A free exhibition at the Library of Virginia explores the historic neighborhood that was once the center of Richmond’s Black community through the lens of the Skipwith-Roper family.
YOUNG AT HEART
Opening the 2025-26 Broadway in Richmond season is the Tony Award-winning musical “Kimberly Akimbo,” making its River City premiere at the Altria Theater for eight performances, Nov. 4-9. Set in suburban New Jersey, Kimberly Levaco has a rare genetic condition that causes her to age rapidly. Throw in the challenges of adolescence, a first crush, a dysfunctional home life and possible felony charges, and you have the potential for an epic meltdown. Despite the odds, Kimberly remains optimistic in her search for happiness. The book and lyrics are by the Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Lindsay-Abaire with music by Tony Award-winning composer Jeanine Tesori. Tickets are $53 to $116. altriatheater.com —Nicole Cohen
FESTIVAL
ALL ABOARD
This Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 28-30, you can meet at the station — that is, the former Union or Broad Street Station, which is now the Science Museum of Virginia — for the 48th annual Model Railroad Show. Miles McQuiggan, the museum’s communications coordinator, describes the event’s six to eight large layouts as a blend of the popular and new in the model railroad world. “Our blacksmith is slated to return, and we’re debuting a new train science demo. There will be hands-on activities and all the bells and whistles for our 48th celebration,” McQuiggan says. The Model Railroad Show is included with museum admission ($11 to $18.50) and timed tickets are available from 9:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. smv.org —HK
WHAT-HAVE-YOUS
The annual Big LeBYRDski Fest is back and be-robed (or hornhelmeted) at Carytown’s venerable Byrd Theatre for its 12th year on Nov. 8, with festivities and a screening of “The Big Lebowski” beginning at 6 p.m. “Our average a endance has been about 375 patrons,” estimates Ben Cronly, The Byrd’s executive director. “We are also conducting before the movie, a costume contest and a trivia contest.” Winners receive special prizes. The $20 admission includes a drink ticket for one El Duderino (a milk stout made by Center of the Universe Brewing Co.), soda or water, and T-shirts are $25 to $30. Come early for the Bathrobe Bar Crawl at 4 p.m. or join the a erparty at New York Deli following the film where you can get a Caucasian (a White Russian), but if you have a beard, imbibe carefully. byrdtheatre.org —HK
HONORING HERITAGE
In the days ahead, we celebrate the culture and history of Indigenous peoples in observance of Native American Heritage Month. Learn more about Virginia’s state-recognized tribes and other Indigenous communities during events such as a library story time, a drum circle practice session, the Virginia Thanksgiving Festival and the Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival.
NOV. 2
For the 64th year, Berkeley Plantation in Charles City hosts the Virginia Thanksgiving Festival in recognition of the first English observance of the holiday at the site in 1619. Reenactments, demonstrations and activities run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., including a performance by the Chickahominy Tribal Dancers at 2:15 p.m. They will also close out the day by leading a traditional Friendship Dance with festivalgoers at 3:45 p.m. Admission is $20 per car ($25 day of). virginiathanksgivingfestival.net
NOV. 18
Every third Tuesday of the month, the Wolf Creek Cherokee Museum & Tribal Center in Henrico County hosts a drum circle practice session for members of the Wolf Creek tribe headquartered at the site. From 6 to 7:30 p.m., the public is invited to observe the drumming featuring songs from the Cherokee Nation and additional Indigenous communities. The museum — open on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. — features exhibitions and artifacts that teach guests about Cherokee culture and heritage, with group tours available on weekdays by appointment. Admission is free. wolfcreekcherokee.com
NOV. 20
Richmond Public Library’s Broad Rock branch presents a Native American Heritage Month Storytime. Hear stories by Indigenous authors and learn about Native life from a member of the Eastern Delaware Nations. The free event takes place from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the Broad Rock Meeting Room. rvalibrary.org
NOV. 20-23
More than 50 pieces of cinematic art created by Native American and Indigenous filmmakers, addressing topics that revolve around Native culture and experience, will be screened during the Pocahontas Reframed Film Festival. The ninth annual event takes place at both the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts and the Virginia Museum of History & Culture. Additional programming includes concerts, the Native American Family Day Powwow and the Tsenacommacah Eastern Indian Marketplace. Weekend passes are $30 and include admission to all films and activities; VIP tickets are $100 and include access to all events, plus the Filmmakers Reception. pocahontasreframed.com
—Compiled by NC
DESIGNER ACCESS
