Thankyou so much for the support

Thanks so much for coming out last night in the rain! Marshe & I couldn't believe 26 women came out!

We decided the next meeting would be next Monday at 9pm at Rumors...try to brainstorm on ideas for our mission statement and for our 1st event so we can have a productive meeting again!
Thanks again for showing such interest....I'm looking forward to working with such a large group of smart women :)

If you're interested, please reply to richmondunited@gmail.com with specifics on how you would like to be involved, or what you might want your role to be in this group. We all seem to have various interests and strengths, and I'm excited to see where we go!
Thanks!
Casey Rumors.

WE ARE DOING IT

Thanks so much for coming out last night in the rain! Marshe & I couldn't believe 26 women came out!
I have attached an excel sheet with everyone's contact info-please let me know if anything is incorrect.

We decided the next meeting would be next Monday at 9pm at Rumors...try to brainstorm on ideas for our mission statement and for our 1st event so we can have a productive meeting again!
Thanks again for showing such interest....I'm looking forward to working with such a large group of smart women :)

If you're interested, please reply to this email with specifics on how you would like to be involved, or what you might want your role to be in this group. We all seem to have various interests and strengths, and I'm excited to see where we go!
Thanks!
-Casey

Last night was amazing I have been on cloud 9 since the meeting. I am so excited about all the things that we are going to accomplish and all the new conversations that are going to take place. I have so much faith in each and every one of you. It takes true iniitiative to disconnect yourself from the normal life routine.

ART: Replace Fear with Curiosity

SEED BOMB WORKSHOP HOW TO

What is a seed bomb?

Last week I didn't exactly know, but this Sunday Lauren Paige Richeson hosted a free seed bomb making workshop at Rumors, teaching and offering supplies to dozens of interested locals of all ages.

A seed bomb is a little capsule that contains everything needed to grow a plant, all bundled up. They are made with clay and filled with indiginous seeds custom made for various locations, so that they will grow to local conditions.

what you need:
powdered clay
wildflower seeds indigenous to the area
water
mixing container
stick

What to do:
1) mix powder clay & seeds in a mixing container.
2) add just enough water to make a nice muddy clay consistency
3) roll up the mixture into little balls like gum balls
4) let dry in a cool dry place for a few days
5) throw them in empty fields.

Thanks to photographer & new friend Megan Wagner for documenting the event.

If you or any of your friends have an idea for a community workshop, please contact Casey at Rumors Boutique: 804 726 9944.

Marley. Women are doing it for themselves

Today one of our own Marley worked for the first time as as lead chef at Bamboo. I hear she kicked ass. Way to be awesome. Who says women don't have a place in the restaurant business.

Sex In America: A Symposium On Sex

Esther Perel, LMFT, Leonore Tiefer, PhD, Ian Kerner, PhD, Amy Sohn and Cory Silverberg

I was lucky enough to attend their first event with the Ligerbeat staff. It was an amazing experience and I am looking forward to going to the next discussion. Sex has always been a very taboo subject especially when applied to Women. Sex is not a subject that should be locked behind doors. Open conversation and well taught sex education is very much needed in our society.


Adultery, abortion, homosexuality teen sexuality, abstinence campaigns, sex education, pornography and family values are all active items on the national political agenda. Despite living in a time of unprecedented sexual freedom in America, the practice of policing sexuality has continued unabated since the days of the Puritans and the profound national discomfort with sexuality is all around us. When we are taught that sex is dirty, but we should save it for the one we love, is it any surprise that so many couples become erotically alienated? How do the politics of sex enter the American bedroom?

Join some of the most bold and distinguished thinkers on sex in America in a thoughtful and provocative conversation about sex, pleasure, desire, eroticism, infidelity and monogamy.

AN EVENING SYMPOSIUM
Friday, February 20, 7:30pm
$20
Location: The Blood Center, 310 East 67th Street between 1st & 2nd Avenue

YOU MUST REGISTER. CALL 212-219-2527 EXT 2
OR REGISTER ONLINE HERE

http://www.opencenter.org/content/view/2197/5/

Esther Perel, LMFT, Couple and family therapist, is the author of the international bestseller Mating in Captivity: Unlocking Erotic Intelligence which took the 2009 Society for Sex Therapy and Research Consumer Award. Fluent in eight languages, Esther addresses audiences worldwide. She is a clinical instructor in the department of psychiatry NYU medical center.

