Let freedom ring! // After the ceremony, Rev. Jackson poses for a photograph with Shannon Lanier, center, and his daughters, Madison and McKenzie, who are Jefferson-Hemings descendents.

Let Freedom Ring! // A group of women join togeather to ring the bell at First Baptist Church, one of the nation’s oldest African-American churches.

Let freedom ring! // People of all backgrounds, ethnicities and faiths came from across the nation to participate Monday in the “Let Freedom Ring: A Call to Heal a Nation” initiative at historic First Baptist Church of Williamsburg. There, they rang the church’s newly restored bell as part of the initiative marking the church’s 240th anniversary and to engender racial healing, peace and justice nationwide. People from across the nation can ring the bell in person or virtually during Black History Month. Monday’s kickoff included noted civil rights and justice advocates, remarks from former U.S. Ambassador Susan John Cook and the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., as well as descendents of President Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings, the African-American woman he enslaved and fathered six children with, who rang the bell. Entertainer Valerie Simpson of the famed singing duo Ashford and Simpson sang during the ceremony, along with the Hampton University Symphonic Choir.

Let Freedom Ring // Church member Liz Montgomery, left, of Williamsburg, Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott and entertainer Dionne Warwick, right, leave the church after the ceremony. People interested in ringing the bell during February can register online at www.letfreedomringchallenge.org.

Cityscape // This new 124-ton crane stands tall at the Richmond Marine Terminal, making it easier to load and unload cargo from ships docked at the James River port off Commerce Road in South Side. The crane, which reaches about 24 stories, cost $4.2 million and is part of the $17 million being invested in the port by the Virginia Port Authority, the independent agency leasing and operating the city’s port for the next 40 years.

Cityscape // The goal of the investment: To transform Richmond’s port into a job and business generator. Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Mayor Dwight C. Jones joined a parade of state and local officials in touring the port Monday to see the crane and celebrate the improvements.

Vibrant ornamental grass Downtown