E R F I E L D VA 2 3 2 3 5 For more information about our graduation rates, the median debt of students who completed the program and other important information, visit www.bryantstratton.edu/disclosures. Certified by SCHEV to operate in Virginia. Our three Virginia campuses are located at 4410 E. Claiborne Square, Suite 233, Hampton, VA 23666; 8141 Hull Street Rd, North Chesterfield, VA 23235; And 301 Centre Pointe Drive, Virginia Beach, VA 23462.

74653 • Bryant & Stratton College — Richmond Free Press • 11”x10.5” • 4C • gew • V1-3/21/17

Richmond Free Press

B4 March 30-April 1, 2017

Obituary/Faith Directory

Roger Wilkins, historian, activist, dies at 85 Free Press wire report

Lonnie Tague for The Department of Justice

I’m sitting here meditating about all the killings and all the hate in a world that’s beautiful and blessed from the start, Our black race dying really breaks my heart.

I pick up the newspaper in my hand, another brother has been killed by another black man.

It’s not worth it to me, all this killing we can never be free.

We must take our hearts and search, we don’t even have enough time to live from our birth.

Loving our people has got be a reality.

Fast cars rolling and guns being loaded, our people being slain, who is the one to take the blame.

Something is going wrong because we are not thinking, bodies being laid six feet under and sinking.

Young people have so much to live for, and so much to gain, when they are taken away from us it leaves a whole lot of pain.

In Loving Memory of my nephew Keyvon Jerrod Johnson, Sr. November 14, 1992 – March 11, 2017 Poem written by Carroll Sample

Theme for 2016-2020: Mobilizing For Ministry Refreshing The Old and Emerging The New

We Embrace Diversity — Love For All!

Come worship with us!

Sunday, April 2, 2017 10:45 AM Divine Worship Ladies Bible Class 79th Anniversary Christ Kids And Christ Teens Worship Every Sunday

Nursery During Church School and Worship

Rev. Dr. Yvonne , Pastor

Riverview

April 10th – 13th

“Showers of Blessings: Revive Us Again”

Twitter sixthbaptistrva

400 South Addison Street Richmond, Va. 23220

Facebook sixthbaptistrva

(804) 359-1691 or 359-3498 Fax (804) 359-3798 www.sixthbaptistchurch.org

(near Byrd Park)

Koinonia Christian Church

Tuesday April 11th REV. KEVIN COOK

Broad Rock Baptist Church

 

Fairfield Baptist Church

Thursday April 13th REV. LARRY BARHAM

Star Fellowship Baptist Church



1408 W. eih Sree  ichmo a. 0 804 5840



 Church School Worship Service

Prayer & Praise service 7:30 p.m.

Revival Worship 8:00 p.m.

Union

Baptist Church

1813 Everett Street Richmond, Virginia 23224 804-231-5884 Rev. Robert C. Davis, Pastor

8:45 a.m.

10 a.m.

 ile Su

1 p.m.

 e ercies iisr  a.m. ul ile Su :0 p.m. ie oore Sree o 

Mission Statement: People of God developing Disciples for Jesus Christ through Preaching and Teaching of God’s Holy Word reaching the people of the Church and the Community.

Sharon Baptist Church 22 E. Leigh Street, Richmond, VA 23219 • 643-3825 thesharonbaptistchurch.com Rev. Dr. Paul A. Coles, Pastor

216 W. Leigh St. • Richmond, Va. 23220 Tel: 804-643-3366 • Fax: 804-643-3367 Email: ebcoffice1@yahoo.com • web: www.richmondebenezer.com

8:30 a.m. ... Sunday School 10:00 a.m... Morning Worship Holy Communion

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

SUNDAY SCHOOL - 9:45 A.M. SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICE 11:00 A.M.

Wednesday April 12th REV. DARRELL TAYLOR

Sunday, April 2, 2017

1858

2604 Idlewood Avenue Richmond, Va. 23220 (804) 353-6135 www.riverviewbaptistch.org Rev. Dr. Stephen L. Hewlett, Pastor Rev. Dr. Ralph Reavis, Sr. Pastor Emeritus

Monday April 10th REV. KEITH EDMONDS

Ebenezer Baptist Church “The People’s Church”

Baptist Church

Ezekiel 34:26

The Deacons, Deaconess, Trustees, Choirs, and Ushers from the above named churches will serve on their respective nights.

Sixth Baptist Church A 21st Century Church With Ministry For Everyone

ng Spriival Rev017 2

WASHINGTON Roger Wilkins, a historian, journalist and activist who held a key civil rights post in President Lyndon B. Johnson’s administration and helped The Washington Post win the coveted Pulitzer Prize for its Watergate coverage, died Sunday, March 26, 2017.

He was 85 and died of complications from dementia at an assisted living facility in Kensington, Md., said his wife, Patricia King, and daughter, Elizabeth Wilkins.

Most recently, Mr. Wilkins worked as a history professor at George Mason University in Northern Virginia.

His uncle, Roy Wilkins, was the longtime executive director of the national NAACP. A lifetime later, his daughter, Elizabeth, worked on the presidential campaign of then-Sen. Barack Obama.

Mr. Wilkins said in the spring of 2008 that the presidential candidacies of a woman and an African-American man “would have been fodder for a fantasy

WEDNESDAYS

THURSDAYS

6:00 p.m. ..... Prayer Service 6:30 p.m. ..... Bible Study

1:30 p.m.

Bible Study

11:00 a.m.

8:30 a.m. ... Sunday School 9:30 a.m.

10:00a.m...MorningWorship Every 3rd Sunday Holy Communion5106 Walmsley Blvd., Richmond, VA 23224 2nd Sunday, 11 a.m.

804-276-2740 • 804-276-6535 (fax) Mon. 6:30 p.m. www.BRBCONLINE.org Tues. 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Wed. 6:45 p.m.

Early Morning Worship ~ 8 a.m.

Wed. 4:30 p.m.

Sunday School ~ 9:30 a.m.

Wed. 6:00 p.m.

Morning Worship ~ 11 a.m.

Thurs., 11:45 a.m.

Broad Rock Baptist Church

Dr. Levy M. Armwood, Pastor  Dr. Wallace J. Cook, Pastor Emeritus



April 2, 2017

4th Sunday Unified Worship Service ~ 9:30 a.m.

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

Sermons Available at BRBCONLINE.org

“MAKE IT HAPPEN” Pastor Kevin Cook

10:30A.M. Join Us for Communion!

St. Peter Baptist Church

Dr. Kirkland R. Walton, Pastor

Good Med Me ed

~

8, 201 2017 1177

An afternoon of music, laughter laughter, spoken word and fellowship fellowship.

“The The Stor ”

r Play ~ A

20177 20 2017

Purchase Tickets at MMBC on Sundays or through our members.

