Great Falls resident Ginger Mahon has been nominated twice for a Fairfax County Volunteer of the Year award, for her role in creating and running the Holiday Wish List Project — a program which provides Christmas presents to residents in homeless shelters and in foster care. Mahon obtains specific wish lists, and then collects donations through Forestville Elementary School. Once the gifts have been collected, Mahon and other volunteers package and wrap the presents and then deliver them to the shelter organizations.
Number of years in the community: We have lived in Great Falls for nine years now.
Family: My family includes my husband Bill Mahon, of 14 years; my daughter Juliana, 12, a sixth-grader; and Amanda, 9, a third-grader at Forestville Elementary.
Education: I grew up in Long Island and in Buffalo, New York as well as Bowie, Md., where I attended community college. My true education, however, began when I lived and worked as a young adult in Manhattan.
Current job/primary occupation? I am an at-home mom who for the last six years has organized a Wish List Project during the holidays, outreaching to families and foster care children in crisis.
Achievements: "Growing" the Wish List Project over the last six years with the generous support of the families at Forestville Elementary. In December 2005 we were able to help 165 individuals. Also being nominated twice now as a Fairfax County Volunteer of the Year is something I am honored by.
Activities/interests/hobbies? I have become an avid tennis player with moments of brilliance surrounded by mediocrity. I enjoy working in the garden, which means weeding.
Favorite local restaurant or place in the community? I enjoy running into friends at the Great Falls Tavern — makes me feel like the character "Norm" from Cheers.
What are your community concerns? What are some ideas you have on ways to improve your community? I would be delighted to see more retail shops and a restaurant at the Village Green. Like everyone else, I grumble about traffic on Route 7 and Georgetown Pike. Oh... and can we please get the middle school and high school to start later in the morning!
What brought you here? A friend strongly advised us to look out this way because of the quality of the schools and the small-town feel of Great Falls.
What community "hidden treasure" do you think more people should know about? Walking along the path of Difficult Run and sitting on the rocks near the waterfall is both peaceful and beautiful.
When you were younger, what did you want to be when you "grew up?" I wanted to be an actress — and am famous in my own mind!
Where do you see yourself in five years? Continue to reach more kids in crisis with the Wish List Project and have established a mentoring program for foster care kids. Be renowned for my strong serve in tennis.
Personal goals? Sitting at the beach on a hot day, in a wet bathing suit, a cocktail and a copy of the latest Vogue magazine in my hands.