Back for its 61st year, the Visual Arts Center of Richmond’s Cra + Design show brings more than 170 artists from across the nation together to Main Street Station, Nov. 21-23. This museum-quality showcase highlights artisans who specialize in a variety of mediums, from painting and fiber arts to glass-blowing and ceramics. A endees can score handcra ed items including jewelry, home decor, clothing, sculpture and more. This year’s featured artist is Yeonsoo Kim. Based in New Hampshire, Kim is originally from Haenam, South Korea, and his signature ceramic vessels blend traditional Korean techniques with his lifelong love of drawing to create functional pieces. General admission is $15. Rise + Shine early bird shopping tickets are $65. Patron’s Pass packages, which include a preview party, early access and entry to the patrons’ lounge, start at $125. cra anddesignrva.com —NC
THEATER ON THE BORDER
“A Distinct Society,” wri en and directed by Kareem Fahmy, makes its Virginia debut at the Firehouse Theatre, Nov. 14-30, with pay-whatyou-will previews, Nov. 12-13. The play centers on a small-town library straddling the U.S.-Canadian border that becomes a meeting place for a father and daughter separated by the 2018 “Muslim ban.” Fahmy, also an artistic advisor at the Firehouse, grew up near the play’s se ing, the Haskell Free Library and Opera House between Vermont and Quebec. “I wrote this story to celebrate the beautiful and historic relationship between the U.S. and Canada,” Fahmy explains, “and to share my own experiences of being the child of Middle Eastern immigrants to Quebec. At the heart of the play is a plea to see past arbitrary divisions of borders, culture and language to our shared humanity.” Tickets are $35. firehousetheatre.org —HK
Richmond to employ a dedicated athletic trainer at each of its high schools.
“We take our athletes’ health and safety very seriously,” says Stefanie Ramsey, RPS athletics coordinator. “We also partner with the Richmond Health Department to do whole wellness checks to make sure they are mentally and physically in the right space.”
Last spring, RPS debuted its first-ever girls’ flag football program. While girls don’t wear helmets, they do wear protective headbands to minimize injury risk.
“People think about football as just hi ing each other. However, there are so many dynamics,” Ramsey says. “When you learn a playbook, you’re thinking about velocity, angles and power. And being part of a team is one of the greatest teachers in life, giving you social skills, discipline, resilience, confidence and self-esteem. It’s really empowering.”
Lilly argues that when students feel a sense of belonging, they are more successful. “Research shows that students who participate in athletics and activities have be er grades, a endance and graduation rates, and are less likely to do drugs or other illicit activities,” he says.
For Ramsey, being part of a team helped her through the most di cult time in her life.
“My mother passed away when I was in high school, and I really leaned on my teammates to get me through it,” she says. “Our kids go through so much today, and they need that extra support system, that second family.”
Football is indeed a family, not just for players but for everyone involved — the coaches, sta , parents, volunteers and fans. Once a week, no ma er our backgrounds or political beliefs, we come together as one and become part of something greater than ourselves. Long a er the final whistle, that unity endures. R
What, during her student years, were the thoughts and feelings of the first and only Negro who had been graduated from our basic baccalaureate nursing program?”
So begins a 1967 article in Nursing Outlook, a prominent nursing journal, recounting a 1965 panel discussion with Charlo e Anne Wynn Pollard. In 1960, Pollard had become the first Black graduate of the School of Nursing at the Medical College of Virginia, which today is part of Virginia Commonwealth University.
Pollard’s answers, both simple and nuanced, to 23 questions asked by faculty members capture the pain of the racism and discrimination she experienced in the cafeteria, classroom, wards and dorms. e article changed Pollard’s name and omi ed the college, but both the article and a transcript are archived at VCU’s library, along with other papers belonging to Professor Edward
Peeples, a well-known social justice advocate who died in 2019.
e panel was meant to inform faculty of how their treatment helped Pollard feel both comfortable and uncomfortable, as well as how the school’s climate made her feel accepted and rejected. It came as two more Black students were about to enroll and MCV’s segregationist practices threatened the institution’s federal funding. Faculty members were leading the e ort to deepen their colleagues’ understanding of their own prejudices.
“A lot of times, I felt like I was in a no-man’s-land,” Pollard said in a 1985 recorded interview with a retired School of Nursing faculty member. “I felt that I didn’t belong to anybody.”
In a 1996 nursing sorority profile, Pollard — who by that time had decades of experience as a psychiatric nurse — answered the article’s question succinctly: “I was in a forbidden world during my whole experience.”
