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Stained by dishonor
Henrico student launches growing effort to remove segregationist’s name from school
Jordan Chapman said her jaw dropped in incredulous disbelief the day she learned in her Hermitage High School history class about the late Harry F. Byrd Sr., the former Virginia governor, U.S. senator and avowed white separatist for whom H.F. Byrd Middle School in Henrico County is named.
NAACP ‘Journey for Justice’ to stop in Richmond
“I’m going to put on my tennis shoes and march.” That was Richmond NAACP President Lynetta Thompson’s enthusiastic declaration as “America’s Journey for Justice” march nears Richmond.
Will the jury believe star witness in McDonnell case?
Jonnie Williams came out swinging in testimony that could land former Gov. Bob McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, behind bars for decades.
Martin ends historic tenure as U.Va. rector
As George Keith Martin nears the end of his historic tenure as rector of the University of Virginia Board of Visitors, he is reflecting on his efforts and those of the board to broaden diversity at the Charlottesville school.
$32.7M
That’s the amount state gives city for jail costs
That’s how much cash-strapped Richmond has received from the state for reimbursement of costs related to the construction of the six-story, $134.6 million Richmond Justice Center in Shockoe Bottom, Tammy Hawley, a spokesperson for Mayor Dwight C. Jones, told the Free Press last Friday.
GRTC’s Secret Santa speads joy to riders
GRTC bus riders were pleasantly surprised last week when Santa Claus took time away from his busy holiday preparations and greeted them at the transfer plaza in Downtown.
Movement grows to eradicate Confederate symbols
A growing number of Virginians are enlisting in a grassroots movement spreading across the nation to remove from the public square the vestiges of the traitors who fought against the nation during the Civil War to preserve slavery. Less than a week after South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, a bipartisan group of lawmakers and thousands of people of all ethnicities assembled July 10 to cheer the removal of the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds in Columbia, many Virginians are signaling they are fed up as well with Confederate symbols of hate and are saying “enough is enough.”
School Board weighs options to close schools
Richmond Public Schools is considering a seismic shift in how it attempts to solve overcrowding issues and meet other pressing demands related to its burgeoning student population. For the first time, Superintendent Dana T. Bedden and his leadership team are publicly admitting they could close up to six school buildings and move those students into existing schools even if no new buildings are constructed. Those findings are part of the thick new Richmond Public Schools Facilities Needs Report, which focuses on current and future building needs.
Richmond Public Schools hires new spokesperson
Kenita Bowers is the new chief spokesperson for Richmond Public Schools. Ms. Bowers will direct communications efforts for the city’s 45 schools that serve nearly 24,000 students. She began her duties last month, according to Richmond Public Schools officials.
Retired airman recounts saga to remove racist flag from Virginia Air National Guard
Leon Brooks, a retired sergeant with the Virginia Air National Guard, was honored Sunday “as a real living hero” in an emotional tribute at Greater Brook Road Baptist Church on South Side during the church’s Heritage Celebration. “I’m really honored,” Mr. Brooks humbly told the small congregation at the church led by the Rev. Grace E. Tolliver. “This is the first time anyone has asked me to speak about this publicly.”
Byrd Middle School to get name change
Jordan Chapman wore a broad smile. Her mother, Amy, wiped away tears of joy. And the people around them applauded. Their happy reaction came after the Henrico School Board voted 5-0 to change the name of Harry F. Byrd Sr. Middle School at its March 10 work session at the New Bridge Learning Center.
Free training class for voter registration
The League of Women Voters of Metro Richmond is sponsoring its third annual voter registration training class 10:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 1. Location: Tuckahoe Library, 1901 Starling Drive, in Henrico County. The training is designed for community organizations and individuals seeking to conduct voter registration drives, according to organizers.
Church receives national urban farm status
Feeding the hungry in the East End
Nearly 100 community members walked by tables loaded with baskets full of collard greens, kale, lettuce, turnip greens, purple sweet potatoes, carrots, radishes, leeks and other fresh produce.
Foster care project gets $100,000 boost
Two Richmond-based nonprofits just got a huge boost in their efforts to provide support for young people who are mandated to leave the foster care system in Virginia at age 18. The Children’s Home Society of Virginia, led by president and CEO Nadine Marsh-Carter, learned May 13 it had been selected to receive a $100,000 grant from Impact 100 Richmond to aid the “Possibilities Project,” an initiative first featured in the May 14-16 edition of the Free Press.
School Board votes to merge Elkhardt, Thompson
With full backing from the Richmond School Board, Superintendent Dana T. Bedden pulled a rabbit out of his hat this week with a move that closes one old and decrepit middle school and changes the accreditation status at two academically struggling middle schools.
Leonard W. Lambert, longtime Richmond lawyer, dies at 77
“My mother said it was important to be educated and give something back to the church and to the community.” Leonard W. Lambert Sr. told the Free Press those were the life lessons his mother, Mary Frances Warden Lambert, taught him and his six siblings long before her death in August 2014.
Church backs away from Parson
“You all are a bunch of black idiots over there supporting someone who doesn’t care anything about black people,” one angry caller said in a voicemail message left for the Richmond Christian Center last week. Another caller chimed in: “If Donald Trump wasn’t running for president, he would have nothing to do with you a-holes.” A third anonymous caller said, “Your pastor is an ignoramus. I doubt if he has any degrees at all.”
Richmond schools seek money to fulfill needs
Lucille M. Brown Middle School is facing a serious communications problem. The South Side school has not had a working intercom system since December.
Unemployed find help at Our House
Kinfolks Community Empowerment and Sustainability Program's chief aim is to provide jobs and other resources to residents of Mosby and other public housing communities and to empower them to move into permanent housing.
Richmond schools to close, modify schedule for bike races
Less than a month after announcing that Richmond schools would be open during the 2015 UCI Road World Championships, the district has backpedaled.
