Falls Church News-Press 6-8-2023

June 8 - 14, 2023

Falls Church, Virginia • w w w . fc n p . c o m • Free

Founded 1991 • V o l . X X X III N o . 17

The City of Falls Church’s Independent, Locally-Owned Newspaper of Record, Serving N. Virginia

Stevens & Hardi Jump Into Race

HATS OFF, CLASS OF ‘23!

F.C.’s November City Council Ballot Fills Out

by Nicholas F. Benton

Falls Church News-Press

With the June 20 deadline rapidly approaching to file certain documents signifying intentions to run for the Falls Church Council this November, two new candidates have stepped up in the last week to announce they’ll be in the race.

Both are well known and highly qualified. The first is current F.C. Vice Mayor Letty Hardi, who will be vying for a third four-year term, and the second is F.C. Planning Commission chair Tim Stevens.

It means the community leaders who have contributed the most to the City’s stunning progress in terms of thoughtful economic growth, high quality schools and advancing quality of life in recent decades will be running for all three of the open Council slots this November.

Hardi and Stevens will join Falls Church Forward activist Justine Underhill in what will informally constitute a slate of top drawer choices dedicated to the City’s continued progress.

A fourth candidate, Erin Flynn, on the board of the Village Preservation and Improvement Society, has also announced and qualified for the ballot Hardi, who ran for public office for the first time in 2015 as a consensus choice among a group of concerned parents with young children in City schools, has again stepped up after a

Continued on Page 3

THE MERIDIAN HIGH SCHOOL Class of 2023 culminated its graduation ceremony at the new high school’s football field with a rousing cheer and thrust of caps skyward yesterday morning. See more photos of the historic event on P. 10 of this edition. (Photo: Sam Mostow)

How Huge Are The New ‘T-Zone’ Changes?

by Nicholas F. Benton

Falls Church News-Press

The City of Falls Church Planning Department came to the F.C. City Council work session Monday with a significantly revamped plan for modifying transitional zone changes that have had local citizens concerned about the issue scratching their heads trying to figure out what it all means.

The way that F.C.‘s chief planning czar Paul Stoddard explained it to the News-Press yesterday, the changes are mostly technical, while it was comments coming from the Council Monday on the kind of housing they would like to see there that

may prove the most impactful.

He said that a consensus of Council guidance was significant that urged modifications to incentivize a majority of the new housing that may get developed on the “T-Zone” areas of the City to be built for under a million dollars at under 2,000 square feet per unit.

“This is being read by the wider development community as suggesting Falls Church is getting back into the town house development business,” he said.

Otherwise, the revisions proposed by him and Planning Department colleague Jack Trainor suggest only technical revisions to bring their proposed ordinance into compli-

ance with state law, Stoddard said. They include making it clear that increases in affordable housing numbers must be correlated with increases in density bonuses for developers.

For the more than 120 public meetings that have already been held in the last year and a half in the City on the contentious issue of the transitional zoning changes, the changes introduced this week do not change the calculus in any meaningful way for the scores of citizens who’ve stepped up to voice strong opposition on grounds that new building in “t-zone” areas threaten to impose on their properties. Matters of building heights and setbacks are not

changed in this new set of modifications.

That’s at least what’s intended, Stoddard told the NewsPress. He suggested that the Council comments Monday caused townhouse developers to “perk up” around the region, although the result would not be an extraordinary amount of new development on the thin areas designated at “T-zones” that are designed to be buffers between commercial zones and purely residential ones.

He said that suggestions to limit the maximum average size of a new unit in that area, and the Council urging that they be

Continued on Page 4

LO CA L

PAGE 2 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

Fa l l s C h u r c h

HARVEY’S S U N J UN E 1 8 • 9 - 3 P M

Fat h er’ s Day B runc h C a rvi ng Station BBQ Ribs Sliced 7 Hills Steak Icelandic Cedar Plank Salmon

Pasta Station Spaghetti Carbonara Cheese Wheel

Brunch Favorites

$45

Kids 17 & Under

$25

Kids menu available a la carte

Scrambled Eggs Bacon Sausage Pa n c a k e s Biscuits & Gravy Shrimp & Grits

harveysva.com 3-Year TV Price Guarantee 99% Signal Reliability, now backed by our Reliability Guarantee Multi-Sport with NFL Redzone from NFL Network

A TV PRICE YOU CAN RELY ON ONLY FROM DISH

3-YEAR TV PRICE GUARANTEE

A TV Price you can rely on - only from DISH *Restrictions Apply

Call us now!

ORDER TODAY & RECEIVE A

$100 GIFT CARD

1-844-648-8812

Offer for new and qualifying former customers only. 3-year price guarantee requires credit qualification and 2-year commitment and covers core programming, local networks, and equipment.

