author archive » Jonah_H
December 4, 2008
Lunchtime Organ Recital and Carol Sing Comes to U of R
Bruce Stevens, organist at Second Presbyterian church and Grant Hellmers, organist and choirmaster at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church lead an organ recital and lunchtime carol singing at Cannon Memorial Chapel at the University of Richmond, tomorrow, Dec. 5th at 11:45 a.m.
What better way to prepare for the holidays than with Christmas music? Join the Modlin Center for an hour of beautiful organ music and an opportunity to sing some of your favorite Christmas carols–no auditions necessary! Carols include The First Nowell, Silent Night, O Come, All Ye Faithful and Angels We Have Heard on High. Take a short break from the shopping, baking, cooking and gift-wrapping. You know you deserve it!
The Friday Free For All series features a wide variety of music, theatre and dance, and is suitable for audiences of any age. Guests are encouraged to bring a bag lunch to enjoy during the performance.
December 1, 2008
Joe’s Market Hosts Holiday Open House Thursday
Joe’s Market, on Libbie, near Grove Avenue, is hosting a Holiday Open House, Thursday, Dec. 4th from 4-7 p.m. They will feature chef-created appetizers, prepared foods and time-saving meals for tasting.
November 30, 2008
Citizens Stand Up to Demand Bike Paths in Richmond
Jim Bacon, over at Bacon’s Rebellion, continues the discussion of how to make biking more accessible in Richmond, and particularly in Henrico’s Near West End. Creating bike paths is what we need to do to move into the 21st century. I can’t think of any one change that would make Richmond a more appealing place for me and my family to live. And, I guess it doesn’t hurt that my 7-year-old just learned how to ride without training wheels yesterday — so this is for you babe!
Hmm. Maybe we can get the Sports Backers in on this one? Or at the very least Richmond Area Bicycling Association member (and Gov’ner) Tim Kaine. If you ask me, it’s a no brainer.
It’s a great post, check it out:
But every innovation helps, even if it comes from the people who design bicycles rather than communities. According to the Cycling for Boomers blog, Wisconsin-based Trek, the largest U.S.-based bike manufacturer, this year is introducing two chainless models that replace the clunky, maintenance-intensive chain with a greaseless, rust-proof carbon fiber belt.
The lighter, longer-lasting carbon-fiber composite belts can’t be cut, won’t stretch or slip and won’t leave grease marks around your ankles, says Eric Bjorling, Trek’s lifestyle brand manager. There is one drawback: One of these bad boys retails for $990.
Price aside, I doubt we’ll see many of these in Richmond. The city has some super-cool mountain biking trails around the river, but only a handful of bicycle lanes that could be used for commuting. Henrico County, where I live, has no useful bicycle lanes at all — despite the existence of several potential routes. One bike path could run along the James River (either on the old canal tow-path or a railroad right of way; I’m embarrassed to say, I can’t recall which, but I have it on good authority). Another path conceivably could run underneath a Dominion electric transmission line — not bad, if you don’t mind a little static cling in your hair. A county bike path network also could tie into bike-friendly University of Richmond. And that’s just in my neck of the woods.
November 29, 2008
St. James Armenian Church Hosts Blood Drive Dec. 21
Help commemorate the 20th Anniversary of the earthquake in Armenia by
giving blood on Dec. 21st .
To sign up or get further details, please call 282.3818.
834 Pepper Ave
November 28, 2008
Free African Drumming Workshop at UR
Thanks to Richmond Bargains Blog for this and many other tips this weekend:
African Drumming and Dance Workshop (free) - With master drummer Abdallah Zakariah from the University of Ghana. Learn Ewe and Dagomba (talking drum) music and dance, using the University’s newly-acquired Ghanaian instruments. 287-1807
*1-3 p.m. Room BB117, Booker Music Building, University of Richmond
November 28, 2008
HowIRichmond.com focuses on alternative transportation in Richmond
A reader recently sent this note regarding the article we recently published on the possible elimination of the Westhampton 16 GRTC bus route. I thought it might interests our other readers, so I’m passing it along:
I just read your article about GRTC routes on Near West End News via RVA News and thought you might be particularly interested in my group and our event this weekend.
I’m involved with a project call howirichmond.com (http://www.howirichmond.com) that deals with alternative transportation in Richmond (possibly other cities in the future). Presently we are concentrating on the development of our website and the event this weekend, but going on to next year we hope to work with local partners in the community to come together to benefit increased alternative transportation in the city. We just recently talked to , Kimberly Likens Perry of BikeWalk Virginia (http://www.bikewalkvirginia.org) about being involved in the creation of a local Alternative Transportation Commission. Members also spoke Monday about our project at the City Council meeting. Mainly, we’re looking to get more involved in the discussion of public transportation in Richmond and surrounding areas. (West End included!)
