We’re back! New year, new nonprofit news to update you on. There is a lot happening, from nonprofit benefits, the return of events, executive news, awards and more. If you have a nonprofit happening that you’d like to see included, be sure to reach out to us.
Art Popping Up at Willow Lawn
RVA Galleries Pop-Up & Art Market will take place at Willow Lawn (next to the J.Crew) on Thursday, Jan. 23 from 5:30-8 p.m. Art purchases will benefit two local nonprofits: Medical Home Plus and Friends of James River Park. Enjoy an evening of art and community and one or more adult beverages. Learn more here.
Oh Baby! Artsplay! is Back
Baby Artsplay! has returned to the Children’s Museum of Richmond (Downtown) on the second Tuesday of the month at 3:30 p.m. This free event through RPAA’s Greater Richmond Wolf Trap program offers children ages 3-36 months, along with their parents and caregivers, the opportunity to learn strategies for incorporating singing, dancing, drama and other multi-sensory activities into their daily routines. No registration is necessary, simply drop in, but there’s a 15-child capacity. The program runs through May 14. Learn more about Artsplay! here.
Capital Trees Exec Named Vibrant Communities Fellow
Claremont Lincoln University and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy have named Shelly Barrick Parsons, executive director of Richmond-based Capital Trees, as one of the 60 civic leaders selected for the Vibrant Communities Fellows Program. The novel initiative for public sector leaders works to enhance leadership skills and tackle the most pressing issues facing cities—housing, climate, land, water, finance, infrastructure—all with the goal of building and sustaining vibrant communities.
Virginia’s Volunteers Are Cool – Part 1
A roster of 218 volunteers and organizations has been named as the Winter 2025 Serve Virginia Honor Roll in recognition of the kind of selfless service provided by more than 2.2 million Virginians each year. The biannual Serve Virginia Honor Roll spotlights those serving their communities, promoting quality of life and creating lasting impacts. According to the U.S. Census Bureau and AmeriCorps, Virginians contributed 156,828,696 hours of formal volunteer service in 2023, worth an estimated $5.2 billion. The commonwealth’s informal volunteering rate increased by 7.3%, the second highest state increase in informal volunteering nationwide. View the complete Honor Roll on Serve Virginia’s website.
Virginia’s Volunteers Are Cool – Part 2
Thirteen organizations across Virginia have been selected to receive 2025 MLK Day of Service Mini Grants from the Virginia Service Foundation. The Foundation’s biannual National Days of Service Mini Grants support service projects that engage individual and group volunteers in opportunities to serve others in keeping with the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. Among the grantees are the Foundation for Art and Health (Glen Allen), R.E.A.L. Girlz (Chester), Sylvia’s Sisters (Richmond) and the United Way of Greater Richmond & Petersburg. “Our National Days of Service Mini Grants are one way that we invest in volunteerism as a way to build stronger communities for all Virginians,” said Julie Strandlie, chair of the Virginia Service Foundation. Find a full list of grantees and a description of their projects here.
Nonprofit Newsletters You Should Sign-Up For in 2025
How’s this for a New Year’s resolution? Stay up to date with your favorite nonprofits by signing up for their e-newsletters. Here are a few to help you get started.
- Community Foundation for Greater Richmond
- Center for Nonprofit Excellence
- United Way of Greater Richmond and Petersburg
- Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy
- Virginia Capital Trail Foundation [scroll to the footer to sign-up]
- Greater Richmond SCAN (Stop Child Abuse Now)
- Venture Richmond
- Capital Trees
- The Phil (duh) [just look on the right-hand side of this page, or scroll to the bottom on mobile]
If you have a newsletter you’d like to promote here, please drop us a note, and we’ll include it in our next newsletter roundup.