Lynn Terhar first joined a PTA when her oldest son was a kindergartner in Florida. He's now in college and she's risen through the ranks to the level of Virginia state PTA.
Now, in recognition of all her work — especially in starting the PTSA at Westfield High — Supervisor Michael R. Frey (R-Sully) has named her as the Sully District's Lady Fairfax. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will recognize her and the other districts' lords and ladies during the June 3 Board meeting.
A special dinner will follow, that night, at Mike's American Grill in Springfield, and then Terhar and the others will reign over the Fairfax Fair, June 7-9. "She worked so hard to get Westfield organized and parents involved," said Frey. "She even helped get the boundaries set, so it seemed a natural [to select her as Lady Fairfax]."
Terhar, 50, of Chantilly's Pleasant Valley community, said the distinction both pleased and surprised her. "I was very honored [and also] shocked," she said. "I just putter along and do my PTA thing, without thinking of any recognition."
She and her husband of nearly 23 years, John, have three sons. Steven, 21, a rising senior at Virginia Tech, is studying computer engineering; Michael, 19, a rising GMU junior, is majoring in management information systems; and Daniel, 17, will be a Westfield senior in the fall.
Terhar has a bachelor of science degree in business administration from Miami University of Ohio, and those management and organizational skills came in handy on the PTA. The Terhars moved to this area in 1989, and Lynn soon became active in Virginia Run Elementary's PTA .
Later, as all three sons went through Stone Middle School, she served as its PTA secretary, vice-president and president. While Steven attended Chantilly High, she spent all four years as an officer on its PTSA — two as vice-president and two as president.
Then, before Westfield even opened (in September 2000), Terhar spent countless hours helping organize its PTSA and, for the past two years, has been its president. "The administration's motto, the first year, was 'The tradition begins,' and it was exciting to be a part of it," she said.
But it wasn't always easy. "It was an interesting challenge bringing together people from Chantilly, Centreville and Oakton, taking the best of their ideas and developing some of our own," she explained. "Coming from different areas, the parents each had different expectations, saying, 'We did it this way at my school,' so it took a bit of jockeying. But I think we did a nice job, and now we've gotten to the point where we're all Westfield Bulldogs."
But there'll be a new person at the helm in September, because Terhar has just become director of the Fairfax District PTA — including Alexandria, Arlington, Fairfax and Falls Church. The organization is the liaison from the local PTAs to the state. It helps form and train new PTAs, assists them with their bylaws and helps PTAs having problems.
She was elected to it, April 24, and will serve a two-year term. And as such, she's automatically on the State Board of Managers for the Virginia PTA. This group coordinates with the national PTA, monitoring bylaws and memberships, awards and scholarships and national programs such as the Reflections contest.
It also advocates, representing the PTA on statewide committees and commissions, such as the Virginia High School League (VHSL), and lobbies in Richmond for laws benefiting children. "And that's one of the primary objectives of the PTA — to speak for children," said Terhar. "I enjoy it — it's satisfying to be doing things that make a difference in children's lives."
Initially, parents join PTAs because of their children. But, said Terhar, "When you start to have leadership positions, you become an advocate for all children." It's a good feeling, she said, to work on projects and goals that help PTAs be successful because "those kinds of things are good for the kids."