Meet Becky Lakin, this week's guest editor. Becky is a cross-disciplinary leader with a background in people and culture, marketing, corporate citizenship, nonprofit leadership at The Giving Wall, and higher education as a professor within the Arizona State University School of Sustainability. She's also pretty excellent at parenting, as reported by her two daughters. Becky even finds time to lead horse+human workshops and retreats with formerly wild mustangs through her organization The Tomorrow Company!
Becky, who is currently running for the Henricopolis Soil & Water Conservation District Board of Directors in this November’s General Election, is here this week to serve up a handful of events by organizations that motivate her. She promises these events to be not only fun, caring, and wicked interesting – but also action oriented. They center around Becky’s vision for a thriving community driven by individuals, organizations, and institutions committed to protecting and strengthening the natural world that sustains us. Driving her list of recommendations this week is the belief that our wellbeing relies on the health of the soil and water on which we depend, and in which we delight. This, of course, is not a comprehensive list. So if you’d like more precise pointing based on your skills and interests, give Becky a shout.
Take it away, Becky…
James River Week at Maymont
Maymont likely needs no introduction as a 100-acre farm in the City of Richmond. For me it’s held many precious family moments and memories laughing with my girls in its gardens, taking photos of trees to remember their species (a pastime that seems to increase with age), and enjoying outdoor events – like the entirely epic Brandi Carlile concert this time last year. What a show.
From September 9 - 16, 2023, Maymont is celebrating James River Week by hosting a variety of programs for all age groups that will highlight the beauty and wildlife of the James River watershed – and the joy it brings. The week’s activities include animal keeper talks, crafts and art-making, art exhibitions, a Family Night Hike, and workshops on rain gardens.
The James River gives us respite, recreation, and resilience in the face of a changing climate – and welcomes as many as two million visitors annually. My family lives alongside the James River, where we caretake its banks and waters that wander by our Eastern Henrico home. The James River Advisory Council provides a forum for diverse interests along the James River in Central Virginia, and engages the public about issues and challenges facing the river. JRAC’s vision is a healthy, beautiful, economically vital and accessible James River that is cared for by a diverse and engaged community. Yes, please.
The Capital Region Land Conservancy (CRLC) is a Richmond-based non-profit that protects the natural and historic lands of the Richmond region. Thanks to CRLC, 12,000+ acres of environmentally or culturally important land and water have been protected to date – with tens of thousands more to go. This includes hundreds of acres of historically and environmentally significant forests and fields nearing my home that hold hope for learning our present from the past and designing our future alongside the natural world.
On Tuesday, September 12 from 5:00 - 7:00 pm, come explore native wildflowers, grassland restoration areas, and riparian buffers with CRLC and the Virginia Native Plant Society for a summer evening guided walk.
Vitals: Summer Wildflower Tour /Varina LandLab: 9200 Deep Bottom Rd, RVA/ Tuesday, September 12, 5:00 - 7:00 pm
Henrico County Board of Supervisors Forum presented by The Sierra Club Falls of the James Group
The Sierra Club Falls of the James Group (FOJG), the Partnership for Smarter Growth, and Henrico Conservation Action Network are holding a non-partisan forum for all candidates for Henrico County Board of Supervisors. The forum intends to inform the Henrico voters on issues related to planning and land use, civil rights, the environment, and good government. I’ll be there listening and learning as a newer-to-Henrico resident, who moved from the City of Richmond some fifteen months ago. Did you know Henrico is home to 330,000+ people within 245 square miles?
Why this matters to you if you’re not in Henrico? What’s good for other counties, and the City, is often good for the Richmond Region.
*In addition to the Henrico forum, there's also the Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors Forum presented by The Sierra Club Falls of the James Group (FOJG), Chesterfield NAACP, and Partnership for Smarter Growth happening tonight, September 7, from 7:00 - 8:30 pm at Manchester Middle School.
More about Becky and The Tomorrow Company...
Imagine your team in protected forest, beneath 100-foot trees. Imagine them working alongside formerly wild mustangs to investigate how we communicate, influence, and lead positive change. Imagine them sitting around a common table, in a quiet meadow, sharing a meal created from the food grown on the farmland around them.
In each of these moments, we help teams connect with each other, and to the wild ecosystems that surround us – to deepen their understanding of themselves and your company’s path forward in an uncertain world.
I’ve worked as a corporate leader inside a global Fortune 500. I’ve worked for non-profits, and started my own. I’ve served inside government, and in leadership in startups. The problems everywhere are the same. But the solutions are within reach. We need only to step outside to find them. Come explore what’s possible with The Tomorrow Company.
Meet Lance Lemon, this week’s guest editor. Lance is a Virginia native with an impressive background as an actor, co-founder of RichWine RVA, and co-owner of Penny’s Wine Shop in Jackson Ward. He double majored in Acting and Studio Art with a focus in cinematography at the University of Virginia. After college, Lance moved to New York to continue his acting career and work in hospitality at places like the eccentric Jean Georges ABC Cocina and Kitchen. He went on to curate, open, and manage two successful wine shops in Brooklyn, all while continuing his growth as an actor. The experience defined his two life passions: acting and wine. And, oh yeah he loves to play a little golf too.
