Send community notes to vienna@connectionnewspapers.com or call 703-917-6428 with questions. Deadline is Friday.
Writing Your Personal History Symposium is scheduled for Thursday, May 1, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Vienna Community Center, 120 Cherry St. SE. The symposium will be a learning experience for both new and more seasoned writers. Participants will engage in writing activities, network with other writers and learn about publishing venues, local writing programs and support groups. The cost for the symposium is $20 per person, and advance registration is required. Lunch may be ordered for an additional $6. For information, call 703-255-6360.
Personal Safety for Women will be held at the Vienna Community Center, 120 Cherry St. SE, in four parts – May 5, 7, 12 and 14 – from 7 to 10 p.m. Vienna Police Officer Trent Nelson will teach basic crime prevention and risk reduction measures plus physical self-defense techniques to help women be more confident in an attack situation. The fee is $5 for town residents plus a $15 materials fee. For information, call 703-255-6360.
Estate-Planning Workshop: The Five-Step Estate Plan will be presented at the Vienna Community Center, 120 Cherry St. SE, 10-11:30 a.m. Monday, May 12. Attorney David Hoffman will discuss wills, trusts, taxes and probate in easy-to-understand terms. Free of charge; no advance registration required. For information, call 703-255-6360.
Monday morning walkers will visit local trails and scenic neighborhoods in the Vienna area on Mondays through May 12, 10-11 a.m. The fee of $5 for town residents includes a guide for each walk, trail maps, and written materials. For information, call 703-255-6360.
Mayor's Advisory Committee Series on Town Government: Join Mayor Jane Seeman at the “Vienna at Your Service” series of public meetings, designed to give citizens the opportunity to learn more about the operations of Town departments. The Tuesday, May 13 wrap-up session will feature the Mayor and Council, and the Information Technology Department. Citizens are asked to register with the Parks and Recreation Department for the session. For more information, call 703-255-6360.
The Vienna-Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Town/Business Liaison Committee invite you to their first annual Virginia Business Appreciation Week Softball Slam. The tournament will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, May 15, at Waters Field, corner of Center and Cherry Streets, S.E. The co-ed teams are currently recruiting players of all skill levels. To sign up, contact Tom Hanton, 703-788-3223 or thanton@guernseyop.com, or Mark Uhron, 703-766-2025 ext. 102 or mark.a.uhron@ampf.com. The teams are also looking for local business sponsors.
In celebration of National Public Works Week, the Vienna Department of Public Works will hold its annual open house at Northside Property Yard, 600 Mill St., N.E., on Thursday, May 22, from 2 to 6 p.m. All residents, school and scout groups and others interested in seeing the facility and a display of Public Works vehicles and equipment are invited to attend. Meet the Town employees who serve the community day and night in all kinds of weather maintaining the water and sewer system, picking up trash, repairing streets and sidewalks, collecting leaves, plowing snow, and many other essential services. Light refreshments will be served, and there will be “hard hats,” Clean & Green coloring books, and other goodies for the children. For more information, call 703-255-6381.
Neighborhood Plant Clinic. The Fairfax County Master Gardeners Association gives tips and strategies. No registration is required. Every Saturday in May, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Tysons-Pimmit Regional Library, 7584 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, 703-790-8088.
Writing Your Personal History is an informal, group-run class for people interested in documenting their life stories. Class will be held at the Community Center each Thursday, through Aug. 14, 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Class members select topics about which to write, and read their work to each other for supportive feedback. Free of charge; a donation of $5 will be used to provide refreshments at each class. For information, call 703-255-6360.
Wolftrap Elementary School’s SCA continues to display its commitment to the environment by launching three new recycling programs, for printer cartridges, batteries, and cell phones. Collect empty printer cartridges, batteries and cell phones from home and work and bring them to school. For a flyer with complete details, click on the link under "NEW School Recycling Program" at www.wolftrappta.org.
Do not send these items to school with children. During the school day, bring the recycled items to the school office. After school hours, bring items to the SACC center. Contact eric.triche@fcps.edu with questions.
Volunteer ombudsman advocates are needed for local nursing homes and assisted-living facilities. They make weekly visits, meeting one-on-one with residents and work with the residents, their families and the staff of the facility, to ensure that the residents’ rights are being protected. Applicants must be available to volunteer four hours per week, primarily during regular business hours. Volunteer ombudsmen must not be employed by a long-term care facility. Interviews of applicants will be held this summer in preparation for the next annual training, scheduled for Sept. 15, 16, and 26, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. each day. The Northern Virginia Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program is a public service, funded in part by the Fairfax County Area Agency on Aging. For information and an application, call 703-324-5422 or visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/LTCOmbudsman.