COURTESY OF DONALD POLLARD JR.
Charlotte Anne Wynn at the MCV School of Nursing, 1958
Marshall’s message was typical of the positively pragmatic tenor printed on the pages of the Richmond Afro-American newspaper about the future for Black students as the Supreme Court decided segregation by race was illegal, even as Virginia leadership resisted mixing races in classrooms.
Headlines from 1954 in the local paper captured the turbulent times, but also set a tone for a positive future with a weekly series on the last gasps of Jim Crow laws in education and reports of schools that were integrating successfully. One such article,“Va. Medical College has graduated 20 since 1951,” explained that “ e Medical College of Virginia bowed to the decision of federal courts in accepting its colored students. College o cials took the position that the institution was obligated to accept qualified colored students and thought it unwise to refuse admi ance to those who could meet entrance requirements.” e article, however, doesn’t say if the students were openly welcomed.
Journey to MCV
After graduating from Armstrong High, Pollard accepted a scholarship to Wheaton College in Norton, Massachuse s, then a small, all-female, Christian school. She stayed for a year, majoring in chemistry with medical aspirations. Wheaton’s 1955 yearbook shows that she was the only Black student.
She transferred to MCV in the summer of 1957. That year was marked by direct conflict over equal education. In Arkansas, nine Black students at Little Rock High School faced violent mobs while a ending a segregated school. Just months later, Virginians elected A orney General Lindsey Almond, a strident segregationist, as governor. Political opposition to school integration — known as Massive Resistance — was well underway. As Almond took o ce, however, that strategy would shi toward school closures, state-controlled pupil assignments and other tactics as integration increasingly became the law of the land.
“In the beginning... I didn’t even realize;Iwasjust goingtoschool. Ineverthought about the fact that this was integration”
Pollard returned to Richmond in 1955 and studied chemistry for two years at VUU. In a 1985 interview, she said, “Somewhere along the way, I had the idea that I wanted to be a nurse, but I was encouraged to have a baccalaureate degree in nursing.” She expressed interest in a ending the University of Maryland, but a counselor suggested she save the out-of-state tuition and a end MCV instead.
—CHARLOTTE ANNE WYNN POLLARD
Pollard was not the first Black woman to become a nurse, nor was she the first to study at MCV. St. Philip Hospital had opened in 1920 to treat nonwhite patients, and its nursing school had long provided a professional path for Black women. Other programs in Virginia granted diplomas, too, such as the Hampton Institute, the Piedmont Sanitorium and Norfolk State University. She was, however, the first Black student to enroll in the School of Nursing. Pollard said in 1965, “In the beginning ... I didn’t even realize; I was just going to school. I never thought about the fact that this was integration; I just wanted to go. I remember telling [the registrar] when I came, ‘I just want to be a nurse and this is the school nearest to me.’”
‘You don’t belong here’
Once Pollard chose her path and entered MCV, however, the exclusions began. “There was some outright rejection, such as failure to speak, people who would move away physically. ough there were painful situations, they were clear indications as to where I stood,” Pollard told the faculty in 1965.
When Pollard visited the School of Nursing registrar’s o ce to inquire about studying nursing there, the administrator encouraged her to enroll at the St. Philip School of Nursing, which o ered a diploma. “And I said, ‘No, I want a baccalaureate degree.’ She said, ‘You’re in the right place. Have a seat.’ at was the beginning,” Pollard remembered.
During her first summer at MCV, Pollard says a nurse in the cafeteria told her, “You don’t belong here,” and pointed her toward the St. Philip cafeteria.
In 1965, Pollard also analyzed the cruelty of segregation and the Jim Crow caste system in place in Virginia. “I felt so sensitive that I didn’t want to admit to anybody that I was afraid or angry so, here, I would push back the real
“I work primarily with ‘inner healing,’ with the spiritual dimensions of the unique individual,” she said in a magazine profile. “I teach the art of silence, deep breathing, and relaxation, to discover a peaceful place within.”
Her son and daughter-in-law recall that she was ahead of modern health food trends, eating granola and seeds sourced from specialty stores. She loved Hawaii and greeted callers on her answering machine salutation with “aloha.”
Devoted to helping others in psychiatric nursing, her career also included working in home health care for psychiatric patients and e orts to prevent child abuse. Her company, Health Unlimited, focused on stress management and holistic health.
She died in 2001 from lung and brain cancer at 66 years old.
‘It’s history’
For Pollard’s family, and the Black nurses who knew her, her words and voice document the ongoing struggle for equity and inclusion in higher education and in nursing.