I also wanted to let you know about an event we are have this weekend. Saturday and Sunday at Ellwood Thompson’s, we will be there during their business hours of 7am - 10pm both days with a table to pass out information we have collected from other community partners about forms of alternative transportation.
If [you have] any questions, feel free to contact me about more information or stop by on Saturday or Sunday.
Hope to see you there!
Thanks,
Jeff Greenhowirichmond.com
greenjc@vcu.edu
November 21, 2008
Fate of city bus service to university to be decided in January
Richmonders voiced concern Tuesday night at City Hall about possible reductions and eliminations of several bus routes operated by the Greater Richmond Transit Company, including one that rides to and from the University of Richmond campus.
While no plan has been finalized, GRTC must make a final decision about which, if any, bus routes they will cut by January 2009, said GRTC Chief Executive Officer John M. Lewis Jr.
Regarding service to the University of Richmond, Lewis suggested the university enter into an agreement with GRTC similar to one the company has with Virginia Commonwealth University, where the school pays for its own service. Such a plan would provide service for university staff and students to use it regularly, he said.
The meeting — the third one so far — was led by Lewis and included a presentation about the current problems facing the company.
The current economic situation, coupled with a lack of funding from the City of Richmond, has placed GRTC in a difficult financial situation, Lewis said. The company will face a budget shortfall beginning in the 2009 fiscal year and must make changes immediately because it will be unable to operate in a deficit, Lewis said.
Increasing fuel costs and low ridership in some areas have handcuffed GRTC and forced it to look at various remedies for the problem, including reducing service and eliminating some bus routes. Westhampton Route 16, which serves the University of Richmond, is one of nine routes that face elimination.
About 50 people use Westhampton Route 16, Lewis said. The high cost of keeping the line running for such a low number of passengers isn’t financially prudent anymore, he said.
GRTC must somehow find an additional $4 million to maintain its current level of operation in 2009. The City Council has pledged $1.6 million.
Some lines will need to be eliminated, Lewis said, and a mere reduction of services across the board or on specific lines will not suffice .
The recent drop in fuel costs will help GRTC several years down the road, Lewis said, but will do nothing to remedy the financial problems plaguing the company right now.
During the question-and-answer session after Lewis’s presentation, citizens suggested GRTC market its product better by stressing the advantages of using public transportation. Some said they thought more people would ride GRTC buses if the quality of customer service were to improve. Lewis acknowledged the problems with GRTC, and said older buses would be replaced in the coming years.
Contact reporter Jimmy Young at jimmy.young@richmond.edu
November 14, 2008
Pulitzer Prize winning play comes to University of Richmond’s Modlin Center
“The Skin of Our Teeth,” a Pulitzer Prize winning play by Thornton Wilder, will be presented by the University of Richmond’s department of theatre and dance starting Nov. 19.
The play follows the trials and tribulations of the fictional Antrobus family, and will be performed in the Alice Jepson Theatre. Dorothy Holland will direct the play. She is an associate professor of theatre, and said she had the production in mind for several years.
“It’s very theatrical and funny,” Holland said. “It has big ideas and it’s in a comedic vein.”
The dramatic comedy centers on the four members of the Antrobus family and their maid as they barely survive tragedies, wars and natural disasters. It is from these struggles that the name of the play derives, because the characters are only holding on by “the skin of their teeth.”
The cast of 22 is made up of students, faculty and two artists in residence, Joe Inscoe and Irene Ziegler Aston. Inscoe and Aston are playing Mr. and Mrs. Antrobus. Freshman Jackson Knox, who plays their son Henry, said working with the artists in residence had been enlightening.
“We have good chemistry overall,” Knox said. “They are really fun to work with, and they are helpful, they are always giving us tips.”
The other main characters in the play are the Antrobus’ daughter Gladys, played by sophomore Caitlyn Duer, and the family’s maid Sabina, played by Richmond alumna Liz Kirkwood. Kirkwood returned to Richmond to be in the play after falling in love with her character.
“She is really, really fun and really interesting,” Kirkwood said. “She is always the other woman, and she has such ideas about where she wants to go.”
The play includes many time periods, as well as an atmosphere of unrest, which stems from the World War II era when Wilder wrote it. The problems the family faces are allusions to historical, biblical and political events, among other things, said Veronica Seguin, a junior and assistant director of the production.
“It is a comedy with a message,” Seguin said. “It is a story of humanity and the resilience of the human race.”
The comedy aspect of the play makes it easier for the audience to absorb its message, Holland said.
“Because it’s theatrical, it can talk about more important issues,” Holland said. “It’s a funny and provocative view of the human race. Despite humanity’s foibles and failings and embarrassments, somehow we manage to survive.”
