I’ll admit, it took me a while to cotton on to the whole concept of the Arts and Culture Xpo. They give you money? For free? And it’s yours to give to whatever nonprofit you choose, including JRW? Why, sign me up!
The Xpo is an annual event presented by CultureWorks, a consortium whose sole purpose is to promote cultural and artistic endeavors in the Richmond area. The Xpo, held this year at the Greater Richmond Convention Center on June 29th, spotlighted the region’s many nonprofit arts and culture organizations. Over 100 local groups were represented, including not only the James River Writers, but Henley Street Theatre, Gallery5, the Library of Virginia, Richmond Shakespeare, the Edgar Allan Poe Museum, Conciliation Project, Podium Foundation, and many, many, many more. Patrons (technical term: “Cultural Shareholders”) were given bank envelopes with “Xpo Bucks” and encouraged to browse the booths, checking out the variety of artistic and cultural endeavors available in Richmond, and supporting the organizations that caught their fancies. Ninety (“real”) cents out of every $1 Xpo Buck went directly to the nonprofit at the end of the day. Some booths displayed their creative wares and services; others snared visitors’ eyes and Xpo Bucks by offering something in exchange: t-shirts, CDs, raffle tickets.
At the JRW table, it was custom-written haiku and zombie stories.
Executive Director Katharine Herndon and Program Director Sheila Sheppard Lovelady manned the booth, churning out zombie gore and poetry while chatting with visitors and fans. Youth Advisory Board member Annesha Sengupta was also there to lend a hand for much of the day, and poets Shann Palmer and I stopped by to write a few haiku on our way to the stage.More