<i> Send announcements to The Reston Connection, 7913 Westpark Drive, McLean, VA 22102, e-mail to
reston@connectionnewspapers.com or fax to 703-917-0991. Deadline is two weeks before the event. Photos/artwork encouraged. Call Jean Card at 703-917-6437, with questions.
This free listing is reserved for activities and events that are open to the public at no or minimal cost. </i>
Summer School walk-in registration has been extended through Monday, June 27, at 4 p.m. Mail and fax registrations for most programs are due Wednesday, June 22. Visit http://www.fcps.edu/DIS/OACE/prek12.html.
Hunter Mill District Supervisor Cathy Hudgins announces the Reston District Station's pedestrian safety campaign, in response to her request to maintain and enhance the safety conditions for pedestrians and cyclists in the Reston area.
The enhanced enforcement will be directed at locations, which have been identified by constituents as problem areas, and be will conducted in several different waves through Sept. 10. Police will enforce both state and local traffic laws with the goal of gaining voluntary compliance from the community. Drivers will be ticketed for failing to yield the right of way to pedestrians in crosswalks, stopping in and blocking pedestrian crosswalks and for violating any other applicable laws.
Officers will conduct the campaign along the Washington and Old Dominion Trail and the intersections of Wiehle Avenue, Sunset Hills Road and Sunrise Valley Drive. They will also concentrate efforts on Sunset Hills Road between Isaac Newton Square Drive West and Wiehle Avenue.
The Women’s Center of Vienna Virginia will be offering a number of classes and workshops designed to help naviparation and divorce, starting in April and continuing through August at various locations in Vienna, Fairfax and McLean.
Some of the assorted programs topics include Divorce Through Mediation, Divorce Without Litigation, Dollars and Sense of Divorce, Financial Planning for Separation and Divorce, Helping Your Child Cope With Separation and Divorce, Legal Aspects of Child Support and Understanding Your Right To Marital Assets and others.
Visit the Women’s Center Web site at www.thewomenscenter.org or call 703-281-2657.
The Greater Chesapeake and Potomac Blood Services Region of the American Red Cross is seeking platelet donors. Apheresis technology available at many area Red Cross blood Donor Centers allows some donors to give only platelets, while remaining blood components are returned to the donor before the process is complete. The donation takes slightly longer than a standard whole blood donation. For questions regarding eligibility, as well as a listing of local Donor Centers, which are equipped with apheresis technology, call 1-800-272-2123 or visit
www.my-redcross.org.
The Foster and Respite Care Programs of Northern Virginia Family Service are seeking gift basket donations from Northern Virginia residents and businesses. Gift baskets will be presented for distribution at the upcoming annual Foster Care Appreciation Luncheon. Items can include seasonal items such as new gardening tools, barbecue items, outdoor games for families, or home improvement items.
Those wishing to donate new items may call Maggie at 703-219-2126. For more information on becoming an NVFS foster or respite care provider, call Ginny Snaider, 703-219-2184.
The Women’s Center is launching its new online job listing service, the Center’s latest addition to its roster of career services. The site will be accessible by logging onto www.thewomenscenter.org and going to the JobsOnline link. The site went live Monday, May 16.
User-friendly, JobsOnline will feature a full range of jobs from local businesses, including part-time positions.
Employers can list a full or part-time position for only $40 for two weeks or $65 for one calendar month and $50 for each month thereafter. Listings can be seen by more than 200 visitors per day who view the Women’s Center Web site.
For information about JobsOnline or other career services at The Women’s Center, contact Carla Walsh, Coordinator of Career Services, at 703-281-2657, extension 271 or by e-mail cwalsh@thewomenscenter.org.
For information about other Women’s Center programs, contact the Women’s Center at 703-281-2657.
The League of Women Voters of Fairfax County will be holding their local unit meetings June 8 through 14. The subject will be Fairfax County libraries. Libraries have been a hot topic of discussion recently and the league is interested in your opinion. For times and locations convenient to you, call 703-658-9149 or 703-658-9150 or visit www.lwv-fairfax.org.
The League of Women Voters is a non partisan organization that promotes an active and informed participation by men and women in state, local and national government. They will meet again in September.
The International Center for Language Studies (ICLS), which has been selected to run an ESL (English as Second Language) program for 25 high-school students from France this summer, needs families to house them during each of their two three-week sessions: July 10-July 30 and July 31-Aug. 20.
