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Long-distance Cycling for Campus Safety
Gran Fondo to raise money, awareness for VTV Family Outreach Foundation.
Gran Fondos are long-distance, group cycling rides that originated in Italy. And on Saturday, Oct. 5, the new Mosaic District in Fairfax will host the third annual VTV Gran Fondo for Campus Safety.
Recalling Defining Moments at Fairfax High School
Former teacher there returns for class’s 50-year reunion.
In the foreword to her book, “One Moment,” Joan Williamson Higgs writes, “The moments that define us are almost never predictable or expected. We go through life thinking we are immune to its inevitable tragedies and its heartbreaking surprises.”
Actively Caring Comes to CVHS
Part of Bullying Awareness Week, AC4P recognizes acts of kindness.
Not bullying means more than just not taunting or hitting someone; it also means being kind and considerate. So it was fitting that members of Virginia Tech’s program, Actively Caring for People (AC4P), shared their message Monday, Nov. 18, during the first day of Cluster VII’s Bullying Awareness Week.
‘It’s Not OK to Turn a Blind Eye to Bullying’
Fairfax High students pledge to stand by each other.
Children of all ages get bullied and bully others, themselves. It’s not true of all children, but it’s true of enough of them that Fairfax County and City of Fairfax schools want to do something about it.
Encore Dancers Present ‘Switching Christmas’
Fairfax High student is in new, holiday show.
When a precocious, young girl changes places with a playful elf at the North Pole, things are bound to go awry and only Santa can save the day.
‘What’s Better than Helping Someone Have a Home?’
Reston company’s employees help Habitat renovate a house.
Not everyone has the money to buy a home. But thanks to Habitat for Humanity of Northern Virginia (HHNV) and some willing volunteers from a company in Reston, a family will be able to buy a house in Centreville at an affordable price. On a recent weekday, 15 people were hard at work renovating and repairing it to make it livable. Built in 1971, it’s a two-story, three-bedroom house.
The Background: Drugs, Murder and Money
When 21-year-old, Centreville High grad Danny Petrole was slain in his car in front of his Bristow townhouse, March 15, 2001, it stunned the community and devastated his family. It also led police to discover a drug ring of major proportions operating in the Centreville/Chantilly area.
Westfield Wins VTA Competition
School’s first victory in statewide acting contest.
The local community knows how talented Westfield High’s theater students are; now, so do people in the rest of the state. The young thespians won the school’s first-ever Virginia Theatre Association (VTA) competition, beating out 44 other schools statewide.
‘The Food Was Fabulous’
Fairfax student’s team wins culinary challenge.
Five stars are given to America’s top restaurants, and at a recent culinary competition, a student team from The Chantilly Academy captured the top prize, the Five Star Award.
Paying It Forward
Leukemia survivor raises money for hospital that helped him.
When Centreville’s Daniel Shank-Rowe was 9, he was diagnosed with leukemia. But he was successfully treated at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C., and is now in remission.
A Study in Courage And Compassion
Centreville woman battles cancer; needs community’s help.
Just 38, Centreville’s Debbie Bendorf is a wife, a mother of three young boys and a person fighting the battle of her life against a rare form of cancer. She loves her family, is loyal to her friends and doesn’t complain or ask for anything special for herself — which is why the community is trying to help her and her family.
Saving Virginia’s Ecosystem
Today’s youth are part of Virginia’s rising population, so it seems fitting that they investigate how this increased growth impacts the state’s ecosystem. That was the task given to 47 students of Centreville elementary fourth-grade teachers Mary Ann Settlemyre and Kate Charlton. Last summer, both teachers took the month-long VISTA (Virginia Initiative for Science Teaching and Achievement) program at GMU.
Training Key In School Safety
FCPS security coordinator addresses citizens committee.
Keeping students safe is Jim McLain’s job. After retiring as a Fairfax County police commander in 2001, he joined Fairfax County Public Schools; and for 12 years now, he’s been one of its two security coordinators.
Making Spirits Bright 12/12/2012
FACETS helps children give presents to their siblings.
No matter people’s income levels, their children still want presents at Christmastime. So each year, FACETS holds Sibling Shops, enabling children to peruse a variety of toys, games and other items, select gifts for their brothers and sisters and have them wrapped.
Why Change Is Needed
Fairfax High has a building capacity of 2,412 students and a current enrollment of 2,659 — meaning a 110-percent building utilization. But if nothing changes, it’s projected to have 3,011 student bodies by the 2017-18 school year and a 125-percent building utilization.
‘It’s a Fast-paced, Hilarious Show’
Woodson High presents “Bye Bye Birdie.”
A slice of Americana wrapped in music and dancing—that’s Woodson High’s production of “Bye Bye Birdie.” The curtain rises Friday, Nov. 2, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 3, at 2 and 7:30 p.m.; Friday, Nov. 9, at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday, Nov. 10, at 2 and 7:30 p.m.
Fantasy Pumpkins To Thrill and Delight
Centreville man creates Halloween enchantment.
The glowing spectacle attracts 500 to more than 1,000 visitors each year, and word of his creations has spread internationally.
‘Climb Every Mountain, Ford Every Stream’
‘Sound of Music’ at Lord of Life.
The Lord of Life Lutheran Church will be alive with “The Sound of Music” when its Lord of Life Players perform the classic show of the same name.
British Murder Mystery at Robinson Secondary
Theater students present “Night Must Fall.”
A British murder mystery, “Night Must Fall,” is Robinson Secondary’s upcoming play. It’s slated for Thursday-Saturday, Nov. 15, 16, 17, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 at www.robinsondrama.org and $12 at the door.
‘She Will Be Missed Every Day’
Family mourns Centreville icon, Marguerite Buckley, 94.
Marguerite Buckley lived a long, full life — but that doesn’t mean her family was ready to say goodbye to her when she died Jan. 8, at age 94.