Meet this week’s guest editor, Ali Greenberg! As the Outreach Manager for Lighthouse Labs, she has helped make the Richmond-based startup accelerator the most founder-friendly on the East Coast. Ali moved to RVA from NYC in 2017 after visiting the area and falling in love with the city. Just six months later, Ali founded The Broad, which served as a workspace and social club for women and gender minorities until it closed due to the pandemic. As a longtime startup mentor and supporter, it didn’t take long for Ali to join forces with Lighthouse Labs to help the growing organization invest further in the lives of founders. She’s also a passionate supporter of reproductive justice, a longtime in-clinic volunteer with Planned Parenthood, and monthly supporter of the Richmond Reproductive Freedom Project. When Ali isn’t working to make Richmond a better place, you’ll find her eating her way around the world with 25 countries behind her and the rest to go. Check out Ali’s quick tips for exploring and celebrating this place we love to call home. Take it away, Ali …
Abuelita's
Homemade Mexican Food
Get yourself an EZPass and make your way across the James to tuck into the top notch cooking at Abuelita's. I love any restaurant that focuses on a few dishes and does them right, and Abuelita's does just that with a rotating menu of guisos that will warm your soul. From chile rellenos to tamales to nopales - a plate of grandma's cooking and an agua fresca is the only thing I want after a day at Pony Pasture.
The little shop that could, Tokyo Market has been in Carytown for decades and recently expanded their space to stock even more delicious treats. The owner, Chong, is one of my favorite people in Richmond and has been kind enough to give me feedback on my kimchi jjigae. From imported candies to domestic rarities (it's the only place in the area that stocks Sun Noodles - a must for homemade ramen), Tokyo Market is the best place to shop globally, locally.
The grand finale of the startup accelerator's program, Demo Day is a chance for the early-stage founders to take the (virtual) stage and share their innovative ideas with the community. Lighthouse is celebrating our 10th cohort - our largest and most diverse yet - on Thursday June 3rd and each team has the chance to win $5,000 in additional funding based on an audience vote. Grab your free ticket to cheer on one of our hometown heroes - EDai, Grantable, lokii, and Team Excel - to help a Richmond team take home the win! Plus, apply for our Fall 2021 program if you have a startup idea that needs funding and support.
Founder-focused, time-tested, and ready to roll. Twice a year Lighthouse Labs invests $20,000 equity-free in 6-10 early-stage startups. Over 3-months, they receive tailored mentorship, extensive education in scaling a startup, and a cohort community to grow alongside for the long-haul. You should definitely apply by June 6th!
Here's to making waves in the River City this weekend. We’ve rounded up a handful of recommendations for people, places, and causes to celebrate.
See you in the city!
AlterNatives
Bluegrass & Brews
AlterNatives Boutique, Richmond's first fair trade store, is hosting Bluegrass & Brews on Saturday at 3320 W. Cary St. in Carytown. If you haven't checked out AlterNatives yet, they offer a variety of products from fair trade craftspeople and companies that offer livable wages and safe working conditions. The shop also operates a nonprofit called Highland Support Project (HSP), which works to empower communities in the Guatemalan Highlands. Thanks to the local nonprofit, volunteer teams here in Richmond make annual trips to the Guatemalan Highlands to help build stoves for families and communities that would normally cook food over an open-pit fire inside of their homes. These stoves prevent illnesses and deaths from smoke inhalation, reduce deforestation because they use less wood, and they help provide women more time to pursue other educational opportunities and trainings within and outside of their rural communities. This weekend's event in Richmond will benefit these efforts. Bands will kick off at 1 pm in Carytown, beer will be provided by Legend Brewing, homemade Guatemalan food served, and there will be plenty of opportunities to learn more about the work of HSP and participate in an online auction with an impressive collection of local goods up for grabs.
Own your freakdom this weekend. Freak Flags, a female-owned and operated flag and pennant shop based in RVA, has the River City abuzz with its latest creations. Freak Flags designs fun and funky flags that celebrate everything there is to love about Richmond. Make sure to follow Freak Flags on Instagram to track their latest pop ups and new offerings, as they sell out fast. Recent flags have included shoutouts to favorite spots around town (check out their Scuffletown flag) and pennants with playful sayings like, "I Love You More Than Springtime in Richmond." Local pickups are available at Tiny Space in Church Hill. Let your freak flag fly!
