Fairfax Marching Rebels Win Band Competitions
The school year has barely started and already Fairfax High’s Marching Rebels band is winning top honors for its musicianship and showmanship in competitions against other schools.
Fastest Growing Virginia Station
Higher “connectivity” and reliability are key factors in Burke Centre station’s ridership growth.
Though the commuter train station at Burke Centre has offered a Virginia Railway Express (VRE) link between Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. since 1992, only in 2009 did Amtrak add Burke as a stop on its new Amtrak Virginia partnership service.
All Smiles at Burke Lake
Kids Sending Smiles organizes 5K run to fight breast cancer.
Kids Sending Smiles (KSS), the 501c3 non-profit established and run by a group of elementary school girls from the Springfield and Alexandria areas, successfully completed their most ambitious charitable event to date on Saturday, Oct. 19 at Burke Lake Park.
Pumpkin Playground at Burke Nursery
Since 1994, Burke Nursery has celebrated the harvest season with their Fall Festival and Pumpkin Playground to the delight of children of all ages. The month-long event draws pumpkin seekers from all over Northern Virginia. The many available activities are designed to be fun and educational for all.
History Recreated
Giving history new life through historical simulations at Robinson Secondary.
Students experienced a blast to the past when they took part in historical simulations of factory work in the 1900s. On Monday, Oct. 21, seventh graders at Robinson Secondary School engaged in an activity created by their history and social studies teachers reflecting their studies of the Industrial Revolution. “The idea of any simulation is to give the students an emotional experience on which we can then connect the content knowledge to develop true understanding of historic events,” says Susan Reade, history and social studies teacher at Robinson Secondary. “For this specific event … we attempt to focus student attention on low pay, long hours doing a repetitive task, and dehumanizing treatment of the employees.”
Taking Steps for a Cure
On Sunday, Oct. 20, 180 people gathered at Temporary Road Picnic Pavilion in Reston to walk to find cures for Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis (UC). Crohn’s Disease and UC are inflammatory bowel diseases that can be debilitating to patients: 1.4 million Americans have been diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease or UC.
Herndon Police Promote Public Safety
Crime prevention agencies present their work, tools.
Herndon Public Safety Day took place on Saturday, Oct. 19 at the 700 block of Lynn Street in downtown Herndon, with some activities held in the parking lot of the Municipal Building near the Herndon Fortnightly Library.
Forum Highlights Domestic Violence
Cook holds gathering to “Stop the Silence—End the Violence.”
Oct. 17. The back patio at Kilroy’s Restaurant and Sports Bar on Port Royal Road in Springfield was the scene of a gathering described by host Fairfax County Supervisor John C. Cook (R- Braddock), as “part of an effort to shine the light on the oft-hidden and denied blight on our families … of domestic violence.” Cook was appointed by the Board of Supervisors in February to be their liaison to the Domestic Violence Prevention, Policy and Coordinating Council. “The name may be a mouthful,” admitted Cook in an interview during the event, “but the people you need to get things done are all right in the room,” he said. “This group gets things done.”
One Law Firm On Both Sides of Controversy Over Alexandria Waterfront
McGuireWoods defends city in zoning change as well as developers who seek to benefit from it.
Lawyers at McGuireWoods are on both sides of the controversy over the waterfront, defending Alexandria taxpayers in court while seeking approval from city officials on behalf of three separate developers at the same time.
Half a Loaf, Sort of
City waives $1 million affordable housing contribution; council to consider restoring half next year.
Hidden in the margins of the incentive package Alexandria leaders offered to lure the National Science Foundation from Arlington was a million-dollar motivation. Officials at City Hall said they were willing to waive the $1 million contribution to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. City Council members later said they didn't know the incentive was part of the package until it was too late. Removing it might jeopardize the deal, putting City Council members in a difficult spot. "It was my oversight," said Deputy City Manager Mark Jinks. "I take full responsibility." Fixing the problem was difficult and divisive for council members. Some were willing to let the affordable-housing contribution go the way of floppy disk. Others wanted to see the full contribution. Councilman John Taylor Chapman offered a compromise motion to direct budget officials to earmark $500,000 worth of tax revenue from the property to affordable housing during the next budget cycle. Although he initially circulated a memorandum outlining a $1 million contribution, he ended up cutting it in half to make sure he had the necessary support. "To be honest, I didn't think I would the votes to pass it," explained Chapman of the million-dollar proposal. "Some folks were not behind that idea."
