This is Richardson

Jason and Tiffany talk with their friends, John and Suzanne Scott.

Our thanks to First Baptist Richardson for providing our recording space for this series.

Tiffany Norris talks with Katherine Montgomery, founder and CEO of Tailgating Central/Tailgate Traditions.

Our thanks to First Baptist Richardson for providing our recording space for this series.

Listen to the stories from this father/daughter duo and catch a glimpse Richardson, Texas history.

Our thanks to First Baptist Richardson for providing our recording space for this series.

Listen to this conversation with Amanda Hill, Principal + Chief Executive Officer of Three Box Strategic Communications.

Our thanks to First Baptist Richardson for providing our recording space for this series.

Jason and Tiffany talk with the Weathersbees!

Our thanks to First Baptist Richardson for providing our recording space for this series.

We have 5 brand new episodes, a limited-run series starting January 10, and then every Friday through the first week in February.

Listen to this episode for the details.

Thank you for listening!

Jason & Tiffany Norris

We want you to know and appreciate the fact that Richardson is what it is because of the people who live here.

But on this episode of the local podcast for Richardson, we have a very important announcement.

Tiffany Norris talks with Jason Norris, producer of This is Richardson.

So far, during this worldwide crisis, we've revisited Richardson restaurants and Richardson businesses to see how they're responding and managing the whole situation.

We also wanted to revisit our church, First Baptist Richardson, and we really felt like that warranted its own episode.

A few months ago, I talked with Ivy Lassiter, the children's pastor at church, and this time I sat down, over Skype of course, with Ron Evans, the missions pastor at First Baptist Richardson.

We've heard Ron preach at church several times, and when you see him or talk with him, you immediately hear his heart for this city. He has a passion for connecting our church and our community, and it comes through in every conversation.

And it was so encouraging to talk with him in the midst of this crisis and hear that same conviction for connecting our church and community even though the methods have changed.

We've mentioned this before, but if you are looking for a church home, we can't recommend First Baptist Richardson enough. It is truly our family's favorite thing about this city.

And, right now, you can visit online. No pressure, no awkward small talk. Just check out the service online at

https://www.fbrichardson.org/

The people there love God and love others, and it really just doesn't get much better than that.

I'm Tiffany Norris. This Is Richardson is a podcast that tells the stories of the people and places of Richardson, Texas.

A couple of episodes back, we did an update on Richardson restaurants in light of the COVID-19 situation, so in this episode we wanted to revisit some of the Richardson places we’ve talked about in previous episodes.

Editor’s Note:

This situation is changing day-by-day, so this is the latest from the businesses on the day we’re recording. Check out each place’s website or social media for the most up to date information.

The UPS store on Coit and Campbell is open for business, but when we go check our mailbox, we’ve noticed customers and staff are definitely practicing social distancing and wearing masks.

Richardson Bike Mart is also open for business. The Richardson location is only providing bicycle service at this time, but they do have online purchasing options and even some deals going on.

The Kids Play Co is currently closed, but their website says they’re considering an option for “Private Play” where one family could reserve the play area for an hour at a time. So reach out to them if that’s something you want more information about.

Pure Barre Richardson and Toby‘s School of Dance are both offering livestream classes. All of Toby’s classes, in particular, are being taught via Zoom, which I just love. Their website said “Don’t fall into the trap of too much screen time, isolation, and inactivity,” and I thought that was such an important reminder during this stressful time.

As we talked about on a previous episode, the spring concert was postponed for the Richardson Community Chorale.

The Cottonwood Art Festival has been canceled as has the Wildflower Arts and Music Festival.

Events at the Eisemann Center have been canceled or postponed through May 17, but check out their website for tickets that are still available for purchase for future events.

So I don’t know about you, but going to the park and going to the library are two of the things my girls have missed the most during all of this.

Parks and trails remain open, with social distancing encouraged of course, but people are discouraged from using the playgrounds and park fixtures because it’s hard to keep them clean enough to ensure safe use.

The Richardson Public Library building is also closed but offering curbside pickup. Also, as a librarian myself, I feel the need to say very clearly that our library buildings might be closed, but libraries remain open. Most of us are still providing a huge number of electronic resources and online services, and the Richardson Public Library is no exception.

Finally, the Richardson Animal Shelter is allowing visitors by appointment only, and those appointments are for reclaiming a pet or adoption. Volunteers and community service activities have been suspended for now.

I’ve seen several people that have taken this opportunity to adopt a pet. They’re home more and able to train it. It’s good for their mental health during this stressful time. And it gives an animal a much-needed home. So if it’s something you’ve been considering, this just might be the time to do it. The Richardson Animal Shelter can still help you out with those adoptions.

So that’s a quick update on the Richardson businesses and places we’ve featured in previous episodes. Again, that’s subject to change, of course, but we thought it was important to take a snapshot of where we are now, to highlight and support some of these places even if they’re closed, and just to continue to update the podcast.

What’s going on in your part of the city? We’d love to hear from you.

Eisemann Center

https://www.eisemanncenter.com/

Kids Play Co

https://thekidsplayco.com/

Pure Barre Richardson

https://www.purebarre.com/location/richardson-tx

Richardson Animal Shelter

https://www.cor.net/departments/animal-services

Richardson Bike Mart

https://www.bikemart.com/about/richardson-pg2159.htm

Richardson Community Chorale

https://www.rcchorale.org/

Richardson Parks and Recreation

https://www.cor.net/departments/parks-recreation

Richardson Public Library

https://www.cor.net/departments/public-library

Toby's School of Dance

https://tobysdance.com/

UPS Store at Coit and Campbell

https://locations.theupsstore.com/tx/richardson/1920-n-coit-rd

TiR Episode: Revisiting Richardson Restaurants

https://thisisrichardson.com/revisiting-richardson-restaurants/

Tiffany Norris talked with Jeannie Stone, superintendent of Richardson ISD in February before all the things happened in our world and schools moved to at-home learning.

In this interview, they talk about the diversity of the district, upcoming goals and initiatives, school ratings, and where in Richardson she likes to go to relax.

So I hope you appreciate this interview in a different context now than when we recorded it.

We've mentioned a couple of times on the podcast how very happy we've been with our experience at our neighborhood public school. Our girls have been taught well, cared for, and truly known by their teachers, and we were already so grateful for all the hard work of the teachers and staff there.

That gratitude has only multiplied in the last month as we've watched Dr. Stone, our principal, all the teachers and staff navigate this extremely challenging experience with grace and good humor.

We would also love to hear about your RISD experience—either in light of our current situation or any time.

Link

Jeannie Stone on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/3jstone