Guiding Eyes for the Blind needs puppy raisers who are willing to open their homes to Labrador Retriever puppies until they are old enough to be professionally trained as guide dogs, usually 16-18 months. Training and guidance provided by local experienced counselors. Volunteer puppy raisers provide love and affection, behavior training and socialization experiences. The next training class will be Sunday, April 20, 1-3 p.m. at Green Spring Garden Park, 4601 Green Spring Road, Alexandria. Call 703-242-2232 or visit www.gebdominion.org. To complete an application, visit www.volunteer.guidingeyes.org.
Copies of the proposed Town of Vienna budget for fiscal year 2008-09 are available for public review in the Administrative Services Office at Vienna Town Hall and at Patrick Henry Community Library, 101 Maple Ave. E. A "Budget in Brief" summary may be obtained at Town Hall free of charge, and, the entire budget document may be purchased. For more information, call 703-255-6350.
Chinese Conversation Group meets for practicing speaking the language, 7:45-8:45 p.m., Wednesdays at the group study room of the Oakton Library, 10304 Lynnhaven Place, Oakton. Call 571-225-7697.
Vienna Choral Society, under the direction of Paul Patton, welcomes new members for its 2007-2008 season. No audition is required and many solo opportunities are available in upcoming programs. Rehearsals will be held at Vienna Baptist Church, 541 Marshall Rd., S.W., each Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. For more information, call 703-255-5508 or visit www.viennachoralsociety.org.
Vienna Newcomers Club: a social group meets every second Thursday of the month at the Marco Polo Italian restaurant. Social gathering at 11:30 a.m., with a lunch and program at noon. Call Nancy at 703-938-4835 for reservations. September through May, the lunches have guest speakers. At the December holiday lunch, there will be seasonal music. The club also has a monthly book exchange, bowling league and other activities. Call Mary Ann at 703-620-4432.
The Vienna Volunteer Fire Department hosts smoke-free Bingo every Sunday night in the Flame Room at the fire department, 400 Center St. S. Doors open at 4 p.m., sales begins at 5 p.m. and games begin at 7 p.m. Visit www.vvfd.org/bingo.cfm.
Historic “Little Library,” located on the grounds of the Freeman House, 131 Church St., N.E., will be open the first Sunday of every month, 1-4 p.m. Members of Historic Vienna, Inc., will provide a history of the building and its role as Vienna’s first library. Built in 1897, by 1969 it was the oldest continuously used library building in Fairfax County. For more information, call 703-938-1791.
The Vienna Host Lions Club meets every second and fourth Tuesday evening at the American Legion Post 180 building on Center Street in Vienna. For additional details and more information, contact Mike Mead at 703-938-5235 or mikemead@aol.com.
Vienna Toastmasters meets at the Vienna Community Center the second and fourth Wednesday of each month at 7.30 p.m. Toastmasters can help participants overcome fears of public speaking. For more information, call Nicola at 703-268-5001.
Brinker Toastmasters meets at Vienna Presbyterian Church, 124 Park St., N.E., the second and fourth Saturdays of each month at 9:30 a.m. Those interested in becoming more effective listeners, leaders and speakers are welcome. Call Mike Schultz at 571-344-1127 or visit homepage.mac.com/schultzmt/brinker.
Lunchtime Weight Watchers, hosted by the Town of Vienna, meets at 11:15 a.m. each Tuesday at the Vienna Community Center, 120 Cherry St., S.E. Open to the public, the cost is $168 for a 13-week session, payable in advance. Call 703-255-6350.
Vienna Community Center has open gym for ages 17 and under, 3:30-5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Call ahead to check on availability.
The Town of Vienna is providing free wireless Internet access at the Town Green, located at Maple Avenue and Mill Street. This is a pilot project to attract more customers to downtown Vienna, encourage the use of this new public park, and en-able more citizens to access Town services online. From dawn to dusk throughout the year, users can log in using “Vienna Gov’t Sponsored Free WiFi” for the SSID. (SSID stands for “Service Set Identifier” and is a unique ID for naming a wireless network. All wireless devices attempting to communicate with each other must share the same SSID.) Users are responsible for taking measures to secure their devices and Internet communications. For questions or comments, e-mail cgriffin@viennava.gov or call 703-255-6364.
After-school program for children in grades 6-8 is available at Club Phoenix. Hours are 12:30-6:30 p.m. Monday and 2:30-6:30 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Children can get help with homework or enjoy cooking classes, book clubs, sports and fitness activities. Free. Call 703-255-6360.
Donations to local groups: the Dyer-Gunnell Post (Post 180) of the American Legion, based in Vienna, and Louise Archer Elementary PTA can benefit from on-line shopping. Visit http://Fundraising.ExtraRebates.com and click on any of the 410 participating stores, then complete an on-line purchase. The groups will receive a cash rebate or a percentage of the purchase, from 1 to 25 percent.