Easter Su

ervice erv rvice ~ April 16, 2017 rv 17

6:00 A.M. at MMBC

W kl Wors Weekly W p: Sundays @ 10:30 A.M. Church School: Sundays @ 9:00 A.M. Bible Study: Wednesdays @ Noon & 7:00 P.M. 2901 Mechanicsville Turnpike, Richmond, VA 23223 (804) 648-2472 ~ www.mmbcrva.org Dr. Price London Davis, Senior Pastor

Mosby Memorial Baptist Church “A Caring Community Committed to Listening, Loving,

Worship Opportunities Sundays: Morning Worship Church School Morning Worship

8 A.M. 9:30 A.M. 11 A.M.

Unity Sundays (2nd Sundays) Church School 8:30 A.M. Morning Worship 10 A.M. Thursdays: Mid-Day Bible Study 12 Noon Prayer & Praise 6:30 P.M. Bible Study 7 P.M. (Children/Youth/Adults) 2040 Mountain Road • Glen Allen, Virginia 23060 Office 804-262-0230 • Fax 804-262-4651 • www.stpeterbaptist.net

movie” when he graduated from college 55 years earlier.

“Today, whatever our problems are, we have a vastly different and better country than the one we lived in in 1953,” he told University of Southern Maine graduates.

From the mid-1960s to the early 1980s, Mr. Wilkins worked with the Johnson administration, the Ford Foundation, The Washington Post and The New York Times. In his 1982 autobiography, “A Man’s Life,” he described the frustrations of being “the lead black in white institutions for 16 years.”

In 1965, President Johnson tapped Mr. Wilkins to head the federal Community Relations Service, which was created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to mediate racial disputes and foster progress in black communities.

The New York Times said President Johnson told him it would be “the toughest job ever given any Negro in the Federal Government. …You have one mandate — to do what is right.”

As many cities were wracked by rioting in the mid-1960s, Mr. Wilkins advocated efforts to improve conditions.

“We have to change the way people live,” he told the Times in 1967. “All the rest is BandAids and lollipops.”

He joined the Ford Foundation when President Johnson left office in early 1969. In 1970, he wrote a Washington Post essay about being nearly the only black at the Gridiron Dinner, the annual Washington frolic of the male power elite.

He wrote that its convivial insider jokes about such things as President Richard Nixon’s “Southern strategy” amounted to “a depressing display of gross insensitivity and both conscious and unconscious racism.”

He wound up leaving the Ford Foundation for journalism.

His Washington Post editorials in the early months of the Watergate scandal in 1972 contributed to the newspaper winning the 1973 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service, a staff award.

Mr. Wilkins left the Post in 1974 to join The New York Times, doing commentary on the final stages of the Watergate scandal from his new post.

Among his other books were “Jefferson’s Pillow: The Founding Fathers and the Dilemma of Black Patriotism” in 2001 and “Quiet Riots: Race and Poverty in the United States,”

a 1988 look back at the Kerner Commission’s 1968 report of urban unrest that Mr. Wilkins co-edited with former Sen. Fred R. Harris, who had been a commission member.

In a 1992 Associated Press story on black and white relations, he criticized the notion among some black people that they should stay away from the mainstream white culture lest they be guilty of “selling out” or “acting white.”

“If we tried to enforce a black orthodoxy, then we would fall into the white folks’ trap. They would love for us to all think alike,” Mr. Wilkins said.

In a 2009 essay in “AARP the Magazine,” he recalled his feelings about President Obama’s win. He wrote that in the early stages of the race, he believed President Obama had “no chance. …I thought back to the scores of highly intelligent black men and women I’d known over my lifetime who never even passed ‘Go’ because whites did not believe they could do serious work.”

He said despite his doubts, he still advised his daughter to join the campaign, telling her, “this is your generation’s Selma, and you dare not miss it.” As President Obama began winning primaries, “I caught that fire.”

In his 1982 memoir, Mr. Wilkins discussed his own lapses with alcohol and extramarital affairs. He said, “Nobody would have believed my messages if I had presented myself as a pristine and innocent victim of all those bad white folks.”

Mr. Wilkins was born in 1932 in Kansas City, Mo., where he was forced to attend segregated schools. His father was a journalist and his mother was national leader in the YWCA. After his father’s death when he was 8, his family moved to New York City and, later, Grand Rapids, Mich. He earned his bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Michigan.

In a 1969 New York Times profile on his famous uncle, Mr. Wilkins said that once when he was fresh out of law school, a member of a prominent law firm asked his uncle if he should be hired.

The elder Mr. Wilkins responded, “Well, how do you usually judge people you are going to hire? Judge Roger the same way, hire him or not, as you would anyone else.”

WHY PASTORS, CHURCH MEMBERS AND OTHERS SHOULD HAVE, “CHRISTIAN COUNSELING ALSO!”For more information contact: One Free Brief Consultation

Rev. Dr. M. J. Peterson-Omotola, Ph.D. Call 866-720-5321 or Visit: http://bit.ly/2mxqf07

Good Shepherd 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” 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

Mount Olive Baptist Church Rev. Darryl G. Thompson, Pastor

2017 Theme: The Year of Elevation (First Peter 5:6)



8775 Mount Olive Avenue Glen Allen, Virginia 23060 (804) 262-9614 Phone (804) 262-2397 Fax www.mobcva.org

11:00 AM Mid-day Meditation

Sundays

8:00 a.m.

Early Morning Worship 9:30 a.m.

Sunday School 11:00 a.m.

Morning Worship

Tuesdays

Noon Day Bible Study

Wednesdays

6:30 p.m.

Prayer and Praise 7:00 p.m.

Adult Bible Study

Richmond Free Press

March 30-April 1, 2017

B5

Faith News/Directory

Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Pastor Stephen A. Parson Sr., center, leads supporters into the 8 a.m. service Sunday at the Richmond Christian Center, which he founded 34 years ago. This apparently was his first appearance at a service in the South Side church in two years.

Parson and backers initially barred then allowed to worship at RCC

By Jeremy M. Lazarus

declined on March 20 to act on Pastor Parson’s request for reinstatement as spiritual leader as the church is still in bankruptcy.

Meanwhile, the federal bankruptcy court in Richmond, which has jurisdiction, has yet to set a date to hear his request that any barriers to his returning as pastor be removed.

Still, Pastor Parson expressed satisfaction that he was finally back in the church he founded in 1983, once a powerhouse with several thousand members, but now mustering less than 120 people for its lone Sunday service, including Pastor Parson’s group of supporters.

Pastor Parson has been out of the church’s pulpit for the past two years as the church, with the help of a court-appointed bankruptcy trustee, seeks to rebuild its financial health.

He said he and his followers would be at services “every Sunday.”

He believes it is only a matter of time before he regains the pulpit and resumes

“We’re back. And we’re not going away.”

So said Pastor Stephen A. Parson Sr. after he successfully led nearly 40 supporters without incident into the Richmond Christian Center on Sunday to take part in the 8 a.m. worship service.

