RVA Heroes: A Geek Chic Gala

A 501(c)(3) non-profit that brings mental health and social comunity information to the superhero, sci-fi and horror fan communities.

Geek Wellness Education

RVA Heroes is a celebration of real life superheroes that serve our community!  Join us for a night of fun, food and geek chic fashion!

Hippodrome Theater

RVA Heroes is a gala event like no other! Yes, we get fancy...but we don't let that stop us from having fun! We bring in celebrities from geeky movies and tv series to help us honor local heroes and invite everyone to dress as fancy...or as geeky...as they want! This year we are will be celebrating a Hero from the medical field, a mental health non-profit worker, an emergency room mental health case worker and a journalist who helps the public with consumer issues! Celebrating their contributions to our community is a highlight of what we do every year. While you might not expect it from a geeky event, we bring THE best fashion show in the region to our stage! You never know what will happen during our event (last year our fashion show was interrupted by a zombie invasion). Previously, our models have showcased looks inspired by Barbie, Disney, Alice In Wonderland and more...and this year the event will be headlined by a line inspired by Jurassic Park! We will also include an avant garde line inspired by the children's cartoon Miraculous Ladybug and Cat Noir! We are providing free heavy hors d'Ouevres, which is included with your ticket, so come hungry!We are also assembling some great auction items that will go to benefit the non-profit.OH YEAH! RVA Heroes is a fundraiser benefit for Geek Wellness Education, a 501c3 non-profit that uses the things we love (superheroes, sci-fi, princesses etc) as a way to open up conversations about mental health! Join us for the geekiest gala in Richmond! TICKETS:There are two tiers of tickets General Admission: This includes the show and hors d'ouevreVIP Admission: These tickets also include a table to sit at,a VIP bar and buffet table, as well as early entry to a pre-show mixer. Our celebrity guests will be at the mixer and you are welcome to chat, take pictures with them etc at no extra charge.

KEYNOTE SPEECH BY IRONE SINGLETON (T-DOG ON THE WALKING DEAD)TOPIC: OVERCOMING ADVERSITYBorn and raised in Atlanta, GA, Singleton’s story embodies everything we have come to understand about the lives of many inner city youth growing up in low-income housing projects. Fatherless and having lost his mother to HIV/AIDS when he was a senior in high school and watched his brother spend most of his life in Georgia’s prison system, IronE fought to have a life far different from the one he knew growing up. The “irony” of his story is that, while all the odds were stacked against him, IronE Singleton still overcame his troubled childhood to attend the University of Georgia on academic and football scholarships where he completed a double major in Theater and Speech Communications. IronE’s motivational speech delves into his life journey and transformation by sharply contrasting the trials and tribulations of his life growing up destitute living in one of Atlanta’s worst housing projects during the onset of the hip hop explosion and crack epidemic and his battle to overcome the violence, drugs, and crime of the 'hood; his determination to succeed despite an abusive mother, an absent father, and the temptations of instant gratification inherent with the thug life, to his rise to fame in the Oscar nominated and biggest box-office grossing sports movie ever, “The Blind Side” and subsequent landing on The Walking Dead, the biggest show in cable television history.

MUSICAL GUEST: TIM CAPELLOTim Capello became an icon of the 1980's when he appeared as the muscle-bound saxophonist in The Lost Boys! His shirtless, pelvic-thrusting cover of "I Still Believe" is a beloved scene in one of the greatest vampire movies ever made, and it lives on today in memes!Outside of films, Tim is a respected performer who spent ten years in Tina Turner's band, appearing in the video for "We Don't Need Another Hero" (among others) and even singing the male vocal parts of Tina's updated version of "Proud Mary." Come witness a special performance by Tim as part of our gala!

GUEST HOST: CHRISTINA MASTERSON (The Pink Ranger, Power Rangers Megaforce)RVA Heroes has a keynote speaker (IronE Singleton from The Walking Dead giving a speech on overcoming adversity) and we have a musical guest (Tim Capello from The Lost Boys and Tina Turner's band)...but a gala needs a host, right? Christina is one of our FAVORITE people that we've met since starting the non-profit! She's AMAZING! She was supposed to be a guest at a previous event of ours but she was sick, so we are bringing her to Richmond to host RVA Heroes! Christina is an actress and model who is best known for her role as Emma Goodall the Pink Power Ranger in the iconic Power Rangers Television series on Nickelodeon "Power Rangers Megaforce" and "Power Rangers Super Megaforce." She's also been in geek genre films like Truth or Dare, The Final Rose, Toxic Shark and...a movie that means SO MUCH to our non-profit... Starfish! Remember, RVA Heroes is NOT a comic con, it's a geeky dinner gala. At cons, you pay to get in and then pay to get an autograph and picture from the celebrities. At RVA Heroes, you can either get a general admission ticket to enjoy the show, or get a VIP ticket to get in early to a VIP mixer where the celebs will be hanging out, and you can just ask for a pic or autograph while you're chatting!

THIS YEARS HEROES!We have selected an INCREDIBLY deserving group of Heroes to honor this year! Rachel DePompa is an Emmy winning investigative reporter for <a href="https://www.instagram.com/12onyourside/" title="https://www.instagram.com/12onyourside/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@12onyourside</a> who digs deep into issues that affect the community (uncovering corruption, exposing fraud and waste etc). Catie-Reagan King is Director of Mental Health Education at the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ckgfoundation/" title="https://www.instagram.com/ckgfoundation/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@ckgfoundation</a>, where she works to create impactful programs that empower teens and communities with the tools and knowledge needed to address mental health challenges. Tara Gambino is a former respiratory therapist who now works for <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lifenethealth/" title="https://www.instagram.com/lifenethealth/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@lifenethealth</a> to save lives through organ donation. Lynn Vannoy is my (David's) personal Hero. Without her influence, GWE would not exist (heck, I might not exist anymore), so she gets some credit for every life we've helped make better. She's also a mental health social worker for Henrico Crisis AND an outpatient therapist for <a href="https://www.instagram.com/myspectrumcc/" title="https://www.instagram.com/myspectrumcc/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@myspectrumcc</a>!

<a href="https://www.instagram.com/mike_kelleher_rva/" title="https://www.instagram.com/mike_kelleher_rva/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@mike_kelleher_rva</a> is the expert appraiser on the hit <a href="https://www.instagram.com/discovery/" title="https://www.instagram.com/discovery/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@discovery</a> tv series <a href="https://www.instagram.com/filthyfortunes2/" title="https://www.instagram.com/filthyfortunes2/" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">@filthyfortunes2</a>! Mike will discuss how often the geeky collectibles that some view as trash are actually valuable treasures! ABOUT FILTHY FORTUNES In a modern-day treasure hunt, Matt "King of Hoards" Paxton (along with appraiser Mike Kelleher and cleanout manager Kayland Brock) travels the country searching for rare, big-ticket items hidden in cluttered, filthy homes. It's a race to strike pay dirt as Matt cleans out the properties, selling his finds for big dollars.

GEEK CHIC FASHION SHOWEvery year we have a fashion show with designs that are inspired by pop culture, so people can show off their geekiness without going full cosplay! In previous years we have spotlighted Barbie, Alice In Wonderland, Disney, Anime streetwear and the video game Genshin Impact! This year, our fashion show is headlined by a line inspired by Jurassic Park! We have professional models, designers and MUAs, we just dont include the stuffiness and elitism that you see at other fashion shows because fashion should be FUN and for EVERYONE.

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RVA Heroes: A Geek Chic Gala

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