Each year, we choose a theme to guide our annual Sourcebook issue. For 2021, nothing seemed more appropriate than “a rebuilding year,” which in sports lingo, refers to a new strategy or direction brought about by past challenges — or losses. As Food Editor Eileen Mellon so eloquently states on Page 220, “A rebuilding year is a chance to restore what is lost, to come back better and stronger than before.”
We have a lot of work to do — and a lot to be hopeful about. Though COVID-19 continues to adversely affect all areas of life, from the economy and education to dining out, events, and how and where we work, the recent rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine is an important step toward recovery. The administration of vaccines may be proceeding slower than expected locally, but in recent days, mass vaccination clinics at Richmond Raceway Complex are getting more shots in arms and offering hope that we will beat the virus.
In our Welcome section, we talk to local leaders in health, education, business and the arts about the path ahead and lessons they have learned from the pandemic. Our Dining section explores the topic of rebuilding with restaurant owners, who share their needs, hopes and visions for the year ahead. In Business, we look at pandemic employment trends, and in Health, we explore how faith leaders in minority communities have partnered with Dr. Robert Winn, director of the VCU Massey Cancer Center, for weekly sessions to address an array of health care issues. Our Education section looks at how the pandemic has affected interest in private schools, with most public schools in the region pivoting to mostly virtual learning since March 2020.
The pandemic and multiple instances of police brutality nationwide magnified racial disparities in the U.S. last year. In Richmond, there’s a long overdue need to reframe the way we think about and recognize our troubled history as a center of the slave trade and the former capital of the Confederacy. In this issue we look at how Monument Avenue will be rebuilt as its Confederate statues are removed, and also at how public schools are dropping long-standing ties to Confederate names and symbols.
If last year taught us anything, it’s that it’s more difficult than ever to forecast what the future may bring. As we produced this issue, we witnessed an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, then just two weeks later, we saw a peaceful transfer of power as Joseph Biden was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States.
The pandemic, protests and a presidential election dominated last year. We’re counting on resilience, recovery and rebuilding for the year ahead. We can do it — and we will.