In the sixth year of this program, ICLS will provide an all-encompassing cultural experience to complement the classroom curriculum. The weekday morning classes — designed to help the students acquire speaking and listening skills in American English — will be followed by afternoon field trips that present examples of history and culture in the Washington, D.C., area. Possible destinations include the White House, the U.S. Capitol, the Air & Space Museum and many other historical and cultural sites in and around the city.
ICLS is now beginning to recruit families interested in hosting a student. Families will be expected to provide room and board, to help facilitate the student’s use of public transportation to travel to and from ICLS and to include them in weekend activities that will enhance their American experience. The students will have paid for the various incidental costs; a stipend will be paid to each host family.
Contact ICLS at 202-639-8800.
More musical pleasures are in the offing as RCC ushers in another season of its popular summer-long "Take a Break" Concerts. The "Take a Break" Concerts feature an eclectic selection of musical performances by accomplished musicians in a relaxed family atmosphere. Picnicking is encouraged.
The schedule for this year's concert series is as follows:
June 9 Mariachi Feliz, traditional Mexican and Latin American folk
June 16 DPT, Louisiana funk and zydeco
June 23 Mystic Warriors, Andean, New Age and Panpipe flutes
June 30 Miles Stiebel Orchestra, big band swing and more
July 7 The T-Birds, '50s and '60s classics
July 14 Oasis, reggae and island beat
July 21 October Skies, acoustic folk
July 28 Never Alone, contemporary jazz
Aug. 4 Sol Y Rumba, Latin rhythms
Aug. 11 Uptown, vocal bebop
The concerts will be held at Lake Anne Village Center every Thursday night, from 7-9 p.m., starting June 9 and continuing to Aug. 11.
Discover great new talents at the Northern Virginia One Act Play Festival, Friday, June 17 to Sunday, June 26. The festival presents two weekends of theater by local community theater groups. This is a smorgasbord of theater with offerings that include dramas, comedies, old scripts, new scripts, experimental and traditional styles. There will be an awards event and a reception on the final Sunday. Tickets are $8 per session. A festival pass is $30 and includes admission to the awards ceremony.
Musicians, dancers, singers and storytellers from a wide variety of cultures are invited to perform at the Fifth Annual Reston Multicultural Festival. The festival will be held Saturday, Sept. 17, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., at Lake Anne Plaza. Wanted are entertainers whose performances are family-friendly and reflect authentic traditions of the many cultures that make up Reston. The focus of this year's festival will be on Central America, so performers from its many cultural backgrounds are especially welcome.
Performances will be in the Jo Ann Rose Gallery at the Reston Community Center, Lake Anne and will be 20-40 minutes in duration. To apply, send a completed application to the Reston Community Center, 2310 Colts Neck Road, Reston, VA 20191; attention Linda Ifert. Applications may be picked up at either of the RCC facilities or downloaded from the Multicultural Festival Web site at http://www.restonweb.com/multiculturalfestival/entertainers.htm.
The application and supporting materials such as demo tapes, compact discs, videos, photos, letters and press kits must be received by close of business Friday, June 24.
For further information, directions, or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact the Reston Community Center at 703-476-4500, 703-476-1514 (TTY) or visit the Web site at http://www.restoncommunitycenter.com.
Once again, RCC is co-sponsoring Reston Festival. This year's festival will feature three high-energy musical acts, the world-renowned Irish folk music group, Dervish; the Austin Lounge Lizards, who proudly bear the moniker, "the Clown Princes of Country Music;" and D.C. legend, Chuck Brown, "the Godfather of Go-Go." In addition to musical entertainment, the festival will also feature a mix of food, fun activities for the whole family and arts and crafts. Reston Festival takes place Saturday and Sunday, July 9-10, at the Reston Town Center's Equity Office Pavilion.
Reston residents are invited to free pool side cookouts in July and August. The cookouts, which are co-sponsored with Reston Association, feature free hamburgers, hot dogs, music and fun. The cookout dates and locations are Wednesday, July 13, at Dogwood Pool, from 5-7 p.m.
Friday, Aug. 12, at Golf Course Island Pool, from 5-7 p.m.
Wednesday, Aug. 24, at Lake Newport Pool, from 5-7 p.m.
Football Officials Needed. No experience necessary. The Northern Virginia Football Officials Association (NVFOA) is seeking new members for its 2005 training class who can become on-field game officials and electronic clock operators for games at the youth, middle-school and high-school levels throughout the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. They are the sole supplier of football officials to all high schools in the Virginia counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Prince William, Loudoun, and Fauquier. They also supply officials to numerous private schools in Northern Virginia, the District of Columbia and Maryland. Men and women who have reached the age of 18 and who have a desire to be a part of the scholastic game are eligible. Information and application forms are available at the Web site www.nvfoa.com or contact the commissioner, Dennis Hall, by phone at 703-532-0000 or e-mail commissioner@nvfoa.com.
