Walk into the One Stop and you'll immediately feel the energy. Dozens of organizations line the room, offering free resources, practical support, and plenty of swag. Music fills the space while conversations happen in every corner. At one table, the DMV helps people obtain driver's licenses. Nearby, licensed practitioners provide free acupuncture. Across the room, employers connect people directly with job opportunities. The One Stop is a community-centered initiative design

On Wednesday April 22, 2026, at the 14th Annual Tom Tom Festival, bestselling author, John Grisham, joined Deirdre Enright, founder of the University of Virginia Innocence Project, for a fireside chat that blended storytelling, legal insight, and firsthand experience. The audience at The Paramount Theater moved between laughter and stunned silence as Grisham and Enright shared story after story of wrongful convictions—and the heartbreak, determination, and hope that drove th

The 2nd Annual Civic Futures Summit on Wednesday April 22, 2026 featured 101 speakers and gathered over 400 participants from public, private and nonprofit sectors to discuss hyper-local issues such as affordable housing, urban planning, homelessness, education, and reentry. By bringing together leaders from government, business, nonprofits, philanthropy, education, health, housing, and the arts, the Summit catalyzed a collective civic imagination focused on strengthening tru

The 2026 Innovation Summit brought together nearly 1,000 founders, investors, policymakers, creatives, and industry leaders to explore the future of technology, entrepreneurship, investment, and policy through the lens of COURAGE. Through bold conversations, high-impact startup showcases, and visionary leadership from across Virginia and beyond, the Summit highlighted the accelerating momentum cementing Virginia’s position as a rising hub for innovation, collaboration, and co

On April 18, 2025, during the 13th Annual Tom Tom Festival's EVOLVE Conference, more than 20 delegates convened for the Jefferson Innovation Summit to discuss the ways in which universities can help to commercialize and scale new technologies and grow entrepreneurship within the Commonwealth. The delegates included representatives from a broad swath of entrepreneurs, prominent venture investors, Virginia's public universities, the Governor’s office and executive branch, acade

Homegrown Innovation: Building an Ecosystem That Lasts At this 2025’s EVOLVE Conference, Venture Central, in partnership with Tom Tom Foundation and regional innovation leaders, convened The Homegrown Innovators’ Roundtable—a candid conversation about what it takes to start, grow, and sustain high-impact companies in Charlottesville. Moderated by Rebecca Haydock, CEO of Venture Central, the session brought together founders and executives representing the region’s most promis

The Albemarle–Charlottesville Regional Jail (ACRJ), opened in 1974, houses roughly 324 people. Over the past three years, community members have gained unprecedented access to the jail through an initiative, the Reflective Jail Tours, that are co-led by Tom Tom at the Festival. What began as an organic partnership with local justice organizations and leadership at the regional jail, has grown into an annual community staple—one that has strengthened understanding, inspired di

At the 2025 EVOLVE Conference during the 13th Annual Tom Tom Festival, City of Promise and African American Teaching Fellows co-hosted the Education Innovator Summit—a multi-sector convening focused on how Charlottesville can treat education as a shared community responsibility. The cornerstone of the Summit was the understanding that community safety and education are deeply connected. When kids are safe—when their needs are met—they learn. And when kids learn, the whole com

Charlottesville is home to more than 700 nonprofits, many dedicated to helping people rebuild their lives after incarceration. Often, however, these efforts operate in silos. The Reentry Summit—a collaboration between the Fountain Fund, Equal Justice USA, the Charlottesville Area Justice Coalition, and the Tom Tom Foundation—set out to change that by bringing together local leaders, service providers, and community members to create a more coordinated, compassionate, and conn