He and his followers — about onethird of the service’s participants — sat in a section to the left of the pulpit.

Pastor Parson did not speak or take a leadership role in the music-filled service led by the RCC’s interim pastor, the Rev. James Ferguson.

After the service, Pastor Parson acknowledged that his effort to regain the RCC’s pulpit might need court intervention.

The church, located at 214 Cowardin Ave. in South Side, is currently under the governance of a threemember trustee board.

A Richmond Circuit Court judge

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

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

what he considers his rightful role.

The fact the service went on as planned came as a happy relief to the trustees and other members who worried Pastor Parson’s push to retake the pulpit might get out of hand.

“We were glad that the Body of Christ Network members led by Pastor Parson peaceably joined us today,” the trustees noted in a statement released after the service. “We have no ill will towards them. We just want to continue to move forward to fulfill our call and ministry.”

Rhonda Hickman, president of the RCC trustee board, was concerned enough that she and her fellow board members had the church hire two sheriff’s deputies to guard the door.

Initially, they blocked Pastor Parson and his group from entering.

Chuck Smith, an attorney who represents members who support Pastor Parson and is preparing to challenge the minister’s ouster in court, spent a few minutes urging the deputies

“Lord, give us the people no one else wants”

City Park Church

SERVICES

SUNDAY WORSHIP HOUR – 10:00 A.M. CHILDREN’S CHURCH & BUS MINISTRY AVAILABLE SUNDAY SCHOOL (FOR ALL AGES) – 9:00 A.M. TUESDAY MID-DAY BIBLE STUDY – 12 NOON WEDNESDAY MID-WEEK PRAYER & BIBLE STUDY – 7:00 P.M.

All are welcome!

Worshipping at the Historical Tenth Street Baptist Church DR. JAMES L. SAILES PASTOR

A MISSION BASED CHURCH FAMILY EXCITING MINISTRIES FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH, YOUNG ADULTS & SENIOR ADULTS BIBLE REVELATION TEACHING DIVERSE MUSIC MINISTRY LOVING, CARING ENVIRONMENT

Holy Week Services 2017

Wednesday, April 12 Friday, April 14 7:30 pm Nightly •

Sonrise Service Sunday, April 16 6:00 am

Resurrection Sunday Service Sunday, April 16 10:00 am

(No Sunday School)

Women 19thAnnual Purpose & n o i s is

Wednesday Services

Theme: In His Presence

Noonday Bible Study 12noon-1:00 p.m.

Attendance 59 Sanctuary - All Are Welcome!

Wednesday Evening Bible Study 7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Attendance 89

Saturday 8:30 a.m. Intercessory Prayer

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

Also, for your convenience.

w

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

M ith

Founder & Senior Pastor

2300 Fairmont Avenue Richmond, Virginia 23223 804.937.1356 Like us on Facebook

}

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

Sunday

Dr. & Mrs. Joe Ellison, Jr.

Upcoming Events

New Deliverance Evangelistic Church

Bishop G. O. Glenn D. Min., Pastor Mother Marcietia S. Glenn First Lady

to allow the Parson group to enter, arguing that there was no reason to keep them out.

Building manager Forondo Holmes and Calvin Yarbrough, one of the trustees, ultimately had the deputies open the door for Pastor Parson and his group to enter. The deputies kept a discreet eye on the service to ensure everything went smoothly.

Earlier this month, as word that Pastor Parson was launching an effort to retake control of the church began to circulate, Ms. Hickman secured an emergency protective order barring Pastor Parson from being on the property when she was there.

She acknowledged that she allowed the order to expire at midnight March 20 and confirmed that a judge in Richmond Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court rejected her request earlier that day to renew the order when she was unable to testify that she was in fear for her life from Pastor Parson.

Pastor Parson insisted that there

Conference

“Living For His Glory” ScripTure:

For in Him we live, and move, and have our being.

(Acts 17:28a NIV)

Friday and Saturday, April 21-22, 2017 - 9 AM

For more information and to Register go to: www.ndec.net or call 1-844-699-4054 Doubletree Hotel Reservations: 1-800-222-8733 or 804-379-3800 {Reference New Deliverance Evangelistic Church}

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

Sunday Worship Service 12 Noon Prayer & Praise before Worship

Community Wide Prayer Service & Bible Study Tuesday Service 6:30 pm

Mother’s Day Service Guest speaker: Sgt. Carol Adams, RPD Breakfast of Champions Speaker to be announced

Fair�ield Court Initiative Outreach

Coming in June…

Pastoral Installation of Pastor Ellison and Community Celebration

was no order in place ahead of his arrival at the church, which proved correct. Ms. Hickman did not indicate the order was no longer in effect prior to the publication of the Free Press’ March 23-25 edition.

Whether Pastor Parson regains the pulpit of the church remains a question. RCC has largely rented out its property to small businesses and other congregations as part of its effort to reorganize, pay its bills and come out of bankruptcy.

While Pastor Parson has 1984 church documents filed with Richmond Circuit Court that name him the permanent pastor, a reorganization plan approved by creditors and the bankruptcy court puts the trustee board in full control of the church and vests the board with authority to hire and fire the pastor.

It is not clear if that plan is in force as the bankruptcy trustee, Bruce H. Matson, has yet to file his final report with the court to end the bankruptcy process. That is now scheduled to happen at the end of July.

Thirty-first Street Baptist Church C

o

everence e with e evanc R ing Dr. Morris Henderson, Senior Pastor bin ❖

SUNDAYS Church School 9:30 a.m.

Morning Worship 10:30 a.m. ❖

WEDNESDAYS Bible Study 12:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m. ❖

MONDAY-FRIDAY Nutrition Center and Clothes Closet 11:30 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.

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

Richmond Free Press

B6 March 30-April 1, 2017

Legal Notices City of Richmond, Virginia CITY COUNCIL PUBLIC NOTICE Notice is hereby given that the Council of the City of Richmond has scheduled a public hearing, open to all interested citizens, on Monday, April 10, 2017 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. 2014-093 As Amended To establish an Advisory Task Force for the Economic Revitalization of South Richmond to provide advice to the Council, the Mayor and other City agencies concerning strategies and initiatives to improve the economic health of and promote economic development in certain [Enterprise Zones] areas and along certain corridors of South Richmond.

Ordinance No. 2017-024 As Amended To amend and reordain City Code §§ 2-871— 2-872, concerning the Highway Safety Commission, for the purpose of renaming the Highway Safety Commission as the Safe and Healthy Streets Commission [and] , providing that a quorum of the Commission consists of a majority of the members instead of seven members[;] and [to amend and reordain ch. 2, art. V, div. 5 of the City Code by adding therein a new § 2-873, concerning the review of transportation-related projects], to require the [review by] Department of Public Works to provide the Commission [of] with information concerning transportation-related projects upon request therefor by the Commission.

