Fairfax County Wants Treatment, Not Jail, For Some — Fairfax County is launching a program to reduce the number of mentally ill inmates in jail by diverting nonviolent offenders in crisis into treatment. The move comes after Natasha McKenna, a schizophrenic woman, died in police custody earlier this year. [Washington Post]
Reston Developer Banking On Bethesda — Reston-based developer Duball LLC has broken ground on a luxury residential project at Woodmont Avenue and Battery Lane in Bethesda, where it says there is a demand for high-end condos. [Washington Business Journal]
Sing It, Chorale — A look inside the Reston Chorale, which will hold auditions Aug. 24. [Reston Connection]
Calling All Young Writers — The Fairfax County Public Library and the For Love of Country Foundation are holding a poetry and and essay contest for rising seventh to ninth graders. [Fairfax County]
There is still time to give back at Works Sunday this weekend.
Works Sunday, this year on Aug. 16, is a day of community service organized by Reston’s faith communities.
For 20 years, congregants have worked side-by-side on Works Sunday projects that help a spectrum of people in need –from serving lunch at the Embry Rucker Community Shelter to giving blood to helping out at Ronald McDonald House (which houses the families of sick children) at Inova Fairfax Hospital.
Signups have gone around at many of Reston’s churches and synagogues, but help is still needed.
Some project details (some involve time, some just a donation):
Donate to a shelter for abused women
Stock Shelves at Cornerstones’ Food Pantry
Diaper drive for families in need
Help senior citizens with home repair
Help run a prayer service at Lake Anne Fellowship House
Donate blood Saturday at United Christian Parish
Sing and play music at a talent show/ice cream social at Tall Oaks Assisted Living
See the entire list, as well as registration info, on the Works Sunday website.
Photo: Works Sunday 2014/Credit: Tim Barwick
Every weekday in August, Reston Now will be offering suggestions for a Summer Bucket List — things to do, places to check out and activities to try in and around Reston before summer’s end.
Obviously, different ideas will appeal to different residents in different age groups. But we are open for ideas. If you have any “must-dos” of summer (even better: with a photo of you/your family participating in said event), email us at [email protected] and we will consider it.
Reston Summer Bucket List Item 7: Camp Out Very Close to Home
So this is the year you are going to try camping with your kids. You can take a test run without leaving your zip code.
Reston’s Lake Fairfax Park has a campground, along with other park amenities such as ballfields, trails, fishing, a skate park and the recently expanded Water Mine Family Swimmin’ Hole.
Because Lake Fairfax is so close by, it is a good starting point for sleeping under the stars. The park has 136 campsites, which start at $28 a night (rates vary, including senior discounts and different scales for tents vs. campers. Visit the website for more details).
Each site has a picnic table and fire pit and parking for at least once car. Electric hookup is available at 54 sites. Pets are allowed. There are bath houses with potable water, toilets and hot showers.
So give it a try — and plan for the Appalachian Trail for next summer.
More information and reservations on the park website.
Make your reservations now. The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington’s (RAMW) Summer Restaurant Week runs from Aug. 17 to 23.
This is the 18th year RAMW has sponsored the discounts at some of the D.C.-area’s best-known restaurants. More than 200 restaurants will offer three-course prix fixe dinner ($35) and/or three-course prix fixe lunch ($22) menus.
Participating restaurants in and near Reston include:
To see a list of all participating restaurants (and link to reservations) visit the RAMW website.
New deals this year
Sneak Peek: New and existing Uber users who ride two times between Aug. 4-14, anywhere in the DMV area are eligible to win a VIP Summer Restaurant Week Sneak Peak at one of five participating restaurants. Use the Uber Promo Code DCPreviewNight before each ride to be entered for a chance to win.
Uber will randomly select five riders on Aug. 15 as winners. The winning riders, and a guest of their choice, will be picked up and driven to their dining destination on Sunday, Aug. 16, where they will enjoy an exclusive Restaurant Week dinner including appetizer, entrée and dessert. Participating Sneak Peek Restaurants include Jaleo – Bethesda, TICO, DBGB, Casa Luca and Chima Brazilian Steakhouse.