“It’s history. It’s what actually happened,” Johnson says. “Sharing that with others is something that people should know about. We need to know about that to make things be er in the future, because you are doomed to repeat yourself if you don’t learn something out of it. ings are not always equal, but you can try to make it that way.”
Frances Montague, president of the Central Virginia chapter of the National Black Nurses Association, still sees acceptance of Black nurses, who make up 6.3% of the workforce today, as an issue. “When you start to work individually, one-on-one with the patients, we still have some of the same things: whether or not a patient wants you to take care of them, whether they think that a Black nurse is actually capable of providing for them,” Montague says. “ ere are still times when leadership higher up would choose the associate degree white nurse over the bachelor’s degree Black nurse.”
She also mourns the lack of Black faculty in nursing schools, another key to helping minority students see themselves reflected and accepted.
In 2023, Black students made up 20% of VCU’s School of Nursing student body, and the school had an extensive diversity plan. Earlier this year, however, VCU’s board of visitors voted to eliminate the Division of Inclusive Excellence in response to President Donald Trump’s executive order labeling diversity e orts as discriminatory and calling for their elimination.
“I’d like to think that my alma mater, VCU, is be er than it was in the past and will continue to strive toward inclusive excellence,” Parsons-Pollard says. “Charlo e Anne Wynn Pollard was one of many people who moved the institution beyond its history.” R
Above left: Charlotte Anne Wynn Pollard in a cap and gown after receiving her master’s degree in psychiatric nursing from the University of Maryland. Above right: Pollard gives a presentation during a professional nursing event.
BREAKING THE ICE
GIRLS SKATE INTO THE MALE-DOMINATED WORLD OF HOCKEY /
By Laura Anders Lee
hen Londyn Buske laces up her skates and glides onto the ice, she’s completely in her element. The 6-year-old has been hooked on hockey ever since joining her older brother during his practices last year. Londyn had so much fun that her mother, Heather, looked into more opportunities for her to play.
Richmond Ice Zone, SkateNation Plus and Powhatan Ice Den all o ered co-ed leagues, but Buske couldn’t find an all-girls team within two hours of Richmond. To get on the ice, Londyn joined the Powhatan Ice Den’s Polar Mites 6U team, for players 6 and under, donning a pink helmet and gloves while playing with mostly boys.
“Skating is fun, and I like slipping around on the ice,” Londyn says. “I like to stop and turn and trick people to get the puck and score goals.”
While Londyn is relatively new to playing, she’s grown up around hockey. Before moving to Virginia, the Buskes lived in Odessa, Texas, where they volunteered as a billet family to host players from the local amateur hockey team.
“We’ve kept up with them over the years,” Buske says of their tenant athletes. “Londyn wears jersey No. 37 a er her favorite player, Connor Hellebuyck, who played for the Odessa
Jackalopes and now plays goalie for the Winnipeg Jets.”
Londyn is a passionate hockey fan as well as an enthusiastic player, known for her speed and grit. This fall, she finally got the opportunity to join an all-girls team: the Powhatan Ice Den’s 8U Li le Mischief, the only one of its kind in the Richmond area. “ is is a really big deal they’re doing this,” Buske says. “Londyn will be able to grow as this organization grows, and she’ll have more opportunities without having to travel hours in the car. We hope to get even more girls involved.”
A SHIFT ON THE ICE
Londyn is one in a growing movement of girls breaking into the sport. USA Hockey, the governing body for ice hockey in America, reports that, of the roughly 400,000 players enrolled in youth hockey programs today, about 72,000, or 18%, are girls. By comparison, 5.7 million girls play youth soccer, representing 41% of all players, according to the marketing company For Soccer. While still a male-dominated sport, girls’ hockey has become one of the fastest-growing youth sports in the United States. USA Hockey reports a 65% participation increase since 2010. And last season, 5,000 more girls and women registered nationwide than the year before.
While ice hockey was once solely concentrated in the Midwest and Northeast, these days more athletes are enrolling in the Southeast and mid-Atlantic regions and on the West Coast. USA Hockey found Virginia to be among the top 10 states for growth, joining other Southern states including Texas, Tennessee and North Carolina.
“From a business perspective, female hockey players are untapped potential,” says Ryan Winfree, general manager of Powhatan Ice Den. “Interest is just exploding. ese girls are competitive and are ready to play, and we want to make sure and have the space for them. at’s what we’ve been building the last several years.”
