A Chorus of Praise
Fairfax County mentors celebrated during National Mentor Month.
Can we get an “amen?” The joyful noise coming from the David R. Pinn Center in Fairfax on Saturday wasn’t a gospel revival, but it was just as inspiring and enlightening.
Column: A Simple Question
I don’t quite know how to start this column so I’ll begin with its ending: “I’m fine.”
Nazi Commonwealth
Bipartisan team seeks compensation for victims of forced sterilization.
Nobody knows how many people are survivors of Virginia’s forced sterilization program, which targeted people with mental illness, mental retardation or epilepsy. But a bipartisan effort now under consideration in Richmond would hand each and every one of them a $50,000 check from the people of Virginia. According to one calculation, that could mean as much as $73 million.
Indoor Winter Fun with Children
Ideas for entertainment when Jack Frost appears.
Winter weather often means limited open air playtime for some children. “It is very important for children to get as much outdoor activity as possible, but there are times when it is not safe for them to be outside for an extended length of time, or any time at all, because it is too cold. ” said Shannon Melideo, chair of the Education Department at Marymount University in Arlington. “There are many other things that children can do besides sledding and ice skating.”
Winter Fun with Food
Easy and tasty ideas for winter meals.
The stove is fired-up, a sauté pan is sizzling and the thud of a steel knife blade hitting a wooden chopping block fills the air along with the woodsy aroma of fresh thyme. The temperature outside is frigid, but the kitchen feels like an inferno as Chef Kristen Robinson drives a knife though a fennel bulb, kale leaves and a tough-skinned butternut squash with staccato succession.
Getting Their Market Share
Langley Sophomore market school, nonprofit events.
While sitting in their Introduction to Marketing Class, several Langley High School sophomores decided that they enjoyed it so much, they would try it in real life. Almost a year later, the members of the Pyramid Marketing Group are finding success working to promote local charity and school events.
Public Comment Open for Riverbend Master Plan
Master plan revision, first since 1975, is expected to go before park board in April.
The Fairfax County Park Authority presented the latest draft master plan revision for Riverbend Park Thursday, Jan. 24, at the Grange in Great Falls. The 411-acre park features two miles of land along the Potomac River. It was last master planned in 1975.
Saxons Remain Undefeated
Collier’s 23 points lead Langley past South Lakes.
The Langley boys' basketball team defeated South Lakes on Dec. 14.
Langley Tightens Defense, Beats Fairfax
Saxons hold Rebels to seven points in final 11 minutes.
The Langley boys' basketball team extended its winning streak to six games.
Helping Children in Honduras
The Great Falls Middle School Interact Club bakes for Honduras on National Day of Service.
The Great Falls Middle School Interact Club, a youth organization of the Great Falls Rotary Club, took to the local sidewalks on the National Day of Service, Saturday, Jan. 19, and Sunday, Jan. 20, to raise money and awareness for their international youth project—helping children in Honduras.
Recollections of Great Falls, 1901-2000
Group conversations—four Mondays in February—and you are invited.
The Great Falls Historical Society is preparing a documentary film on "Life in Great Falls, 1901 to 2000" as part of the upcoming Great Falls Day celebration, to be held on Sunday, May 5.
Slavery to Reconstruction Presented in Great Falls
Professional historian Marion Dobbins discusses the role of slavery in Northern Virginia.
Marion Dobbins is a seventh-generation Virginian, born and raised in Fairfax County. As an African-American child, she sat at her grandmother’s knee listening to the rich heritage of her ancestors. Her grandmother’s stories of the past inspired her to become a professional historian.
Classified Advertising Jan. 23, 2013
Read the latest ads here!
Editorial: Expanding Medicaid Good for Virginia
Real health coverage for an additional 400,000 people is in reach.
Virginia has an opportunity to expand Medicaid in a way that could extend health coverage to more than 400,000 residents who currently have no health insurance while the Federal government picks up the tab; Virginia would pay 10 percent of the additional cost after 2020.
News Briefs
As Democratic delegates fight to keep firearms further from school property, Republican Bob Marshall (D-13) is pushing legislation to bring more guns in. Marshall is the chief patron of HB 1557, which would require every school board in the state to designate one volunteer to carry a concealed weapon on school property. Training for selected volunteers would be provided by either the Virginia Center for School Safety or the NRA, of which he is a member.
Four Northern Virginia Senators Targeted
Redistricting effort puts Fairfax County seats in the spotlight.
Four Northern Virginia state Senators are targets of a Republican-led effort to draw new districts — Sen. George Barker (D-39), Sen. Dave Marsden (D-37), Sen. Toddy Puller (D-36) and Sen. Chap Petersen (D-34). Democrats say the redistricting effort is a cynical attempt to take advantage of the absence of Sen. Henry Marsh (D-16), a prominent civil rights veteran, who was in Washington, D.C. for the inauguration on Monday. But state Sen. John Watkins (R-10) of Powhatan defended the effort as a way to create a sixth majority black Senate district in Southside. It passed the Senate on a 20-to-19 vote.
Making Schools Safer
Two Northern Virginia Democrats take part in panel to consider school security.
Do Virginia schools need more guns? That question is at the heart of a debate that’s now reaching a fever pitch in the commonwealth, especially after a man with a Bushmaster assault rifle blasted his way into a Connecticut elementary school and killed 20 children and six adults before killing himself. Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell responded to the tragedy by creating a School Safety Task Force, which is considering a proposal for every school in Virginia to have an armed school resource officer.
Column: The Best of Intentions, I’m Sure
Regularly, throughout my now nearly four years of living as a stage IV non-small cell lung cancer “diagnosee”/survivor, I have had conversations where the person with whom I’ve been speaking–in response to a query of mine, said about a particular set of their circumstances: “Oh, it’s nothing, really. I mean, it’s not cancer, so it’s not as bad as what you’re (meaning me) going through.” Said with the utmost sincerity and sensitivity to me of course, and with my feelings/reaction most definitely in mind; for a long time, I simply acknowledged their empathy/sympathy and continued on with our conversation as if no emotional pot–of mine, had been stirred.
Great Falls Home Sales: December, 2012
In December 2012, 13 Great Falls homes sold between $3,900,000-$600,000.
Great Falls Home Sales: December, 2012
Fairfax Families4Kids
Fostering bonds with children.
Nationwide, more than 463,000 children live in foster care. In many states, including Virginia, the number of foster youth has tripled in the last 25 years. As of Sept. 30, 2011, nearly 5,000 youth were in foster care in Virginia, according to the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), a division of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department. Physical abuse is the most common reason children enter foster, but it’s not the only reason. Often there’s emotional abuse, sexual abuse and the parent or caretaker’s inability to provide a safe environment due to substance abuse.