With more than 25 years experience in journalism, I’ve written and edited newspapers in California, North Carolina and Virginia. In California, I worked for a weekly paper in the San Francisco Bay Area, where I’m from originally.
In North Carolina, I worked two years (1990-92) at the Sun Journal, a daily paper in New Bern. There, I covered county government, commercial fishing – which is a big industry there – and the Gulf War.
New Bern is near the Marine Corps Air Station in Havelock, so I did lots of stories on the effects the war had on the wives and children left behind while the husbands and dads were fighting in Iraq. As one elementary-school teacher told me, “If one child’s father or mother is killed, the security for the rest of the students is shattered.”
In addition, my photographer and I were lowered by helicopter onto the USS Iwo Jima as it returned to port in Morehead City after deployment. I got to interview the sailors and Marines aboard ship and experience, firsthand, their welcome back by local residents who greeted them in the water in hundreds of small boats to escort them home.
I also interviewed parents of Marines killed in the war, as well as a Marine pilot whose aircraft had been shot down overseas. He spoke about what went through his mind while parachuting into the desert and what happened to him while he was a POW. Luckily, it was toward the end of the war and he was eventually freed to return home.
I also worked three years for the Prince William Journal, covering the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park, as well as a slew of criminal cases. And I’ve been with Centre View for almost 19 years, covering Centreville, Chantilly, Clifton, Fair Oaks and Fair Lakes. For the past few years, I’ve also covered Fairfax and some of Lorton and Fairfax Station for the Connection.
Recent Stories
Fairfax City’s Elf Hunt for Small Business Saturday
Small Business Saturday is this coming Saturday, Nov. 28 – and the City of Fairfax is showcasing its small businesses with a citywide Elf Hunt.
Help Britepaths Bring Families Holiday Cheer
For people struggling to pay for food and rent, it’s tough to think about the holidays without a sense of sadness.
‘Residents Won’t Just Hear the Noise – They’ll Feel It’ in Chantilly
Supervisors approve new homes under Dulles flightpath
The writing was already on the wall in July when the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors refused to adopt the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s (MWAA) 2019 noise contours for Chantilly’s Land Unit J.
Sully District Police Collect Toys for Children
For more than three decades, the Sully District Police Station’s Motor Squad has been collecting Christmas presents donated by the community.
‘That’s When You Realize this Work Means Something’ in Fairfax City
City Jobs celebrates two-year anniversary
Patrick Scholzen was used to working, and did so for 35 years, until falling onto hard times.
Starting Braddock Park’s Master Plan Revision
Park Authority holds public-information meeting
The Fairfax County Park Authority is updating its master plan for Braddock Park at 13451 Braddock Road, bordering both Centreville High and Twin Lakes Golf Course.
Free Flu Shots, Food for People in Need in Chantilly
Continuing to serve the community in every way it can, Western Fairfax Christian Ministries (WFCM) recently held a free food-distribution and flu-vaccination clinic at Grace Covenant Church in Chantilly.
Interactive Mural at Scout on the Circle in Fairfax City
On Oct. 31, artist Amanda Lutz painted an interactive mural featuring Virginia’s state flower, the dogwood, at Fairfax City’s Scout on the Circle development.
High-Flying Peace Bird in Fairfax City’s Van Dyck Park
Sky and clouds are reflected in Peace Bird, the 6-foot-tall, brushed-aluminum sculpture flying high in Fairfax City’s Van Dyck Park.
‘A Signature Place Where People Want to Be’ in Fairfax City
City Council updated on George Snyder Trail
Work is progressing on the George T. Snyder Trail project; and on Oct. 13, residents got to comment on it during a Fairfax City Council public hearing.