Train Day well attended
0ETTRICK – Train Day was moving right along until the conductor started singing. Then everything stopped, if but only for a moment. The second annual event was held Saturday at the Ettrick-Matoaca Library and drew quite a crowd in spite of the rain, library manager Angela Bennett said. She noted that 303 people attended this year’s event compared with 400 who attended last year. The event – a collaboration of community members and Chesterfield police – featured three miniature train displays, historical train paraphernalia, a story time for children with police officer Joey Kierson, singing by conductor Roger Reynolds, a…
Great Native American revival coming June 3
0Chief Steve Silverheels, son of Jay Silverheels (who played Tonto on the Lone Ranger TV show), will be the featured speaker at a June 3 revival service at Woodlawn Presbyterian Church, 1201 Blackstone Ave. in Hopewell. At the 11 a.m. service, Silverheels will be preaching and sharing about his life. According to Indian Life Newspaper, Steve’s parents separated when he was young, and he was an alcoholic and drug addict when he got out of the Army. Steve recounted an experience from April 18, 1974, when Jesus Christ delivered him from the addictions. A special music program will also be…
EDA approves expansion grants for two county businesses
0The Chesterfield Economic Development Authority approved two business expansion incentive grants last week. The $50,000 grants will require the recipients to complete construction and comply with performance goals before the funds are disbursed, assistant director Karen Aylward said. She noted that recipients have three years to satisfy the grant requirements. New Bell Trucklines of 13101 N. Enon Church Road plans to relocate to a site on Jefferson Davis Highway and build a $1.5 million facility, she said. The project will include a 950-square-foot truck terminal that would be used for truck repair and warehouse space. EDA director Garrett Hart said…
County considering options for Nash Road extension
1Three options are on the table for extending Nash Road from Beach Road to Route 10. The Chesterfield County Transportation Department is considering the options to relieve congestion, specifically left turns, from Beach Road onto Route 10 from 7 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. weekdays. County transportation director Jesse W. Smith said the county looked at widening Beach Road and concluded that would not remedy the problem. An informal community session was held Monday at the county’s Community Development Building. The county will be taking public comment on the three options. All of them are located west…
Retail, restaurant, office planned for Lori Road; oil change for Ironbridge
0A two-story building with retail, restaurant and office space may be coming to Lori Road and Frith Lane. Myers Family Partnership of Chesterfield is planning a 4,585-square-foot building on 3.38 acres at 9800 Lori Road. Plans include a two-story building that would feature an 1,875-square-foot fast food restaurant and a 2,700-square-foot retail space on the first floor. A 2,400-square-foot second-floor office is planned for a later date. Forty-five parking spaces would be provided. The project includes a landscape plan on the 29.92-acre property, which is zoned commercial. Site plan approval is pending. •A Valvoline oil change business may be coming…
Commanders honored for philanthropy at John Tyler
0CHESTER – J. Richard “Dick” and Jeannine Commander recently received the 13th annual Chancellor’s Award for Leadership in Philanthropy, honoring their work with John Tyler Community College. Nominated for the award by the John Tyler Community College Foundation, the Commanders were recognized during a luncheon ceremony April 17. For more than 20 years, the Commanders have invested their time, talent and treasure to help Tyler students succeed. One example of their dedication is the Commander Family Scholarship, which was established in honor of the Commanders’ daughters. “Jeannine and Dick Commander embody a commitment to community,” said Edward “Ted” Raspiller, president…
Food bank receives $47K donation from women’s club
0Several members of the Junior Federated Women’s Club of Chester and their children presented a $47,000 check to the Chesterfield Food Bank recently. The monies were proceeds from the third annual Mary’s Charity Ball Boots & Bling event held in March. It was the second year the club elected to give the proceeds to the Chesterfield Food Bank. Last year the club gave $42,000. “We worked really hard for the food bank to surpass what we gave last year,” member Jessica Thomas said. “We added new sponsors and individuals. It is great to support the food bank and even greater…
Down to a science: Brown enjoys teaching on his own terms
0As a science teacher for the last 22 years, Walter Brown has had many students, one of whom was his oldest son, Reid. “That was weird. He would call me Dad or Mr. Brown, and now he’s a [high school] senior so it’s kind of cool seeing him graduate,” Brown said. His youngest son was not interested in being one of his students, and Brown joked that he was not allowed to be in the same school with his son. Brown is currently the seventh-and-eighth-grade Center Based Gifted science teacher at Matoaca Middle School. Having decided to become a teacher…