Restaurant Week Lunch Giveaway: Listeners of 94.7 Fresh FM will get the chance to win lunch with Tommy McFly, Kelly Collis and Jen Richer of The Tommy Show during Summer Restaurant Week. From Aug. 10-14, listeners will call in live to The Tommy Show when they hear the prompt for the restaurant of the day. Tommy, Kelly and Jen will then select one lucky winner per day to join them, with a guest, for lunch at Teddy & The Bully Bar, Cuba Libre, Indigo Landing and more.
Diner Rewards Program: This gives restaurant-goers the opportunity to win prizes, including a weekend getaway in New York City, ticket giveaways to Washington City Paper events, tickets to the annual Old Ebbitt Grill Oyster Riot, and a Restaurant Week Diner Reward Card for one year of dining out at participating Restaurant Week restaurants.
To enter, make reservations through the NEW Restaurant Week URL: www.rwdmv.com and then dine out. Diners who opt-in to receive emails about exclusive deals on meals from RAMW when making reservations through www.rwdmv.com will be automatically eligible and entered to win at random. (Winners will be announced in September 2015 at the Restaurant Association Educated Eats Fundraiser event. Winner(s) are not required to be present to win.)
There was a run of property crimes over the weekend, especially property taken from vehicles in several Reston neighborhoods.
From the Fairfax County Police Reston District Station crime blotter:
LARCENIES
1600 block of Oak Spring Way, wallet from residence.
2000 block of Colts Neck Road, wallet from vehicle.
2200 block of Compass Point Lane, wallet from vehicle.
2300 block of Glade Bank Way, license plate from vehicle.
1700 block of Jonathan Way, property from vehicle.
11600 block of Stoneview Square, purse from vehicle.
2200 block of Stone Wheel Drive, phone from residence.
STOLEN VEHICLES
12000 block of Greywing Square, 2015 Honda Civic.
Governor Paid His Own Way — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe paid for a state-owned plane to fly him — along with Bill and Hillary Clinton — to the U2 concert in New York City last week. [NBC Washington]
New Program For Juvenile Offenders — Fairfax County Public Schools, the Fairfax County Court Services Unit and the Fairfax County Police Department are joining together in a juvenile diversion pilot project in an effort to reduce ethnic and racial disparity in the juvenile justice system. [FCPS]
SLHS Band Kudos — South Lakes rising senior Brandon Coplen has been selected for the U.S. Army All-American Marching Band for the bass line. The 125 band members are chosen by the Reston-based National Association of Music Educators. The All-American Band performs at halftime of the All-American Bowl Jan. 9 in San Antonio.
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova says she will have surgery soon to correct a throat issue and will take part of the month of August off to recover.
Bulova sent out this statement Monday:
The Board of Supervisors will not be meeting during the month of August and during the first week in September.
I will be taking advantage of this time to address a medical issue that began in March when my right vocal cord became paralyzed, affecting my ability to speak. My voice has returned, but testing as a result of this episode revealed a nodule on the right side of my thyroid.
In mid-August, I will be undergoing a medical procedure to remove the nodule and part of my thyroid. This will be outpatient surgery and hopefully will not require a followup procedure.
My office has declined a number of invitations for events that have been scheduled during this time period. I am sharing this information to explain my absence and also to assure the community that, as always, I will be in constant contact with e-mails, my office and County staff.
I look forward to being back in the saddle after the Labor Day holiday weekend and serving as your Chairman.
Sharon Bulova
Chairman, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors
A report by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control backs up what some Fairfax County Public Schools parents and students have been saying for years: That high school and middle schools start too early.
The CDC looked at data from 40,000 schools in the 2011-12 school year. In a report issued last week, the CDC said it found that fewer than 1 in 5 middle and high schools in the U.S. began the school day at the recommended 8:30 AM start time.