Ian Kerner, PhD, is a sex therapist and best-selling author of numerous books, including She Comes First. His most recent book, Love in the Time of Colic, is a sex guide for new parents.

Leonore Tiefer, PhD, is associate clinical professor of psychiatry at NYU School of Medicine, has a private practice in clinical psychology and sex therapy, and has lectured wordwide. In 2000, she initiated a campaign to challenge the medicalization of women’s sexual problems

Amy Sohn was "Naked City" and "Mating" columnist for New York magazine for six years. She is the author of the novels Run Catch Kiss and My Old Man.

Cory Silverberg is a certified sexuality educator, author and the Sexuality Guide for About.com. He has facilitated many workshops across North America on subjects ranging from male sexuality and sex toys to feminist pornography and sex and technology

Camp Diva Does It Again. Are girls really dating their fathers

I had the privilege of working with Camp Diva over the past few months. I first heard about Camp Diva last summer when one of their volunteers came into Rumors and asked for a donation for their upcoming fundraiser. It was not until recently while Casey and I attended a private fundraising party that we really found out about the amazing things that Camp Diva is accomplishing. They are really taking the idea literally that "it takes a village to raise a child". I wish that I would have had more strong women around me growing up to teach my about the reality of growing up as a black girl in America. Camp Diva covers everything. You name it and these girls will inform you on the latest advances in Business Marketing and Nutrition.

If you have any spare time please get involved. These girls are the future of Richmond. These girls are the future of Women. I am 100 percent certain that these young Women will excel beyond our greatest expectations.

Marshe'

Article By Jeremy Slayton

Published: March 16, 2009

Fathers and daughters were the center of attention last night at a benefit held at Art Works Studios and Galleries in South Richmond.

As more and more fathers and daughters trickled through the doors at the studios on Hull Street, organizers of the second Date With Dad Dance rushed to find enough seating to accommodate them.

With more than 200 people in attendance, it far surpassed the 25 couples of a year ago, signaling a successful fundraiser for the Camp Diva Summer Retreat.

Mayor Dwight C. Jones said the event is something Richmond can take pride in and can use as a springboard to "build a better society . . . in the time that is to come."

Last night's event raised $2,200 for Camp Diva, a free, educational empowerment program for girls ages 11 to 17. The girls attend workshops during the five-week day camp, which puts a heavy emphasis on issues currently confronting teens.

Tickets to the event were $25 for a father and daughter and $10 for an additional daughter.

Several of the girls who attended Camp Diva helped organize the benefit. They sparkled in formal dresses, some with corsages pinned on straps.

While the event was a fundraiser, it was also about fostering positive relationships between fathers and daughters. The pairs danced together and learned how to salsa. Later in the evening came a salsa-dance competition and an old-school-versus-new-school dance contest.

Richmond comedian Antoine Scott said: "It's a pleasure for me to be here. I want to make them laugh but also throw some information out."

Scott, who performed a stand-up routine at the event, was accompanied by his 14-year-old daughter, Mikala Morton. He said he wanted the fathers in attendance to learn the dos and don'ts of raising a daughter and having a positive impact on their lives.

Not all the men at the fundraiser were there with a daughter of their own. Jamal Kelly, a prevention specialist with the Richmond Behavioral Health Authority, was a fill-in dad for Tashema Peace.

"I think it's very important to come out and support these types of events," Kelly said. "Also, it gives the young ladies a model of how to be treated and . . . to provide guidance and support."

Angela Patton, founder and director of Camp Diva, also started the Date With Dad fundraiser.

She said it's not a debutante ball or about the fathers dressing to the nines. It's a way to help fathers connect with other fathers and reinforce positive interactions with daughters.

"My whole point was, I want you to be in the house," Patton said of fathers. "I want you to be here because it's important for you to foster relationships with your daughter, or if you are a father figure."

While there were a few mothers and sons in the crowd, the night belonged to fathers and daughters.

"It's good to see so many fathers in the room tonight," Jones said. "It's good to see so many fathers taking the time to mentor and to show their little girls how much they love them."