Ordinance No. 2017-075 To authorize the Chief Administrative Officer to accept funds in the amount of $74,852 from the United States Department of Justice, Office of Community Oriented Policing Services; to amend the Fiscal Year 2016-2017 Special Fund Budget by creating a new special fund for the Department of Police called the Law Enforcement Intervention Focusing on Education (LIFE) Program Special Fund; and to appropriate the grant funds received to the Fiscal Year 20162017 Special Fund Budget by increasing estimated revenues and the amount appropriated to the Department of Police’s Law Enforcement Intervention Focusing on Education (LIFE) Program Special Fund by $74,852 for the purpose of providing prevention and intervention services, resources, and programs to assist in the diversion of youth from the criminal justice system.

Ordinance No. 2017-076 To authorize the Chief Administrative Officer, for and on behalf of the City of Richmond, to execute a Memorandum of Agreement between the City of Richmond and the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice for the purpose of enabling the City’s Department of Justice Services to provide intake evaluations for direct care to juvenile offenders committed to the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice.

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

Continued from previous column

Continued from previous column

Continued from previous column

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Continued from previous column

Continued from previous column

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER STEPHANIE THOMAS, Plaintiff v.

GREGORY THOMAS, Defendant.

Case No.: CL17000574-00 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 25th day of April, 2017 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 Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court of the City of Richmond Commonwealth of Virginia, in re johnette allen Case No. J-82401-08-09 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to: Terminate the residual parental rights (“RPR”) of Dwayne Anthony Holloway ( F ath e r ) & Ta s h i a Nicole Allen (MOTHER) of JOHNETTE ALLEN child, DOB 06/19/2001, “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 Dwayne Anthony Holloway (Father) & Tashia Nicole Allen (Mother) to appear at the abovenamed Court and protect his/her interest on or before May 10, 2017 at 2:00 PM, Courtroom #5.

Diane Abato, Esq. 900 E. Broad St., 4th Floor Richmond, Virginia 23219 804-646-3493

COMPANY, Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR S U CCE S S OR S I N INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN S T RI N G ER , RIC H A R D T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR S U CCE S S OR S I N INTEREST OF RICHARD T. D AVI S , D E B R A D .

S CO T T, W h o M a y B e Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR S U CCE S S OR S I N INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, RECHARDE G OO D W Y N , J A B RIE L MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL N ICKE N S , RIC H A R D FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, DEIDRE E. DAVIS, RUSSELL B. DAVIS, RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

and JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, and DEIDRE E. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known addresses, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RUSSELL B. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and has not filed a response to this action; that RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, RECHARDE GOODWYN, JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, DEIDRE E. DAVIS, RUSSELL B. DAVIS, RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

said property, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known addresses, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RUSSELL B. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and has not filed a response to this action; that RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, RECHARDE GOODWYN, JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, DEIDRE E. DAVIS, RUSSELL B. DAVIS, RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

filed a response to this action; that WINIFRED OTEY p/k/a WINFRED L. DUNN, who may have an ownership interest in said property, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that EQUITY ONE CONSUMER LOAN CO a/k/a EQUITY ONE CONSUMER LOAN COMPANY, INC., A Purged Corporation, which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that CACV of COLORADO a/k/a CACV of COLORADO, LLC, A Colorado Limited Liability Company Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that JAMES P. HURD, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of JAMES P. HURD, MARTHA DUNN a/k/a MARTHA LENORA DUNN, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of MARTHA DUNN a/k/a MARTHA LENORA DUNN, BEN F. DUN, JR., who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of BEN F. DUN, JR., ALBERT F. DUNN, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of ALBERT F. DUNN, MARY BROWN, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of MARY BROWN, DELORES H. JONES, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of DELORES H. JONES, GWENDOLYN YOUNG a/k/a GWENDOLYN D. YOUNG, KHADIJA HAKIN p/k/a BERTHA M. HINTON, WINIFRED OTEY p/k/a WINFRED L. DUNN, EQUITY ONE CONSUMER LOAN CO a/k/a EQUITY ONE CONSUMER LOAN COMPANY, INC., A Purged Corporation, CACV of COLORADO a/k/a CACV of COLORADO, LLC, A Colorado Limited Liability Company Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and has not filed a response to this action; that RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, RECHARDE GOODWYN, JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, DEIDRE E. DAVIS, RUSSELL B. DAVIS, RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF HANOVER OTELIA THROWERMEADOWS, Plaintiff v.

RUSSELL MEADOWS, Defendant.

Case No.: CL17000573-00 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 25th day of April, 2017 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 DUSTIN TYSON, Plaintiff v.

TIANNA WILLIAMS, Defendant.

Case No.: CL17000586-00 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 25th day of April, 2017 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 County of chesterfield Commonwealth of Virginia, in re carter warner westbay Brian keith branch, tracy l. branch v.

Unknown father Case No. JJ090846-01-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to: Determine custody o f Ca r t e r Wa r n e r Westbay (DOB: 5/4/16), whose mother is Christina Ann Moore and whose father is unknown, pursuant to Virginia Code Section 16.1-241A3.

Father’s whereabouts are unknown.

It is ORDERED that the defendant Unknown Father appear at the abovenamed Court and protect his interests on or before 5/5/2017 at 9:00 AM

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF CHESTERFIELD BRANDON H. WALTON, Plaintiff v.

PAYNE G. BRAVO, Respondent.

In re: Noah Gabriel Bravo (D.O.B. 04/09/2015) March 15, 2017 Case No.: CL17-31 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to obtain an adoption of the minor child Noah Gabriel Bravo by the Petitioners.

WHEREFORE, an affidavit having been filed by the Plaintiff that due diligence has been used without effect to ascertain the location of the Respondent, Payne G. Bravo, it is ORDERED that Payne G. Bravo appear before this Court on May 5, 2017 at 8:30 a.m. to protect his interests herein.

A Copy, Teste: WENDY S. HUGHES, Clerk Mary Ashby Brown, Esquire FRIEDMAN LAW FIRM, PC 9401 Courthouse Rd., Suite A Chesterfield, VA 23832 (804) 717-1969

VIRginia: IN THE Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court of the City of Richmond Commonwealth of Virginia, in re ANTONIO LUKE Case No. J-778958-06-00 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to: Terminate the residual parental rights (“RPR”) of Leticia Babette Luke (MOTHER) of ANTONIO LUKE child, DOB 11/23/2003, “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 Leticia Babette Luke (Mother) to appear at the above-named Court and protect his/her interest on or before 5/9/2017 at 2:00 PM Courtroom #2

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

Case No.: CL16-4991 RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, A Virginia Corporation, et al., Defendants.

ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 1709 North 24th Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E000-0944/005, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY.

