It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

 

This morning Pat Durrer brought in her incomparably delicious Christmas cookies!!!

(Pat worked her magic again, and this year's batch was the best-ever)

 

 

Wishing you and yours a peaceful holiday.

Merry Christmas!!!

It's that time of year...

 the happiest day of the year at Richmond & Fishburne...

the day when Pat Durrer brings in her legendarily delicious Christmas cookies!!!

Thank you Pat!  They were as delicious as ever.

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Wishing you and yours a safe and joyous holiday (including special wishes this year from Elvis!)...

The People of Richmond & Fishburne: Debbie Hall

Richmond & Fishburne is truly fortunate to have Debbie Hall as part of our team.

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Debbie, who joined Richmond & Fishburne in 1989, is our Trusts and Estates Administrator and our Office Manager.

In her role as T&E Administrator, Debbie works closely with Rick, Wendall and Marcelle in assisting clients in administering trusts and estates. She has developed excellent relationships with local Clerks, Commissioners, accountants, and bank and brokerage officers in order to facilitate the many important details involved in handling T&E matters.

In her role as Office Manager, Debbie keeps the operation at 214 East High Street humming smoothly. She's proven especially adept at addressing the computer problems that ocassionally arise in our increasingly digitalized practice -- and, with the help of the good folks at OFM, keeping the server running at maximum-efficiency!

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Debbie was born in Charleston, West Virginia. Her family moved to Fluvanna County in the 1970's, where she met and later married her high school sweetheart, Tim.

Prior to joining Richmond & Fishburne, Debbie worked at State Farm and then for ten years at Bank of America on the Downtown Mall. Throughout her career she has remained interested in continuing education, and she completed courses in trust administration at Campbell University and obtained a Business and Management Certificate from Piedmont Virginia Community College.

Debbie's priorities in her life are church and family. She is an active member of Effort Church in Palmyra and the proud mother of Jennifer (an RN in Martha Jefferson Hospital's Emergency Room) and Samantha (who is obtaining her degree in Veterinary Medicine in St. Kitts). She also loves a quiet walk in the woods near her home in Fluvanna.

Debbie Hall's warm, smiling presence is a bright light at Richmond & Fishburne, and her work ethic is an inspiration to us all.

Merry Christmas!!!

It's the happiest day of the year at Richmond & Fishburne...

the day when Pat Durrer brings in her legendarily delicious Christmas cookies!!!

Wishing you and yours a safe and joyous holiday.

The People of Richmond & Fishburne: Jenny Herring

Jenny Herring has been an absolutely critical member of Richmond & Fishburne's real estate team for more than fourteen years. She brings a wealth of experience and multiple perspectives to her work on real estate transactions, having worked for Real Estate III and Craig Builders prior to joining R&F.

Jenny has deep roots in central Virginia. Born in Staunton and raised in Waynesboro, Jenny moved across the mountain to Charlottesville in 1985, where she met the love of her life, husband Tom.

Jenny and Tom are the proud (and busy!) parents of two daughters, Amanda and Ashley. In addition to her family, Jenny counts volleyball among her passions -- Amanda plays for her high school team and in a travel league, and mom and daughter recently enjoyed watching Penn State win their third national title.

Jenny loves nothing more than a relaxing weekend outdoors, working in the garden or at the pool with her kids, topped off with gathering with friends for a cookout.

Here's to a beautiful Memorial Day weekend for Jenny and her family, and a thank-you for her hard work and positive attitude at Richmond & Fishburne.

The People of Richmond & Fishburne: Cheryl Pearson

Cheryl Pearson has been a key member of the Richmond & Fishburne team for ten years. She is a jack-of-all-trades, assisting with our trusts and estates, real estate, and business practices. Cheryl has a long background in the legal profession, having worked with attorneys Clyde Goldman and Larry McElwain, and also at the Virginia Employment Commission, prior to joining Richmond & Fishburne.