Early termination fee of $20/mo. remaining applies if you cancel early. Offer ends 4/12/23. 99% signal reliability based on data from set-top boxes. Not a guarantee of signal in all weather conditions. *Thursday Night Football: Internet connected Hopper and a Prime Video subscription required.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

NEWS BRIEFS Mystery Authors Host Talk Saturday at Library Here Mary Riley Styles Public Library (MRSPL) in the City of Falls Church is excited to announce that mystery authors Katharine Schellman and Stacie Murphy will visit the library together for an author talk and book signing event at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, 2023. The library will also welcome poet, essayist and memoirist Diana Goetsch at 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 1, 2023, to discuss and sign her critically acclaimed memoir, “This Body I Wore.” MRSPL will co-host both events with Bards Alley Bookshop.

Schellman will promote the release of “The Last Drop of Hemlock,” a sequel to “Last Call at the Nightingale,” the first installment in her new Nightingale mystery series. An atmospheric and intriguing historical mystery that takes place in the 1920s Jazz Age, “The Last Drop of Hemlock” was released on June 6, 2023.

Schellman will be in conversation with Murphy, author of the Amelia Matthew mystery series, which takes place in the Gilded Age and includes “A Deadly Fortune” and “The Unquiet Dead.”

Warner Touts Casey For Security Center Head U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.), Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, today issued the following statement: “The United States faces a dramatically different threat landscape today than it did just a couple of decades ago, with new threats and new technology that mean we must make substantial adjustments to our counterintelligence posture if we are going to successfully safeguard our national and economic security. I have worked closely alongside Mike Casey ever since he became staff director of the Senate Intelligence Committee in 2016, and I can think of no one more qualified to lead these efforts as head of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. I congratulate him on this nomination, and I look forward to a thorough and swift confirmation process before the Senate Intelligence Committee.”

Kaine Confirms Commitment To Sane Gun Control Policies “Earlier this spring,” U.S. Tim Kaine announced this week, “I got a letter

from a Virginia student. I want to share part of what she wrote to me. The student said: “Hello Senator. I am terrified to go to school. I have lived in your state for six years, but I have never been more scared than I am when I go to school every day. “...I’m supposed to be safe at school.

Something needs to change. I’m not the only kid who feels this way. Why should I be scared to go to school?

“Four days after I got this letter, our country watched as Nashville became the latest community to mourn the unthinkable, with the lives of three nine-year-olds cut cruelly short and three adults senselessly killed.

“When these tragedies happen, I find myself getting angry when I hear my colleagues in the Senate simply offer ‘thoughts and prayers.’ Thoughts and prayers are meaningful, but it starts to sound very hollow when that is the response, and nothing more.

“But let me be self critical. I often say, when the unthinkable happens yet again, that I’m heartbroken for the families, and that we need to pass meaningful legislation in Congress to stop it from happening again, like an assault weapons ban. But if we think that offering thoughts and prayers and nothing else is hollow, the truth is, saying that we should do an assault weapon ban — when we know it’s not going to happen anytime soon — begins to sound hollow, too.

“I do think we need an assault weapons ban. We’ve had one in the past. We know it helps reduce gun violence. But we also know that there is zero chance in the near future that this governing body is going to get to 60 votes for that ban, or many other kinds of gun safety regulations that would make a student be less afraid.

“Here is my challenge to myself and to all my colleagues in Congress: Ask yourself if we’ve let the debate around this important issue become stale and futile. Are there solutions and strategies that we’re not talking about, that we might be able to find some common ground on?

“This youngster’s letter cries out to us, demanding that we find common ground. That we avoid complacency.

That we not do nothing.

“I don’t have the answers right now, but you better believe that I am committed to finding a way forward on this.”

FCNP.COM | FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

LO CA L

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 3

Hardi and Stevens Announce Their Candidacy for City Council

Continued from Page 1

lengthy period of deciding, as she did when she first ran, and then decided to run for re-election in 2019. This last year she was elected vice-mayor by her council colleagues, and if she wins again this November, she will almost certainly be elected mayor when sworn in come January 2024.

Hardi announced her decision to run again via a blog post on her website late last week.

Stevens announced his intention to the News-Press at this Tuesday’s meeting of the City’s Economic Development Authority. His long history of engagement with environmental issues in Falls Church, first on the Environmental Sustainability Council and more recently since his appointment to the City’s venerated Planning Commission preceded this latest announcement.

Serious concerns arose in the last month over the election, given that, first, long-time Mayor David Tarter announced that he would not seek election to a fifth four-year term and record sixth two-year term as mayor this fall. That was followed by the health issue that caused veteran Council member Phil Duncan

to suddenly be hospitalized and told he needed a full lung transplant.

That surgery has gone remarkably well, and Duncan has already been sent home for a lengthy process of recuperation, “attending” his first Council meeting remotely from his home just last week. But the notion he could be counted on to run a vigorous campaign for re-election seemed remote.

