Send announcements to The Loudoun Connection, 7913 Westpark Drive, McLean, VA 22102, e-mail to loudoun@connectionnewspapers.com or fax to 703-917-0991. Deadline is Friday, two weeks before the event. Photos/artwork encouraged. For more information, call Jennifer Lesinski at 703-917-6454. This free listing is reserved for activities and events that are open to the public at no or minimal cost.
Loudoun Chamber of Commerce has the following upcoming events:
* March 9, Business Showcase Breakfast, 7:30-9 a.m., Belmont Country Club, 19961 Belmont manor Lane, Ashburn. Business attire required. Tickets $15 for members in advanced, $20 for members at the door, $25 for nonmembers. Preregister by March 7, at 5 p.m. RSVP to crichardson@loudounchamber.org.
* March 16, After Hours Business Mixer, 5:30-7 p.m., The Medical Spa at Nova, 21785 Filigree Court, Suite 100, Ashburn. $5 for members, $10 for nonmembers. RSVP crichardson@loudounchamber.org.
Local area vendors are invited to the 2005 Loudoun County
Procurement's Buyer/Seller Information Exchange sessions. The purpose of these informal sessions is to give area businesses the opportunity to meet the county's procurement staff and become familiar with the county's procurement process. The next round of sessions are as follows:
* Thursday, March 23, 10:30 a.m.
* Friday, April 21, 2 p.m.
* Friday, May 19, 10:30 a.m.
* Thursday, June 22, 2 p.m.
* Monday, July 24, 10:30 a.m.
The sessions will be held in the Lovettsville Room on the first floor of the County Government Center, 1 Harrison St., S.E., in Leesburg. Call 703-771-5142 or send an e-mail to sfields@loudoun.gov.
Loudoun Convention & Visitors Association has the following upcoming events:
* March 30, Annual Meeting and Tourism Awards Luncheon, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., at Washington Dulles Airport Marriott. Get the latest industry update and honor fellow tourism award winners. For information regarding sponsoring a table and other sponsorship opportunities, contact Chris Geno at LCVA at Geno@VisitLoudoun.org or by calling 703-771-2170, Ext. 17.
The Herndon Dulles Chamber of Commerce announces that it has elevated its Hispanic Business Committee to a "council" level to reflect the importance of its mission, accomplishments, regional impact and important alliances in Northern Virginia. It will be called the Hispanic Business Council.
Since its formation in the spring of 2004, the chamber's Hispanic Business Council has been conducting outreach to the Hispanic business community by collaborating with Loudoun County Small Business Development Center, Liberty's Promise, the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
The committee also reached out to the broader Hispanic community through organizing a Hispanic Business Reception, conducting community outreach at the annual Reston Multicultural Festival and the Hispanic Heritage Festival in Herndon, creating a Hispanic Resource Guide and distribution of brochures and flyers about the chamber translated into Spanish, assisting Congressman Frank Wolf's gang prevention efforts through an initiative to link businesses with young people.
The Hispanic Business Council is composed of 24 business members. The officers are Giovanni Cozzarelli, chairman; Ximena Savitch, vice chair and Jackie Krick, secretary. The council reports to Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors officer Chris Griffin, vice president of community relations.
Chuck Kuhn, president of JK Moving & Storage, located in Sterling, announces the companyÕs formal acceptance as a member of Latin American & Caribbean Association of International Movers (LACMA).
For six months, the LACMA Association and Board of Directors conducted an extensive review of JK Moving & StorageÕs international service record and documentation, along with an in-depth review of business operations, financial information, facilities and employees, prior to approving the companyÕs membership application. An association comprised of Latin American and Caribbean international movers, LACMA accounts for more than 90 percent of the moves to and from that region.
The Loudoun Arts Council (LAC) announces that it has developed a new logo to express its mission of supporting artistic expression throughout Loudoun County. LAC introduced its new logo Feb. 1.
Several area designers bid on the logo project. Following an extensive review process, the Arts Council selected SparkyÕs Garage, an award-winning advertising and design firm based in Leesburg.
LAC board member and past president, Gale Waldron, initiated the logo project last spring.
The Loudoun Arts Council is a nonprofit organization that promotes the development of artistic expression throughout Loudoun County by supporting visual, performing and literary artists and arts organizations.
Peter Thi Ha and Jona Nila announce the opening of their new restaurant, A Taste of Burma, 126 Edds Lane, in the CountrySide Shopping Center. The pair has more than 17 years experience combined in the restaurant field in the Washington, D.C., area. The restaurant will focus on preparing and cooking authentic Burmese food.
The UPS Store, 44050 Ashburn Shopping Plaza in Ashburn Village, raised more than $3,000 for the Marine Toys-for-Tots Foundation as part of a nationwide campaign conducted in November and December. The money raised locally will benefit children in the Ashburn community and surrounding areas. Overall, The UPS Store and Mail Boxes Etc. network raised more than $500,000.
At the request of Loudoun Board of Supervisors member Lori Waters, the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce was presented on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2006, with a Resolution of Commendation. The Board of Supervisors expressed its appreciation for the chamber's successful efforts in promoting Loudoun County by hosting the Jan. 19 visit by President George W. Bush to JK Moving & Storage in Sterling. The President's visit, leading up to the State of the Union address, highlighted the great benefits of doing business in Loudoun County.
Representatives from the Chamber of Commerce on hand to accept this Resolution, included, COO Bob Steere, second vice chairman of the board Paul Bice, vice president of communications Linda Roberts, past president and CEO Randy Collins and staff members.
