vol. 117 / sprint 🏁Big ideas needed. Time to sprint.
VOL. 117 / SPRINT
Meet our guest editor Erin Powell, the new executive director of Lighthouse Labs. You may also recognize her as the founder of Ginger Juice. Erin is here to tell us that it’s time to sprint. In today's issue, Erin shares a handful of ways those with big ideas in Richmond are rolling up their sleeves, adapting fast, and pushing our region forward.
Now is the time to offer budding entrepreneurs and those with new ideas the support they need to bring their big thinking to life. We need innovators now more than ever to help create a happy and healthy community. At Lighthouse Labs, we’re currently offering a summer program, called Startup Sprint, for up to 60 new companies and founders with solutions to share. It’s free and offered online to anyone who has graduated from a Virginia college or university in the past ten years. In addition to summer opportunities, we're also launching a fall cohort that serves as Virginia's only health-focused accelerator. As inspiration, here are three Lighthouse alums that are currently responding to today’s challenging environment and serving as examples of what's possible. Let's use their tenacity, resilience, and ability to quickly respond as a model for impacting this place we love to call home.
Roundtrip
Roundtrip is the perfect place to start when thinking about the journey our local startups have traveled to bring their vision for a healthier community to life. Roundtrip was created as a way to provide a simple, comprehensive patient ride ordering software to make available a community of ride providers ready to complete valuable transport to medical appointments and non-emergency medical transportation. As a result, they've helped increased access to care for all. In response to COVID-19, this Lighthouse alum has proven their flexibility by flipping its model to now coordinate rides for clinicians in order to safely and efficiently transport critical staff members to medical facilities. As health systems work to show their gratitude to their frontline employees, Roundtrip is being leveraged as a way to transport the most needed healthcare teams to the right place at the right time -- without public transportation.
Babylon, a recent Lighthouse Labs alum, is known for making high-end hydroponic systems that allow anyone to grow their own fresh, organic produce in a sustainable manner year-round at the push of a button. In the midst of supply chain anxiety and empty shelves at grocery stores due to COVID-19, Babylon has quickly revamped its business model to offer fresh products with 99.9% less transportation, 71% fewer carbon emissions, 95% less food waste, and 99% less plastic waste. While much of Babylon's work has traditionally been installing indoor farming units in restaurants, the recent health crisis has led the startup to begin offering its technology and farming system to vulnerable populations such as senior living communities.
Totem, a Richmond based startup founded by three UVA students with a passion for cause-related organizations, has proven itself as a user-friendly donor engagement software platform for do-gooders. Built for nonprofits by people who have worked in nonprofits, Totem is today used by the likes of Chesterfield Food Bank, Autism Society of Virginia, American Civil War Museum, Startup Virginia, and Lighthouse Labs. Now more than ever, at this time of crisis, Totem is being tapped into by nonprofits across the country looking to manage donations, constituents, members, events, programming, and volunteers when needed most.
Registration closes tomorrow for the free virtual Startup Sprint for qualified Virginia founders. Registration is first-come, first-served for 60 companies and those with big ideas. And make sure to check out fall programming too!
vol. 116 / here (to help)Working together to offer a hand up in a moment that matters.
VOL. 116 / HERE (TO HELP)
This week we’ve brought back our favorite do-gooder, Becky Crump Lakin, for a special issue—Here (To Help). Take it away, Becky ...
When we feel emotional discomfort or pain, we want it gone. It’s in our nature. More good feelings and fewer bad feelings—if you please, kind universe.
The quickest remedy for emotional discomfort isn’t wallowing in it, or scrolling Facebook to dive into debilitatingly inactive empathy. The quickest remedy is to help others. And so we do. Because it works.
This special edition of Here (to help) gives you the antidote to what ails you, connecting your goodwill to good neighbors who need a hand up at a critical time, to the humans that are getting hit the hardest, the ones who always do.
Through my work with The Giving Wall and Mindful Mornings, I’ve met some incredible people and nonprofits, a tiny few of which I introduce below. Support them during this remarkable time – in all the ways you can that rhyme with their requests.