So while the trio of Tarter, Hardi and Duncan have been re-elected twice before this year, this time Hardi is the only one still returning. But her mentoring of Justine Underhill preceded the latter’s decision to run, announced last month, and now Stevens’ entrance into the race as a long ally of Hardi and Duncan means that the “slate” this year is intact once more even if the names are different.

Duncan texted the News-Press upon hearing the news of Stevens, “Great good news! He, Justine and Letty are a terrific trio to carry forward the fight for a sustainable, equitable, vibrant suburban city.”

Stevens yesterday submitted to the News-Press the following statement of his candidacy: “My running for City Council comes as a surprise to me — the

132 W Broad St, Falls Church, VA 22046 dogwoodtavern.com

result of important locals I greatly respect urging me to do so in the last few days. City Council has done a very good job in recent years in keeping the City moving in the right direction. I will support many good programs underway.

“I stand in the shadow of two council members in particular — Dan Sze and Phil Duncan. I want to do my part to continue policies important to them and to me, especially protecting our environment and strengthening our commercial sector.

“Both issues are key enablers of a good life for future generations.

Unless we address the challenge of climate change — including lowering our emissions and preparing for steadily worsening weather — we will hand off a bad deal to future generations. Expanding and diversifying our commercial sector allows us to stay in the City for more of the things we do. Tax receipts from our businesses pay for the civic services we want and are key to lowering our tax rate.

“I support many other good policies embraced by City Council, including maintaining our excellent school system (good schools are our brand). Reducing over-reliance on

cars is important to me for many reasons, especially personal safety.

Continuing to improve conditions for walking and biking is high on my list.

“Keeping the City current with emerging issues is essential to our ability to continue as a separate jurisdiction. We need to pay attention and act on housing affordability issues.

And we need to continue work on making the City a welcome place for all.

“During my 32 years as a resident, I have happily volunteered in many capacities, including chair of the Environmental Sustainability Council, on the board for both VPIS and CBC, member of BFC and FCCAN, planted many trees through the Neighborhood Tree Planting program, and currently as Chair of the Planning Commission. Serving on the City Council is in many ways an extension of these activities.

“I am increasingly sensitive to the needs of senior citizens (I am one), although I continue to gain strength through observing the remarkable skills of those younger than me.

“The list of issues I support is not complete here, but I hope there is enough for you to support my candidacy.”

According to Falls Church registrar David Bjerke, all four candidates named in this article have submitted their filing information, including 125 valid signatures of City residents, and two of those four have been qualified to date.

He added that for the three seats on the F.C. School Board that will be contested this November, only one prospective candidate, Bethany Henderson, has filed to date, though he told the News-Press that, “through the grapevine, two others are considering” applying to run before the June 20 deadline.

TIM STEVENS, chair of the F.C. Planning Commission.

(News-Press Photo)

HARVEY’S

harveysva.com

LO CA L

PAGE 4 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

City Manager: Newest Changes Add More ‘Flexibility’ to Affordable

Continued from Page 1

built for less than a million dollars each is being read by developers as a suggestion that townhouses are the desired housing product. This outcome would not be equated with some of the newer townhouses on Park Avenue built in recent years, it was suggested, where average prices are now much higher.

Most of the building under the Planning Department’s latest vision would be on parcels under an acre with a maximum of 20 units per acre. “These would not be spectacular profit makers for developers,” Stoddard suggested, “but still allowing enough profit to attract them.”

They would tend to not go to

developments in “T-zone” areas currently very active, such as the Kaiser Permanente clinic or the now-expanding Columbia Baptist Church, but in spaces occupied now by older buildings in greater disuse.

According to City Manager Wyatt Shields, the newest changes also add more flexibility to affordable housing options, which was set at a fixed 10 percent mandate before (that is, that 10 percent of new units be officially affordable under state guidelines) to one which could go up to 17 percent affordable in exchange for density bonuses for developers.

It is not yet known whether or not there would be any takers for that last option, and Stoddard said that information would

await an evaluation of developer feasibility sentiments that will be forthcoming.

In summary, the Council was told Monday, there are four new concepts in the latest changes: 1. New housing types of from eight to 20 units per acre at a maximum size of 1,850 square feet per unit (and possibly higher with greater density bonuses), 2. Maximum unit sizes of 1,850 square feet, modified upward based on higher density bonuses/affordable housing percentages), 3. The affordable housing components linked to density bonuses up to 17 percent of units affordable, and 4. The changes shall apply to T-1 zones only with no consolidation of T-1 with T-2 zones.