Powhatan Ice Den, a single ice sheet rink opened in 2021, has recently introduced a women’s club for 3-on-3 games on Sundays. Twice a year, the rink also o ers a free eight-week clinic for women and girls of all levels to learn to skate and play hockey.
Londyn has already convinced her mom to join. “I definitely have to get faster if I want to keep up with her on the ice,” Buske says with a laugh.
To lead the new girls’ team in Powhatan, Winfree recruited Michelle Walton, who played competitive AAA youth hockey. “She is all in,” Winfree says. “She didn’t get the chance growing up in Richmond to play competitively on an all-girls team, and she can’t wait to help give girls in our area that opportunity.”
Since opening, Powhatan Ice Den has become known for its training and development programs. Next summer, the organization will open its sister rink, the Richmond Ice Box, with an NHL-sized rink to host competitive youth hockey, figure skating and regional hockey tournaments.
“We’re growing our local market while working to put Richmond on the map as a hockey hub,” Winfree says.
girls end up qui ing a sport when they no longer feel physically comfortable or emotionally supported on a co-ed or boys team,” ompson says. “We want to set them up for success.”
In September, the Caps hosted its second annual Girls Try Hockey for Free Day, inviting girls who enjoy ice skating to try the sport at one of 16 rinks in the region, including Richmond Ice Zone.
Four-year-old Everly Searle was one of about 20 girls who participated in Chesterfield. Everly’s mother, Laura, says her daughter has been sliding around the ice in Crocs since age 2, but she’d never played hockey before. “She absolutely loved it,” Searle says. “For years, she’s been tagging along to her older brother’s hockey games with the Richmond Generals and has been dying to get to play herself rather than just spectate.”
Searle knows from her son’s experience that trying ice hockey for the f irst time can be intimidating, and she appreciates that events like Girls Try Hockey for Free Day make the sport more accessible and create a friendly environment for girls like her daughter. “ ere’s a barrier to entry for ice hockey,” she says. “If you want to play soccer, you go to Dick’s [Sporting Goods], grab a ball and some shin guards, and show up to a field, but ice hockey is a bit more complicated.”
Searle and her husband both graduated from Cornell University, one of just 44 colleges in the U.S. with both NCAA Division I women’s and men’s hockey teams. (More than 360 colleges and universities o er Division I men’s and women’s basketball, for comparison.) “Ice hockey was a really big deal [in Ithaca, New York], and my husband grew up playing,” she says.
When they first moved to Richmond about 13 years ago, they were pleasantly surprised to find a robust adult ice hockey team. Now they welcome the opportunities for both their son and daughter. “We are just so, so
excited,” Searle says. “It’s like a hockey renaissance around here.”
is year, Everly plans to play in a co-ed league, but she can’t wait until she’s old enough to play for the 8U Li le Mischief and wear their purple uniform. Her mother says playing with boys is fine for now, but joining an allgirls team would be ideal.
Heather Buske wants the same for her daughter, Londyn. “When she plays with other girls, she’s just more confident, and she gets to feel that camaraderie she normally doesn’t get because she’s not in the locker room with the boys,” she says. “ ere’s just something di erent when they hit the ice and see other girls. She has hockey best friends.”
ROLE MODELS
The field is expanding on an international level, too. Since the 2023-24 inaugural season, the Professional Women’s Hockey League has drawn more than 1.2 million fans to arenas in the U.S. and Canada, which included nine neutral sites this year, such as Raleigh, North Carolina. Viewers from 106 countries have also watched matches live through local TV networks and on YouTube.
Sales of PWHL merchandise also doubled in its second season. In August, Ma el debuted its first PWHL Barbie doll, which quickly sold out. e PWHL also released a limited-time set of “Inspirational Icons” digital trading cards, featuring some of the best female hockey players in the world, such as Emily Clark and Savannah Harmon of the O awa Charge; Kendall Coyne Schofield of the Minnesota Frost; Hilary Knight of the Boston Fleet; Marie-Philip Poulin of the Montreal Victorie; Abby Roque of the New York Sirens; and Natalie Spooner and Sarah Nurse of the Toronto Sceptres.
“It’s so important for young girls to see a positive female role model,” says Jessie Thompson of the Caps. “With Team USA, the women’s national team
at the Olympics, and the creation of the PWHL, young girls can turn on their television and watch women playing at the highest level. ey now have a pathway and a dream.”
Londyn Buske and Everly Searle are just a few of those dreamers. Whether collecting trading cards or watching reels of their favorite players on Instagram, they know there’s a place for girls on the ice. “I love that Londyn can now see women playing — she never talked about playing long-term until she saw the PWHL players,” Buske says. “She is proof representation ma ers.”