The Giving Wall
I didn’t start The Giving Wall to make money. I started it to do good, to leave the world a little better because of my heartbeat, footsteps, and the wild keystrokes that have rendered my ‘t’, ‘z’ and ‘e’ keys nearly useless. And I started it because I needed an antidote to my own overwhelming empathy. The City of Richmond’s Office of Community Wealth Building was our first partner, and now we’re growing to include more partner organizations, because we must.
What we’re about: We gave The Giving Wall its name to acknowledge the invisible barriers that divide us—the biases and bigotry, narratives and apathy, obliviousness and systems that block the collective progress that healthy, compassionate communities require. And to commit to support the deconstruction of those walls—brick by brick by brick by brick—by inviting nonprofits to share the barriers their clients were confronting, and inviting supporters like you to remove them. Our mission is met through: meeting right-now needs with right-now support, buttressing the coordinated efforts of many of the region’s leading non-profits, as we work together to offer a hand up in a moment that matters. Their tireless teams vet and post needs from hardworking, loving, gutsy fellow citizens. Our technology and community answers those calls for help.
Ways You Can Help: Go to thegivingwall.org. Then go back again. And do it again. And make certain you sign up for our email newsletter to stay up to date about your community's needs and how you can offer a hand up.
St. Joseph's Villa
Since our very first meeting late one winter weekday, I’ve been as impressed as any one person can be by the commitment of St. Joseph’s Villa to help our city’s most vulnerable. “Where others give up, we never stop offering hope.” These aren’t just words on a page; they’re a rallying cry for every one of the employees at St. Joseph's Villa.
What they’re about: Since 1834, the Villa has continually adapted to meet the community’s most critical needs by helping youth and adults build the skills necessary to thrive. They are open 24-hours a day, 365 days a year, and have 20+ programs that annually impact the lives of 3,000 children and families across Virginia. Their mission is met through: education, mental health services, counseling, career and transition services, and rapid re-housing.
“We are compelled to do all that we can to serve our neighbors – especially the children.” A mission that’s felt when you partner with Peter Paul Development Center, which I’ve had the pleasure of doing in recent months through Mindful Mornings.
What they’re about: What if you could give children a safe, consistent, structured, and loving environment in which to thrive, where staff and volunteers establish long-term relationships of trust and support? That’s what Peter Paul Development Center does, and has been doing for 40 years. Their mission is met through: educating children, engaging their families, and empowering the community.
How you can help: Follow Peter Paul on social media, sign up for their email newsletter, and then donate what you're able to keep their family-based programing and food distribution services alive. And don't forget to encourage social embracing in the midst of physical distancing.
Sacred Heart Center
When we imagine those living in struggle or crisis in Richmond, are we seeing the full picture? Unfold the bent edges, or find the missing pieces, and you begin to see that the full picture of crisis includes people from different races, ages, countries of origin, and lived experiences. Sacred Heart Center serves many who go unseen in our community. We’re proud to welcome them as partners of The Giving Wall.
What they’re about. For decades the Sacred Heart Center has provided Latino families with tools to flourish, creating opportunities for people of different backgrounds to develop their unique gifts and talents, with the goal of shaping a more welcoming and just community. Their mission is met through: Educational opportunities for adults, programs for youth and children, and strategic partnerships to meet urgent community needs.
How you can help: Donate a variety of goods that will support Sacred Heart clients during this time of extreme financial difficulty. Visit www.shcrichmond.org/en/donate to identify products you can donate or purchase for drop-off.
International
Rescue Committee
As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads around the globe, human rights organizations are warning of the disproportionate impact the coronavirus will have on the world's most vulnerable populations—including refugees and asylum seekers. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is here to help, as one of only nine agencies the United Nations works with to help refugees resettle and restart. We’re grateful to have Sharon and her team as partners at The Giving Wall.
What they’re about: Each year, thousands of refugees are invited by the U.S. government to seek safety and freedom. Forced to flee conflict or persecution, many have survived for years against incredible odds. The IRC helps them rebuild their lives. Their mission is met through: making sure each person, from the moment they arrive, has a home, help with rent, food, education and job training, legal services, healthcare, and community support.
