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Club #69

Serving the Richmond Community

Since 1913

The Tabasco

January, 2026 Volume 26 Issue 1

Whether you are relatively new to the club or a long-serving member, The Rotary Club of Richmond has been serving Richmond for more than a century; do you have your copy of this history? Copies are now available; $20 soft copies; $30 hard copies.

Tuesday, January 6

Warren J McCrickard, Exec Dir. Boys to Men Mentoring – Virginia

"The Power of Mentorship in Shaping Young Men"

Warren McCrickard is the Executive Director of Boys to Men Mentoring Network of Virginia. Boys to Men Mentoring Network of Virginia's mission is to support boys during their critical teenage years as they transition from a boy into a man. They do this by providing communities of caring mentors and role models who listen, accept, encourage and support teenage boys on their journey to become good men.

Warren is a native of Richmond and graduate of Hermitage High; Warren has spent most of his career in sales and marketing. He spent seven years in Los Angeles working at Paramount, DreamWorks and Summit (now Lionsgate). He spent seven years in Chattanooga, Tennessee working in the recreational marine industry and two years in Atlanta, Georgia working for his wife's Health Tech start-up, Motivo. He is excited to be home and to apply his 15+ years of corporate experience to the non-profit sector while learning and growing in this new role for Boys to Men.

Warren resides in Richmond, VA and has a sweet lil' Boston Terrier named Lucy

Tuesday, January 13

Karen Legato, Executive Director, Health Brigade

"Community Health Services for those in Need"

Karen Legato serves as the Executive Director of Health Brigade, formerly known as Fan Free Clinic. She has served over 30 years in the not-for-profit sector, providing both direct service and administrative leadership.

Her academic background includes a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Virginia Tech, Master of Pastoral Studies from Loyola University, and a Master of Social Work from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Her service background includes medical social work, administration, child and family work, education, program development, project management, facilitation, public speaking and community coalitions and partnership work.

Karen has been acknowledged for her many contributions…from being named Social Worker of the Year to recognition as One of Richmond’s Health Care Leaders. Health Brigade, under her leadership, has received several awards recognizing its impact in the greater Richmond community. However, you won’t find Karen dwelling on accomplishments.

Rather, you will discover her interest in transforming our communities into healthy equitable spaces where all are welcomed and valued.

Tuesday, January 20

Michael Schwartz, Co-Founder & Editor, Richmond BizSense

"BizSense. Innovation in Business Reporting"

Richmond BizSense is an online business news publication founded in 2008 by Aaron Kremer, covering the Richmond, Virginia business sector. The publication reports on small businesses, startups, real estate, and related industries. Today it is Richmond’s premier source of business news and information and publishes four to six original news stories each weekday and provides regular coverage of local foreclosures, business licenses, building permits, legal disputes and more.

The editors also curate a list of the most important local, state and national business stories each day and send it via email to more than 25,000 subscribers. The Daily NewsFeed is a must-read each morning for business people who want to stay ahead of their competition.

Michael Schwartz joined BizSense in 2010 after five years as a reporter at Inside Business in Hampton Roads. He became BizSense’s editor in 2013. Schwartz is a graduate of Old Dominion University, where he studied journalism. In addition to leading the newsroom, he reports on banking, finance, lawsuits and the legal industry, among other topics. 

Tuesday, January 27

Rick Edwards, Chief of the Richmond Police Department

"The Chief's Report: Current Challenges and Future Outlook"

Chief Rick Edwards joined the Richmond (VA) Police Department in 1999. He held positions as a Patrol Officer, ATF Task Force Officer, Aggravated Assault / Sex Crimes Detective, and Homicide Detective. In 2012, he was promoted to the rank of Patrol Sergeant. In 2013, he was assigned as a Detective Sergeant in the Homicide Unit. In 2017, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. In 2020, he became Captain in command of the 1st Precinct. In 2021, he was assigned as the Acting Major overseeing Patrol Services – Area 1. October 2022, he was appointed Acting Chief of Police for the City of Richmond and formally sworn in as Richmond’s 21st Chief of Police on July 24, 2023.   

Chief Edwards has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from the University of Richmond. He played basketball at UR and played professionally in Europe. He is a graduate of the 79th session of the Police Executive Research Forum’s (PERF) Senior Management Institute for Police (SMIP), the 51st session of Virginia Chief of Police’s (VACP), Professional Executive Leadership School (PELS) at the University of Richmond, and the 47th session of the FBI’s National Executive Institute (NEI).