<sh>Indecent Exposure Costs $100
<bt>A Centreville man was fined and given a suspended jail sentence, in court last week, after being found guilty of indecent exposure. He is Tam Dinh, 41, of 6496 Palisades Drive. According to Fairfax County police, on June 24 around 3:30 p.m., he was in the parking lot of the Pep Boys Automotive Repair Shop at 7125 Little River Turnpike in Annandale.
That's where a 51-year-old Fairfax man noticed Dinh masturbating while standing near the shop. A police officer was called to investigate and observed Dinh, himself, masturbating underneath a tree. He then arrested the Centreville man and charged him with indecent exposure.
Dinh appeared last Wednesday, Oct. 9, in General District Court before Judge J. Conrad Waters. He was found guilty and was sentenced to 10 days in jail, with all that time suspended. He was also fined $100.
<sh>WFCM Needs Food, Volunteers
<bt>Western Fairfax Christian Ministry's (WFCM) food pantry — which provides food to local needy families — is in urgent need of several items. They are: canned vegetables (corn, green beans, peas), baked beans, spaghetti sauce, jelly and jam, canned fruit, chicken soups, pasta, cereal, rice, tuna, canned meats and dinners (ravioli, chili, stew and kids' meals).
To donate, call 703-815-3238, or bring these things to the Shepherd Center. It's open Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., and is between Fashion Bug and Payless Shoes in the Sully Plaza Shopping Center at 13924 Metrotech Drive in Chantilly. The WFCM also needs volunteers, Thursdays, from 10 a.m.-noon and from noon-2 p.m. To volunteer, call 703-988-9656.
<sh>Water-Quality Preservation Mtg.
<bt>In honor of National Watershed Monitoring Day, there'll be a presentation, Friday, Oct. 18, from 7:30-9:30 p.m., on the role of land conservation in preserving water quality. It will be held at the Clifton Presbyterian Church fellowship hall at 12748 Richards Lane in Clifton (just uphill from the Hermitage Inn parking lot on Main Street).
Speaking will be Katie Goldberg, director of land protection with the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust (NVCT). Sponsoring this program are the NVCT and the Audubon Naturalist Society. For more information, visit www.nvct.org.
<sh>Westfield Community Coalition
<bt>The Westfield Community Coalition will meet Monday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. at Stone Middle School.
The coalition's goal is to increase community awareness of drug and alcohol abuse among teens in our area, as well as to plan prevention programs. Membership in the Westfield Community Coalition is free, and all are welcome to attend the meetings.
<sh>Chantilly Community Coalition
<bt>The Chantilly Community Coalition will meet Monday, Oct. 21, at 4 p.m. in the conference room of the Chantilly Regional Library. (This month's meeting-date was changed because of the Columbus Day holiday). The group will discuss this year's programs, as well as how to involve youth in coalition activities.
In September, the coalition agreed to continue funding the after-school programs at Rocky Run and Franklin middle schools. It will also keep reinforcing these schools' mediation programs that teach students life skills for conflict resolution.
The coalition's goal is to mobilize the community to network, communicate and cooperate about keeping youth safe and drug-free, and it hopes to attract new members who can help disseminate this information to their school PTAs, local community and civic and other groups. Call John Hanyok at 703-262-2475.
<sh>CCF Meets Oct. 22
<bt>The Centreville Day committee of the Centreville Community Foundation (CCF) will meet Tuesday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m. in Supervisor Michael R. Frey's (R-Sully) conference room. It's in the Fort Hill Building at 5900 Centreville Road in Centreville. Call Sandy Shapiro at 703-266-3653.
<sh>Sully District Council
<bt>The next meeting of the Sully District Council of Citizens Associations will be Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m. in conference room 7 of the Fairfax County Government Center. Call Mark McConn at 703-818-9124.
<sh>Park Authority to Meet
<bt>The Fairfax County Park Authority will meet Wednesday, Oct. 23, at 7:30 p.m. in the Herrity Building, 12055 Government Center Parkway, Suite 900, in Fairfax. Call Judy Pedersen at 703-324-8662.
<sh>Blood Urgently Needed
<bt>The Inova Blood Donor Center in the Centremed I Building on Route 29 in Centreville (across from the Centreville Multiplex Cinemas) is in urgent need of blood donations — especially O positive or negative, as well as A and B. They are accepted Tuesday-Friday, noon-8 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. To make an appointment to give blood, call 703- 322-1970, or just drop in at your own convenience.
<sh>Kids in Crisis Ministry
<bt>Western Fairfax Christian Ministry's (WFCM) Kids in Crisis Ministry provides emergency assistance to families impacted by a child's illness. Since such families are too distracted to research all the organizations that might help them, If anyone knows of a family in need, please advise them to call the hotline at 703-378-3045. Leave a message on the "Kids in Crisis" box, and a volunteer will return the call.
This program offers a safety net for families whose income or expenses are affected by a child's illness. Besides medical bills, they'll incur costs such as travel, babysitting, special equipment and home health care.
Even families with adequate health insurance may find it difficult to meet these expenses. Kids in Crisis aids in areas not covered by traditional health insurance policies. For more information, call the hotline or Karen Dolan at 703-266-3144.
<sh>WFCM Personnel Needs
<bt>The Western Fairfax Christian Ministries (WFCM) has several volunteer positions available.
* It needs a client coordinator to make follow-up calls to members of the community who have recently received assistance. This person would also cross-reference recipients with other WFCM services (food and clothing ministry). It would be a good job for someone who has to stay close to home.
* On-call volunteers are also needed. After receiving training, they'll monitor requests for help, coming from the local community, via a telephone mailbox. There's a social worker on staff, plus an extensive network of support to help and encourage people in self-sufficiency.
* WFCM's food pantry needs volunteers to work Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., and Saturdays, noon-2 p.m. To volunteer for any of these positions. or for more information, call 703-378-3045 and leave a message on box 7.
<sh>WFCM Needs Drivers
<bt>The Western Fairfax Christian Ministries is in need of drivers to take elderly people to medical appointments. Call 703-378-3045 and press 7 to volunteer for this or any other WFCM ministry.
<sh>Meals on Wheels
<bt>The Clifton Meals on Wheels program urgently needs a volunteer to coordinate the delivery of meals to frail, elderly residents. Call the Fairfax Area Agency on Aging at (703) 324-5406.