An Affidavit having been filed that SCINDEY MORRIS, Registered Agent for RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, who has been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to his last known address, has not been personally located and has not filed a response to this action; that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR S U CCE S S OR S I N INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN S T RI N G ER , RIC H A R D T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR S U CCE S S OR S I N INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, and DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR S U CCE S S OR S I N INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RECHARDE GOODWYN and JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, and DEIDRE E. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known addresses, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RUSSELL B. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and has not filed a response to this action; that RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

I T I S OR D ERE D that SCINDEY MORRIS, Registered Agent for RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT Continued on next column

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

SHARON K. BRADLEY, et al.

Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-1616 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as East Brookland Park Boulevard, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number N000-0980/025, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, SHARON K. BRADLEY and CAROLYN J. BRADLEY.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owners, SHARON K. BRADLEY, ELAINE BRADLEY HANSOM and CAROLYN J. BRADLEY, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known address, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action, and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that SHARON K. BRADLEY, ELAINE BRADLEY HANSOM, CAROLYN J. BRADLEY, and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940 VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF RICHMOND JOHN MARSHALL COURTS BUILDING CITY OF RICHMOND, Plaintiff, v.

RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, A Virginia Corporation, et al., Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-4990 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 2000 North 29th Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0120401/017, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY.

An Affidavit having been filed that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, and DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RECHARDE GOODWYN Continued on next column

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

RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, A Virginia Corporation, et al., Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-4989 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 2110 North 29th Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0120374/003, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY.

An Affidavit having been filed that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, and DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RECHARDE GOODWYN and JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, and DEIDRE E. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in

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

JAMES P. HURD, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF JAMES P. HURD, et al., Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-4839 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 112 South Colonial Avenue, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number W000-1281/009, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owners of record, James P. Hurd, who may be deceased.

An Affidavit having been filed that said owner, JAMES P. HURD, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of JAMES P. HURD, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that MARTHA DUNN a/k/a MARTHA LENORA DUNN, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of MARTHA DUNN a/k/a MARTHA LENORA DUNN, BEN F. DUN, JR., who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of BEN F. DUN, JR., ALBERT F. DUNN, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of ALBERT F. DUNN, MARY BROWN, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of MARY BROWN, DELORES H. JONES, who may be deceased and the heirs, devisees, assignees or successor/s in interest of DELORES H. JONES, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that GWENDOLYN YOUNG a/k/a GWENDOLYN D. YOUNG, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who has been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to her last known address, has not been personally located and has not filed a response to this action; that KHADIJA HAKIN p/k/a BERTHA M. HINTON, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not

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

RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, A Virginia Corporation, et al., Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-4986 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 1806 Sussex Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0000755/023, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY.

An Affidavit having been filed that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, and DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RECHARDE GOODWYN and JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, and DEIDRE E. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known addresses, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RUSSELL B. DAVIS, who

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

RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, A Virginia Corporation, et al., Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-4988 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 2112 North 29th Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0120374/002, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY.

An Affidavit having been filed that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, and DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RECHARDE GOODWYN and JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, and DEIDRE E. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known addresses, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RUSSELL B. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and has not filed a response to this action; that RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability

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March 30-April 1, 2017 B7

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Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, RECHARDE GOODWYN, JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, DEIDRE E. DAVIS, RUSSELL B. DAVIS, RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, and DEIDRE E. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, who have been served by posting and by mailing a copy of the complaint to their last known addresses, have not been personally located and have not filed a response to this action; that RUSSELL B. DAVIS, who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and has not filed a response to this action; that RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., who may have an ownership interest in said property, is not a resident of the Commonwealth of Virginia, has not been located and has not filed a response to this action; that LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., which may be a creditor with an interest in said property, has not filed a response to this action; and that any heirs, devisees, assignees, successors in interest, successors in title and/or any creditors with a current or future interest in said property, have not been identified and/or served despite diligent efforts to do so and are defendants to this suit by the general description of “Parties Unknown.”

IT IS ORDERED that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER,

RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, RECHARDE GOODWYN, JABRIEL MICKENS a/k/a JABRIEL NICKENS, RICHARD FEGGINS, ASHLEY FEGGINS, RODNEY A. DAVIS, REYNARD I. DAVIS, DEIDRE E. DAVIS, RUSSELL B. DAVIS, RONALD J. SCOTT, JR., LVNV FUNDING LLC, A Delaware Limited Liability Company, Not Authorized to Transact Business in the Commonwealth of Virginia, Successor by Assignment to STERLING JEWELERS, INC., and Parties Unknown, come forward to appear on or before APRIL 20, 2017, and do what is necessary to protect their interests in this matter.

An Extract, Teste: Edward F. Jewett, Clerk Gregory A. Lukanuski, Esq. City of Richmond, Office of the City Attorney 900 E. Broad Street Richmond, VA 23219 804-646-7940

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

RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, A Virginia Corporation, et al., Defendants.

Case No.: CL16-4987 ORDER OF PUBLICATION

The object of this suit is to subject the property briefly described as 2807 Newbourne Street, Richmond, Virginia, Tax Map Number E0120374/001, to sale in order to collect delinquent real estate taxes assessed thereon in the name of the owner of record, RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY, INC., a/k/a RICHMOND INVESTMENT COMPANY.

An Affidavit having been filed that Any unknown heirs, devisees, assignees, or successors of RAYMOND DAVIS, SR., have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF REGINA D. STRINGER a/k/a ALEEN STRINGER, RICHARD T. DAVIS, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF RICHARD T. DAVIS, and DEBRA D. SCOTT, Who May Be Deceased, and THE HEIRS, DEVISEES, ASSIGNEES OR SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST OF DEBRA D. SCOTT, who may have an ownership interest in said property, have not been located and have not filed a response to this action; that RECHARDE GOODWYN and JABRIEL MICKENS

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License Cary Addison, LLC Trading as: Fresca on Addison 22 S. Addison Street, Richmond, Virginia 23220 The above establishment is applying to the Virginia D e p artme n t of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) for a wine and beer on and off premises license to sell or manufacture alcoholic beverages.

Jenna Sneed, co-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.

Virginia Board for People with Disabilities

Request for Proposals Competitive Grant Program The Virginia Board for People with Disabilities is seeking Letters of Interest in response to two Competitive Requests for Proposal (RFPs).

Approximately $400,000 is available for multiple awards. Grant projects will begin October 1, 2017 and are 100% federally funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Community Living, Administration on Intellectual and Developmental of Disabilities.

The Board, which serves as the Commonwealth’s Developmental Disabilities (DD) Council, seeks to support local, regional and/or statewide projects that build capacity, and result in changes to policies, programs, and systems in order to facilitate full inclusion of people with DD in all facets of community life.

The first RPF is Inclusive Communities Grant Program – Phase II. The focus areas for grant awards in this RFP are: integrated, competitive employment, person-centered healthcare, and affordable, accessible housing.

The 2nd RFP is Strengthening Self-Advocacy in Virginia Competitive Mini Grants. The Board has committed approximately $45,000 for up to 3 awards of no more than $15,000 each. Applications will be accepted from self-advocacy organizations led by people with DD or self-advocacy programs led by people with DD that exist within an umbrella organization. Funding will be considered for activities designed to strengthen the organization and/or program by enhancing leadership skill sets, organizational structure, and work to effect policy change.

