People

Centreville: Troop Honors New Eagle Scouts

Troop 30 of Centreville honored Devlin McDonnell and ColtonSorrells who achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in an awards ceremony on June 28. Devlin, who just graduated from Westfield High School, and Colton, a rising senior at Westfield, were both recognized for their achievements and leadership in the ceremony at the troop's chartered organization, Centreville Presbyterian Church.

McLean: Summer on a High Note

Spring Hill Elementary School Orchestra Director’s Strings Camp remains McLean’s summer tradition.

Every summer, Spring Hill Elementary School orchestra director Ruth Donahue runs an orchestra summer camp for children to improve their music skills.

Centreville: Commendation for ‘Job Well Done’

APO Tony Gul is honored as Officer of the Month.

Auxiliary Police Officer Tauheed “Tony) Gul” was recently honored as the Sully District Police Station’s Citizens Advisory Committee Officer of the Month. And in the letter nominating him, his supervisor, Lt. Tim Burgess, explained why. “APO Gul has demonstrated strong teamwork traits, contributing significantly to community activities in the Sully District,” wrote Burgess. “He volunteered 298 hours of time in 2014, including events like Touch a Truck, DWI checkpoints and patrols.”

Marta Sniezek: All-American

It’s not easy being the second youngest member of a family of 11.

For Marta Sniezek, ranked one of the top basketball players in the country, her parents and her siblings are her motivators in a family where success is a blueprint.

Healing Wall Puzzle Unveiled in Vienna

Vienna Arts Society exhibits art work from soldiers suffering from PTSD.

The Vienna Arts Society hosted a "Puzzled Again" reception on Saturday, July 11 at the Vienna Art Center with an exhibit of the Healing Wall puzzle. The artwork is from 24 soldiers on the mend at Fort Belvoir Community Hospital who suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The original puzzle, from 2014, was also exhibited, and the artwork will be on display through July 31 at 115 Pleasant Street, NW, Vienna.

Centreville: ‘She Started Shoving Me’

Kathy Smith assaulted while campaigning; woman arrested.

Add political campaigning to the list of things that can be hazardous to one’s health. At least that’s what Fairfax County Board of Supervisors hopeful Kathy Smith found out last Saturday. “I’m OK,” she said afterward. “But it was a scary situation.” So scary, in fact, that a local woman was arrested and charged with assaulting her and preventing her from making a 911 call.

Letter: A Woman I Will Never Forget In My Life

To the Editor

It began to snow in the morning. I arrived by bus at Reston Hospital for an X-ray. They told me the X-ray location was a half mile away.

Commentary: Police View from Inside a Crown Vic

Last Friday, I participated in a “ride along” with a Fairfax County Police Officer from the Reston Station during an eleven and a half hour evening shift patrolling Reston and part of Great Falls. I sat next to my officer-partner’s computer in a 2008 Ford Crown Victoria cruiser.

Commentary: Paying for Our Schools

The recent tension between the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and the School Board over approval of the budget for the public schools left one big factor out of the equation for funding schools—the role of state government in financing public education in the Commonwealth. Public education as defined in the state constitution is a partnership between state and local governments.

Opinion: Chamber Promotes Reston Businesses

Why business should do business with the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce.

The Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce (GRCC) is changing the way businesses are connecting with each other.

Potomac: County Commission Vacancy

Commission on Common Ownership Communities The deadline for application is July 23.

The Yu Crew of Potomac Wins National Awards

The Yu Crew, LLC, a Potomac-based public relations agency, walked away with some of the public relations industry’s and association’s top national awards last month. Its principal, Pattie Yu, has been a longtime resident of Potomac.

Potomac: Following in Ancient Footsteps

A portion of the Sugarloaf Regional Trail will be dedicated in honor of the region’s Native American history.

A project more than 30 years in the making will see its completion on July 25, as a 25-mile portion of the Sugarloaf Regional Trail is dedicated to the area’s Native American tribes. Rain forced the postponement of the ceremony, which will feature dancers from the Piscataway tribe, but the delay was of little consequence to Margaret “Peg” Coleman, president of Sugarloaf Regional Trail. In the 1970s, she and Chet Anderson, head of the trails organization, began writing trail guides, publishing a series of books since 1974, providing a wealth of information on the historical properties in Montgomery County and the surrounding areas in the meantime.

Arlington Announcement: Levy, Griffin Engaged

Ms. Lynn Levy Spencer and Mr. James Sizemore are happy to announce the engagement of Ms. Spencer's daughter, Caroline Elizabeth Levy, to Steven James Griffin, son of Mr. and Mrs. James A. Griffin, III of Marshall, Va.

Arlington: Local Author Shifts from Screenplays to Novels

Matthew Sullivan’s “The Orphans” launches a trilogy.

When author Matthew Sullivan decided two years ago to write his debut book, “The Orphans,” it wasn’t the first time he had crafted a story for the public.

The Connection