Bob Hanson, 89, Potomac’s Citizen of the Year
“Did you run out of candidates?”
Bouncing around in a John Deere “Gator,” Bob Hanson in the driver’s seat, we were overlooking fields of Timothy hay and pasture land. Black Angus cattle were munching and chewing their cuds. Water glistened on an acre farm pond designed in the 1940s by the U.S. Soil Conservation Board. All this, plus circumventing 70 acres of woodland on a 200 acre farm is what one would call really “Getting Around.” Robert M. Hanson, 89, has been named 2013 Potomac Citizen of the Year. “When they called me my first response was, ‘Did you run out of candidates?,’” he jokingly asked. In retrospect, learning about his many accomplishments and interests, one wonders what in the heck took them so long? First and foremost it is very apparent his love of the land and the animals are his true dedication. What he accomplished since his boarding school days at The Landon School, Bethesda, where he kept his horse and rode home every weekend; a BS degree in agriculture from the University of Maryland; a stint in the U.S. Air Force (2nd Lt.) during the Korean War; dozens of civic activities; plus his professional life, would take most people two life times.
‘Who’s Your Hubby?’
Local author and Potomac resident Monica Schaeffer knows the answer.
Their mothers told them: “You can’t live with them, and you can’t live without them.” Their mothers were referring to husbands — and while most women don’t want to live without them, many a wife may need some strategies for making her marriage better. For this answer, Potomac resident Monica Schaeffer and her long time friend, Beth Rabinowitz, turned to one-another for the solution. Together, they figured out how to create successful marriages and gain fulfillment and happiness with their husbands. This prompted them to coauthor “Who’s Your Hubby? Tips for Living Happily with 10 Hubby Types.”
Reflecting on Success
During Women’s Small Business Month, local entrepreneurs offer advice.
After a career in television and radio, Potomac mother and entrepreneur Cari Shane carved out a freelance writing career for herself, penning articles for publications ranging from the Washington Post and its Sunday Magazine to Cooking Light Magazine. Fellow Potomac mother and marketing executive Julie Schumacher pitched Shane a story idea. Shane was intrigued, wrote the article, and the two women stayed in touch. Schumacher later came to Shane with another idea: The two women should create a company that would transform traditional public relations strategies for small and mid-sized businesses, also incorporating social media. Shane put her freelance writing career on hold and the two women formed a small business called sasse (pronounced “sassy”) agency. “Building a business with a platform for differentiation appealed to me,” said Shane. “Julie and I built sasse to help small- and medium-sized business get what they deserve, the chance to shout out about themselves the way big businesses do.”
Library To Host Author
Miller to discuss “The Year of the Gadfly.”
On Oct. 28 at 7 p.m., the Potomac Public Library will host a talk with "The Year of the Gadfly" and "Inheriting the Holy Land" author Jennifer Miller. As with many authors, Miller has utilized the world of social media to give her writing more exposure and to interact with her audience. "Social media is really helpful in publicizing and expanding my reach. Anytime I write an article or blog post, I'm able to tweet it out and network with people I may have never met," she said. During a recent book tour, she met many people who knew her through her Twitter account. Miller also uses social media to "build an audience" with other writers and others in the literary world. She also started a Tumblr page called "People Wearing My Book" where she posted pictures of people at bookstores across New York posing behind the book cover of "The Year of the Gadfly" which has a young woman's silhouette with a plaid background.
Week in Reston
Teen Dies, Man Charged in Reston Shooting
Story: Link Italics Bold Bulleted list Numbered list Block quote Heading Create inline: A 17-year-old Reston boy who sustained a gunshot wound on Friday, Oct. 18 was pronounced dead early Sunday, Oct. 20. Police identified the deceased as Juan Carlos Godoy of Cameron Crescent Drive, Reston.
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