Fairfax County Braces for Epic Winter Storm Jonas
Chairman Bulova says VDOT was unprepared for Wednesday night, encourages residents to stay off roads during storm.
With Winter Storm Jonas looming and expected to begin Friday afternoon, a much milder dusting of snow the previous Wednesday night caught commuters and transportation workers off-guard. Treacherous, slick roads resulted in numerous accidents and forcing drivers into gridlock around Fairfax County.
Burke and Springfield: Lake Braddock Musical Theatre presents Disney’s ‘Beauty and the Beast’
Since October, Lake Braddock junior Josh Lee has been transforming into Beast. He’s not ‘a beast,’ though he stands fairly stout at a formidable six-plus-feet-tall; Lee is cast as the dark and complex title character in his school’s Musical Theatre production of Disney’s “Beauty and the Beast.”
Lorton Brewer’s Wife Dies from Cancer
One week after a special ale was brewed to support her medical and other related costs, Kerri Rose of Alexandria died from cancer.
Fairfax Station-based Marian Homes begins work on group home Fairfax for people with disabilities
2016: Another year, another demolition and another home being renovated to meet the needs of five individuals with disabilities. On an overcast Friday, Jan. 15, Knights of Columbus volunteers assisting the Fairfax Station-based nonprofit organization Marian Homes stripped carpet and hammered and knocked down walls in a single-family home on Wilson Street in Fairfax City.
Brain Injury Services in Springfield gets survivors back into the community
In one moment, Kim Daily’s life changed forever. It was September 2011 and the Centreville resident was in a car accident where she hit her head. Afterwards she experienced some numbness and pain in her neck.
Serial Peeper Sought in Springfield
Fairfax County Police reported a series of peepings around Gloucester Avenue and Giles Place in Springfield between Dec. 29, 2015 and Jan. 15, 2016. Detectives believe one male suspect was involved in each of the incidents, fleeing after peeping into homes.
Mount Vernon: Advocate Against Opioid Abuse Attends State of the Union
Don Flattery’s son suffered an OxyContin addiction, died at 26 from an overdose.
Kevin Flattery had everything before him. A 2010 graduate of the University of Virginia, he had moved to Los Angeles after college and was starting a career in the film industry. “He was doing everything he wanted,” said Kevin’s father Don Flattery.
Burke and Vienna: Orangetheory Fitness Fits Into Community
Childhood friends become married partners, gym owners.
Gaurave Batta and his wife Leyna have always been into sports and fitness. But with two small kids at home and Gaurave running his own business intelligence consulting company, they needed a solution that was efficient, above all else.
Former Springfield Supervisor Elaine N. McConnell Dies at 88
When the aquatic plant Hydrilla was invading Burke Lake in the mid-1980s, there was an attempt to introduce a population of grass carp to eat it. Michael Frey, former Sully District Supervisor, convinced then-Springfield District Supervisor Elaine N. McConnell to put the first fish into the lake at a press event.
Coyotes on the Rise in Fairfax County
Police advise precautions
Over the last several months, Fairfax County Police said wildlife officials have received an increasing number of calls about the presence of coyotes in the area.
Mount Vernon Brief: Police Investigating ATM Fraud
Fairfax County Police believe a man used a counterfeit ATM card to withdraw cash from a SunTrust Bank machine around 4:15 p.m. on Nov. 21, 2015. The machine is located at 5922 Richmond Highway.
Burke, Fairfax Station, Springfield and Mount Vernon: Suds That Save
20 local breweries craft a beer to support one of their own.
Lawrence “Lance” Rose was born in September 2015, two months premature, to parents Matt and Kerri Rose of Alexandria. Just one month before, Kerri had been diagnosed with stage-four adenocarcinoma: stomach cancer.
Above a Cut
FCPS Superintendent Garza calls for no additional cuts in $2.67 billion FY 2017 budget
For Fiscal Year 2015, Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Karen Garza oversaw $96.5 million in cuts made from the school system’s annual operating budget. For FY 2016, it was $55.4 million, she said.
2016: The Year Ahead in Burke
With winter vacation, unseasonably warm weather and 2015 in their rear-view mirrors, community leaders and elected officials from the Fairfax County School Board, Board of Supervisors, General Assembly turn their attention to some of the most significant issues, developments or decisions in 2016.
2016: The Year Ahead in Lorton, Fairfax Station and Clifton
With winter vacation, unseasonably warm weather and 2015 in their rearview mirrors, community leaders and elected officials from the Fairfax County School Board, Board of Supervisors, General Assembly turn their attention to some of the most significant issues, developments or decisions in 2016.
Springfield in 2016
With winter vacation, unseasonably warm weather and 2015 in their rear-view mirrors, community leaders and elected officials from the Fairfax County School Board, Board of Supervisors, General Assembly turn their attention to some of the most significant issues, developments or decisions in 2016.