Because the original play opened in 1942, Holland said she had worked to modernize certain elements. The additions include a sparkly set, updated costume design, televisions piled on the edge of the stage, segways and more modern language included in the script. Seguin said the combination of the prehistoric and the modern added even more humor to the play.
“You see dinosaurs, mammoths, segways and T. V .’s all on stage at the same time,” she said.
The purpose of all modernization was to make the play as current now as it was when Wilder wrote it, Holland said.
“He was cutting edge and speaking to his time,” Holland said, “And we needed to do it too, so there is a mixture of different time periods.”
Although the set, costumes and script were modernized, both Holland and cast members said the play itself was timeless. Holland said she saw themes of climate change, economic crisis and political wrong-doing as particularly prevalent, and Seguin said she hoped the audience would notice the allusions to current political candidates. The play remains relevant, Knox said, because the audience can relate to the families’ crises.
“So many problems the characters face are problems that we all face today,” Knox said.
The show opens on Nov. 19 at 7:30 p.m. and will run until Nov. 22 at the Alice Jepson Theatre. Tickets are $15 for adults, $12 for seniors, students, UR alumni and employees, $6 for children, and $10 for Richmond students.
Contact reporter Kate Foss at kate.foss@richmond.edu
November 13, 2008
School Board Rep Kim Bridges Updates the Near West End
Near West End School Board Rep Kim Bridges likes to keep her constituents informed. Here is her November update:
What would you do if you won $11,000?
If you’re Hill teacher Stephen Beckett, you make plans for Antarctica and then head back to the classroom like it’s just another day. As I suspected he would be, Mr. Beckett was outside of Hill this a.m. like he is every other morning, supervising kids while they chat, toss a football or shoot hoops before school. No sign of Northface gear since he won the REB award for teaching excellence this week, but this winner is already talking about podcasts direct to Hill from the Antarctic. These awards let teachers do “cool” things, but the best part is how the lessons learned make it back to Richmond students. Congratulations Mr. Beckett, and bundle up. Read more at http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-11-12-0168.html.
Election Thanks
You did it again 1st District! You came out in great numbers to vote and show everyone what an involved community we have:
https://www.voterinfo.sbe.virginia.gov/election/DATA/2008/07261AFC-9ED3-410F-B07D-84D014AB2C6B/Unofficial/00_760_s.shtml
Thanks especially for going all the way through the ballot to vote for the lowly school board race. I was at the polls at TJ and Hill and talked to many people who were eager to learn more about our schools. Luckily, I had my handy dandy three-fold business card at the ready, with information about each of the 4 schools housed here in the 1st. (With the support of the Richmond Education Association and Coalition for a Greater Richmond.) I’m asking everyone—including Museum District Association members who’ll get some of the cards tomorrow at their annual meeting–to read up on the schools and then pass the card along to someone else in the district who may not know much about what’s going on in our schools.
Find out what an outside expert says about RPS auditing
Next Friday, November 21 is the culmination of some work which might be one of the most important tasks completed during this school board term. For the past nine months, I have been privileged to lead the school board’s Internal Audit committee as we have focused on a long-neglected but critical function for any organization. This committee, with valuable input from the business community and higher ed professionals, worked diligently to craft an audit charter and develop an annual audit work plan. And those efforts culminated in an external review which will be presented on 11/21 at 2:30. I know it doesn’t have the appeal of a school tour or a community event, but if you’re at all interested in the progress that RPS is making in oversight and operations, this is the meeting for you. I’ll send the presentation afterwards just in case you don’t make it.
Upcoming Events (before Thanksgiving)
Tuesday, November 18 from 8:15 – 11:45 - Get on the Bus tour of 3 RPS schools. Several 1st District citizens took the tour last spring and the responses were overwhelmingly positive. This time we’re touring Overby-Shepard Elementary, Martin Luther King Middle and Franklin Military Institute. FREE to you if you RSVP to 780-7100 by this Friday.
Tuesday, November 18 at 6:30 p.m. - TJ’s monthly PTSA meeting
Thursday, November 20 at 7:00 p.m. - Learn about Richmond Community High and have fun with math at Hill’s PTA meeting. Bring some canned goods for Hill’s food drive.
Sunday, November 23 at 2:00 p.m… - Community Clean Up for Hill Athletic Field
Whether you have a child at Hill or not, you’re invited to join us as we revamp the athletic field at the corner of Thompson & Patterson. With more teams than ever using the middle school’s field, there’s work to be done and refreshments to be had. It’ll take a team effort!
Wednesday, November 26 at 6:00 p.m. – Harvest Dinner at Richmond Community High
And mark your calendar for the start of December…Barnes & Noble night to benefit Mary Munford’s coming up December 6 & 7. When you show the Munford flyer that’s available at the store, the school will get proceeds from your purchase.
See you at school! Kim Bridges, 1st District School Board representative