The 2017 RFPs, Letter of Interest (LOI) form & other important documents needed to complete an application are available at https://www.vaboard. org/grants.htm.The deadline for Letters of Interest is April 24, 2017 by 4:00 p.m. ET. Letters that are late will not be considered. Applicants are required to register with the Board’s DD Suite system in order to submit an LOI. This is a new process.

Questions regarding application submission processes or the RFPs should be directed to Jason Withers, at (804) 786-9375 or by email at Jason.

Withers@vbpd.virginia.gov.

Continued on next column

AFTON CHEMICAL CORPORATION/ R&D ENGINEER: The City of Richmond announces the following project(s) available for services relating to: RFP W170019180 Third Party Administration of Workers Compensation and Liability Claims Receipt Date: Tuesday, April 18, 2017 at 3:30 PM Receipt Location: 900 East Broad Street, 11th Floor, Room 1104, Richmond, VA 23219 Information or copies of the above solicitation is available by contacting Procurement Services, at the City of Richmond website (www.

RichmondGov.com), or at 11th Floor of City Hall, 900 E. Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219. Phone (804) 646-5716 or faxed (804) 6465989. The City of Richmond encourages all contractors to participate in the procurement process.

For reference purposes, documents may be examined at the above location.

The City of Richmond is seeking to fill the following positions:

RFP WR1700004068 – Parking Study for the City of Richmond Receipt Date: Monday, May 1, 2017 at 3:30 PM Receipt Location: 900 East Broad Street, 11th Floor, Room 1104, Richmond, VA 23219 Information or copies of the above solicitation is available by contacting Procurement Services, at the City of Richmond website (www.

RichmondGov.com), or at 11th Floor of City Hall, 900 E. Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219. Phone (804) 646-5716 or faxed (804) 6465989. The City of Richmond encourages all contractors to participate in the procurement process.

For reference purposes, documents may be examined at the above location.

Code Enforcement Inspector I - Plumbing 05M00000149 Department of Planning, Development and Review Apply by 04/09/17

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS – RFP# 154010-ABJ The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is requesting proposals from firms to provide Exterior Repairs to the Memorial Hospital Building.

Equipment Operator II – Stormwater Utility Program 35M00000824 Department of Public Utilities Apply by 04/09/17

All proposals must be received by 2:00 P.M. on April 24, 2017 at the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Central Office Mail Center – Loading Dock Entrance, 1401 E. Broad St., Richmond, VA 23219, Attn: Alice Braswell-Jones, Contract Officer.

For a copy of the Request for Proposals (RFP 154010-ABJ), go to the website: www.eva.virginia.gov (solicitations & awards) and reference the solicitation number.

Maintenance Technician III – Water Utility 35M00000295 Department of Public Utilities Apply by 04/09/17

A Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference/Site Visit will be held at 1 P.M., April 6, 2017, at Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), Human Resource Training Room, First Floor, Old Highway Building, 1221 E. Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219.

****************** 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

The Department assures compliance with Title VI requirements of nondiscrimination in all activities pursuant to this advertisement.

For questions or additional information email: alice.braswell-jones@vdot. virginia.gov.

RICHMOND REGIONAL PLANNING DISTRICT COMMISSION REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS Audio Equipment Upgrades RRPDC-RFP #17-04 Richmond Regional Planning District Commission will accept sealed proposals until 4:30 p.m., Thursday, April 13, 2017 for audio equipment upgrades in the RRPDC office and meeting area(s).

The Richmond Regional Planning District Commission reserves the right to reject any or all proposals submitted and also to make award where it appears to be in the best interest of the RRPDC. Submission requirements and materials as well as general information regarding the organization are available at www.richmondregional.org. EOE.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is requesting proposals from firms to provide augmentation support services for the design-build program/projects and professional consultant services. All proposals must be received by 2:00 PM, April 25, 2017, at the Virginia Department of Transportation; Central Office Mail Center-Loading Dock Entrance; 1401 East Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219.

An optional Pre-proposal Conference will be held at 10:30 AM on April 12, 2017.

For a copy of the Request for Proposals (RFP # 153968-DK), go to the website: www.eva. virginia.gov VDOT assures compliance with Title VI Requirements of non-discrimination in all activities pursuant to this advertisement.

For questions or additional information email: danielle.keeton@vdot.virginia.gov

TransiT sysTem

GRTC TRANSIT SYSTEM BUS STOP SIGN REPLACEMENT GRTC Transit System invites all interested parties to submit bids for providing bus stop sign replacement services. Interested firms may download a copy of IFB# 158-17-04 from GRTC’s website www.ridegrtc.com (menu options: About Us, then Procurement) or obtain a copy from Allan Cox, Purchasing Manager at (804) 358.3871 ext. 371.

An optional pre-bid meeting will be held on April 5, 2017 at 10:00 am for this procurement.

Bids are due no later than 11:00 am on April 28, 2017. All inquiries pertaining to the request or any questions in reference to the solicitation documents should be directed to: Allan Cox Purchasing Manager (804) 358.3871, extension 371 Supplier diversity program“providing equal opportunity for small businesses”

The City of Richmond announces the following project(s) available for services relating to:

Afton (Richmond) seeks R&D Engineer to test lubricant additive products for automotive & industrial apps. Req. B.S. Mech Engg and 1 yr exp as a Mech Engnr testing auto lubricant additive products; designing, testing & performing calculations on gears, synchronizers & hydraulics; additive testing on ZF Synchro SSP180 test rigs; designing shaft spline & performing shaft alignment; using Solid Works 3D/2D; testing in accordance w/ ASME, ASTM, IP, CEC standards. Qualified applicants send cvr ltr, CV & slry reqs to Shawn Boone, HR, Afton Chemical Corp, 500 Spring St, Richmond, VA 23219.

St. Peter Baptist Church Child Development Center is looking for qualified Teachers and Instructional Assistants with previous child care experience and who can be a Christian role model. These positions require multiple responsibilities; For further details contact Mrs. Lavasia Williams at (804) 262-6562.

Freelance Writers: Richmond Free Press has immediate opportunities for freelance writers. Newspaper experience is a requirement. To be considered, please send 5 samples of your writing, along with a cover letter to news@richmond freepress.com or mail to: Richmond Free Press, P. O. Box 27709, Richmond, VA 23261. No phone calls.

The U.S. Census Bureau is hiring Field Representatives in the Richmond metro area.

If you are customer focused, self-motivated and have excellent communication skills, please call 1-800-563-6499 for more information and to be scheduled for a testing near you.

The Census Bureau is an Equal Opportunity Employer and provides reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.

1 PCA or 1 CNA

needed for 12 hour shift at Assisted Living Facility.

Also need 1 PCA or CNA to work as a relief person on 12-hour shift.

Please bring a current TB report when applying.