Mount Vernon: Gearing Up for 2016 Challenges
Looking at the year ahead.
With winter vacation, unseasonably warm weather and 2015 in their rearview mirrors, community leaders and elected officials from the Fairfax County School Board, Board of Supervisors, General Assembly turn their attention to some of the most significant issues, developments or decisions in 2016:
School Board Sued over Nondiscrimination Policy Changes
Liberty Counsel challenges board’s authority to add sexual orientation and gender identity.
When the members of the Fairfax County School Board added sexual orientation and gender identity to the school system’s nondiscrimination policy in November 2014 and May 2015, did they have the authority?
Mount Vernon: UCM Adjusting How To Elevate People Out of Poverty
Nichelle Mitchem has always been interested in poverty issues. “In the high school yearbook, other people’s future interests were roller-skating and disco dancing,” she said. “Mine said ‘poverty lawyer.’”
Mount Vernon: Man Shot in Brockham Drive Home
Fairfax County Police are investigating the relationship between a 49-year-old man who was shot in a residence in the 8300 block of Brockham Drive and a possible suspect.
Fairfax, Vienna: Fourth Thai By Thai Opens in Dunn Loring
Chief Chef Eed Banchanurat Landon loves to listen to and accommodate her customers. When those at the Sterling location of her Thai By Thai restaurants started requesting other dishes than were on the menu -- things they remembered eating back in Thailand -- she was happy to oblige.
Burke, Fairfax Station and Springfield: Lake Braddock Student Dies in Crash
Friends, family and members of the Lake Braddock Secondary School Community gathered Sunday night Dec. 21 to mourn the loss of Laween A. Akrawi, 18, a Lake Braddock Bruin who died at the scene of a single-vehicle crash on Dec. 18. They laid candles and flowers by an easel holding his senior picture.
Lorton Community Action Center Distributes Food and Toys to Hundreds
On Friday, Lorton Community Action Center executive director Linda Patterson realized they were going to be short on gift cards for clients as part of the nonprofit’s holiday package distribution.
Springfield: Shopping at Koinonia’s Christmas Wishes
Franconia and Kingstowne residents who receive financial and domestic services and assistance from the Franconia-based Koinonia Foundation got the opportunity to shop for Christmas gifts at the nonprofit’s annual Christmas Wishes Program on Dec. 10.
Fairfax County School Board Opens the Door for School Name Changes
No decisions made to affect current school names.
The Fairfax County School Board did not change any names of schools at its Dec. 17 regular business meeting.
Mount Vernon: Inova Hospital Staying Here and Growing
New Inova Emergency Department to open late 2016.
Inova Mount Vernon Hospital isn’t going anywhere. That was the message hospital Chief Executive Officer Deborah Addo had for local business leaders at the Dec. 10 breakfast sponsored by the Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce at Belle Haven Country Club.
Fairfax County: McAuliffe Proposing More for Education
Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D, left) unveiled his budget proposal for $1 billion in public and higher education investment at Mark Twain Middle School in Alexandria on Dec. 16, as part of the total state budget he plans to roll out on Thursday, Dec. 17.
Mount Vernon: Police Change Charge to Murder
Fairfax County Police detectives have increased the charge for Andre Curtis Wilkins from malicious wounding to murder in the shooting death of 27-year-old Marquel Davis.
Fairfax Station Woman Survives Lung Cancer Scare
Early detection and new screening technology caught nodule in early stage.
It was not Fairfax Station resident Jackie Marino’s first time visiting the Burke Allergy and Asthma Center with a resurgent sinus infection. The elementary school Spanish teacher had cycled through treatment several times, complaining of a sinus infection, receiving antibiotics, seeing some resolution and then returning when the infection came back.
Fairfax: Menorah Bringing Light to Mosaic
Children shrieked and chased each other through the passageway beneath the Mosaic District towering Christmas tree, while a trio of cantors from Temple Rodef Shalom in Falls Church led a small crowd in festive Hanukkah songs such as “I Am a Latke.”
Burke: Taste of Braddock Showcases Local Cuisines
More than a dozen local restaurants, grocery stores and other food businesses showcased their cuisines for the community on Dec. 9 at the 2015 Taste of Braddock.
Fairfax Station: Sentence in Drug Possession, Distribution Case
12-year sentence handed to Fairfax Station man for possessing and distributing heroin and oxycodone.
Thirty-two-year-old Michael Ryan Martin of Fairfax Station was sentenced to serve 12 years in prison for possessing and conspiracy to distribute heroin and oxycodone, according to a Dec. 11 release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Lorton, Fairfax Station & Springfield: Swim Teams Bring in Toys for Tots
Before their head-to-head meet on Dec. 12, members of the South County and West Springfield High School swim and dive teams dropped off dozens of new toys for the South Run RECenter’s Toys for Tots donation drive.
