Jim, with his wife Gina,
returned to Richmond in
2000, after his retirement
from a long career in computer
systems engineering
and management—notably
with IBM, Raytheon, SAIC
and Philips. His career took
them on a 43-year odyssey
to Washington DC, Boston,
and Hengelo, The Netherlands,
and then back to DC.
They moved into the family home at 1901 Hanover Avenue, and immediately undertook a major extension and renovation program of the old house, which was completed by 2005.
Both Jim
and Gina are avid supporters of the Hanover Halloween
block party each year, and have been FDA members since
2000.
His hobbies include PCs, chess, weapons systems,
politics, philosophy, and helping to care for two
rescued Cockerpoos. He is also a 32nd Degree Scottish
Rite Mason.
Jim holds a degree in physics and mathematics from
the University of Richmond (1957), and has had extensive
graduate courses.
in 31 years. She says she would never consider living in any other neighborhood. She has been an active Volunteer in the Fan community, most recently with the Fan Woman’s Club, having served as kitchen and Garden tour Co-Chair in 2005 , Vice President in 2006-07, and most recently, President in 2007-08. In February of this year she was asked by the FDA to step in as Parks and Trees chairperson,
and immediately organized the Fan’s first Litter Sweep on February 28th, held in conjunction with VCU Student Government and area Fan residents. They were able to not only pick up over 100 pounds of trash, but also recycled plastic, glass and aluminum. Her interest in joining the FDA Board is to further improve upon our relationship with the VCU community, to address excessive litter and deadbeat landlords and to push for all residents, including renters, to embrace recycling. As coordinator for the parks and trees committee,she also plans to devote much time to filling as many empty tree wells (with the RIGHT tree) as possible, and to improve some of the pocket parks that are still in need of attention. She feels that our parks and trees provide so many small oasis’ and improving and maintaining them
will be a focus. Betsy’s experience as a Realtor and a long time Fan resident has given her insight into working with her neighbors, city management and the VCU community. Building on that experience will allow her to focus attention on the areas that will continue to make our neighborhood safe, clean and GREEN!
John Gilbody is an attorney who lives in the Fan with his wife and two daughters. John has lived in the Fan for 8 years. A Wilmington, North Carolina native, John was drawn to Richmond and the Fan specifically because of its unique combination of history, architectural uniqueness and strong sense of community. His wife Amy works in political affairs for AARP. Both of their daughters attend Fox Elementary and Ms. Bab’s Nursery School on Grove Avenue in the Fan. John received his undergraduate degree from Penn State, and his J.D. from the George Mason University School of Law. He works in personal injury and products liability law at Geoff McDonald & Associates. John is concerned most about public safety and traffic issues in our neighborhood. John would like to bring his legal training to address the issues raised in our diverse urban community. We need to work more closely with the Richmond Police Department to ensure the safety of our families to reduce crime and reckless driving. Graffiti is another problem, and we must remain vigilant in supporting the programs the FDA has created.
Sandy is a former educational curriculum specialist who retired to Richmond and the Fan 9 years ago. Although he grew up in North Carolina graduating from East Carolina College, he is a native-born Virginian with deep roots in the state. His interests include historic preservation, gardening, old movies, and genealogy. If elected to the FDA Board, he would like to focus on environmental issues such as trash control, parking, and tree programs.
