Editorial: Careful While Going Faster
If you have driven on the new 495 Express Lanes, you might wonder if the people who decided to raise the speed limit to 65 have driven on them.
Santantonio Joins McEnearney
Wendy Santantonio has joined McEnearney Associates Inc. Realtors as a Realtor in its Alexandria office. Santantonio grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and graduated from Miami University with a B.S. in business. In 2000, she became an Alexandria resident.
Editorial: Calling All Pets
The Pet Gazette, a bi-annual themed edition, will publish July 24.
Mount Vernon School Notes
Mariya Ilyas graduated from Bowdoin College with a major in mathematics and a minor in government and legal studies.
Opinion: Editorials
Ready for Your Pet’s Close-up? The Pet Centre View, a bi-annual themed edition, will publish July 24. We invite you to send us stories about your pets, photos of you and/or your family with your cats, dogs, hamsters, snakes, lizards, frogs, rabbits, or whatever other creatures share your home or yard with you.
Letter to the Editor: Intersection Needs Improving
This is in response to your letter [“Why Is Project Fast-Tracked?”] regarding the proposed improvement to the intersection of Pleasant Valley Road and Braddock Road. You have asked several questions which I will attempt to answer. However, this is not a Fairfax County project but a Virginia Department of Transportation initiative and some of your questions are better answered by VDOT.
West Potomac Class of 2013 Celebrates All Night
More than 70 businesses and sponsors came together to celebrate the West Potomac High School Class of 2013 with donations to the all-night graduation party on June 18.
Union Mill Elementary End of the Year Barbecure
Union Mill Elementary school held an end-of-year barbecue on Monday, June 17, for all of its students. The students ate lunch outside on the blacktop on beach towels and blankets. The school’s Watch D.O.G.S. (Dads of Great Students) volunteers grilled the hamburgers and hot dogs, and helped distribute the food, drinks and ice cream to students. A DJ played music, while students danced and hula-hooped.
Union Mill Elementary Spring Concert
Band students at Union Mill Elementary performed their Spring Concert on Wednesday, June 12. The Union Mill band, which is comprised of 120 fifth and sixth grade students, performed Chuck Elledge’s “Dr. Rock,” “Party Rock Anthem,” Vince Guaraldi’s “Linus and Lucy,” Taio Cruz’s “Dynamite,” “Mickey Mouse March,” Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep,” and “Let’s Go Band,” by Andrew Balent. The Union Mill Elementary band is directed by Laura Seifried.
Union Mill Elementary Orchestra Spring Concert
Fourth, fifth and sixth grade strings students performed their Spring Concert on Thursday, June 13. The fourth grade students began the concert with “Hot Cross Buns,” Beethoven’s “Ode To Joy,” and Offenbach’s “Can-Can.” The fourth graders finished their portion of the program with the traditional “French Folk Song.” Next, fifth and sixth grade strings students performed “Finale from the First Symphony,” by Brahms, followed by “Classical Bash,” a medley of several famous classical pieces including Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, “Surprise Symphony” by Haydn, Mozart’s “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik,” and “Ode to Joy.” The concert concluded with a final piece in which the entire 125-student orchestra performed Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” as the audience kept the beat of the song. The Union Mill Elementary orchestra is directed by Melissa Brown.
Mount Vernon Crime Report
Ladson Lane/Richmond Highway, June 13, 10:30 p.m. A 34-year-old man reported he parked his car when an unknown man opened the door and demanded money. The victim did not have any money.
CVHS Honors its Thespians
Actors and techs were honored June 13 during Centreville High’s 25th annual Thespie Awards ceremony; 14 students were inducted into Centreville Troupe 4510 of the International Thespian Society.
People
Lindsay Lucas and Chris Somerville Wed
Lindsay Ayers Lucas and Matthew Christopher Somerville were married at 4 p.m. Saturday, May 4, 2013 at River Farm in Alexandria, Va. The Rev. Alan Felumlee of Centreville United Methodist Church officiated.
10 Years Incarceration For Former Teacher
He was convicted of child-porn offenses.
Little more than a year ago, Oak Hill resident Robert C. Fenn was about to finish his first year of teaching at Poplar Tree Elementary, where he taught special-ed students in kindergarten through third grade. But it all ended June 12, 2012, when Fairfax County police arrested him at the school on child-pornography charges.
‘His Life Mattered’
Westfield teacher, students raise money to honor Matt Peterson.
Matt Peterson was just 16 when his father inexplicably killed him, his mother and younger brother in their Herndon home before taking his own life.
Alexandria School Notes
Throughout Volunteer Appreciation Week, Alexandria public schools recognized their outstanding volunteers.
Letter to the Editor: More Shirts, More Names
A Richmond mom first made the clothesline of white t-shirts six years ago — 32 of them in all; one for each of the victims of Virginia Tech. It's been six years, but we have not forgotten. The names written on each of those t-shirts are heartbreakingly familiar ... Mary, Reema, Daniel ….
Obituary
Betty Jeanne Canfield Randall
Betty Jeanne Randall died on June 5, 2013 at home with family in Alexandria after a valiant, short battle with cancer. Born in Los Angeles (’41), she graduated from South Pasadena High School with honors and Mount St. Mary’s College with honors. Being driven, as she was, she finished college in 3 and a half years with a degree in English (’63).
Pastor Marks First Anniversary
Pastor Robert. L. Lewis, Jr. will be celebrating his first year at Messiah Lutheran Church in Alexandria with a summer sermon series entitled ,”What’s Faith, Why Faith?” based on the book in the Bible known as The Letter to the Galatians. The sermon series will be during the regular Sunday Worship at 10 a.m. Messiah Lutheran called Lewis in June of 2012 and he began his ministry the following month. He came to Messiah Lutheran after serving at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Bethesda, Md. as the pastor for youth and family for eight years.
Emerging Scholar
Leilani "Lillie" Soriano, a rising 5th grader, was accepted into the Emerging Scholars Program which began on June 24. ESP is a 14-month academic and leadership program that was established in late 2002.