Vitals:
Shop Freak Flags here / Follow for upcoming flags here
Høly River
at the Pump House
Take a virtual trip to the Pump House on Sunday for a multimedia collaboration of dance, music and film to raise funds to help spruce up this historic and architectural treasure. Located on the North Bank of the James River, the Pump House once served as a public-use pumping station downstairs and a venue for lavish events and dances upstairs until the mid-1920’s. Through donations and volunteer efforts, the Richmond community is revitalizing the Pump House and surrounding park to its former glory. This Sunday’s online event will mark a collaboration between Høly River, The Concert Ballet of Virginia, Starr Foster Dance, and Hourglass Sessions to raise money to replace some of the windows at the Pump House. As many Richmonders know, Høly River is an experimental folk duo by Jameson Price and Laney Sullivan with water protection, environmental activism, and community at its core. You can tune into a live performance by the band at the Pump House on Sunday that will premier on the Friends of Pump House YouTube page. The duo will perform from the top floor of the Pump House filled with dancers from the Concert Ballet of Virginia and Starr Foster Dance.
Spread positives message to friends, neighbors, and strangers this weekend at Carytown Chalk Up The Town. Local non-profits, schools, artists, and community members will be creating positive messages and art with chalk up and down Carytown's sidewalks. Participating blocks, chalk pick-up locations, and sidewalk decorators can be found here.
Get out there this weekend and celebrate the city we love to call home, your favorite greenspaces, and local business owners. Here are this week's handful of must-do ideas with infinite potential ...
Illuminating
Legacies
The The JXN Project is celebrating Jackson Ward’s 150th Anniversary this weekend at the "Illuminating Legacies: Giles B. Jackson Day" event. While pre-registration is sold out for guided tours, you can still celebrate one of the most important Black neighborhoods in the country as it turns 150. Head to the city's sixth ward on Saturday to check out dozens of live projections that will reveal the neighborhood's origin story through restorative truth-telling and redemptive storytelling. Though the trolly tours are booked, you can enjoy the projections by foot or bike and support Black-owned businesses across Jackson Ward. The JXN Project will honor this important anniversary of Jackson Ward by elevating and educating participants on the hidden histories of Jackson Ward as the "Birthplace of Black Entrepreneurship,” an often under-told and overlooked story when discussing the local origins of Black excellence and enterprise in the national narrative. Make sure to follow The JXN Project, created by Enjoli Moon and Dr. Sesha Joi Moon, after this weekend's event too, as the JXN journey will continue as part of a year-long sesquicentennial celebration with more interactive activities and activations across the community.
Be a part of The Valentine’s newest exhibition, Breathing Places: Park & Recreation in Richmond, opening at the museum on May 5 by submitting images of yourself, your family, or your friends enjoying greenspaces this weekend. The debut of Breathing Places comes on the heels of the Valentine welcoming visitors back to the museum with new outdoor programming, spring and summer events and more. “As residents and visitors alike begin to return downtown to enjoy many of the greenspaces they’ve missed for over a year, now is the ideal time to open this exhibition,” says Valentine Director Bill Martin. “Breathing Places is not only an opportunity to fully explore the history of parks and recreation, but to inspire visitors to experience these spaces for themselves while considering how we can improve community access going forward.” Breathing Places will include a slideshow of rotating images featuring community-submitted photos. Richmonders (both individuals and organizations) can share favorite images of greenspace in the Richmond region. It could be at a park, yard, field, or any little patch of green that brings you joy. Makes sure to tell The Valentine a little about your image and they will include it in a slideshow in the Breathing Places exhibit.
RVA's newest weekly vendor market has launched at The Diamond. Hosted by River City Festivals in the expansive parking lot in front of The Diamond, the market is socially distanced and features an impressive list of rotating vendors, artisans, craftspeople, and other local business owners. Oh and there's beer, wine, and food trucks too! Check out the growing list of participating vendors including woodworking, art, clothing, jewelry, beauty supplies, gifts for your pet (bring your dog with you), locally grown produce, nonprofits, and more. Come out and support your local, small businesses.
Vitals:
PopUp at The Diamond / Every Saturday from 10 am - 4 pm / New vendors every week
Celebrating Swansboro
Richmond artists Silly Genius, PT Carroll, Auz Miles, and Nadd Harvin of All City Art Club are putting the finishing touches on a new mural on the Bainbridge underpass in Swansboro this week. “As with every mural we’ve painted in Southside, the love the people of the neighborhood reminds us we’re on the right path,” says Silly Genius. Take a drive down Bainbridge to check out Richmond's latest mural collaboration celebrating community.
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