Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer and pianist whose intimate vocal and musical style made her one of the top recording artists of the 1970s and an influential performer long after, died Monday, Feb. 24, 2025. She was 88.

Fifty years ago, the Episcopal Church ordained its first female clergy, a milestone that reshaped faith leadership. This Lenton season, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church will mark the anniversary by hosting a special lunch and speaker series featuring women in ministry.

The Richmond Peace Education Center will host Rev. Mark J. Hayes as a guest speaker for its 2025 Peace Center Speaker Series on March 11.

Behind and beyond the judge’s bench, Willard H. Douglas Jr. broke new ground for African Americans in Virginia. The state’s first full-time African American judge died Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025 at the age of 93, following decades of legal and …

To walk through Richmond’s Maymont neighborhood is to experience the work of its most famous resident, Ida L. Cheatham, who died Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025, at 105.

Chris Jasper, the renowned singer, songwriter and producer who helped shape the sound of The Isley Brothers, died on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025, at the age of 73. His death followed a cancer diagnosis in December 2024.

A historic Black church whose Black Lives Matter sign was destroyed by members of the extremist group Proud Boys is now selling T-shirts using the group’s logo after the congregation won the Proud Boys trademark as part of a year …

Virginia Interfaith Power & Light (VAIPL) is hosting an open mic night this Thursday, Feb. 27, from 7 to 8 p.m. at Abi’s Books & Brews, 1212 W Cary St. The event invites participants to explore the intersection of racial …

The Rev. Richard Edwin Youngblood, the brother of a minister who has accused Bishop T.D. Jakes of sexual misconduct, has made his own accusation involving Jakes, claiming the Texas megachurch leader climbed into bed with him on a church business …

Michael Gregory Brown, a Richmond native and champion for social justice, died peacefully at St. Mary’s Hospital on Jan. 26, following a brief illness. He was 77. Funeral services were held Feb. 3 at Joseph Jenkins Jr. Funeral Home.

Denise V. Thomas-Brown, a passionate advocate for underserved communities, died Dec. 22, 2024, in Richmond. She was 66.

Retired 1st Sgt. Charles H. Taylor Sr., a decorated veteran and longtime Richmond-area businessman, died Jan. 19 at age 92. Taylor, known as “Pop” or “Pop Taylor,” was with his wife of 40 years and his son-in-law at the time …

Richmond’s Maggie L. Walker, a pioneering businesswoman and the nation’s first Black female bank president, will be honored in a special living history presentation featuring storyteller Theresa G.

Henry L. Marsh III, Richmond’s first Black mayor and a trailblazer in Virginia politics, died on Jan. 23 at 91, leaving behind decades of legal and civic work aimed at creating a more just and equal Commonwealth and nation.

Jalil Dawood, pastor of the Arabic Church of Dallas, thanks God every day for the U.S. government’s refugee resettlement program, which helped him settle in the United States after he fled persecution during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. Dawood, …