Glide and Slide
Regional rinks to lace up and hit the ice
For lessons & leagues
Powhatan Ice Den
The newest rink in the region, the Ice Den hosts youth hockey leagues, pickup games and learn-to-skate programs. Open yearround. 1580 Oakbridge Terrace, Powhatan. powhataniceden.com
Richmond Ice Zone
North Chesterfield County’s Olympic-size rink hosts lessons and club sports and has a full-service cafe. Open year-round. 636 Johnston Willis Drive, North Chesterfield. richmondskating.com
Skate Nation Plus
Short Pump’s all-in-one destination for ice sports, laser tag, arcade games and more. Open year-round. 350 Pouncey Tract Road, Glen Allen. richmondskating.com
Other regional rinks
Stony Point Ice Skating Rink
Skate out the holiday season at Stony Point Fashion Park’s outdoor pop-up rink. Open seasonally from November through January. 9200 Stony Point Parkway, Richmond. shopstonypoint.com
Conex Pop-up Rink
A new container bar and event space in Carver will feature a pop-up skating rink starting in mid-November. 900 Axtell St. @conex.rva —Chase Wilson
DOWN COLD
THE REGION’S ICE CULTURE IS HEATING UP / By Kevin Johnson
here’s no doubt Richmond is a city full of sports fans. is year alone, there’s been record-setting fan presence across its minor league baseball and soccer teams, rising a ention on the city’s three women’s football teams, a sold-out NASCAR race, six-figure a endance at Dominion Energy RiverRock, major developments on the new CarMax Park, and national championships at the Henrico Sports & Events Center — not to mention a healthy youth sports scene that takes advantage of the region’s many new fields and community centers.
As the seasons turn and events head indoors, winter sports are warming up. And, with a new ice rink on the way, these sports are ready to go pro.
In this sports-obsessed city, athletes and business owners in the ice world are be ing on an upgraded facility, a pipeline of young talent and possibly some big players to herald a renaissance of ice sports across town. Is Richmond ready to lace up?
GROWING ATHLETES AND AUDIENCE
Richmond’s ice culture is driven by a network of hockey clubs, including the Richmond Generals and Hockey Night in Richmond, and figure skating groups such as the Richmond and Central Virginia Figure Skating Clubs and the Greater Richmond Ice eater. Both University of Virginia and University of Richmond have college club teams that train and compete in Richmond, acting as a draw for fans and players interested in watching high-level play. Facilities for players and coaches are do ed across the region, including rinks in Henrico, Chesterfield
and Powhatan counties.
“[We] actually all get along great. I mean, we help everyone,” says Lea Rizer, skating director at SkateNation Plus in Short Pump. “Since we are a smaller community, we have all been around for quite a while. I’ve been working with some of these people for 25 years, so we’re like a li le family.”
A community this size fosters more collaboration than competition, many in the industry note, even if competition is the point. Just as baseball, soccer and other sports have done, raising the profile of a pastime takes time — o en generations’ worth.
To make lifelong players and enthusiasts, skating clubs focus on youth participation, most commonly through learn-toskate classes. “We start age 4, and we have lessons 12 months a year; we never stop,” Rizer says. “I would say 98% of kids go through the learn-to-skate program and then will go into more serious figure skating or hockey, and from there synchro or theater. Most kids, if they keep with it, they make friends, and a lot of them have been friends since group classes.”
Rizer adds that, at SkateNation, skating class attendance has been largely reliable over the last two decades, contributing a steady stream of new learners and eventual hockey players and competitors in figure skating, synchronized skating (a team-based skating sport akin to synchronized swimming), theater on ice (a sport blending choreography and narrative storytelling) and more. But in 2020, as with almost every aspect of life, things took a turn.
“We coined the term ‘the COVID gap,’ where a bunch of kids who were in that
pipeline from learn-to-skate to then going into ice skating or hockey was disrupted by the pandemic, so we have this kind of gap in the higher level competitive athletes in the area,” says Raya Willoughby, a skater, private instructor and coach of the Greater Richmond Ice eater. Despite the gap, Willoughby says that the retention level for skaters is still high. “We are now ge ing a bunch of up-and-coming younger players and skaters, which is really great to see.”