This year marks the 85th anniversary of Armfield, Harrison & Thomas Inc. (AH&T), an employee-owned, independent insurance brokerage and consultancy founded in 1921. During the last eight and a half decades, AH&T has experienced constant growth, demonstrated community leadership, pioneered valuable client services and stayed true to its core values, even through world wars, failing national economies and dynamic market trends.
AH&T counts its support of Leesburg, and Loudoun County among its accomplishments. For the last 85 years AH&T has had its headquarters located within the two blocks that mark the heart of downtown Leesburg. It opened an office in Seattle, Wash., in 1999, and adds new employees to both offices monthly, but AH&T remains loyal to Leesburg.
Planned activities this year include a monthly exhibit in AH&TÕs lobby displaying fun and interesting artifacts from its archives, monthly AH&T trivia contests for its employees, and a celebration later in the year.
The Loudoun Arts Council recently welcomed the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce and Creations by April, a design showroom in Sterling, into its Arts in Offices program. The program partners local artists with area businesses, giving artists the opportunity to show and sell their work in locations where it can be viewed in conference rooms, waiting rooms and other public areas.
Seven venues and 14 artists now participate in the Arts in Offices program. Visit the Arts CouncilÕs Web site at http://www.loudounarts.org. Artists and businesses in Loudoun who wish to participate in the program should contact the Loudoun Arts Council at 703-777-7838 or info@loudounarts.org.
Goodwill of Greater Washington is now also offering new goods. As the local nonprofit organization continues to rebuild its brand, it is not only redesigning all of its retail stores to make them more contemporary and colorful, but it is also supplementing its donated vintage merchandise with brand new merchandise.
Goodwill has specifically designated more than 400 square feet in four of its local retail stores including Sterling and northeast Washington, D.C., with new merchandise.
Goodwill began selling new merchandise in September and will continue to evaluate its success over the next several months. The goal is to provide a greater selection of items and to become a one-stop retail store for its customers.
On Friday, Feb. 3, JK Moving & Storage, was named Loudoun County Chamber of CommerceÕs 2006 "Member of the Year."
To be considered for this award, JK Moving & Storage has maintained an outstanding track record with the community. It also contributes its time and services in a way that is beneficial to everyone in the community.
During the 2005 holiday season, JK Moving & Storage implemented a new program that helps transitional families from shelters get back on their feet by donating its services to families moving into new homes. JK also provided storage and transport services for ÒHorsing Around Loudoun,Ó an arts initiative that results in the placement of more than two dozen painted fiberglass horses in prominent locations throughout the country.
Throughout the years, JK Moving & Storage has donated its service and expertise to a number of other organizations, including Toys for Tots, March of Dimes, Katrina Relief, WomenÕs & Girls Tech Foundation, Boy Scout Troop 982, Hamilton Fire Department, COPE (Western Loudoun Teen Center), and Junior League of Washington.
Last month, Loudoun County attained worldwide recognition, when President Bush selected JK Moving & Storage as a venue from which to address the public on his economic policy. In his speech, President Bush praised JK for its contributions to the community and throughout the world.
Safeway's Eastern Division contributed an estimated $5.1 million in cash and in-kind donations to nonprofit agencies throughout the mid-Atlantic region during the 2005 calendar year. The total giving includes $3.929 million by Safeway stores in the Washington- and Baltimore-metropolitan areas with the remaining $1.225 million being provided by Genuardi's Markets, owned by Safeway, in the Philadelphia region.
Dr. Namrata "Sonia" Choudhary of Women First OB/GYN, P.C., in Reston and Sterling, announces Dr. Reepa Shah has joined the practice.
Shah recently completed her residency training at George Washington University Hospital. She is a fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
Shah is marries and has a 1-year-old son. She is fluent in English and Gujarati and speaks some Hindi and Spanish.
Robert Dawson, director of sales for Ambassador Worldwide Moving, was inducted as a board member of the Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce at the Lansdowne Resort in Lansdowne. In his expanded role with the chamber, Dawson will also be chairing the Annual Expo, a key activity of the chamber.
Whitestone Farm in Aldie has been recognized nationally by the American Angus Association for having one registered Angus cow included in the Association's 2006 Pathfinder Report. Only 2,187 of the more than 34,000 American Angus Association members are represented in this year's report. The Pathfinder Program identifies superior Angus cows based upon recorded performance traits that are economically important to efficient beef production. The 2006 Pathfinder Report lists 9,321 individual cows and 258 Pathfinder sires. It is published in the April issue of the Angus Journal, and copies are available from the Association.
Nichole Towers, resident of Ashburn, has opened an additional Kinderdance educational dance and fitness center at Chesterbrook Academy-Cascades, Logan Way, Sterling. Towers is now teaching more than 45 students in a total of eight different authorized Kinderdance centers.
On March 4, Lansdowne Resort opened Spa MinŽrale, pronounced Min-er-al, a 12,000-square-foot, full-service luxury spa. The new spa, which will open as one of the largest luxury spas in the Washington, D.C., area, is one of the final additions of an estimated $60 million renovation and expansion campaign.
Close to 700 people attended the YMCA Loudoun County's Chocolates Galore and More, Feb. 17. The event raised nearly $37,000 for the Y's Building Bridges Campaign, which provides financial assistance to families that want to participate in YMCA programs. Awards were handed out by judges, as well as people's choice. Judges' awards went to Patowmack Farms, Dinner in the Garden, best dessert presentation; Cilla's Cookies and Confections, best dessert taste; Stratford University, bet hors d'oeuvres presentation; and Lansdowne Resort, best hors d'oeuvres taste. The people's choice awards went to Stratford University, best dessert presentation; Chantell's Cakes and Pastries, best dessert taste; Washington Dulles Airport Marriott, best hors d'oeuvres; and Tuscarora Mill, best hors d'oeuvres taste.