Schools that have a start time of 8:30 AM or later allow adolescent students the opportunity to get the recommended amount of sleep on school nights: about 8.5 to 9.5 hours, says the CDC.
Insufficient sleep is common among high school students and is associated with several health risks such as being overweight, drinking alcohol, smoking tobacco, and using drugs – as well as poor academic performance. The proportion of high school students who fail to get sufficient sleep (2 out of 3) has remained steady since 2007, according to the 2013 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Report.
“Getting enough sleep is important for students’ health, safety, and academic performance,” said Anne Wheaton, Ph.D., lead author and epidemiologist in CDC’s Division of Population Health. “Early school start times, however, are preventing many adolescents from getting the sleep they need.”
Those statements pretty much echo what experts from Children’s National Medical Center told FCPS in a study two years ago, as well as an American Academy of Pediatrics study from 2014.
After several years of discussion and community meetings, FCPS’ board voted in fall 2014 to go forward with bell schedule changes, which will go into effect for the 2015-16 school year.
High schools, which used to start at 7:20 a.m., will now begin between 8 and 8:10 a.m. Middle schools, which used to begin after 8 a.m., will not start at 7:30 a.m. Elementary schools remain mostly unchanged.
The new bell schedule has met with a mix of feedback. Some residents say it is not really solving the problem as young teens in middle school still have to get up very early to catch a bus. FCPS board members have said since middle school is only two years, it was a more tenable plan.
Others have criticized the expense of the program, which will cost about $5 million to put in place, even as programs such as sports, arts and busing to Advanced Academic Programs are in danger of being cut as the school system faces a projected massive shortfall.
To read more details of the CDC study, visit the CDC website.
Fairfax County will once again use an archery program to control the deer population in county parks. The program will run from Sept. 12 to Feb. 20.
Want to know more? Attend a meeting Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Fairfax Government Center, 12000 Government Center Pkwy., Conference Rooms 4 & 5.
The Fairfax County Police Department, Fairfax County Park Authority and the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority, all oversee the program. Archery groups are permitted to conduct deer management at their assigned site Monday through Saturday during the Archery Program Season. Legal hunting hours in Virginia are 30 minutes prior to sunrise until 30 minutes after sunset. Sunday hunting is not allowed in the parks.
The archery program began in 2010 and is part of an integrated Deer Management Program to reduce and stabilize the white-tailed deer population in Fairfax County, the county said. Reducing the population is part of an effort to minimize safety and health hazards related an overabundance of deer, county officials say.
Some of the hazards: thousands of deer-vehicle collisions, potential spread of diseases, and environmental damage attributed to deer that can impact the entire ecosystem. The program was approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in 2000 and is recognized as a safe and efficient method of deer population control by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
Reston Association has also allowed deer hunting on homeowners’ property in a case-by-case basis.
More details from the county:
- Archery participants are required to meet state safety requirements and must pass qualifications to demonstrate skill and marksmanship, in addition to carrying program identification.
- All archers participating in the program must pass a criminal background check.
- Florescent orange and yellow signs are posted wherever managed hunting activity takes place. Archers must stay 100 feet from property lines and 50 feet from established park trails.
County authorities say there have been no injuries since the program began five years ago.
To see areas in and near Reston where deer hunting will occur, see this Fairfax County Archery Program information page.
Every weekday in August, Reston Now will be offering suggestions for a Summer Bucket List — things to do, places to check out and activities to try in and around Reston before summer’s end.
Obviously, different ideas will appeal to different residents in different age groups. But we are open for ideas. If you have any “must-dos” of summer (even better: with a photo of you/your family participating in said event), email us at [email protected] and we will consider it.
Reston Summer Bucket List Item 6: Popsicle Pool Party
It’s the last week for many Reston Association pools, so now is the time to catch any special events happening.
On Tuesday, Aug. 11, RA is hosting “Popsicle Mania,” the association’s roving summer frozen treat event for kids.
This one is at Autumnwood Pool, 1601 Walnut Branch Rd. in Reston at 2 p.m. Free Popsicles for all the kids!
Event is canceled in case of rain or threat of rain.