Born in Arlington and raised in Brentsville (where her mother ran the general store), Cheryl came to Charlottesville with her husband Norman in the late 1960's. Aside from their time away for Norman's military service, they've been enjoying life in central Virginia ever since. They've attended Meadows Presbyterian Church for close to thirty years. Cheryl loves a peaceful walk around Chris Greene Lake or a hike with Norman in the Blue Ridge. She also cheers loudly for the Cavaliers (and we don't give her too much grief when she roots for the Hokies, since son Brad attended Virginia Tech!).

Cheryl's family is a priority; she is the proud mother of four and grandmother of six. She was particularly proud this March when her daughter Kendall, a recently ordained Presbyterian minister, performed the marriage ceremony of her son Brad and daughter-in-law Kellye.

Richmond and Fishburne is so pleased and fortunate to have Cheryl Pearson on board.

Things We Do Outside of the Office: Running the Charlottesville Ten Miler

This past Saturday, April 4, was one of Walker Richmond's favorite days of the year: the Charlottesville Ten Miler.

Walker has run the race for the past eight years, and he loves the spirit of community that it engenders. Each year the Charlottesville Track Club, which sponsors the race, chooses a local charity as the beneficiary of race proceeds.

This year's beneficiary was PACEM (you can find their website here), an interfaith collaboration of congregations and community partners who, since 2004, have helped Charlottesville's homeless find shelter at night, especially during the winter.

Walker had the following reflections on the 2009 race:

"It was a gorgeous spring morning -- clear blue sky overhead and perfect sunshine. I usually focus on the trees as I am running down Preston Avenue, but this year I was particularly struck by the beautiful green and white right at the beginning, on Alderman between U-Hall and the Track."

The People of Richmond & Fishburne: Pat Durrer

Pat Durrer has been working at Richmond and Fishburne since 1980. She is our bookkeeper and receptionist, and she helps out with our real estate team.

Pat's Charlottesville roots run deep. She was born at Martha Jefferson Hospital and graduated from Lane High School. Prior to joining Richmond and Fishburne she was a bookkeeper at McGuire Woods.

One of Pat's true loves is a good book. When asked to list her "all-time favorites," she struggles because -- she says -- there are so many classics! When pressed, she did manage to come up with the following list of recommendations:

• Redeeming Love (by Francine Rivers)
• Gone with the Wind (by Margaret Mitchell)
• The Flame and the Flower (by Kathleen Woodiwess)
• The Notebook (by Nicholas Sparks)
• The Stranger Beside Me (by Ann Rule)

Pat is a diehard fan of Elvis Presley; when you stop in for an appointment, ask nicely and she may even agree to show you her virtual museum of Elvis paraphernalia in the back of the office! Her musical interests are varied -- she also loves Alan Jackson and just finished attending a series of musicals at John Paul Jones arena.

Pat is the proud mother of two sons and one beautiful granddaughter (who, if she takes after her grandma, must be the best-dressed young lady in central Virginia!).

It's a warm start to a day at the office to see Pat's smiling face at the front desk on the way in.

The People of Richmond & Fishburne: Terri Jordan

Terri Jordan has been a member of Richmond & Fishburne's trusts and estates, business, and litigation teams since 2005.

Prior to joining us, Terri worked as a teacher's aide at Yancey Elementary School and, before that, in the trusts and estates department at Wachovia Bank.

Away from the office, Terri is passionate about her cross-stitching. Currently she's working on a series of baby quilts. She's also accumulated an impressive collection of thimbles over the years -- we all know to pick up a thimble for her when we travel.

Terri is the proud mother of four and stepmother of two, and she's the particularly joyful grandmother of three -- with one more on the way this spring! She and her husband Lewis love spending time with their kids and grandkids.

During the work day, Terri enjoys teasing Walker about the superiority of Eli Manning and the Giants to his beloved Redskins (she is still trying to get over her sadness at Tiki Barber's retirement). She says that she is looking forward to the day when Peyton and Eli face off against each other in the Super Bowl (although she can't decide who she would root for!!).

Terri brings a terrific attitude and diligent commitment to her work each day, and Richmond & Fishburne is thrilled to have her on board.