All results / Stories / George Copeland Jr.
Time capsule with items from a new Virginia buried at former Lee site
The streets of Monument Avenue were filled with sounds of construction equipment last Thursday as more than a dozen workers searched from sunrise to sunset, and through sporadic rainfall, for a 134-year-old time capsule believed to be hidden in the base of the pedestal that until Sept. 8 held the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.
City launches youth violence prevention pilot
Richmond is launching a pilot project to pro- vide more protections and a better path forward for youths at risk of gun violence.
Medical professionals make push for vaccination efforts in Black and brown communities
With a nationwide surge in COVID-19 cases and the continuing spread of the highly contagious delta variant, calls to vaccinate vulnerable populations have increased, with a variety of plans being floated to ensure the protection of people of color.
Rally-goers call for reinstatement of parole in Virginia
“He was incarcerated when I was young, and I can’t remember a day with him not behind bars.”
State mandates COVID-19 vaccinations for state workers; Richmond School Board to follow suit
First came the universities. Then came the City of Richmond. Then Gov. Ralph S. Northam followed their lead in imposing a mandate on most state employees to get vaccinated against coronavirus.
VCU Vaccination Corps has cadre of volunteers rolling up their sleeves and getting to work during pandemic
The opportunity to help end the COVID-19 pandemic and to dispel vaccine mistrust and hesitancy among marginalized communities inspired Aliyah Simmons to become a part of the Virginia Commonwealth University Vaccination Corps.
Silk Hair Studio becomes touch point for COVID-19 vaccination effort
Silk Hair Studio bustled with talk and activity Tuesday afternoon, though not just about hair care and other conversations between patrons in dryer chairs.
RRHA extends eviction moratorium; halts CEO search
Just weeks before more than 1,500 of Richmond’s public housing residents were facing losing their homes, the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority has extended its eviction moratorium to September, but not beyond Oct. 31.
‘Telling the whole story’
Statue of Virginia segregationist Harry F. Byrd Sr., architect of ‘Massive Resistance,’ removed from Capitol Square
After 45 years in Capitol Square in Downtown, the statue commemorating arch-segregationist Harry F. Byrd Sr. was removed Wednesday morning, marking the latest undertaking in Virginia’s long reassessment of and reckoning with its history of oppressing Black people and other people of color.
Marijuana legalization comes with info, warnings from health officials
Treatment for chronic pain. Possible addiction. Improving muscle spasms. Mood changes.
Black Voters Matter brings ‘Freedom Ride for Voting Rights’ to Richmond
Black Voters Matter brought its “Freedom Ride for Voting Rights” bus caravan to Monroe Park last week, continuing the civil rights efforts of the first Freedom Riders 60 years ago and to push voting access and equity locally and nationally.
VCU opens COVID-19 clinic for ‘long haulers’
The spread of COVID-19 has slowed significantly. But plenty of people who contracted the virus are still dealing with the effects.
Colette W. McEachin wins decisive victory over primary challenger for commonwealth’s attorney
The race for Richmond’s next commonwealth’s attorney ended late Tuesday evening, as incumbent Colette W. McEachin emerged victorious against a Democratic primary challenge from attorney Thomas P. Barbour Jr.
Black-owned businesses look back, ahead during pandemic
Michelle R. Mosby rang in the 20th anniversary of her business, International Hair Salon, on April 1 with a small group of employees and supporters in a spirited, but safe celebration at the salon on Forest Hill Avenue in South Side.
Parents weigh COVID-19 vaccination for their children
Kiara Gresham has been busy with the demands of her new small business, Cookie Jar Honeypot, and the need to ensure the education, health and well-being of her children during the pandemic and a virtual school year. With summer getting closer and the new school year months away, Ms. Gresham is taking on a new task: Learning all she can about vaccinating her two older children, Queron, 14, and Kaeoni, 12, against COVID-19.
Answers to COVID-19 questions
With eligibility for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine expanded to children ages 12 to 15, and updates to mask mandates nationally and statewide, the Free Press has gathered answers from experts to common questions about these new developments:
Joye B. Moore hits the area’s sweet spot with Joyebells Sweet Potato Pies
Joye B. Moore is a sixth-generation baker whose sweet potato pies based on an old family recipe may be making their way into countless homes throughout Metro Richmond.
Funeral traditions changed – maybe permanently – by COVID-19
John E. Thomasson was a hero in his hometown. As a member of the Louisa County Board of Supervisors, he was the first African-American elected to public office in the county. Across 98 years, he built a successful realty company, helped to save mortgages, paid for college scholarships and owned the local funeral home for 53 years, where he oversaw the burials of thousands of Virginians. When he died of an age-related illness on July 22, there was hardly anyone in Louisa County who had not been touched by his life. Other than his wife of more than 65 years, the Rev. Christine Thomasson, there is likely no one who knows his impact better than his successor, D.D. Watson Jr., who was handpicked by Mr. Thomasson to purchase and take over his funeral home business in 2004. And yet upon the death of Mr. Thomasson—a businessman, philanthropist, politician and public servant whose life and work was recognized this year in a proclamation from the Virginia Senate—the largest single gathering in his honor held barely 12 people. That’s because of government-imposed safety restrictions on public gatherings because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rally calls for end to mandatory minimum sentences
Chris Young. Kemba Smith. Quadaire “Q” Patterson. Jerry James. These names and many others were the focus of a news conference Monday at the Bell Tower in Capitol Square, as prison justice advocates called for the end of mandatory minimum sentences.
Area churches to celebrate Easter in various, special ways
Area churches are ready to celebrate Easter by welcoming congregants back to services both inside their sanctuaries and some outdoors.
