As a runner, Gene Crane was all arms, legs and heart. Tall and lanky, he ran with an ungainly grace, his limbs pumping at all angles. But, man, could he run. I know this because I chased him through woods, across fields and around a track BILL
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for an entire school year and never caught him. I ran with Gene—or more, accurately, behind him—on the cross country and track teams at Hermitage High School in 1973 and 1974. Gene went on to great things at Virginia Tech, setting a record in the steeplechase that, remarkably, stands to this day.

Charlie Bryan was 8 when he watched his father die. This weekend, his dad’s music will come alive again. “It’s very exciting for all of us in the Bryan family,“ said Bryan, president emeritus of the Virginia HisBILL
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torical Society. “He was a brilliant musician. I can’t help but think of all he would have done and contributed . . . had he lived.“

As he approached the massive ship with the familiar name, Franklin V. Pond picked up his pace. “This man was so excited coming onto that pier and going up the ramp, he had my hand in a death grip, and he was pulling me,“ Pond’s wife, Jean, said with BILL
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a laugh. Racing up a ramp—not bad for a man of 92. Pond traveled to New York last weekend for the commissioning of the USS New York, the $1 billion amphibious transport dock ship, a vessel that has drawn considerable attention because its bow was constructed with more than 7 tons of steel from the rubble of the World Trade Center.

Michaela Murray’s Pound Cake

Open the door to Fisher House on any Wednesday morning and prepare to have your willpower brought to its knees. The sweet aromas of chocolate, cinnamon and who-knows-what-else grab your senses.

BlueStarRichmond.org.
  Fisher House: To see a wish list for the house, visit RichmondFisherHouse.org or call (804) 675-6601.

The scene at the main branch of the Richmond Public Library—or any library, for that matter—doesn’t usually inspire a comparison to the running of the bulls. But the frenzy surrounding the Friends of the Richmond Public Library Book Sale, where more than 30,000 used and donated books go on sale today for as little as 50 cents apiece, apparently motivates some people—if ever so briefly—to take leave of their senses.

Friends of the Richmond Public Library Book Sale
  Where: Main library, 101 E. Franklin St.
  When: Today, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. (members of Friends only; memberships available for $15); public sale, 1-5 p.m. and 7-9 p.m.; tomorrow, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Monday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
  What: Hardbacks $1 and $2, paperbacks 75 cents and less, children’s books 50 cents, CDs $1, LP records 25 cents, sheet music 25 cents a sheet. Prices not negotiable.

Last time I saw Ed Ackell, we were talking over beers after a round of golf as he prepared to ride off into retirement after a dozen years as presi dent of Virginia Commonwealth University. It was a most pleasant day—even though I’m a lousy golfer—because Ackell had been a tough guy to get to know on the education beat, and spending a few hours with him at his favorite hobby had been an enjoyable revelation.

She can’t explain the light that burned brightly without electricity or the overturned salt dishes on the dining room table, so Anne Holton puts it this way: “I think, well, it’s an old house,“ Holton said in an interview yesterday. “There’s room for her and us.“ “Us” would be Holton, husband, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and their children. “Her” would be the ghost of the Executive Mansion in Richmond.

BOYDTON In 1977, U.S. News & World Report declared Boydton “a small town that refuses to die.“ Despite some tough times in the ensuing years, Boydton is still not dead, although it is kind of quiet. If you stop and listen, however, you can hear the town’s heartbeat—the rhythmic hammering coming from the historic courthouse.

Columnist Bill Lohmann is out of the office. His column will resume when he returns.

When you visit the Virginia War Memorial, you can count on being moved by the thousands of names etched on the glass and marble walls. You also can count on seeing flags representing the various branches of the military flying conspicuously—24 hours a day, seven days a week—outside the memorial on Belvidere Street just before the Lee Bridge.

Columnist Bill Lohmann is out of the office. His column will resume when he returns.