Mount Vernon: Alice’s Kids Donates Items to Enhance Student Self-Esteem
As a seventh grader growing up in Long Island, current Mount Vernon resident Ron Fitzsimmons missed 60 days of school because he was too embarrassed to go. After his father abandoned them, Fitzsimmons’ family survived on welfare, but only just.
Mount Vernon: Police Make Arrest In November Shooting
Fairfax County Police arrested Andre Curtis Wilkins, 21, of Waldorf, Md. on Dec. 4 and charged him with malicious wounding related to the Nov. 18 shooting death of Marquel L. Davis, 21, of Audubon Avenue.
Lorton: Breaking Ground on Mixed-Use Laurel Hill “Village”
The last prisoner at Lorton Reformatory was transferred away in 2001. In 16 months, the aged red brick walls that once housed criminals in the hopes of rehabilitating them through various work projects could be housing people on the other side of the penal system.
Springfield Businesses Help Bundle Up
The back of the house at Springfield’s Ecumenical Community Helping Others resembles the staging area for Santa’s all-nighter. Aisles upon aisles of assorted clothing, toys, kitchen equipment and other home goods wait in orderly fashion to be stocked in the nonprofit’s shopping area serving clients with low or no income.
Burke: Marsden Speaks on Future of Local Transportation
State Sen. Dave Marsden (D-37) reminded the audience at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Burke that even though their lifestyle and relationships with gasoline, cars and roads may be different than people in more rural parts of Virginia, most counties in the state must play by the same rules in terms of paying taxes and seeing transit maintenance and development come back from Richmond.
West Springfield Spartan Theatre to Perform Live Radio Broadcast of ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’
Using just microphones and their voices -- and a few audio tricks -- members of West Springfield High School Spartan Theatre are bringing the 1946 classic movie “It’s A Wonderful Life” to life as a live radio broadcast on Friday, Dec. 18.
Mount Vernon: Beacon at Groveton Wins Highway Beautification Award
The Southeast Fairfax Development Corporation recognized local businesses doing exceptional work to enhance their streetview image with the annual holiday open house and Mary Thonen Highway Beautification Awards.
Citizen Speakers Turn Out for J.E.B. Stuart High Name Change
School Board to take action Dec. 17
J.E.B. Stuart High School senior Whitten Rutledge is proud of his school, mostly.
Mount Vernon: Wreath and Christmas Tree Sale at St. Aidan's
Now in sixth year raising money for outreach and operating expenses, the church has brought in 540 freshly cut evergreens from a small North Carolina vendor.
Mount Vernon: Fox Trot Tradition Continues at Fort Hunt
A record-breaking 430-plus participated in the 14th annual Fort Hunt Elementary School Fox Trot run on Saturday, Nov. 21.
Springfield Bakers Turn Culinary Passions into Home-based Companies
Tanya Logan had all the intentions of being in the corporate world forever. She was a successful accountant for a Fortune 500 company, someone who counseled coworkers on figuring out whether that career path was for them.
Abiding Presence Lutheran Church and Temple B’nai Shalom hold 29th joint Thanksgiving eve service.
When he applied for Minister of Music position at Abiding Presence Lutheran Church in Burke, David Chavez said he was told there’s just one non-negotiable date on the calendar: Thanksgiving eve.
Performance of Ellington’s Jazz “Nutcracker Suite” Benefits Burke Charity
Abiding Presence Lutheran Church in Burke will host a live performance of Duke Ellington’s jazz interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker Suite” from 1960.
Burke Centre Swim Teams Present Donation to Burke CARES
Continuing an annual tradition dating back to the early 2000s, representatives from the Burke Centre Penguins and Stingers summer swim teams presented Burke CARES a check for $2,668.50 on Nov. 12.
Adam Torres trial for murder of John Geer postponed until April 2016
Former Fairfax County police officer Adam Torres was charged with second-degree murder in August this year for shooting Springfield resident John Geer in August 2013. The trial was scheduled to begin on Dec. 14, but a continuance was recently granted to the defense, pushing it back until April 18, 2016.
250 Brave Cold in 23rd Burke CROP Hunger Walk
Jennifer Weiner’s wristband read 11,188 steps. That’s how many it took the Springfield resident to complete the 3.7-mile Burke CROP Hunger Walk on Nov. 22. Weiner is Rabbi Educator for Congregation Adat Reyim, which sent more than a dozen volunteers to the fundraiser for the 14th straight year.
Burke, Springfield: Drug awareness meeting at Lake Braddock highlights rise in youth heroin use
Youth Heroin Use Described As ‘a big problem’
Heroin use is here in Fairfax. “It’s definitely here,” said 19-year veteran officer employed by both the Fairfax County Police Department and Drug Enforcement Administration as a Task Officer who spoke at a drug awareness meeting sponsored by the Lake Braddock Secondary School Parent Teacher Student Association.