Other factors, such as the upcoming Winter Olympic Games and popular regional professional teams, also drive a ention and participation. Figure skating is largely helped by the former; the ecosystem of clubs and skaters in Washington, D.C., feeding to the Olympics boosts Richmond’s position as well. “A few years ago, we had Ilia Malinin, who is now the world champion, compete down here, since he’s from D.C.,” Rizler says. Malinin, a 20-yearold Fairfax County native, is America’s top contender for men’s singles gold in the 2026 Winter Olympics and a prominent figure in the country’s figure skating scene. “ ere’s a lot of opportunity to grow along with Northern Virginia,” Rizer says.
The aim is the same in the hockey world, says Ryan Winfree, general manager of the Powhatan Ice Den. “We’re trying to follow a lot of what some of the NHL markets are doing, because their growth is really exceptional, especially from a grassroots standpoint. ... They focus a lot on coaching, a lot on development, a lot on skating. at youth growth is crucial, so even when kids start to kind of drop out in teenage years ... we can keep feeding it to be strong. And that’s kind of our goal.”
The Greater Richmond Ice Theater performed its “Night at the Museum” themed program at the 2025 U.S. Nationals for Theater on Ice in Dallas, Texas.
MAKING STRIDES
Facilities play a major role in creating and maintaining that self-propagating market. The area’s private rinks — where the majority of Richmond skates — each only have one sheet, which limits the amount of ice time available in a day. Shuffling between private lessons before school, classes throughout the day and hockey practices at night is a size challenge as much as a scheduling challenge. In addition, few of the rinks have the space that multiple locker rooms, coaches’ boxes, and bleachers require. Despite the number of rinks in the area and a surge of interest in ice sports, the physical limitations have stalled the growth of rink sports in RVA.
To solve this problem, some in the business are thinking big: 81,000 square feet, to be exact. Fred Festa, owner of the Powhatan Ice Den, his son-in-law Winfree and their team have broken ground on the Richmond Ice Box, a two-sheet building adjacent to the River City Sportsplex in the Brandermill area that eventually will be the largest facility in the region.
“We’re really focused on the community aspect of growing [ice sports] locally, but also, we want to put Richmond on the map as a great hosting space, so that’s an opportunity for tourism, too,” Winfree says. “With this rink, we can really do all that.”
Winfree, who will also lead the Ice Box
as its general manager, expects the first phase of the rink to open next summer: the first of two planned sheets of ice, a pro shop and concessions, four locker rooms, and roughly 350 of the expected 700 spectator seats. Winfree hopes to begin the second phase, which will include the second sheet and more locker rooms and seating, once the first rink is operational and bears out with interest.
“We don’t have a specific timeline on it, but we kind of want to judge the market a li le bit,” Winfree says. “But everything will be ready to execute for phase two whenever we can pull the trigger.”
The intimate size of Richmond’s ice sports community means supply and demand play a role in bringing the Ice Box to fruition. Opening a new ice facility is no small feat in 2025. According to the market research firm IBISWorld, ice rinks have high overhead costs and low profit margins that force a balancing act between drawing an audience and earning a profit. “It’s really expensive to run, and it’s a tough spot because you don’t want to out-price too many kids, but you also have to earn something,” Winfree says. Although the project is driven by Festa and Winfree’s passion for growth and success, Winfree notes, “It’s a tough industry.”
e Ice Box is receiving support from one of the region’s fastest-growing industries, though: sports tourism. e Chesterfield County Sports, Visitation and Entertainment division, founded in 2023, provides promotional and logistical help to sports facilities in the county to capitalize on the multibillion-dollar sports tourism industry in the state.
“I think this is about a home-field advantage,” says J.C. Poma, its executive director. “It’s another way to diversify the economy, both supporting our residents with a new place to play and bringing in tournaments, travel teams and things like that.”
Just as the Henrico Sports & Events Center, which opened in 2023, has landed major sporting events and multiday tournaments, Poma, Winfree and others
Elaine Tang skated for Richmond Figure Skating Club at the group’s annual competition, Falling Leaves, at SkateNation Plus in September.
expect the new rink to attract players and families in hockey and figure skating hubs from the north and south while le ing Richmond’s local athletes flourish. “We all are understanding of the desire for more sheet and ice time. ... When [they] get to that phase two, that’s a big opportunity to partner with the other sheets in town,” Poma says. “There’s plenty of potential on the horizon.”
