Banging away in the Dogpound
0Hello and welcome back to the wonderful world of the Dogpound. When was the last time you went to a demolition derby? You know…where you are allowed to take your car and ram it into someone else on purpose, and without penalty? The last one I attended was many years ago. I was 20-ish, and our county fair had a demolition derby out on their horse racing track. It was the final event of the week-long fair, and it was a big draw, filling the grandstands to overflowing with hundreds more standing along the fence or in the infield to…
Urban garden created at VSU’s Summerseat
0An urban garden was recently planted at Virginia State University to help combat “food deserts.” The garden, which was built and planted June 11, is located at the Summerseat historic house. Fifteen Sabra Dipping Co. employees joined VSU faculty and staff in the effort, a press release states. The project is a joint effort of VSU’s Sustainable and Urban Agriculture Cooperative Extension program and Sabra’s “Plants with a Purpose” program. The urban garden project is designed to transform the 2.2-acre historic land parcel known as Summerseat into a food and agricultural hub to address food security issues within local schools…
Brothers’ Keeper offers mental health assistance to youth, adults
0David Banks and his wife, Katrina, started Brothers’ Keeper Inc. in Richmond in 2002. The business was focused on mentoring children in foster care and those coming out of the Department of Corrections. It branched out in 2007 to include counseling of youth and families. The company relocated to 4800 W. Hundred Road in September 2016, David Banks said. The business, which is licensed through the state Department of Behavioral Health, was recently authorized to begin offering services to children in Chesterfield County Public Schools. It has grown from two employees to 85 and currently serves various rural areas, including…
Even children know the importance of a clean planet
0By BeKura W. Shabazz On May 30 at KinderCare in Chester, children gathered all around a big colorful alphabet carpet to learn their first lessons about climate change, why it is important to take care of the earth and what are some of the things that they can do to help keep our planet healthy. Most of them acknowledged that they did not want a big stinky earth and that their parents make them clean up their messes at home, so why is this such a big problem for us adults to grasp hold to? Maybe we should look to…
Last part of Village Green ready for development
0CHESTER – The last commercial lot in the Village Green mixed-use development will be breaking ground soon. That’s the word from local property manager Sean Eichert. The landowner (Festival Park III LLC/registered agent Carrie Coyner) plans to build a 12,000-square-foot two-story building on 0.78 acres between Don Papa Grande Mexican restaurant and Route 10. Eichert said plans are to break ground by Aug. 1. The new building will be the sixth in Festival Park, which makes up part of Village Green. The Festival Park portion of Village Green includes 6.93 acres, he said. “It’s the one missing link in the…
Sabra expanding: Plans to add onto existing building in South Chesterfield
0Sabra Dipping Co. plans to expand its South Chesterfield operations. The company has filed site plans with the county to add 37,816 square feet to its 220,560-square-foot factory in the Ruffin Mill Industrial Park at 15900 Sabra Way between I-95 and the Appomattox River. A loading dock with eight doors will be attached to the new building. Site plans for what Sabra is calling the “Jesse Light 2.0 project” were submitted May 16, county planning manager Greg Allen said in an email. Sabra opened the facility in May 2010. The building later received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)…
War bond with a story
0Mary Runnels holds a 1956 Series E war bond that she recently found. Her mother, Floris Blankenship, purchased the bond for her for $18.75. It is now worth $188.59, Runnels said, noting it stopped accruing interest after 30 years. Her mother bought the bond for her as a life lesson about saving, Runnels said.
Vietnam War veteran found humor in the darkest hours
1Ask Larry Gable how he survived his stint in Vietnam in the late 1960s, and he is likely to point to his healthy sense of humor. Even his draft date offers fodder for comic relief. “When I went to the induction facility in 1967 for my physical, the doctors found a heart murmur. I thought I had escaped the draft,” the Chester resident said. “Wrong. Within the year, they called me back for another physical and my heart murmur had cleared up. I was drafted on April Fool’s Day.”Perhaps that mischievous date set the tone for Gable’s overall perspective on…