All references will be checked.  Good pay  Good days off Need licensed medication aide for 12-hours shifts.

Call for appointment (804) 222-5133.

School of Education

Program Specialist (Early Intervention Professional Development Consultant) FAC930 Partnership for People with Disabilities at Virginia Commonwealth University The Partnership for People with Disabilities at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is seeking a dynamic professional to serve as a program specialist as part of the professional development team of the Integrated Training Collaborative that oversees personnel development under Early Intervention (Part C) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act for statewide providers. The Program Specialist in Early Intervention Professional Development will be responsible for developing and providing professional development (resources, e-Learning and face-to-face training) related to Early Intervention. This position also provides leadership for local, state, and federal organizations and committees to support and promote professional development. The Program Specialist in Early Intervention Professional Development will also work closely with project staff, key stakeholders, and funders to ensure successful completion of contract deliverables. Required education, experience and licensure include but are not limited to the following: Master’s degree in education, eLearning (or similar specialty), adult learning, early childhood education, early childhood special education, social work, nursing, speech-language pathology, physical therapy, occupational therapy or infant/early childhood mental health, or related field; knowledge of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part C; at least 3 years of extensive experience in early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities; knowledge of and experience with principles of effective eLearning and adult learning practices; experience facilitating collaborative work with other agencies and providers; experience in providing professional development, consultation and technical assistance; and a demonstrated experience working in and fostering a diverse faculty, staff, and student environment and a commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusiveness or commitment to do so as a faculty member at VCU. This is a full time twelve month position at the Partnership for People with Disabilities at VCU. This position is grant funded. For a complete job description, please contact Dana Childress at dcchildress@vcu.edu or (804) 921-5369.

Applicants must submit an application online at https://www.vcujobs.com as well as the following: 1) an application letter, describing how your education and employment experiences meet the required qualifications: 2) a complete curriculum vitae or resume; and 3) three current references who we may contact directly (including phone numbers and email addresses). Application submission deadline is April 22, 2017.

The position may be housed at the Partnership for People with Disabilities located at VCU in Richmond or as a telecommuting position. The successful candidate must be able to travel frequently throughout the state to participate in grant activities as well as some out of state travel. Travel expenses will only be reimbursed from VCU or a more economical departure location. Applicants cannot start work at VCU until a background check process has been completed. Full benefits will accompany the position.

‘Virginia Commonwealth University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action university providing access to education and employment without regard to age, race, color, national origin, gender, religion, sexual orientation, veteran’s status, political affiliation or disability.”

Richmond Free Press is seeking a reliable and creative person for a part-time graphics position. Enthusiastic individual must be proficient in Macintosh Creative Suite Design software (Indesign and Photoshop) to produce accurate, high quality camera-ready advertisements and news page layouts for print production. Meticulous attention to details. Ability to be flexible and work under deadline cooperatively in a team environment is essential. Submit resumé and samples of work to address: Human Resources, Richmond Free Press, P.O. Box 27709, Richmond, Virginia 23261. No phone calls please.

To advertise in the Richmond Free Press call 644-0496

Richmond Free Press

B8 March 30-April 1, 2017

Sports Plus Stories by Fred Jeter

30,000 entrants expected for Saturday’s Monument Ave. 10K The annual Monument Avenue 10K, famous for its live bands and party atmosphere, has become a race for the swift and, yes, the not so swift.

Come one, come all — striding with a dog on leash, baby in tow or wearing a zany costume. Just about anything goes.

A majority of the expected 30,000 entrants in this year’s 18th annual event will leave with some degree of satisfaction for having met personal goals or for having participated in what has evolved as one of Richmond’s bold-letter activities.

For a select few, money is on the line. The top male and female finishers will receive $2,000, with prize money decreasing to $100 for 10th place finishers.

Last year’s winners were native Richmonder Silas Frantz

Monument Avenue 10K schedule Date: Saturday, April 1 Starting line: Broad and Harrison streets 8 a.m.: Virginia 529 Kids Race 8:30 a.m.: Monument Avenue 10K (6.2 miles) Finish line: Franklin and Shafer streets Awards presentation: 10 a.m.

9 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Subway Post-Race Festival will take place at Cathedral Place across from Monroe Park because the park is closed for renovation. Highlights: Live music and vendor booths.

in 30.46 and former University of Richmond student Nicol Traynor in 34.01.

Frantz is a former Douglas Freeman High School and Georgetown University athlete who was taking graduate classes at the University of Virginia. Race organizers said he will return for this year’s 10K. Traynor, a New Jersey native and 2012 graduate of the University of Richmond, is now an assistant coach for New York University’s men’s and women’s cross-country and track and field teams.

This marks the fourth year the prize money will be awarded exclusively to members of the Collegiate Running Association.

James Haskins/Richmond Free Press

Many participants in the annual Monument Avenue 10K dress up — like this group in 2015 — to run or walk in the event. Participants have the satisfaction of meeting personal goals, getting some exercise and having fun.

To be eligible for the organization, a runner must be enrolled in at least one college credit-bearing class. The Monument Avenue 10K serves as the association’s national 10K championship event.

As a sidelight, $2,500 is awarded to the winner of the AT&T Dash for the Cash in which an entrant — selected at random — is given a huge head start, often about half the race, to beat the first-place finisher.

Richmonder Arvat McClaine was the Dash for the Cash winner a year ago, outrunning Frantz to the finish line.

This year, Kathy Hoverman of Bon Air has been selected for the Dash for the Cash. She has run the Monument Avenue 10K

several times in the past. If the elite runners finish before her, the $2,500 will be donated to the VCU Massey Cancer Center.

The winning times have become slightly slower since the sponsoring Sports Backers limited the prize money to members of the Collegiate Running Association.

Prior to the change, runners from Kenya and Ethiopia dominated the event. They have failed to attend since becoming ineligible for the prizes.

Kenyan Reuben Chebii set the men’s record of 28.07 in 2004.

Kenyan Magdalene Makunzi’s 32.34 in 2007 is the women’s record.

Richmond Flying Squirrels open the season April 6 at The Diamond

Minor league baseball teams such as the Richmond with moonshine BBQ sauce.

Flying Squirrels can’t promise their fans championNew sheriff in town: The Flying Squirrels’ new ship banners, home-run sluggers or pitchers throwing manager is Kyle Haines, a 34-year-old former infielder no-hitters. with the team’s parent San Francisco Giants chain.

What teams vow to promote every game is Haines, a Louisville native, managed the Giants’ Class wholesome family fun — and a chunk of that fun A Salem-Keizer Volcanoes a year ago. is pacifying growling stomachs.

As a player, Haines was part of minor league chamEven customers who don’t know home plate from pionship teams in 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2009. Haines a goal line get hungry, and that’s a segment of the succeeds Miguel Ojeda in the dugout. fan base the Flying Squirrels are aiming to reach Justice prevails: Celebrity guest Dave Justice, a during the new season that opens Thursday, April player with the former Richmond Braves, will be signing David Justice 6, at The Diamond on the Boulevard. autographs and throwing out the first ball on April 6.