CROSSING OVER
at potential is something many of the tentpole clubs of Richmond’s skating scene want to capitalize on. In the hockey world, a new rink means more youth and adult clubs can find ice time at a facility built with hockey players in mind, one that has sizable locker rooms and grandstands for bigger audiences. Winfree hopes to revive the Richmond Generals’ junior teams, which folded in 2023, increasing opportunities for high-level play for the next generation of hockey talent. John Chukayne, head coach of the University of Richmond club team, sees the benefits not only for his players, but for current and future hockey fans in Richmond.
“Exposure is everything; ge ing interested in hockey can happen if we have more opportunities, and this helps,” Chukayne says. “Ge ing more college teams down would draw a ention like never before.”
Membership in the U.S. Figure Skating association and its learn-to-skate programs have trended up nationwide for a decade, reaching nearly 250,000 members by 2024. Local figure skaters see that interest in the sport and its subgenres, including ice dance, synchronized skating and theater on ice, as an opportunity to grow.
Since 2005, the Richmond Figure Skating Club has hosted Falling Leaves, a regional competition sponsored by U.S. Figure Skating, in late September. Held at SkateNation since its inception, the tournament recently brought more than 260 adult and youth skaters from Maryland, D.C., Virginia and North Carolina to
Richmond for its 20th anniversary, vying for trophies and warming up for larger competitions later in the season.
Looking ahead to next year, Rizer sees some potential in the new, largescale facility, while noting that no plans are in the works so far. “Falling Leaves is pre y much at capacity with the one rink at SkateNation,” she says. “I think we could definitely grow this. ... You need two to three pieces of ice to have a really big competition. We’re all going to have to figure it out.”
Future dreams for the Ice Box don’t stop there. Winfree and Festa, a former owner of the Greenville Swamp Rabbits minor league hockey team in South Carolina, see the second phase’s added space as a potential selling point in bringing a minor league hockey team to Richmond. “ at’s always been the goal, you know. A lot of people want it,” Winfree says. “We need an arena. We are ready to sit down at the table to bring a team here, if we can.”
Festa’s hopes date back to the Navy Hill project; he had suggested bringing a minor league team to the now-failed arena project. With the Ice Box able to serve as the team’s practice facility, a game-ready stadium is the final component to securing Richmond’s first minor league team in nearly a decade since the Richmond RiverDogs le town in 2006. At this moment, Winfree sees Henrico’s GreenCity project, currently stalled, as the next best bet for a new venue.
e city’s passionate fanbase means a new team could be a cornerstone to raising the profile of all ice sports, Winfree notes. “I really think that some kind of professional team, that’s really one of the biggest things that grows the interest in [these] sports,” he says.
For now, the ice sports community glides toward the horizon, following the moves and changes as they come, aiming for gold. “I do feel like ice sports are growing as a whole, which is really exciting,” Willoughby says. “And I hope that expands nationally as well, to get Richmond’s name out there at the national level.” R
Stage-worthy Skating
Among the popular disciplines of figure skating — freestyle, pairs, ice dance and others with Olympic recognition — theater on ice is the newcomer. But after gaining local and nationwide interest in the last few years, it’s ready for the main stage.
“It’s a really fun blend of the technical side of skating, where you have the beautiful skating skills and cool tricks, ... [and] the creative aspect, too. There’s a lot of acting and theatricality and characters in a big story,” says Raya Willoughby, coach of the Greater Richmond Ice Theater.
Theater on ice bears some resemblance to the performances of popular touring acts like Disney on Ice, but adds a competitive edge. The sport is a team competition that builds a short and long program by combining defined moves from figure skating with costumes, music and narrative storytelling fitting a theme set by the U.S. Figure Skating Association for the year.
“The whole premise of theater on ice is working together as a team to tell a story, to convey the creation of your own little universe,” Willoughby says. A four-time national champion figure skater for Malaysia, Willoughby first fell in love with ice theater while attending Penn State. After moving to the Richmond region in 2018, she connected with local outlets for the sport and joined the Virginia Ice Box Ensemble as a coach.
The Virginia Ice Box Ensemble was one of two regional organizations that have trained for and competed in theater on ice events for more than a decade. In August 2024, VIBE and the James River Ice Theater merged into one group: the Greater Richmond Ice Theater, capitalizing on a growing interest in the sport among Richmond skaters.
“The merge that we had last year pulled together the [theater on ice] community in the Richmond area,” Willoughby says. “Instead of being one rink against the other, we became one big team. ... Nationally and locally, there has been a huge boom in involvement.”
This June, in its first year of combined existence, GRIT competed in the U.S. Figure Skating’s national competition for theater on ice, where both teams in the club set new high scores. The 2025-2026 season began in October and includes club performances and regional competitions in the spring and summer.
