Former record store owner remembered
William F. “Bill” Kennedy, founder and owner of BK Music, a record store in Richmond’s South Side, died Tuesday, March 14, 2023, after a bout with pneumonia. Mr. Kennedy, who was 70, had decades of experience in the music industry …
Helen Harris, a leading voice for Henrico County’s Black residents, remembered
Thanks to Helen Virginia Epps Harris, Henrico County annually celebrates the holiday in honor of civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and also has dramatically increased its hiring of Black employees. Her impact on public policy is just …
Rev. Clifford B. Chambliss Jr. dies at 81
The Rev. Clifford Boss Chambliss Jr. was just 25 when he was tapped to lead a new job training initiative that more senior Black min- isters were organizing to help people find work and escape poverty.
Virginia Hayes remembered for her creative teaching
As a kindergarten and first grade teacher at Blackwell Elementary School, Virginia Hayes was concerned that too many children arrived with little knowledge of numbers, counting and the concepts of adding and subtracting. Ms. Hayes set out to change that …
Malinda S. Jones, who worked to spread faith, dies at 88
For 24 years, Malinda Smith Jones organized weekly revivals in Richmond in church parking lots and other open spaces from June through August.
Bettye Jean Branch Bragg, former Head Start aide, dies at age 80
Bettye Jean Branch Bragg touched the lives of hundreds of Richmond children during her 34 years as a teacher’s aide in Head Start, a program to prepare 3 and 4-year-olds for kindergarten and higher grades.
A brief history of the Black church’s diversity, and its vital role in American political history, by Jason Evans
With religious affiliation on the decline, continuing racism and increasing income inequality, some scholars and activists are soul-searching about the Black church’s role in today’s United States.
Karl E. Bren, housing advocate, dies at 78
Tennessee transplant Karl Ellis Bren is being remembered for his influence and impact on affordable housing, environmental policy and homelessness during his 38 years in Richmond.
Leroy Mason, a voice for prison reform, dies at age 83
Leroy Mason is being remembered for helping to change the Virginia prison system where he spent most of his adult life and for helping other prisoners make a successful transition after their release.
Lucille A.B. Roane, voting proponent, former detective, dies
Richmond voter advocate and former city police detective Lucille Aurelia Brown Roane has died. Mrs. Roane, who was the first Black president of the Richmond Metropolitan Area Chapter of the League of Women Voters and the third Black woman to …
William L. Prentiss Jr., local and regional band director, musician and educator, dies at 58
William Leon “BB” Prentiss Jr., who molded thousands of student musicians as the director of high school marching bands in Richmond, Chesterfield County, Norfolk and four other localities, has died.
What is Black History Month in a white Christian nation?
Just in time for Black History Month, the Public Religion Research Institute and the Brookings Institution have released a fascinating new survey about Christian nationalism that points to the ways that stories about race in American history get told and …
Wilson A. Seaborn succumbs at 76
Wilson Alexander “Bopper” Seaborn loved being an educator.
Docuseries on Black church highlights history, links to biblical orthodoxy
“How I Got Over,” a five-part series, examines the history of seven historic Black denominations and highlights major Black Christian leaders — well-known and lesser-known — who have contributed to American society. Officials of the AND Campaign, a nonpartisan think …
Dr. Dean Climmon Williams remembered as a compassionate, caring physician
Dean Climmon Williams, known to his colleagues as “Dr. Dean,” passed away Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023, at his home in Richmond, leaving behind a legacy of compassion and care in Virginia’s medical community.