This week, Lance serves up his recommendations for ways to explore and celebrate RVA! Take it away, Lance
ART OF NOISE
You will always catch me vibing out at Art of Noise. The energy is electric, and the stakes are always high with which performer the AON crew is going to bring out. It's a rush they finally do come out! The Labor Day AON always hits the hardest. Also helps that some of my closest family and friends are always in attendance. Major shot out to my brothers Lonnie B, Skillz, DJ Marc, and my literal Sister, the face of Richmond - Kelli Lemon!
Vitals:
Art of Noise / Brown's Island / Sunday, September 3rd
Birdhouse Farmers Market
Owning a restaurant and being a part of the hospitality scene in RVA, we're always doing our best to support local. Birdhouse Farmers Market is somewhere that my Chef, Chef Manny Baiden and I frequent often to peruse the new local produce, say hello to friends providing the amazing restaurants in RVA with that local good good and cop fresh seasonal produce to keep the at-home kitchen stocked for delicious family meals.
Speaking of restaurants, some of my go-to spots whenever I manage to find free time:
Common House is my go-to office away from home. I go here to focus; I have to lock myself in one of those little small rooms and trap my energy and focus to work. I also go to CH on the reg to get my social butterfly out and chill on the rooftop just to switch the scenery up to get some work done. Shout out to Erin Lunsford; not only is she an amazing talent, I went to school at UVA with her, and to see her grow as a musician has been a pleasure to watch!
Explore. Support. Find something new to do. And bring positive energy with you wherever you go. Richmonders ain't got time for that negative ish.
For me, it's simple - I usually look for Good People, Good Wine, Good Food; that usually guarantees a Good Time!
RVA (and VA as a whole, especially the surrounding areas, Henrico, Hanover, Ashland, Midlo, Charlottesville) has so much to offer and people are about to start “Putting some respect on our name!” - ha! < I say this with love.
But seriously, people are coming to Richmond in waves and it's our goodwill and responsibility to show them that we are a strong caring community to help continue to the growth of RVA.
There's no place like here. So let's plot some moves around the River City for the weekend ahead. We've lined up three quick tips to shop local art, to create a shared story together, and to take in the sights at favorite local parks. Get out there and celebrate this place we all love to call home. See you in the city!
Sophie Printmaking
Looking for the perfect RVA gift or something special (and local) to treat yourself? Sophie Smith, aka Sophie Printmaking, is a Richmond based linocut printmaker who is cranking out striking prints these days that depict our hometown at its finest. Many of her images initially started out as photographs that Sophie took herself and then carved into linoleum and printed. In their final iteration they are morphed into two-color screen printed posters. Many of her locations include some of her favorite spots on the river – like the CSX A-Line Bridge, the James River Park Pipeline Walkway next to Pipeline Rapids, and the City of Richmond skyline, just to name a few.
As many Here subscribers know, shortly before the Covid-19 pandemic began, our team quietly worked with the James River Park System to hide an old mailbox in a secret spot in the park as part of a journal writing experiment. The vintage mailbox became home to the “Dear Richmond” journal — a special place for the community to connect, to express our shared gratitude, our hopes, and our fears. Since that time, Richmonders have documented their thoughts about being in quarantine, the pandemic, and systemic racism. Others have used the journal as a place to leave words of encouragement for those feeling isolated, suggestions for working toward an inclusive community, and some simply recorded trail observations about their natural surroundings. And for others, the mailbox became a place to discuss loss, being alone, their fight to remain sober, and their search for love. Along the way, the Richmond community has responded with words of encouragement left for complete strangers, entries filled with inspiration, and even gifts. Recently, we teamed up with the James River Park System to find a new home for the community mailbox in the park. Now more centrally located near the park headquarters, the mailbox is again available for the community to find and to define what the journal will become page by page. Your job is to find it.
Have you checked out one of Richmond's newest murals yet? Head to Battery Park in the Northside for a mural celebrating Author Ashe that was painted entirely with tennis balls. The tribute to the legendary tennis star was created by JVY Creations in collaboration with RVA students and Mural MOBB, a creative outlet for teens, for the City of Richmond's Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities. While you're in the area, swing by Hotchkiss Park for another new mural, this one created by All City Art Club for RVA's new outdoor roller skating rink.
Vitals:
Battery Park is located 2803 Dupont Cir. /JVY Creations / Hotchkiss Park is located at 701 E. Brookland Park Blvd. / All City Art Club
Save the Date: 9.22.23
For 50 years, the James River Park System has inspired countless hikers, climbers, paddlers, and lovers of nature. It has also inspired many of the region's artists – especially Friends of the James River Park Board Member, author, and photographer Bill Draper. He's the author of “A Photographic Journey through the James River Park System" and his work has inspired others who have used his images to take pen to paper, and brush to canvas. The upcoming Camera to Canvas event will pair some of our region's best artists with their favorite Bill Draper images to create original works for a charity auction benefitting the James River Park. Richmonders will have the opportunity to bid on individual items, or paired sets of artwork. Make sure to save the date of September 22nd, from 6-9PM at The Boathouse at Rocketts Landing for an evening of cocktails, food, music, silent and live auctions, and plenty of beautiful art.
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