<sh>Westfield Community Coalition
<bt>The Westfield Community Coalition is offering a free program on smoking prevention and cessation at its next coalition meeting, Monday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. at Stone Middle School. Laura Laskofski of the Virginia Lung Association will be speaking on N-O-T (Not On Tobacco) and her smoking prevention and cessation program. Attendees will also learn about the work of Geri Zeithammel, Health Department nurse, and the Teens Against Tobacco Use (TATU) program she oversees.
<sh>League of Women Voters
<bt>The issues at stake in the upcoming Virginia General Assembly session will be reviewed at the next meeting of the Fairfax Area League of Women Voters, Fairfax Station unit. It will be held Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 9:30 a.m.; guests are welcome.
For directions and a copy of the discussion material, call the hostess at 703-631-1795 or the membership chairman at 703-830-8198. The Fairfax Station unit is comprised primarily of residents of Clifton, Fairfax Station and Burke. For a unit meeting at a more convenient day or time, call the League office at 703-658-9150.
<sh>Park Authority to Meet
<bt>The Fairfax County Park Authority will meet Wednesday, Nov. 13, at 7:30 p.m. in the Herrity Building, 12055 Government Center Parkway, Suite 900, in Fairfax. Call Judy Pedersen at 703-324-8662.
<sh>WFCM Needs Food, Volunteers
<bt>Western Fairfax Christian Ministry's (WFCM) food pantry — which provides food to local needy families — is in urgent need of several items. They are: canned vegetables (corn, green beans, peas), baked beans, spaghetti sauce, jelly and jam, canned fruit, chicken soups, pasta, cereal, rice, tuna, canned meats and dinners (ravioli, chili, stew, kids' meals).
To donate, call 703-815-3238, or bring these things to the Shepherd Center. It's open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., and is between Fashion Bug and Payless Shoes in the Sully Plaza Shopping Center at 13924 Metrotech Drive in Chantilly. The WFCM also needs volunteers, Thursdays, from 10 a.m.-noon and from noon-2 p.m. To volunteer, call 703-988-9656.
<sh>Blood Urgently Needed
<bt>The Inova Blood Donor Center in the Centremed I Building on Route 29 in Centreville (across from the Centreville Multiplex Cinemas) is in urgent need of blood donations — especially O positive or negative, as well as A and B. They are accepted Tuesday-Friday, noon-8 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. To make an appointment to give blood, call 703-322-1970, or just drop in at your own convenience.
<sh>Kids in Crisis Ministry
<bt>Western Fairfax Christian Ministry's (WFCM) Kids in Crisis Ministry provides emergency assistance to families impacted by a child's illness. Since such families are too distracted to research all the organizations that might help them, if anyone knows of a family in need, please advise them to call the hotline at 703-378-3045. Leave a message on the "Kids in Crisis" box, and a volunteer will return the call.
This program offers a safety net for families whose income or expenses are affected by a child's illness. Besides medical bills, they'll incur costs such as travel, babysitting, special equipment and home health care.
Even families with adequate health insurance may find it difficult to meet these expenses. Kids in Crisis aids in areas not covered by traditional health insurance policies. For more information, call the hotline or Karen Dolan at 703-266-3144.
<sh>WFCM Personnel Needs
<bt>The Western Fairfax Christian Ministries (WFCM) has several volunteer positions available.
* It needs a client coordinator to make follow-up calls to members of the community who have recently received assistance. This person would also cross-reference recipients with other WFCM services (food and clothing ministry). It would be a good job for someone who has to stay close to home.
* On-call volunteers are also needed. After receiving training, they'll monitor requests for help, coming from the local community, via a telephone mailbox. There's a social worker on staff, plus an extensive network of support to help and encourage people in self-sufficiency.
* WFCM's food pantry needs volunteers to work Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., and Saturdays, noon-2 p.m. To volunteer for any of these positions. or for more information, call 703-378-3045 and leave a message on box 7.
<sh>WFCM Needs Drivers
<bt>The Western Fairfax Christian Ministries is in need of drivers to take elderly people to medical appointments. Call (703) 378-3045 and press 7 to volunteer for this or any other WFCM ministry.
<sh>Meals on Wheels
<bt>The Clifton Meals on Wheels program urgently needs a volunteer to coordinate the delivery of meals to frail, elderly residents. Call the Fairfax Area Agency on Aging at (703) 324-5406.