How you can help: Participate in #GivingTuesday! On May 5th, join a global day of giving, created in response to the unprecedented needs caused by COVID-19. And stay tuned for the The IRC's Amazon Wishlist program, which will send much-needed household items directly to refugee families.
And Then ... The Planet
For the next two months Mindful Mornings will host speakers to talk about the planet. Earth. Your home. The ball you’re sitting on today that’s suspended in a galaxy in galaxies. We have momentum: the wind is at our backs because of this ridiculous virus that I spew profanities at daily. We need to maintain that momentum, and get very, very serious about conservation.
Email Mindful Mornings here if you’re interested in speaking on topics related to the environment and surrounding complicit issues and opportunities (e.g., what you put in your mouth is a big deal).
Come Together Virginia.
Here Weekly and Richmond Grid have teamed up with Collector Studios to create and share stories of small businesses and nonprofits responding to the current health crisis with strength, resilience, and creativity. From making hand sanitizer to creating personal protective equipment to reinventing their business models, these are stories of people around Virginia coming together to help and inspire others.
Adventure is a mindset, not a destination. There's no better time than now to practice gratitude while we find new ways to adventure-in-place. Here are just a handful of the many ways to be thankful for the place we call home.
VCU Outdoor
Adventure Program
Over the past thirty-eight years, VCU's Outdoor Adventure Program (OAP) has expanded from a club operation in an alley to a nationally recognized launching pad for urban adventure. In fact, OAP now offers gear rentals, team building programs, trips, a climbing wall, and over 300 programs that serve 11,000 people each year. This year, however, OAP has shifted its offerings to online programming and inspiration for those hunkered down. OAP is currently working to let our thriving outdoor community know that social distancing doesn't mean locking yourself inside and watching Netflix all day. As an example of their efforts, OAP has launched #outdoorsocialdistancingchallenge on Instagram as a way to encourage people to enjoy low-risk outdoor time and shelter-in-place adventure challenges to win prizes like camp chairs, mini stoves, and packs. And since most of us don't adventure with measuring tape, they are providing examples of what safe distancing looks like by converting six feet into outdoor gear length (pictured) so that everyone is on the same page. In addition, Karl Schmidt, Outdoor Adventure Coordinator at OAP, has a full list of recommended adventure options at home—from podcasts to videos to a virtual escape room.
Duron Chavis, an urban farmer and food justice advocate, says that now is the best time to get your hands dirty. As the creator of the Resiliency Garden Initiative, Chavis is on a mission to donate and build 24-square-foot raised beds for food-insecure area residents throughout Richmond. To make this possible, he'll deliver the garden and seedlings for you to grow your own. That's right, he's building raised beds to directly address food security issues in your backyard at zero cost. If you don't have a backyard, he'll even connect you with a community garden near you. If you'd like to support the Resiliency Garden Initiative, you can make a donation to build more raised beds (the average cost of each is $75-100 including soil, wood, and hand tools).
Known for their tenacity and resilience, our local artists and musicians continue to do what they do best from their homes: make art. While the traditional way to display and sell art has been disrupted, Richmond's creative force is forging new paths to connect with their audience. Starting next week, thirteen Virginia-based artists are joining together to launch a digital exhibit inspired by a newly released album by Erin Lunsford as part of The Damsel: A Virtual Album Collaboration. Each artist—including painters, photographers, illustrators, and sculptors—will release new works inspired by their favorite track on Lunsford's album, The Damsel, on Instagram every Wednesday and Friday. Richmonders can purchase prints from the participating artists while supporting the COVID-19 Arts and Culture Relief Fund's efforts to provide financial assistance to professional artists of all disciplines who have lost income from cancelled paid creative opportunities during the Coronavirus pandemic.
The Virtual Happy Hour House Show continues through April on Facebook Live at Here Weekly and Richmond Grid with the likes of DJ Ant Boogie (pictured), a drum circle by Ram Bhagat, a 90's show by Prabir Mehta, and more.
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