Preserving History’s Jewels
Fairfax County considers new “resident curator” program to save historic properties.
“A successful resident curator program would allow the county to restore, maintain and protect important historic properties at little or no cost to the public.” —Cindy Walsh, Fairfax County Park Authority’s Resource Management Division director
Fairfax County Public Libraries: Version 2.0?
Staff, volunteers urge supervisors to reconsider “disastrous” library reorganization plan that cuts staff and services.
In a world where the Internet has replaced newsprint, e-books have supplanted paperbacks and the latest films stream directly to laptops, how do public libraries compete?
Woman Charged With Fraudulent Tax Prep
Fairfax County Police detectives have charged a Fair Oaks woman in connection with an investigation involving fraudulent preparation and submission of income tax return documents. She is Thuy Tien Le, 40, of 12808 Madeley Court.
Runfest 5K Race Returns to Fairfax City
The Paul VI Catholic High School (PVI) Runfest 2013 will be held on Sunday, Sept. 15, at 8 a.m. Last year’s race marked the successful return of PVI Runfest to the Paul VI neighborhood, with over 300 runners (and walkers) participating.
City of Fairfax Remembers Geraldine ‘Gerry’ Estep Sherwood
Avid arts supporter, community center visionary, died Aug. 5.
Geraldine Estep Sherwood, a longtime city resident and avid supporter of the arts, died Aug. 5 in Fairfax, leaving a legacy as the visionary behind the Stacy C. Sherwood Center. Mrs. Sherwood donated $5 million for the construction of the state-of-the-art facility. Opened in 2011, the center was named in honor of her husband, who served as a member of the Town of Fairfax Council (1956-60) and City of Fairfax City Council (1960-64) and who died in 2002.
Week in Fairfax
The American Red Cross Greater Chesapeake and Potomac Blood Services Region will hold blood drives in cities and towns throughout the region. Donors are encouraged to give all summer long, but especially near key summer holidays when donations decline.
Classified Advertising August 14. 2013
Read the lastest ad here!
Is Your Home Ready for Back to School?
Local designers offer tips for creating functional and stylish homework spaces.
Summer will soon come to an end, and children everywhere will be heading back to school and coming home with homework. To keep students engaged and excited, some local designers offer suggestions for creating a space so fun and inviting that your children will want to hang out there — even if that means doing homework.
Outdoor Elegance Meets Cutting Edge Technology
A design/build team explores fine architecture in weather-resistant materials.
If anything in the summer of 2013 points to still evolving homeowner expectations, it may be the frequency with which locals are integrating screen porches, patios, fire pits, and outdoor kitchens into original landscaping schemes that artfully marry the house to its setting.
Geocaching Diversifies
Urbanites embracing new game.
Geocaching usually has been portrayed as someone with hiking boots and a walking staff gazing afar from a hilltop in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Not so anymore. Substantial numbers of those joining the sport are placing and hunting for caches in urban settings, and that includes Northern Virginia.
Editorial: Library Mission
Further cuts to library budget must be analyzed for impacts on needy families.
The current proposal to “streamline” services at Fairfax County Public Libraries comes on top of disproportionate, and some would say Draconian, cuts since 2009.
Editorial: On Federal Dollars in Virginia
State’s role as one of the biggest “takers.”
We received some emails and phone calls about the expansion of Medicaid in response to last week’s editorial.
Sports Roundup
Reston United 99 Blue, a U14 NCSL D5 team, is holding supplemental tryouts in August.
Guarding Against Identity Theft and Fraud
Police advise residents on how to protect themselves.
With identity theft and fraud being such a major concern these days, police investigator Tom Polhemus and Det. Mike Deane recently presented some ways local residents can protect themselves from becoming victims.
Opinion: Issues That Matter
Mental health services discussion gives insight into real differences between candidates.
It came as somewhat of a relief to have the candidates for governor in Virginia, Ken Cuccinelli (R) and Terry McAuliffe (D), discuss an actual issue that matters to many Virginia families this week at a forum on mental health issues.
Will the Next Attorney General Defend Constitutional Ban on Gay Marriage?
Republican says he will defend amendment; Democrat is not so sure.
Virginia's next attorney general will have to stand in a courtroom and make a decision about whether or not the commonwealth's constitutional ban on marriage should be defended. Republican candidate Sen. Mark Obenshain (R-26) has been clear about his support for the amendment and his intention to provide a vigorous defense of marriage. Democratic candidate Sen. Mark Herring (D-33), on the other hand, has yet to take a position on whether or not he will defend the amendment.
The Median Has No Message
Political signs banished from roadsides as campaign season heats up.
Some people call them flowers of democracy. Others call them weeds of political pollution. Whatever one thinks of the campaign signs and placards that appear along the roads of Fairfax County, expect to see a lot fewer of them. Last month, county officials launched a new program in which nonviolent inmates at the county jail hit the streets four days a week to remove illegal signs. With apologies to Marshall McLuhan, the message is no longer in the median. Anger and resentment has been rising over the issue of roadside political signs for years, and campaigns frequently go to war with each other to see which side can plant or steal or deface the largest number of placards. Unlike Prince William County, which had an agreement with the Virginia Department of Transportation that allows the local government to collect the signs and fine violators, Fairfax was caught in a bind. Part of the Virginia code made it illegal for the county to remove the signs in Fairfax County until after an election.
Fairfax High School Students Graduate from Governor’s School of Agriculture
Four students from Fairfax High School graduated from the 2013 Governor’s School of Agriculture held at Virginia Tech June 30 to July 27.
‘Collect for Kids’ Needs Donations
Deadline for collecting school backpacks and calculators is Aug. 12.
Our Daily Bread in the City of Fairfax is trying to increase its capacity to collect school supplies to help 2,000 students by partnering for the third year with the “Collect for Kids” Back-to-School program. That’s 1,217 more than last year’s 783 number of students who benefited. The deadline for cash donations, backpacks and scientific calculators is Aug. 12. “We’ve already purchased the supplies; we’re hoping to get the cash donations,” said Our Daily Bread Executive Director Lisa Whetzel. “If they can give us cash, we buy supplies in bulk.” A $30 donation will help two students with school supplies.
Jewish Community Center Launches Adult Learning Institute
The Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia (JCCNV) has announced the inaugural semester of the Adult Learning Institute (ALI). Located at the Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia, ALI is dedicated to offering adults of all ages fulfilling opportunities to continue their love of learning and nourish their intellectual curiosity.