Can’t make it to this Popsicle Mania? There are other ones: Dogwood Pool on Aug. 19 at 2 p.m. and Ridge Heights Pool Sept. 16 at 6 p.m.
Hundreds of Herndon High School friends, families, students and former students gathered at Trinity Presbyterian Church on Sunday to remember the three Class of 2014 graduates killed in a Texas car crash on Friday and offer prayers for the two teens still recovering in a Dallas hospital.
Holly Novak, 18, of Reston, and Dale Neibaur and Kyle Mathers, both 19, died in the crash near Greenville, Texas, after a wrong way driver hit their SUV about 2 a.m. on Friday. The 78-year-old driver, Kenneth Frazier, also died in the accident.
Two others, Kevin DiCicco, 19, of Herndon, and Hannah Galbraith, 18, of Virginia Beach, were injured in the accident.
The five were heading to a video game convention in Austin when the accident occurred.
Four of the teens were former Pride of Herndon band members: Novak (drum major), Mathers (pep band manager), Neibaur (trombone section leader) and DiCicco (pit section leader).
Mathers was a member of Trinity Presbyterian, where Assistant Pastor Rebecca Messman spoke fondly of him.
“These were the best of friends,” she said. “Kyle was the leader of our youth group. We were so proud of who they were. The outpouring of support for our community has been unbelievable.”
“We are facing unspeakable grief,” she said. “But we will get through this together.”
Herndon Mayor Lisa Merkel said she has been touched by the community support.
“It is a just a tragedy for these families,” she said. “The community is coming together to support them the best we can. It says a lot of about Herndon.”
The prayer service and gathering was closed to media, but many current and former band members brought instruments to honor their friends with music. Memorial ribbons in red and black — Herndon High’s colors — were distributed to all attendees.
There has been a fund set up to help the families of Mathers, Novak and Neibaur with funeral expenses. To donate, send a check to Trinity Presbyterian Church, 651 Dranesville Road, Herndon, VA 20170-3308. Attention: Herndon Band Relief Fund. (If you want a tax-deduction receipt, attach to your check the note saying, “please send tax deduction form.”)
Friends of Galbraith have set up a Go Fund Me page to aid with medical expenses for DiCicco and Galbraith, who are both students at University of Mary Washington.
There will be grief counselors available at Herndon High on Monday, school principal William Bates said.
Photos: Top – Memorial rock at Herndon High painted Saturday; Bottom – Kyle Mathers, Holly Novak and Dale Neibaur/Courtesy Pride of Herndon Band via Facebook
Checking In On Homeless Awareness Project — It’s a been a few months since Fairfax County began its mannequin project to raise awareness of people who are homeless. So, is the project a success? [Washington Post]
Rotary Donates To Aldrin — Reston’s Rotary club gave a $2,500 donation to Aldrin Elementary School. [Reston Patch]
Officer Named in Geer Shooting Leaves FCPD — Fairfax County Police said that Officer Adam Torres, who shot unarmed citizen John Geer in August 2013, has been fired. The case remains under a grand jury investigation. [Fairfax County Police]
On The Move — Verity Commercial Real Estate has moved to larger offices in Reston. It can now be found at 1821 Michael Faraday Drive.
The two teenagers who survived a car crash that killed three recent graduates of Herndon High School remain hospitalized in Dallas, Texas Department of Public Safety officials said.
Hannah Galbraith, 18, of Virginia Beach, and Kevin DiCicco, 19, of Herndon, both rising sophomores at University of Mary Washington, are being treated at Parkland Hospital in Dallas.
Their friends Kyle Mathers, Dale Neibaur and Holly Novak — all members of the Herndon High School Class of 2014 — were killed in the accident early Friday morning.
Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Kyle Bradford said the accident occurred about 2 a.m., when an elderly wrong-way driver hit the teens’ SUV head-on as they drove down Interstate 30 heading to a weekend video game conference in Austin.
