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Animal Control Officer Nabs Elusive Shih Tzu

Officer’s dogged pursuit saves sly pup from life on the streets.

Just 13 pounds of matted fur and fluff, “Biscuit,” a sly shih tzu, evaded capture in the Franconia area for nearly two years, porch-surfing and stealing cats’ food to survive.

Police Receive Alarming Number of Tax Fraud Reports

As annual tax returns are being calculated and submitted in a last-minute furor across the country, Fairfax County Police have received an alarming report of 75 to 100 cases of tax identification fraud in recent weeks. Detectives are warning residents of the scam and urge them to take precautions to prevent being victimized.

Robert Richard Carvajal, 81, of Springfield, Dies

Robert Richard Carvajal, 81, of Springfield, died at home surrounded by his family on Monday, March 18. Burial was at Fairfax Memorial Park Cemetery.

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Serving Others on Spring Break?

Spring break means something entirely different to a group of youth from Springfield.

Spring break can mean so many things to different people. Just in hearing the term we think of white sandy beaches, sleeping in late and of course the end of winter. However, spring break means something entirely different to a group of youth from Springfield: it means an opportunity to serve others.

Letter: An Interesting Perspective

I found Andrea Worker's article, "Muslim Women Encouraged to Explore STEM" [Connection, March 28-April 3, 2013] to be well-written as well as informative.

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Housing Market: Strong, But Slowing

Sustained low interest rates and rising prices have energized the marketplace, but cuts to government expenditures will eventually cool things down.

A few weeks ago, George Mason University Professor Stephen Fuller, Ph.D, published an update of his July 17, 2012 report that projected imminent and hard-hitting economic effects from sequestration.

Letter: A Photo ID: Victory for Voters

The voters of Virginia won a great victory when Governor McDonnell signed SB 1256, which changes Virginia’s law to require a recent photo ID as the only acceptable identification for voting. Thus, a positive identification can now be made with a visual check to verify that the person coming to vote is actually who he claims to be.

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Column: Paying More for Less

Poorer taxpayers are hit the hardest.

When it was first presented to the board, I described the county executive’s proposed FY 2014 budget as asking taxpayers to pay more for the same services, and asking county employees to work harder for the same pay. It’s clear that county taxpayers are hurt by this budget.

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Hackathon to Promote Invention

24-hour computer science event to be held April 26-27.

The first time Mayank Jain heard of a hackathon was as a freshman at the University of Illinois. Having graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJHSST) in June 2012, a tournament such as this, where students collaborated and created software projects within a short window of time, was what he was looking for from the field of computer sciences.

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Happy Feet

West Springfield Dance Team wins fourth consecutive NDA National Championship.

Despite being three-time national champions, the West Springfield Dance Team coaches weren’t taking anything for granted going into the 2013 NDA Nationals competition. “We didn’t think we’d win Nationals,” said coach-choreographer Tara Perez. “We’re very critical of our routines and every year is a completely new place.”

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West Springfield Wins State Championship for Drama

West Springfield High School won the state championship for drama last month at the Virginia High School League One-Act Competition Finals in Charlottesville. This is the first state drama title for West Springfield in 15 years. The theatre department presented “The Other Room,” by Ariadne Blayde, which tells the story of Austin, a high-functioning autistic teenager who tries to connect with a female classmate while battling the voices in his head.

Connolly’s Art Contest Deadline April 5

High school students residing in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District are encouraged to participate in Congressman Gerry Connolly’s annual Congressional Art Competition, An Artistic Discovery. Connolly is accepting artwork entries at his Annandale and Prince William District Offices until April 5.

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Fairfax Adult Softball Continues to Support Special Olympics

Participants, family, friends and supporters of Fairfax Adult Softball, Inc. (FAS) united together on Jan. 27 for the 13th Annual Bowling Tournament to benefit Northern Virginia Special Olympics and Fairfax County Park Authority field improvements.

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Protecting Both Gun Rights and Public Safety

It was an historic year in the Virginia General Assembly. We passed a once-in-a-generation transportation funding bill and laid the foundation for 400,000 thousand Virginians to gain health insurance through an expansion of Medicaid that will create nearly 30,000 new health care jobs.

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Muslim Women Encouraged to Explore STEM

Six women share their success story at the Lorton Library.

The Nubian Benevolence Association was the official sponsor for the Muslim Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) presentation at the Lorton Community Library on Saturday, March 23, but there was little doubt that Hajjar Ahmed, daughter of the organization’s co-Founder Hossam Ahmed, was the driving force behind the event.