Contrasting Views
Commentary
Last week I had the honor of meeting Stan Brock, the legendary “Wild Kingdom” TV star and founder and president of Remote Area Medical (RAM). He held a press conference in Richmond to announce the details of expanding the Remote Area Medical program in Virginia. (www.RAMUSA.org) Already RAM sponsors a once-a-year health clinic in Wise County in Southwest Virginia where thousands come on a weekend for the only medical care they will receive all year. The expanded effort in Virginia will be headed by Dr. Vicki Weiss who has been providing volunteer eye care with RAM for over 15 years. Also participating in the press conference was Dr. Teresa Gardiner who serves on the Health Wagon in the region that was featured on 60 Minutes recently.
Celebrating Spring with Dance
Classical Ballet Theatre (CBT) celebrates this spring by sharing its love of dance with the community. In late March, it hosted children and their families at its Herndon studios for shorter, narrated Children’s Series performances of The Sleeping Beauty, and, in early April, it took the full classic ballet to the big stage at the Ernst Theater. There, dancers performed before hundreds of enthusiastic audience members. In addition to friends and family, these included military personnel and Fairfax County teachers who received complimentary tickets in honor of CBT’s Silver Anniversary.
Pet Fiesta Held At Reston Town Center
Thousands attend pet focused May 3 event.
Visitors and participants of the annual Reston Pet Fiesta enjoyed sunny mild weather on Saturday, May 3. One of the signature events of Reston Town Center, this outdoor event was open to the public and brought together local businesses, animal rescue groups and pet owners for a day of activities and demonstrations. The event was also an opportunity to put in volunteer hours with animal adoption groups.
Farmers Come Back to Lake Anne
Reston opens 17th Farmers Market season.
They’re back! And judging by the crowds wandering the stalls at the Reston Famers Market (RFM) at Lake Anne on Saturday, May 3, quite a lot of folks could barely wait. “There are other markets open during the winter, but this is the one we really enjoy,” said Sue Anne Miller of Burke, who arrived just after things got under way at 8 a.m. “Bringing the family to Opening Day is like the official start to Spring for us,” said Miller, juggling her coffee cup, a yummy from vendor Grace’s Pastries and a handful of reuseable shopping bags.
Reliving Musical Memories
The Reston Chorale presents ‘Feelin' Groovy: Reston's Early Years.’
When & Where The Reston Chorale’s spring Pops Concert celebrates Reston’s 50th Anniversary with a musical flashback to the 60s and 70s. Saturday, May 10, 4:30 and 7:30 p.m., Reston Community Center, Hunters Woods. Tickets are now available at www.restonchorale.org.
Shelter House Names New Director
Joe Meyer worked with organization for nine years.
The new executive director for Shelter House isn’t new to the organization at all. Joe Meyer, who has worked with Shelter House for the past nine years, was named the head of the nonprofit helping to put an end to homelessness and fight domestic violence in Reston and beyond. “My main focus and goal is to serve the staff at Shelter Homes and provide the support they need to get the job done,” he said. Shelter House Board President Denise Miller said he was chosen from a pool of 50 applicants. The board hired an outside search firm and put together a task force to whittle the pool down to their final choices. Many of the board members were involved in the process to find a new executive director.
A Little Team That Could
Forest Edge Elementary team goes to the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals.
In March an intrepid group of third and fifth graders from a Reston elementary school entered a regional competition and pulled off a surprise win against students twice their age. On April 26, they doubled down at the state tournament. The Red Hot Chili Puddings are a team of rookies led by rookie coaches. Their pursuit, Odyssey of the Mind, is a world-wide creative problem-solving competition involving students of all ages. It pits bright and creative kids against each other in both spontaneous and long-term tests of intellect and creativity. This little team with the long odds won first place in their division at the regional competition — and then some.
Fundraising for Lake Anne Elementary
Lake Anne Elementary PTA held a fundraiser called the ‘Dolphin Dash’ after the school’s mascot. In this fundraising dash the children go out and receive pledges (or a simple donation) for every lap they make around the parking lot. To date, they have raised upwards of $13,000 for the school. Pictured: Principal Brendan Menuey, Ed.D. and the parent who spearheaded this, Michelle Brennan, along with the dolphin and the students -- Bahran; Jinan and Martha, all fourth graders.
Classified Advertising April 30, 2014
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Choosing a Summer Camp
Camp experts offer advice on selecting a camp, but now is the time to register.
Many families with school age children will plan to have their children spend some of the much-anticipated summer season in camp. If you haven’t yet selected camps for your children, now is the time.
Many Ideas for Summer Activities
Avoid those dreaded words: ‘I’m bored.’
Molly McAlister enjoys the freedom of summer, but there are three words she dreads hearing: “Mom, I’m bored.” Creating activities to keep her three children busy during the summer is a task she enjoys, but it isn’t always easy.
Fairfax County School Board Examining Later Start Times
High schools could start as late as 9:15.
Two years after the Fairfax County School Board adopted a resolution in favor of later start times, exhausted teenagers are one step closer to getting a full night’s sleep. The Children’s National Medical Center recently presented the school board with options for later start times, of which the school board selected four for public discussion. The new start times could be implemented as early as the 2015-2016 school year.