In addition to daily promotions, the Flying Squirrels are The former left-handed outfielder played parts of several adding “Bistro in the Bullpen” under a tent down the right-field seasons in Richmond before becoming the National League line. Group bookings are encouraged.

Rookie of the Year with Atlanta in 1990.

The all-you-can-eat game-long Bistro menu includes boneless Justice was married to actress Halle Berry from 1992 to 1997. wings, French onion dip and chips, beef, pork and crab cake Spinning the turnstiles: Despite unusually rainy spring sliders, hamburgers and hot dogs. weather a year ago, the Flying Squirrels drew 390,693 fans, Also, there will be 13 new items at the regular concession averaging 5,745 people per opening. stands, including deep-fried mac ‘n’ cheese, and cheese balls That was second in the Eastern League to Reading, Pa.,

where the Philadelphia Phillies affiliate team drew 420,320 fans, averaging 6,092 people per game.

Returning headliners: Expected back from last season’s roster are first baseman Chris Shaw (the Giants’ No. 2 prospect), outfielder Steve Duggar (No. 10) and shortstop C.J. Hinojosa (No. 16).

Returning to the pitching staff will be lefty Andrew Suarez (the No. 5 prospect). Suarez is a former second round draft pick out of the University of Miami.

Baseball on the Boulevard: The Eastern League AA Squirrels have played out of The Diamond since 2010.

Prior to that, the Richmond Braves, Atlanta’s Triple A International League affiliate, was the home team from 1966 to 2008.

The Richmond Virginians, a Triple A International League affiliate of the New York Yankees, was the city’s first full-fledged minor league squad from 1954 to 1964.

There was no professional baseball in Richmond in 1965 and 2009. Old Parker Field was replaced by The Diamond on the same site in 1985.

New VCU coach had illustrious college career

Virginia Commonwealth University basketball fans know Mike Rhoades mostly as their new coach, dressed neatly in coat and tie.

But before he was a coach, he was a coach’s dream, wearing shorts and sneakers.

Rhoades is from the rural town of Mahanoy City, Pa., population 4,647. The No. 5 basketball jersey he wore during his All-American career from 1991 through 1995 at Lebanon Valley College in Pennsylvania has been retired.

If you were to dust the Lebanon Valley record book for fingerprints, you’d find plenty of evidence of the 6-foot guard’s handiwork.

Rhoades’ highlights with the Dutchmen include: • A career scoring total of 2,050 points; second on the school’s all-time list.

• A career 84.5 free-throw percentage, making him first all time at the school. (He once went 16-for-16 against Gettysburg College.)

• A career 5.9 assists per game, making him first all time.

• A career 212 steals and first all time.

• NCAA Division III Player of the Year in 1994.

• Leading Lebanon Valley College to the national title in 1994, defeating New York University 66-59 in overtime in the final.

• Being named to Lebanon Valley College Hall of Fame.

Having been a terrific player isn’t a prerequisite for being a high-end coach, but it likely helps.

Rhoades was named VCU’s basketball coach on March 23, succeeding Coach Will Wade, who left for Louisiana State University after two seasons with the Rams.

Rhoades isn’t the first notable athlete

to become the Rams’ coach. Here’s a review of the athletic backgrounds of some former VCU sideline bosses: Chuck Noe (VCU coach 1970-1976): A baseball and basketball star at the UniCoach Rhoades versity of Virginia, he also played in the Boston Red Sox chain.

Dana Kirk (1976-79): He was a broad-shouldered, 6-foot-5 center for both the Marshall University football and basketball teams.

J.D. Barnett (1979-85): He played baseball and basketball at Winona State University in Minnesota and is a member

Ram coming home Mike Rhoades’ newly named assistant, Joey Rodriguez, also has a glowing athletic history.

Rhoades was assistant coach and Rodriguez was the dynamic senior point guard on Virginia Commonwealth University’s 2011 NCAA Final Four entry.

Rodriguez scored 1,362 points, passed for 580 assists and made 237 steals playing for the Rams.

Since then, the native Floridian has served as assistant coach at Benedictine College Preparatory in Richmond, head coach at Lake Howell High School in Florida and video coordinator at University of Central Florida. During the past season, he was video coordinator under Coach Rhoades at Rice University.

Rodriguez played basketball professionally in France and Turkey.

of the school’s Hall of Fame.

Sonny Smith (1989-98): He played basketball for the Milligan College Buffaloes in Tennessee, where he was a teammate of longtime L.C. Bird High School coach-administrator Chuck Tester.

Jeff Capel III (2002-05): Led South View High School of Hope Mills to the North Carolina state title. He then earned second-team All-ACC honors as a Duke University guard before playing professionally in France.

Anthony Grant: The Miami native paced the University of Dayton to the NCAA Elite Eight in 1987, leading the team in scoring and rebounding.

Shaka Smart: From Madison, Wis., he is the career record holder for assists at Oregon Hill High School in Wisconsin and Kenyon College in Ohio.

Former Coach Wade never played basketball beyond the recreational level.

He was student manager at Franklin Road Academy near Nashville and later was student manager at Clemson University.

Another coach who never played competitively was the late Hal Nunnally, who was Rhoades’ mentor at Randolph-Macon College.

Rhoades was just 24 when Coach Nunnally hired him as an assistant in 1996.

Taking over as Coach Nunnally’s successor in 1999, Coach Rhoades posted a 197-76 record in 10 seasons.

When Rhoades was an assistant coach at VCU under former Coach Smart from 2009 through 2014, the Rams went 137-46, reaching the NCAA Final Four in 2011.

Moving to Rice University in Houston, he turned around a bottom-feeding program.

Rhoades’ Owls went 23-12 this season, reaching the CBI second round.

Now it’s Rhoades’ turn to sit in the first chair at VCU.

Richmond Flying Squirrels’ Nutzy and Nutasha

Batter up!

The Richmond Flying Squirrels will open its 2017 Eastern League season on Thursday, April 6, at The Diamond. Here’s the schedule for the team’s seven-game home stand: • Thursday, April 6, vs. Hartford, Conn., 7:05 p.m., fireworks • Friday, April 7, vs. Hartford, 7:05 p.m., T-shirt give-away • Saturday, April 8, vs. Hartford, 6:05 p.m., fireworks • Sunday, April 9, vs. Harford, 12:05 p.m., fleece blanket give-away • Monday, April 10, vs. Altoona, Pa., 6:35 p.m., Bark in the Park; Frisbee rope give-away • Tuesday, April 11, vs. Altoona, 6:35 p.m., outdoorsman cap give-away • Wednesday, April 12, vs. Altoona, 6:35 p.m., wine tasting The Hartford Yard Goats team is an affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. The Altoona Curve team is an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates.