<sh>Area Residents Arrested
<bt>Blake Martin Williams, 20, and Shannon Montville, 19, both of McLean, were arrested by detectives with the Arlington County Police Department's new Follow-Up Unit as the result of a months-long investigation into a string of thefts from vehicles in North Arlington. They have each been charged with one count of possession of cocaine and one count of grand larceny.
According to Arlington police, Williams and Montville are suspects in more than 100 thefts from vehicles in Arlington, and additional criminal charges are pending. They were arrested early the morning of June 30. Since March, residents in several North Arlington neighborhoods have reported more than 100 car break-ins with similar characteristics. In most cases, the suspects entered vehicles and removed change or cash. In some instances, they took items such as briefcases, backpacks or laptop computers. More than 75 percent of the thefts were from cars left unlocked by the owners.
<sh>Susan Torres Fundraiser
<bt>Friends and family of Susan Torres — the 26-year-old currently hospitalized and in her 22nd week of pregnancy — will join area Knights of Columbus volunteers in holding a bake sale to help defray medical costs. The event will be held at St. Philip’s Parish, 7500 St. Philip’s Ct., Falls Church, following the 10 and 11:30 a.m. masses on Sunday, July 17. While 17 weeks pregnant, Susan Torres suffered a massive brain hemorrhage brought on by undiagnosed melanoma. Although doctors have given her no hope of survival, they are fighting to keep her unborn child alive. Friends of the Torres family have established the Susan M. Torres Fund to help defray the enormous medical bills that this family faces.
Those wishing to help with the bake sale at St. Philip’s or host a fundraiser at a different location are asked to contact Yvette Purtill at ypurtill@hotmail.com or 703-641-8948. Tax-deductible contributions to the fund can be made directly at:
The Susan M. Torres Fund
c/o Faith and Action
P.O. Box 34105
Washington, D.C. 20043-0105
or
www.susantorresfund.org.
<sh>Life Skills Workshops for 9/11 Survivors
<bt>A new series of free workshops and support groups is being offered by Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS) to help individuals directly affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon address their continuing recovery needs.
The series of workshops and support groups will focus on children and youth who lost a parent or caregiver; families and caregivers of the physically and emotionally injured; and the emotionally injured Pentagon evacuees. The program will also provide outreach and group services to those who were deployed to the disaster site for rescue and recovery work.
The initial two workshops will address issues of money management. The first workshop, "Personal Budget Management," is designed for adult survivors, first responders and evacuees of the Pentagon attack. It will take place Saturday, July 16 from 10 a.m. to noon at NVFS’s office in Oakton, 10455 White Granite Drive, Suite 100. Highlights of the program include learning or reviewing how to create a budget plan, taking steps to become and remain financially organized and more.
The second workshop, "Managing My Money," is the first in the Getting Real series for young adults 17 and older whose families were directly affected by the attack. It will be held Saturday, Aug. 6 from 10 a.m. to noon at the same location. It will help young adults set specific financial goals, create a budget, save money, plan for the future and more. For more information or to register, call 703-219-3920.
<sh>Host an Exchange Student
<bt>Local families can take in high school-age foreign exchange students next year through two grants from the U.S. Department of State. Aspect, a high school exchange student program, has been awarded grants for the Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) Program and the Partnership for Learning Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program.
The goal of FLEX and YES is to provide an opportunity for international high school students from Eurasia, the Middle East and Asia to experience life in a democratic society and learn about volunteerism and free enterprise. Foreign exchange students who participate in the two programs come to Northern Virginia to live with host families, attend school and engage in activities to learn about American society and values. They, in turn, educate Americans about their own countries and cultures.
The FLEX program is funded by Congress under the Freedom Support Act and administered by the Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. FLEX participants are high school students, ages 15-18 who come from the countries of the former Soviet Union — Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.
The Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs also funds the YES program, which provides full scholarships for a year or semester of living and studying in the U.S. to a select group of young people, ages 15-18 from Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Sudan, Tunisia, Syria, and Yemen.
The Aspect Foundation is also looking for families to host regular exchange students for the upcoming school year in the United States. These students come from Western Europe, South and Central America and Asia.
To learn more or to host a student, contact Robert Rawls at 703-409-9776, 703-433-0362 or coyote1437@yahoo.com.