Creating a Spooky Halloween Dinner
Local culinary experts offer ideas for turning an ordinary meal into a ghoulish adventure.
Halloween dinner in Christine Wisnewski’s Vienna home is often a balancing act between healthy and sugary. On the sweetest holiday of the year, for example, the mother and culinary instructor at Culinaria Cooking School, also in Vienna, prepares a wholesome dinner for her eager trick-or-treaters, managing candy-induced sugar highs and inevitable post-confection lows.
Springfield Home Sales: September, 2013
In September 2013, 132 Springfield homes sold between $750,000-$180,000.
Springfield Home Sales: September, 2013
Editorial: Don’t Let Negatives Keep You From Voting
Choices are stark; think about what principles should guide governance in Virginia for the next four years.
Every Virginia voter will have the option to cast a ballot for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and their member of the Virginia House of Delegates. While much of the coverage and advertising at the top of the ticket has been negative in the extreme, it will still matter who is governor. Don’t turn up your nose, hold your nose if necessary, and go vote. You can vote on Nov. 5; most likely you can vote before that.
Classified Advertising October 16, 2013
Read the latest ads here!
Kids Sending Smiles Around the World
Youth non-profit to hold 5K Run/Walk for Breast Cancer at Burke Lake Park.
The Court of the 2013 Lee District Lady Fairfax was in session, but there were no royal activities underway. Instead, 11-year-old Samantha Underwood and her friends were busy reminiscing about past events and planning future ones for Kids Sending Smiles (KSS)—the charitable organization they established when a friend of Philippine ancestry told Samantha about the conditions and the poverty, especially among young girls, in the native country of her family.
Westminster at Lake Ridge Celebrates 20th Anniversary
The 20th anniversary of the founding of Westminster at Lake Ridge, a continuing care non-profit community, was held on Saturday, Oct. 5 near historic Occoquan.
Springfield Teacher Honored in Richmond
Governor McDonnell congratulates Melissa Porfirio, 2014 Virginia Teacher of the Year.
Governor Bob McDonnell congratulated Fairfax County teacher Melissa A. Porfirio for her selection as Virginia’s 2014 Virginia Teacher of the Year. Porfirio teaches first grade at Crestwood Elementary School in Springfield. Her selection was announced Friday evening, Oct. 11, in Richmond.
Week in Springfield
Week in Springfield
Fairfax County Police are investigating a fatal crash that took place on Franconia Road near the on-ramp for I395/I95 just before 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 9. Preliminary investigation reveals that an adult woman was crossing Franconia Road, not in a crosswalk, when a 2002 Ford pickup truck struck and killed the pedestrian.
Pierson-El Leads West Potomac Past West Springfield
Wolverines quarterback throws 3 TDs, runs for 3.
West Potomac improved to 2-4.
Battleground Northern Virginia
What role will the region play in the election?
For many years, Northern Virginia has been written off by both parties as a Democratic stronghold — a place where Republicans simply try to cut their losses while they focus on the rest of the commonwealth. But this election cycle may be different. All three of the gubernatorial candidates are from Fairfax County. And recent statewide candidates have not been able to win without picking off selected jurisdictions in Northern Virginia. "As you look at Northern Virginia that's further from Washington, you see a more Republican area — Prince William, western Fairfax, Fauquier," said Stephen Farnsworth, professor at University of Mary Washington. "That's where the real action is in Northern Virginia politics." As Election Day draws closer and television becomes a virtual battlefield for attention, a real battle is brewing on the ground here in Northern Virginia. Candidates and their advisors are looking at the path to victory back in 2009 for Republican Bob McDonnell, who won Prince William County, Fairfax County and Fauquier County. Although this race is likely to be closer than 2009, the importance of Northern Virginia is looming larger than ever.
What’s in a Name?
Virginia legislators work with Korean American groups to push for “East Sea” in textbooks.
Virginia’s gubernatorial candidates Ken Cuccinelli (R) and Terry McAuliffe (D) may be light years apart on most issues, but on one issue they’ve reached a consensus. Last month, they both pledged support to Virginia’s growing population of Korean Americans to use the dual names of “East Sea” and “Sea of Japan” to denote the body of water between Korea and Japan in Virginia’s textbooks. Koreans view the “Sea of Japan” designation as a legacy of Japanese colonial rule. Currently, more than 2.5 million Korean-Americans reside in the U.S. and nearly 150,000 of them live in Virginia. “As governor, going forward, I will wholeheartedly support the effort … to have our textbooks and other teaching materials reflect the concurrent names as we pursue education excellence in Virginia,” Cuccinelli wrote in a Sept. 16 letter to the Korean Community of Virginia. “As governor, I will ensure that as new texts are purchased or downloaded, they reflect this important historical truth …,” McAuliffe wrote to the Korean Community of Virginia on Sept. 25. For the past year, state Sen. Dave Marsden (D-37) has been leading Virginia’s legislative efforts to add the “East Sea” in public school textbooks.
Editorial: Get a Flu Shot, Register to Vote
Getting a flu shot has never been easier.
Classified Advertising October 9, 2013
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United States Air Force Hits the Mark at Paul VI
Not all assemblies are the same, and Paul VI Catholic High School in Fairfax recently hosted one for the record books. By 11 a.m. on Sept. 25, Air Force trucks and vans had converged to the school’s back parking lot, and AF personnel were busy moving equipment in bags and anvil cases into the school. Meanwhile, PVI’s Music Boosters set out a reception for the 75 arriving Air Force personnel. In the Student Activity Center, mats were laid out, chairs and stands placed, sound system checked and rechecked, and soon it was time. At 1:15, the Air Force Band from Bolling Air Force Base D.C. began an awe-inspiring concert for participating teachers and classes.
Woodson Cavaliers March Along
Woodson High’s homecoming parade was Friday, Oct. 4.
West Springfield Volleyball Sweeps T.C. Williams
Nagel leads Spartans with 10 kills.
Spartans edge Titans in sets one and two, run away with set three.
Walking to Feed the Hungry
n mutual cooperation, the administrations of three states, including Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. all signed proclamations officially declaring the period of Sept. 15-29, 2013 as The Day to Serve and as a time to initiate activities that would assist the poor in our area and combat hunger. One of the more successful activities held was a 3K walk (1.8 miles) on Saturday, Sept. 28, starting from Robinson Secondary School in the Burke area of Fairfax County through the shaded streets and past the manicured yards of the local neighborhood. Food donations from the participants were distributed to the local food banks.
Raising Awareness, Money To Stop Domestic Violence
A woman battered and bruised by her abusive husband leaves one night to escape. Unable to find a safe place to stay, she is forced to go back, time and time again. Across town another woman flees with her children. Not knowing where to go, they sleep in the woods despite freezing temperatures. In a third house, a child pulls the blankets over her head, trying to drown out the sound of yelling and punching down the hall. It’s a sad American truth that one in three women murdered are killed by an intimate partner. In Fairfax County 57 percent.
South County Football off to 4-1 Start
Stallions dismantle West Springfield, 54-3.
South County scored more than 50 points in each of its four victories this season.
Community Concert Assists Local Food Banks
On Sunday, Sept. 29 at Fairfax High School, Grammy nominated violinist Jenny Oaks Baker and the Mormon Choir of Washington, D.C. held a concert as part of the annual “Day to Serve” initiative to feed the hungry. A crowd of 800 people came out and donated approximately 1,600 pounds of nonperishable goods. This food will be put to good use by local area food banks that are responding to unprecedented demand from those in need.