A Richmond Liberty Trail will become a reality this month — seemingly in record regional time. The required parties came together and agreed in less than six months. In June's issue, Richmond magazine proposed a 4-mile route and narration centered on slave revolt leader Gabriel; however, the one that will be going down on the pavement is longer, encompassing 6.2 miles of downtown sites, starting and ending at St. John's Church.
Hands on Richmond will coordinate the volunteers painting the trail's icon on the sidewalks, JHI Design is working on that icon, and the RMCVB will place the trail's route on its official tourist map, says Bill Martin, the executive director of the Valentine Richmond History Center who has been working on the trail since a visit to Boston in April.
An 18th-century huzzah to all that!
Civil Rights Memories
To mark Virginia Repertory's staging of Night Blooms by Margaret Baldwin and the 50th anniversary of several events in our nation's civil rights movement, Richmond magazine is collaborating with Virginia Rep and the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia to record memories connected to civil rights activities in the mid-1960s in Richmond.
Night Blooms is inspired by the playwright's own family history and tells the story of two families, one white and one black, in Selma, Ala., in 1965 on the eve of the marches from Selma to Montgomery.
Videotaping of Richmond memories will take place on Friday, Sept. 21, from 2 to 4 p.m., and on Saturday, Sept. 22, from 9 a.m. to noon at Virginia Rep's Willow Lawn Stage. Visit va-rep.org or call 282-2620 to sign up.
Richmond Riverfront Plan
The proposed Richmond Riverfront Plan is scheduled to come before City Council on Sept. 24. This plan has been years in the making and deserves your attention. It encompasses everything from what should or shouldn't be built near the view from Libby Hill to where and how pedestrian and cycling paths can be added. Find the plan here: tinyurl.com/9w279a4 .
Head Injuries and Sports
On Tuesday, Oct. 16, at 5:30 p.m., we are teaming up with WCVE for a public forum on sports and head injuries, prompted by this month's story on former UR and Atlanta Falcons star Ray Easterling.
If you coach contact sports or if you know a student participating in those sports, we'd love for you to attend. Please RSVP by visiting richmondmagazine.com/sports .
