Rev. Roaf leaving St. Philip’s Episcopal to be ordained bishop of Western Tennessee
The Rev. Phoebe A. Roaf soon will be leaving the pulpit at historic St. Philip’s Episcopal Church in North Side to become bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of West Tennessee in Memphis.
Civil rights advocate and adviser to Dr. King recommended for Congressional Gold Medal
The Rev. James Lawson, a United Methodist minister known for his advocacy of nonviolence in the civil rights era and beyond, has been recommended for a Congressional Gold Medal.
Churches fight predatory payday lending with political pressure, small loans
Anyra Cano Valencia was having dinner with her husband, Carlos, and their family when an urgent knock came at their door. The Valencias, pastors at Iglesia Bautista Victoria en Cristo in Fort Worth, Texas, opened the door to a desperate, …
Richmond native and noted musician Melvin ‘Wah Wah Watson’ Ragin dies at 67
Melvin Marcellus Ragin learned to strum a guitar in Richmond and went on to become a legendary studio musician whose unique sound can be heard in more than 150 recordings that topped the charts at No. 1.
Wallace ‘Wally’ Triplett, football pioneer, dies at 92
Wallace “Wally” Triplett, who set many “firsts” as a pioneering African-American football player, died Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018, at his home in metropolitan Detroit. He was 92.
Erika E. Wheeler, musician and former outreach coordinator for the Richmond Symphony, dies at 63
Erika Eliza Wheeler combined a passion for music with a penchant for real estate.
Stan Lee, Marvel Comics writer and creator of the ‘Black Panther,’ dies at 95
Stan Lee, the creative dynamo who revolutionized the comic book and made billions for Hollywood by introducing human frailties in Marvel superheroes such as Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk, died Monday, Nov. 12, 2018.
Legendary baseball slugger Willie McCovey dies
Willie McCovey, who was among the most respected and feared sluggers in baseball history, died Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2018, at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif. Mr. McCovey was 80.
Margaret ‘Peggy’ Brazil, former RPS principal, dies at 76
Margaret Williams “Peggy” Brazil spent 31 years as a Richmond Public Schools educator, capping her service as principal of Overby-Sheppard Elementary School in North Side. Her work helping Richmond schoolchildren build a foundation of knowledge is being remembered following her …
Trumpeter Roy Hargrove dies at 49
Trumpeter Roy Hargrove, a prolific player who provided his jazz sound to records across a vast range of styles and won two Grammys, has died at age 49.
Would domestic terrorism law help prevent extremist shootings?
The package bombs sent to Democrats across the country and the killings of Jews at a Pittsburgh synagogue may seem like clear-cut cases of terrorism. But the suspects will almost certainly never face terrorism charges.
Khalfani to speak at men’s fellowship
The Fifth Baptist Church Men’s Fellowship is sponsoring a public program on how to handle being stopped by the police at 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 10, at Fifth Baptist Church, 1415 W. Cary St.
Poet and playwright Ntozake Shange dies at 70
Playwright, poet and author Ntozake Shange, whose most acclaimed theater piece is the 1975 Tony Award-nominated play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf,” died Saturday, Oct. 27, 2018, according to her daughter.
Retired dentist Dr. Edwin D. Cooke Jr. dies at 85
Dr. Edwin Donald Cooke Jr. is being remembered as a caring dentist. The Air Force veteran practiced in the Richmond area for more than 35 years before retiring. Dr. Cooke, a resident of Prince George County, died Monday, Oct. 8, …
Matthew Shepard’s ashes interred in Washington
After 20 years without a permanent resting place, the remains of Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old college student whose brutal murder in 1998 in Wyoming has come to symbolize the plight of the LGBTQ community in America, were interred at the …