The wrong-way driver and the SUV were then hit by an 18-wheeler. The truck driver was not injured. The wrong-way driver, Kenneth Frazier, 78, was also killed, as was his dog, Bradford said.
Bradford told Reston Now there appears to be no evidence of alcohol or drugs for Frazier, but toxicology results will take several weeks.
“There is nothing that stood out,” he said. “No beer cans or anything. Most often investigations like this lead to alcohol or drugs, but sometimes it can lead to an elderly driver with impairments.”
Herndon Principal William Bates sent an email to families late Friday.
“Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends of these young people,” he said. “We think of Herndon High School as one big family, and we mourn the loss of these three young people who had such promising futures.”
Bates said counselors will be at Herndon High School next week in the event that anyone needs to talk to them.
Four of the teens were former Hornet marching band members: Novak (drum major), Mathers (pep band manager), Neibaur (trombone section leader) and DiCicco (pit section leader; also a 2014 graduate), the Pride of Herndon Band Facebook page confirmed.
Herndon High Band Director Kathleen Jacoby said the four former Herndon students really helped set the tone for today’s marching band.
“They were known for taking underclassmen under their wing,” she said. “They really shaped the way our band is now.”
Jacoby said the band community is “full of grief and in a state of shock right now.” Students and former students gathered late into the night Friday sharing stories and making a poster board of memories of their friends.
There will be a vigil for the five Sunday at 6 p.m. at Trinity Presbyterian Church, 651 Dranesville Rd., in Herndon. Read More
Three teenagers who graduated from Herndon High in 2014 were killed early this morning after a driver going the wrong way slammed into their car on a Texas highway.
Texas Department of Public Safety officials confirmed Kyle Mathers, 19, Holly Novak, 18, and Dale Neibaur, 19, died in the crash near Greenville, Tex.
Two others, Kevin DiCicco, 19, and Hannah Galbraith, 18, were injured in the crash and are at Parkland Hospital in Dallas.
Four of the students were former Hornet band members: Novak (drum major), Mathers (pep band manager), Neibaur (trombone section leader) and DiCicco (pit section leader), the Pride of Herndon Band Facebook page confirmed.
Novak lived with her mother in Reston and “was the sweetest and kindest girl ever,” a neighbor said. Novak was a student at Northern Virginia Community College.
Authorities said the teens were heading to a music festival when the fiery crash occurred on Interstate 30.
The teenagers’ SUV was struck head-on by a wrong-way driver at 1:50 a.m., Texas Department of Public Safety Trooper Kyle Bradford said.
An 18-wheeler driving behind the accident could not stop in time and slammed into both the SUV and the wrong-way driver’s car. Both vehicles caught fire.
The wrong-way driver, identified as Kenneth G. Frazier, 78, of Royce City, Tex. was also killed in the crash, as was his dog.
Photos: Kyle Mathers, left; Holly Novak, right/Credit: Herndon High Yearbook
It’s called “the summer slide,” and one Reston elementary school has found a new way to try and prevent it.
According to nonprofit Reading is Fundamental, some children can lose as much as three months of reading achievement over the summer.
RIF adds that that loss is cumulative and by fifth grade some at-risk students will be several grade levels behind.
The solution: Keep reading, of course.
Dogwood Elementary School principal Mie Devers recently loaded up the trunk of her Prius and went from neighborhood to neighborhood to pass out books to Dogwood students. Several teachers joined her as they passed out more than 50 books to students at apartment complexes and Southgate Community Center in weekly trips in July.
Books were donated by the school’s partner organizations, said Devers.
Dogwood is a Title I school, which means it has a high number of low-income and English as a Second Language students who are most at risk of falling behind.
“I feel this is a really important thing,” Devers told Reston Now. “Yes, it has to do with academics — we want the kids to come back to us in the fall where they were before. But I also want them to enjoy reading.”
Dogwood is also opening its library on Wednesday afternoons (1:30 to 5:30 p.m.) so students can check out books and enjoy read-aloud time with the school librarian, along with a craft project, said Devers.
Photo: Dogwood students and some of their new books/Credit: FCPS