Protecting Youths Against Substance Abuse
Panel shares stories and advice.
Fairfax County's Unified Prevention Coalition sponsored a forum on the effects of substance abuse on the county's middle and high school children. The resource fair and panel discussion was led by parents, young adults and professionals from the coalition's PROTECT (Parents Reaching Out To Educate Communities Together) task force. "It's been so long, I'll still be emotional about it," said Greg Lannes about his daughter's heroin overdose in 2008. Alicia Lannes had been 19 when she died and had always been a model student with straight A's. He pointed to the lone framed photo of her on the table and asked the audience, "Does that look like a heroin addict? How did she get to that point?"
Protecting Driver’s License Information Becomes Law
Del. David Bulova’s legislation (House Bill 1072) to protect personal information on driver’s licenses was enacted into law during the reconvened session of the General Assembly on April 23. The new law, which will be effective on July 1, limits the ability of a business to electronically scan the bar code on a driver’s license and then store and use that data. State Sen. David Marsden (D-37) carried the companion legislation (Senate Bill 40), which has also been enacted into law.
County Budget Markup Passes
Three supervisors still oppose the budget.
Fairfax County is another step closer to having an approved budget for the next fiscal year. The Board of Supervisors approved the 2015 budget markup at its April 22 meeting at the county Government Center. Supervisors Linda Smyth (D-Providence), Pat Herrity (R-Springfield) and John Cook (R-Braddock) opposed the markup.
Fairfax County Honors ‘Superheroes’
22nd Annual Fairfax County Service Awards presented.
Maybe they don’t wear capes and flashy uniforms, but local volunteers are superheroes. That was the theme for the 22nd Annual Fairfax County Service Awards, where more than 100 volunteers were recognized for their work with breakfast Friday, April 25, at The Waterford in Springfield. More specifically, this year’s theme was "Ordinary People, Extraordinary Impact," which was reflected in the comic book-inspired table decor and introductions by master of ceremonies Jeff Goldberg, Virginia Bureau Chief for ABC7 and News Channel 8.
Father and Son "Twogether"
As a born, bread and buttered Bostonian (Newton Centre, a suburb, to be specific), one of my enduring and genetic passions has been to live and die (figuratively speaking; this is not a cancer column) for The Boston Red Sox. My father sold concessions at Fenway Park (the stadium home of the Bosox since 1912), during the Depression when he was a little boy (not yet an adolescent even). He was nicknamed "Beezo," (his given name was Benet, although he was always called Barry) so he could gain full acceptance to a local knothole gang. Named after the wooden planks which surrounded the old Braves Field in Boston (a National League team called Boston its home as well back in the day), the kids ("gangs") would stand and peer through the knotholes in the wooden planks which otherwise blocked their view. It was a privilege and an honor for my father to be so connected to the game this way. He grew up loving baseball, and as a parent, he passed his love of the game on to me – and my brother.
Editorial: Trending in the Right Direction
Commitment to ending homelessness shows progress, but more affordable housing is needed.
On one night in late January, local jurisdictions in our area fanned out to count the number of people who were literally homeless. Fairfax County released its numbers last week; Arlington and Alexandria will do so in the near future. In Fairfax County, the commitment in 2010 to end homelessness in 10 years has resulted in significant progress, even in the wake of the great recession. The number of people literally homeless decreased by a third from 2008 to 2014, from 1,835 to 1,225 counted this year. Many non-profit organizations have partnered to prevent homelessness one family or individual at a time for those on the brink and to house chronically homeless individuals. There is so much still to be done.
Why 30 Minutes Only?
To the Editor: Hunter Woods shopping Center marked new parking restrictions for the spaces directly across the stores on the left side nearest the RCC. The spaces are marked: 30 minutes only. This rule is quite incongruent with the merchants located there. When one dines at Ledo Pizza, you can expect more than 30 minutes to get and eat a good hot pizza. It takes more than 30 minutes to be served and chew and swallow meals at Hunan Café. Nail and Spa requires more than 30 minutes for a manicure or pedicure, not to mention both. Tanning needs more time for the entire procedure. The Buffalo Wing Factory has patrons staying more than 30 minutes. And I would guess Mathnasium has programs that require more than 30 minutes. To be fair, one can take out to go from Ledo Pizza or Hunan Café and that discourages patrons from enjoying a sit down meal in either place. So for whom are these spaces meant please? Teri Belf Reston
‘Reston at 50’ Studied
GMU symposium explores the planning and diversity of area.
Reston is a city with a past - a past that George Mason University students are discovering. Students - from undergraduates to doctoral candidates, presented their findings about Reston in time for the community’s 50th anniversary Monday at Hunter Mill Community Center. The symposium, titled “Reston at 50: Looking Back at Forward Thinking,” covered diversity, preservation, scholarship and planning to an audience of more than 50 community members. Director of African and African-American Studies Dr. Wendi Manuel-Scott moderated the event. “Many early residents settled into Reston because of the ideals of the community,” said Director of the School of Art Dr. Harold Linton during his talk about how Reston’s plan developed and some of the architecture the community centers were inspired from.