‘Tis the season for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the 4th annual Spider-made for the Holidays. Alumni Engagement gathered a list of alumni businesses and makers, providing an opportunity to order holiday gifts from fellow Spiders.

“The businesses are diverse and showcase the talents and entrepreneurial spirit of our alumni,” said Nick Minnix, an associate director with Alumni Engagement.

“The selection includes everything from handcrafted jewelry and ornaments to barbecue sauces, chocolates, and dog treats,” she said. “There are also experiences like gym memberships, car detailing, and interior design.”

Cheryl Shanahan, a 1989 English major alum, offers art, including bright floral paintings. “I would say that my art is an energetic intersection of Impressionism, Fauvism, and Abstract Realism — intense colors balanced by workhorse neutrals playing off each other within a full range of values,” she said.

“Forms are lightly abstracted, which leaves room for one's eye, brain, and heart to explore, consider, and interpret the subject at hand.”

Carolyn Timmins Greenfield, a 1988 economics major alum, and her business partner Suzanne Cook operate Carden Avenue, which features handcrafted jewelry.

"Our jewelry is timeless and designed for each person to reflect their own individual style. It is designed to layer so each piece is unique to the person wearing it,” said Greenfield.

Several alums serve up a variety of foods. Billy’s Slapp’n Sauce, an award-winning barbecue sauce line by Bill Howland III, a 1982 economics and sociology double major alum, and his daughter Morgan Howland, a 2022 history and journalism double major alum, offers a three-pack of flavorful items, including Mustard IPA and Gate City Red BBQ sauces, and a Spice Rub.

“In 1978 as a freshman at the University of Richmond, I had my first apprenticeship roasting a whole hog for my PIKA fraternity’s annual pig roast and bluegrass party,” said Bill Howland.

“My love of BBQ continued when I moved to South Carolina to attend grad school and learned about `low country style’ barbecue and its distinct mustard-base sauce. I was hooked.”

Popsations owner and 1990 business administration major alum Robin Garrison offers up a holiday gift box that includes three bags of her most popular popcorn flavors: classic caramel, salted caramel, and cinnamon caramel.

“Please be warned that our distinctively delicious caramel popcorn flavors may be addictive,” Garrison said. Popsations gourmet caramel popcorn is handcrafted in small batches in copper kettles. “Each batch is carefully crafted with the finest ingredients.”

Several alums offer treats and products for pets. Small BIG Dog was launched by three former UR football players and 2003 alums. Adrian Archie (psychology), Claude Diggs III (sociology), and Jermaine Slade (rhetoric & communication studies) started the business that offers natural, healthy treats and other products for four-legged friends.

“We started Small BIG Dog for two reasons. The first is about expressing love to our pet family members through simple yet high-quality natural products that will benefit their long-term wellness and happiness,” said Archie. 

“We also wanted to start a meaningful business together. Our time playing on the Richmond football team solidified us as life-long brothers. Our relationship in the present is just as strong as it was 20 years ago on Richmond’s campus."

The Alumni Engagement Spider-made for the holidays site features a full list of available products.

Alumni Engagement will also be giving away Spider-made products as prizes, exclusively to UR graduates. To be entered to win the giveaways, alumni can submit an entry here by Dec. 19, 2024.