Editorial: Careful While Going Faster
If you have driven on the new 495 Express Lanes, you might wonder if the people who decided to raise the speed limit to 65 have driven on them.
Editorial: Calling All Pets
The Pet Gazette, a bi-annual themed edition, will publish July 24.
Mount Vernon School Notes
Mariya Ilyas graduated from Bowdoin College with a major in mathematics and a minor in government and legal studies.
West Potomac Class of 2013 Celebrates All Night
More than 70 businesses and sponsors came together to celebrate the West Potomac High School Class of 2013 with donations to the all-night graduation party on June 18.
Mount Vernon Crime Report
Ladson Lane/Richmond Highway, June 13, 10:30 p.m. A 34-year-old man reported he parked his car when an unknown man opened the door and demanded money. The victim did not have any money.
Letter to the Editor: More Shirts, More Names
A Richmond mom first made the clothesline of white t-shirts six years ago — 32 of them in all; one for each of the victims of Virginia Tech. It's been six years, but we have not forgotten. The names written on each of those t-shirts are heartbreakingly familiar ... Mary, Reema, Daniel ….
Obituary
Betty Jeanne Canfield Randall
Betty Jeanne Randall died on June 5, 2013 at home with family in Alexandria after a valiant, short battle with cancer. Born in Los Angeles (’41), she graduated from South Pasadena High School with honors and Mount St. Mary’s College with honors. Being driven, as she was, she finished college in 3 and a half years with a degree in English (’63).
Pastor Marks First Anniversary
Pastor Robert. L. Lewis, Jr. will be celebrating his first year at Messiah Lutheran Church in Alexandria with a summer sermon series entitled ,”What’s Faith, Why Faith?” based on the book in the Bible known as The Letter to the Galatians. The sermon series will be during the regular Sunday Worship at 10 a.m. Messiah Lutheran called Lewis in June of 2012 and he began his ministry the following month. He came to Messiah Lutheran after serving at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Bethesda, Md. as the pastor for youth and family for eight years.
Emerging Scholar
Leilani "Lillie" Soriano, a rising 5th grader, was accepted into the Emerging Scholars Program which began on June 24. ESP is a 14-month academic and leadership program that was established in late 2002.
Steiding Named Officer of Month
PFC Adrian Steiding is the Sully District Police Station’s Officer of the Month for May. He was honored during his evening roll call. Lt. Rich Morvillo, assistant station commander, presented an example of Steiding’s work illustrating why he was selected.
A Year of Donations
Stratford Woman's Club celebrated a successful year of donations to Inova Mount Vernon Hospital, Mount Vernon Woods Elementary School, Fort Hunt Elementary School and Make-a-Wish Foundation. Stratford Woman's Club is a non-federated club and membership is open to women who are interested in community service and fund-raising for worthwhile organizations. Monthly meeting are held at 9:30 a.m. on the second Thursday of each month from September through May at Heritage Presbyterian Church on Fort Hunt Road. Contact President Judy Henderson at 703-780-1068 for more information.
Study Shows $54 Million Retail Gap Along Richmond Highway Corridor
Supply is not meeting demand in Mount Vernon.
Supply is not matching demand along Richmond Highway, according to a new study from the Southeast Fairfax Development Corporation.
Column: No Shame in Crying
Nor is it a crying shame. But something has changed, dare I say affected my tear duct production. I can’t say with certainty – or even specify a particular moment in time for sure – when the tears began to flow more easily, but I’ll guess the change occurred sometime on or around February 27, 2009, the day I first met my oncologist; the day I was diagnosed with a terminal disease, stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), “prognosed” to live 13 months to two years. If that kind of shocking, terminal-type news doesn’t upset your apple cart – permanently, “You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din.” And so it has, as reflected in my frequent “salty discharge” (to quote Jerry Seinfeld).
Editorial: Ready for Your Pet’s Close-up?
The Pet Connection, a bi-annual themed edition, will publish July 24. We invite you to send us stories about your pets, photos of you and/or your family with your cats, dogs, hamsters, snakes, lizards, frogs, rabbits, or whatever other creatures share your home or yard with you.
Paving ‘Virginia’s Road to the Future’
Transportation Authority solicits public input on first year of proposed projects.
City Hall in the City of Fairfax was the location of the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) June 20 Open House and Public Hearing, seeking public opinion on proposed regional transportation projects. The Authority was created by the Virginia General Assembly in 2002 to provide a common voice for all Northern Virginia stakeholders on transportation and related issues. The Authority is made up of representatives from the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William, the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park, and one representative for the towns of Herndon, Leesburg, Purcellville, Dumfries and Vienna. The group also includes several members of the Virginia Assembly, governor appointees and non-voting representatives from the Virginia Department of Transportation and the Department of Rail and Public Transportation.
Housing’s Roaring Rebound?
Pent-up demand creates seller’s market for Northern Virginia real estate.
In February, Patricia Stack, a broker with Weichert Realtors, held an open house for a single-family home for sale in Vienna just listed for $739,000. Within three hours, more than 70 people toured the home.
Classified Advertising June 19, 2013
Read the latest ads here!
Celebrating 180th Anniversary of Gum Springs’ Founding
At the annual Gum Springs Community Day, a resolution passed by the Board of Supervisors at the request of Supervisor Gerald Hyland (D-Mount Vernon) and a House Joint Resolution passed by the House of Delegates and the Senate, introduced at the request of state Del. Scott Surovell, were read at the community day celebration in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Park on Saturday, June 15.
Calendar-Alexandria and Mount Vernon
Ongoing Summer Classes. Art at the Center, 2804 Sherwood Hall Lane. Children ages 6-10 can participate. Register at www.artatthecenter.org or 703-201-1250. Student Design Competition. Come see Woodlawn transformed from a historic house museum into a comfortable and stylish home for 21st century living. Through Sunday, June 16. $20. Call 703-780-4000.
Bryant Fulfills Its Alternative Role
Graduation on Tuesday evening, June 13, was attended by parents and friends of the graduates, teachers and administrators. However, it was also attended by state and local government officials, business representatives, former Superintendent of Schools Dr. Daniel Domenech, and the new Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Karen Garza.