9th District School Board seat open
With Nicole Jones moving to City Council, the Richmond School Board Tuesday began seeking applicants interested in filling the 9th District School Board until a new representative is elected in November 2024.
Free community testing for COVID-19 continues
The Richmond and Henrico County health districts are offering testing at the following locations:
VMFA announces free admission to ‘Elegy’ for state employees, preschool, K-12 teachers
Commonwealth of Virginia employees and preschool and K–12 teachers (public and private) will receive free admission to the new exhibition Virginia Museum of Fine Arts “Dawoud Bey: Elegy,” according to the museum. Active duty military and their immediate families also …
His home has become a museum
John W. Bynum Jr. loves Black history so much he’s turned his split-level home in Chesterfield County into a small museum.
A Wilder celebration
Former Gov. L. Douglas Wilder will be celebrated for his 70 years of public service and historic achievements next year in “A National Ovation to L. Douglas Wilder.”
RVA Sports Awards finalists announced
The Richmond Region Tourism Foundation and its partners have announced the finalists for the 3rd Annual RVA Sports Awards, an event to honor athletes, coaches and groups working to better the region through sports.
Oklahoma judge rules man who wrongfully spent nearly 50 years in prison for murder is innocent
An Oklahoma judge has exonerated a man who spent nearly 50 years in prison for murder, the longest serving inmate to be declared innocent of a crime.
Henrico to accept Christmas trees for recycling Dec. 26 through Jan. 9
Henrico County will accept Christmas trees for recycling into mulch from Tuesday, Dec. 26, through Tuesday, Jan. 9.
Audit report dings Finance Department
The Richmond Finance Department wrongly hit owners of 66,057 vehicles with late payment fees and interest in 2022 even though the owners paid by the deadline, a new audit has found.
Eureka!
Two breakthrough gene therapies can now be used to treat and possibly cure sickle cell anemia, the genetic blood disorder that afflicts 100,000 mostly Black Americans and 20 million people worldwide. But the announcement from the Food and Drug Administration …
Biden calls ‘surge’ in antisemitism ‘sickening’ during White House Hanukkah reception
President Biden hosted a Hanukkah reception at the White House on Monday night, vowing to continue to stand with Israel in its war with Hamas while saying that a “surge of antisemitism” around the globe “is sickening.”
State Jails Board creates improvement plan for City Jail
Only a small staff of deputies is working in the Richmond City Justice Center on any given day, the Free Press is being told, as the number of sworn officers under the command of Sheriff Antionette V. Irving continues to …
Lawsuits filed against RPS regarding school shooting report
Multiple lawsuits have been filed against the Richmond School Board for refusing to release the findings of an external investigation into the June 6 mass shooting in Monroe Park after the Huguenot High School graduation ceremony.
Shining stars
The world had Oprah. Richmond had Bernie. Longtime television journalist Bernadine A. “Bernie” Simmons, who died Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023, at age 79, was well known to many in Richmond and surrounding communities as the creator and face of NBC12’s …
Library of Virginia and William & Mary Libraries announce Children’s Literary Award
The Library of Virginia, in partnership with William & Mary Libraries, is accepting nominations for a new award honoring excellence in the field of children’s literature with a focus on Virginia.