Comstock Wins 10th District Race
Comstock scores resounding 17-point victory over Democratic opponent John Foust.
Shortly after 10 p.m. Tuesday night, Republican Del. Barbara Comstock entered the Hilton ballroom in Ashburn to the tune of her favorite song - “This One’s for the Girls” sung by Martina McBride. The sassy, defiant country anthem – which tells girls to “stand your ground when everyone’s giving in” – struck the right chord with Comstock’s supporters, who chanted and clapped along with the music as Comstock took the stage to deliver her victory speech.
Gerry Gets Things Done
Democratic incumbent Connolly fends off Republican challenger Suzanne Scholte.
As Huey Lewis and the News’ “Power of Love” poppy ballad led a soundtrack infused with ’80s pop and modern country music, the mood at the DoubleTree Crystal City hotel in Arlington ebbed and flowed between elated cheers and frustrated boos.
Paper Trail
Single voting method helps streamline the process.
When it comes to voting, paper is the past, the present and the future. The assistant chief election officer at Robinson Secondary school James Emery Jr. of Fairfax said paper is too valuable as a voting record to abandon.
Area Scouts Participate in Fall Camporee
The Old Dominion District Fall Camporee was held Oct. 17, 18, and 19 at Sky Meadows State Park. Six hundred seventeen Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Venture scouts and Scouters from Old Dominion, Colonial, and Occoquan Districts participated in this Pioneer theme campout.
iPads Come Into the Classroom
Sixty first and second graders at Keene Mill try out these devices during the school day.
Tablets and iPads in the hands of 6-year-olds is not such an unusual sight anymore, and now these devices are being used in the classroom. At Keene Mill Elementary School, 60 iPads are in the hands of first and second grade students, and being used to “change the time, place and pace of learning.”
Take a Hike!
Hiking group brings nature closer to Northern Virginians.
Shortly before 1 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 26, the parking lot by the softball field at Wakefield Park in Annandale filled up and several people approached Stefan Eom, of Annandale, the leader for the six-mile Wakefield to Lake Accotink hike organized by the Northern Virginia Hiking Club (NVHC).
High Schools to Start Later Next Year
School Board approves later start times.
Phyllis Payne has been fighting for more sleep for a decade. On Oct. 23, it all paid off. The co-founder of Start Later for Excellence in Education Proposal - or SLEEP - saw the Fairfax County Public School Board approve to move high school start times ahead by 30 minutes, 11-1.
Fairfax County Calendar
Your guide to entertainment in Fairfax County.
For those looking to fill their calendar with some home-brewed, Fairfax County fun stuff (read: entertainment and diversion), The Connection's Fairfax County Entertainment Calendar has many options: weekend jaunts and larks; date night inspiration; winter-to-spring fun; day-long festivals and events; art-outings; family fun-and-learning fusions; plays and shows; beyond-Small Business Saturday local shopping and bazaars; markets of handcrafted wares; music; 1Ks to marathons... the list goes on. If you know of an event not listed in our entertainment calendar, email it to south@connectionnewspapers.com for happenings in south Fairfax County or north@connectionnewspapers.com for entertainment in the northern parts of the county.
Board Approves Bicycle Master Plan
The Fairfax County Government Center has several massive parking lots. Many hundreds of spaces. But Bruce Wright and members of the Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling only needed some rack real estate in front of the building. They rode into the afternoon session of the Board of Supervisors on two wheels apiece from Reston, taking the West Ox Road Side Path.
Stage Presence
Cappies recognized among arts leaders at Arts Council awards.
After Bill Strauss first approached Judy Bowns about creating a student-driven arts awards and journalism organization 16 years ago, the ensuing creative partnership resembled a pair of cartoon characters.
Column: Running Out of Efficacy
Not that I’m the least bit worried (actually, I’m the most bit worried), but surviving a terminal cancer diagnosis years beyond one’s original prognosis does present its own unique set of problems.
Substance Abuse Forums to be Held Nov. 10 and 18 in FCPS
The signs and symptoms of teenage drug abuse, the actions parents can take, and where to find supportive resources will be shared at an upcoming “Protect Against Substance Abuse” community program, scheduled for Monday, Nov. 10, at South County High School, and Tuesday, Nov. 18, at Fairfax High School. The nonprofit Unified Prevention Coalition of Fairfax County (UPC) and its work group, PROTECT (Parents Reaching out to Educate Communities Together), will present this educational program.
Editorial: Change for the Better in Fairfax County Schools
Later start times, full-day Mondays; who knows, next maybe gifted-and-talented programs for poor students?
Who says big bureaucracies can’t make big changes? One year into the tenure of Karen Garza, we have two huge changes that between them impact almost every single student, every family with children in Fairfax County Public Schools.
Local Foundation Promotes Campus Safety
The VTV Family Outreach Foundation, a Centreville-based national non-profit campus safety advocacy organization, held their 2014 annual meeting last weekend at the Sheraton Reston Hotel. VTV was formed by the families of victims and survivors of the April 16, 2007 mass shooting tragedy at Virginia Tech.
Opinion: Vote ‘Yes’ on Transportation Bond
When you enter the voting booth on Nov. 4, you’ll be asked to vote Yes or No on a $100 million Fairfax County transportation bond. (Bonds are a form of long-term borrowing to finance public facilities and infrastructure and spread the costs over a long time frame. Virginia law requires that general obligation bonds be approved by voters in a referendum.)
Peace Festival Held in Ridgeview Park
The Ridgeview Park Peace Festival was held Sunday, Oct. 19 in Ridge View Estates off Franconia Road. The festivities included a park bench dedication and tree-planting ceremony with remarks by Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova.
Helping End Hunger One Step At a Time
The 22nd Annual Burke Area CROP Walk to be held Nov. 23.
Area residents can help end hunger and raise funds for disaster relief on Sunday, Nov. 23, at the 22nd Annual Burke Area CROP [Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty] Hunger Walk – a humanitarian outreach to our local, national, and international communities.
Seniors Compete for Gold, Silver and Bronze
Hundreds participate in Northern Virginia Senior Olympics.
Whack! Smack! These were the constant sounds going back and forth during the pickleball finals at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center in Arlington. The pickleball games were part of the Northern Virginia Senior Olympics taking place at several venues throughout the region.
Thirty-Six FCPS Students Named to Virginia Honors Choir
Vocal musicians from 14 Fairfax County public schools have been named to the Virginia Honors Choir for 2014. This select choir is open only to the top 125 singers from around the Commonwealth of Virginia, and is the highest honor a choir student can attain during his or her high school career.
Connect Four
Complete ballot of 11th District candidates faced off in Lake Ridge.
It wasn’t so much a down and dirty debate as a no-frills four-way question-and-answer session. Not that AARP and the League of Women Voters of the Fairfax Area (LWVFA), two of the sponsors of the “Meet the Candidates” series billed the Oct. 14 event as such. Tuesday’s meeting was the penultimate of seven events in the series.