Cityscape: Slices of life and scenes in Richmond:Above left, Richmond residents gather outside the refurbished Annie Marie Giles Community Resource & Training Center in Shockoe Valley for the grand reopening celebration last Saturday. Born as a school and used for several years as a homeless shelter, the building is now to host programs that benefit residents in the East View community and the Whitcomb and Mosby public housing communities located on the hills above Shockoe Valley. Florence Smith, the eldest daughter of the late Mrs. Giles, gives City Councilwoman Ellen F. Robertson a hug for her work to provide a center of which Mrs. Giles would be proud. Ms. Robertson led the charge to get the city to purchase the building, to name the center for the late Mrs. Giles, an influential Whitcomb Court resident who was an organizer and activist for residents, and to use the center for operations that would provide job training and other services.