MS Bands of Hope are available at Appalachian Spring in Reston Town Center. Bands can be purchased for $1 during April and May. Proceeds benefit the National MS Society, National Capital Chapter. Call 703-478-2218.
Reston Association (RA) is again offering the purchasing of pool and tennis passes via the RA Web site, www.reston.org. New this year is the season-long guest pass. This pass lasts for an entire pool season and allows any one guest of the family to use it at any given time that the pool is open. Instead of charging each guest $5 per visit, any guest can use the pass, all season long, with no limitations on pool visits, for just $20. When using the guest pass, a member of the purchasing family must accompany the guest. Call the Reston Association at 703-435-6530 or visit the RA Web site at www.reston.org and click on the pool and tennis passes icon.
The Fairfax County School Board has initiated a pilot procedure to allow citizens to sign up electronically to address the board at regular business meetings and public hearings. Although citizens may continue to call the School Board Office at 703-246-3646 to sign up to speak, they may now also sign up electronically by accessing www.fcps.edu/schlbd/requestspeak.htm and completing the required form. Specific information regarding future Board meetings are available at www.fcps.edu/schlbd/calendar.htm and guidelines for addressing the board are available at www.fcps.edu/schlbd/info.htm#mtg.
The League of Women Voters of the Fairfax Area (LWVFA) announces the publication of the 2005 edition of Facts for Voters. Published annually by the LWVFA, "Facts" is intended to be a resource for use by residents in the Fairfax Area. The brochure, though a compact 4 inches x9 inches, contains information about local, state and national elected officials plus contacts for all elected officials from the towns of Clifton, Herndon, Vienna and the City of Fairfax. It also contains information on voter registration and absentee voting plus important telephone numbers for schools, libraries and other public services and resources.
Pick up a new Facts for Voters free of charge at any Fairfax County library, Government Center, Community Center or high school.
To request a single copy, please send a stamped, self-addressed, business-size envelope to the LWVFA office at 4026 Hummer Road, Annandale, VA 22003. If you need multiple copies call the office at 703-658-8150.
The League of Women Voters is a non-partisan organization that promotes an active and informed participation in state, local and national government. All people of voting age are encouraged to become members of the League and participate in its activities. Call 703-658-9150. The League reminds all citizens to become informed about candidates and issues, register and vote.
Two Fairfax County Park Authority lakefront facilities will stock rainbow trout. Weekly stocking will begin at Lake Accotink Park and alternate weekly with Lake Fairfax throughout the season. The season runs until April 24, from 7 a.m. until dusk. Season passes are available for $35. Season passes are $30 for children ages 11-15 and residents 60 years of age and older. Purchase a daily pass for $10, $9 for children and for those over 60. Fishing regulations include a six fish daily limit, requirement to purchase a park fishing pass prior to fishing. For those over 16 years of age a Virginia issued fishing license is required. A Virginia trout stamp is not required. Call Lake Accotink at 703-569-0285, TTY 703-569-5200. Call Lake Fairfax at 703-471-5414.
The Reston Historic Trust is currently accepting donations of documents, photographs, significant letters and other memorabilia that illustrate the history of the community. Items will either become part of the Historic Trust’s permanent collection, be used as display materials at the Reston Museum or be donated to the George Mason Planned Community Archives for their exemplary collection over 300,000 pieces of Reston-related material.
Donations may be dropped off at the Reston Museum, located at Lake Anne Village Center. The Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from 12-6 p.m. Old newspapers, phone directories and other publicly distributed materials are not being accepted. Please contact Lynn Lillienthal at the Museum 703-709-7700, or at 703-966-9546 with any questions.
The Reston Museum is operated by the Reston Historic Trust (RHT). The Trust was founded in 1996 to sustain the unique history of the award-winning, innovative planned community of Reston. The RHT serves the dual role of preserving a sense of community and addressing change. Through displays and programs at the Reston Museum, the RHT is using the past to understand the present and plan for the future. Call 703-709-7700 or visit www.restonmuseum.org.
The 2005 Miss Virginia American Coed Scholarship State Pageant is looking for contestants for the pageant taking place Aug. 11-14, in Richmond. This is an "All Natural" scholarship pageant for girls ages 3-22, which emphasizes academic and volunteerism and natural look. The pageant does not allow makeup on contestants under the age of 13. For an application e-mail contact@msvaamericancoed.com or call 804-305-4239. Visit our Web site www.msvaamericancoed.com.