Kanye, Taylor together again B2
Richmond Free Press © 2015 Paradigm Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.
VOL. 24 NO. 36
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA
www.richmondfreepress.com
ee Fr
Fr ee
She’s off to the UCI bike races B1
SEPTEMBER 3-5, 2015
A resurrection story Richmond Christian Center climbing back from bankruptcy with entrepreneurial efforts By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
The Rev. Calvin W. Yarbrough and Rhonda D. Hickman, along with Raymond Partridge, not shown, volunteer on the three-member trustee board that is guiding the resurgence of the Richmond Christian Center in South Side.
Where can you find people worshipping alongside a women’s fitness center, a youth sports program, a small business loan program and an events center for banquets, weddings and other events? Welcome to the revived Richmond Christian Center, which is bubbling with new life on South Side just two years after it seemed close to collapse. Forced into bankruptcy in 2013 to save itself, the 300-member church is making a strong comeback in the 200 block of Cowardin Avenue — in part by taking an entrepreneurial approach. Aided by a court-appointed trustee’s trust in the church’s ability to once again be self-supporting and two hard-working property managers, the 32-year-old church is embracing its role as a lively center of faith — and of small business development. To improve its finances and regain its financial footing, the Richmond Christian Center has been leasing much of its property to companies that fit with its vision of being a community-focused church. “Many people think we closed, but nothing could be further from the truth,” said Rhonda D. Hickman, chair of the three-member volunteer trustee board that is overseeing the church’s operations. “We never closed and now we are stronger than ever.” Under the leadership of Ms. Hickman and trustee board members the Rev. Calvin W. Yarbrough, the church’s youth pastor, and Raymond Partridge, the church is starting to bustle. Much of the credit appears to belong to a new property management company, Ujima Properties Inc. The church hired the company to fill its empty space, including
Herring to run for re-election, not for governor
NAACP 860-mile ‘Journey for Justice’ to stop in Richmond By Joey Matthews
By Jeremy M. Lazarus
Mark Herring enjoys his job as Virginia’s attorney general. That’s why the state’s top legal officer announced Wednesday that he would seek re-election for a new four-year term in 2017 rather than going after the top job of governor. Mr. Herring He would be the first attorney general to run for re-election since Mary Sue Terry in 1989. Mr. Herring hopes he can win again just as Ms. Terry did. On the Republican side, Delegate Robert B. “Rob” Bell III, 48, of Charlottesville, who failed to win his party’s nod for attorney general in 2013, is regarded as a top prospect to challenge Mr. Herring. In any case, Mr. Herring’s decision ends the likelihood of an internal Democratic Party fight over the gubernatorial nominaPlease turn to A4
U.S. Supreme Court allows McDonnell to remain free Bob McDonnell once again has had his date with a federal prison cell postponed. This time, the former Virginia governor got help from the U.S. Supreme Court. On Monday, the nation’s highest court issued an order allowing Mr. McDonnell to remain free on bond while the nine justices consider whether to hear an appeal of his conviction on 11 counts of corruption. Mr. McDonnell At least four justices would have to vote to hear his case when it comes up for consideration when the court reconvenes in October, legal experts have noted. Mr. McDonnell maintains that he is the victim of government overreach and did nothing that legally constituted corruption while governor. He and his wife, former First Lady Maureen McDonnell, were convicted of accepting $177,000 in largely undisclosed gifts and loans from a businessman soliciting state support for his company’s dietary supplement. A jury convicted the couple last year. Mr. McDonnell was sentenced to two years in prison, while Mrs. McDonnell was sentenced to a year and a day in prison. Mr. McDonnell’s arguments to overturn his convictions have been rejected by the Richmond-based 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Mrs. McDonnell is still waiting for the appellate court to consider her appeal that she was a private citizen, not an elected official, and, thus, could not be convicted of violating the public trust. — JEREMY M. LAZARUS
Please turn to A4
Photo by Jerome Reide/NAACP
Journey for Justice marchers get a fist bump from a supporter as they walk through Moneta, S.C., last Sunday. The march that started in Alabama will swing through five states, including Virginia, before ending Sept. 16 in Washington.
“I’m going to put on my tennis shoes and march.” That was Richmond NAACP President Lynetta Thompson’s enthusiastic declaration as “America’s Journey for Justice” march nears Richmond. The national NAACP is coordinating the march, which began Aug. 1 in Selma, Ala., where civil rights marchers were severely beaten by police 50 years ago as they sought voting rights for African-Americans. The march — themed “Our Lives, Our Votes, Our Jobs, and Our Schools Matter” — is a call to action for renewal of the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965, more sustainable jobs with Please turn to A4
Please turn to A4
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
A South Side middle school prepares to open under its new name on Forest Hill Avenue.
Back-to-school success tips Free Press staff report For thousands of public school students across the region, summer’s almost over. School officially starts Tuesday, Sept. 8. Dr. Matthew Lynch, 37, dean of the Syphax School of Education, Psychology and Interdisciplinary Studies at Virginia Union University, offered a few tips to help students have a successful school year: • Make sure a child gets at least eight hours of sleep each night. • Provide them a nutritious breakfast and lunch to allow their brain to develop at optimal capacity. • Devote a set time each afternoon for the child to do homework with no distractions. • A child’s caretakers are the “best teachers” and should form a partnership with schoolteachers to make sure the child has everything needed for classroom success. • Provide the same learning environment at home as the school in order to help the child form consistent learning habits. Dr. Lynch, a product of public schools in Hazelhurst, Miss., writes for several publications about education and can be found online at www.theedadvocate.org.
Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press
Desean Holland gets a back-to-school haircut from barber Donnell Bates.
James Haskins/Richmond Free Press
From left, Jandre, Nasir, Seneca and Jason Hackett are ready for the start of school with new book bags filled with school supplies.