F.C. PLANNING DEPARTMENT’S Jack Trainor (left) and boss Paul Stoddard explained their latest modi�ications to proposed changes to F.C.’s Transitional Area zoning changes at the F.C. City Council meeting Monday night. (N���-P���� P����)

The Smile You Want The Attention You Deserve Currently accepting new patients

A hot bowl of pho at Eden Center.

Voted best shopping center in the DMV!

Follow Us Online

Your Paper Without the Paper

www.fcnp.com

See the News-Press Online Just Like you See it in Print With our E-Issue

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

On Mental Health: Internal Integrity & Integration Nicholas F. Benton FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

Pertaining to current focus on mental health, the following: Growing up in the 1950s on coastal California and forever perceiving myself, to myself, as somehow “different,” especially from what my parents’ assumptions about me were (or as they were communicated to me), the matter of how different I was in my internal life from the projected image of the me I was in charge of transmitting to the outside world was perhaps the most important and ongoing challenge of my early life.

I can’t say that until age 14 or so that I had any cogent words, phrases or self-expressions to describe to myself exactly in what way or how “different” I was. But my preferences in things were not in line with popular norms — I think I knew that much — and while my dad and brothers seemed generally disinterested, I sensed my mom was on my side and was willing to go along with whatever were my silent and hidden contradictions, as was my maternal grandmother and her amiable husband who seemed content in his role of taking me places from time to time.

Notwithstanding how normal and ordinary our household was, or seemed to be, no matter how lower middle class it was, trying here to be as completely honest as possible and not attempting a sanitized rendition of my life growing up, I confess that, moving into adulthood, I applied a gloss on my earlier days, that until recently when I saw the importance of trying to remove it entirely, had become my official version up to this day.

So, there is reality and there are the oft-rehearsed residues that constitute memories. But why does one versus the other particularly matter? Well, as I get to a particular age, it concerns me that I do not simply sleepwalk through this entire ex-

perience I call my life. If I find it is important to me to populate my constellation of memories with edited versions that add up to a narrative that can be called valid, of good report, then I must ask why that is. To whose mind do I defer? In whose mind am I seeking to find solace and a sense of achievement? My own? Someone else’s? Whose exactly? And why? Depending on whose mind we are talking about, the versions of my life may vary considerably. There are some out there whose impressions of me are necessarily at odds, even sharp odds, with others.

No matter what happens, or has happened, true enough, life goes on and in the process it creates ever more impressions among more minds.

Once giving sufficient thought to all this, I am led to believe that I can proceed with some viable assumptions. And yes, this becomes my jumping off point that I already realize is different than what I might have thought before.

My one glaring and most steadfast observation is this: That the most important thing in life is what one might call “integrity.” I use the term in the context of its wider use, “integration.”

There is one person, one life, one story to tell. This is me.

There is not one story that one group of family, friends and associates thinks is me, and another for a different group, even if such a group extends into my own inner self. I am not who any among others may think they know me as, nor whom I may think of myself as. There is only one me, and it is my life’s work to try to knit a single, authentic whole out of all its seemingly varied fabrics that seem to represent their differences. Authentic. Integrated. One person, one whole.

That may sound simplistic and stupid, but I think it marks the kernel of the most important truth that one needs to travel through life upon. To really get there, a person needs to be incredibly honest with themselves. It requires a brutal honesty that needn’t be shared with others, but surely is required to be shared openly and candidly and at painstaking lengths with a self.

CO MME NT

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 5

Grant, and later campaign manager for who worked Dwight Eisenhower.

Our Man in Arlington Charles Her son worked at the Glebe in government

By Charlie Clark

When the omnipresent-in-TV-ads GEICO insurance company celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2011, planners invited longtime Arlingtonian Nellie Grant as their oldest living policyholder.

She was chauffeured to the Chevy Chase headquarters to appear on stage at the employee celebration with the chief executive officer. The company donated $7,500 to the American Cancer Society in her name and showered her with toy GEICO geckos. The CEO continued to call her annually.

Set to mark her own 102nd birthday next month, Grant recently shared with this columnist recollections tracking her life from her Gloucester, Va., childhood to her move to her home in our Yorktown neighborhood just after World War II. Born July 11, 1921, in Gloucester, Va., Nellie Grant “came from a very poor family,” she says.

They raised chickens and vegetables and picked up their mail at a general store. She knew the proprietor and once, when making her delivery of fresh eggs, tried to trade the eggs for candy rather than cash. No sale.

At age 18 she planned to go to nursing school in Newport News. Visiting relatives in Chevy Chase, in the late 1930s, she met an auto mechanic whom she thought she might marry. But she needed her father’s permission, and a cousin beat her to it.

In the nearby Navy shipyards, however, was her true future husband, South Carolina-born

finance. Her plan to spend three years in nursing school was preempted. She accompanied him to Washington for his career with the National Weather Service and the Agriculture Department.

He was “gifted in finances but was sometimes willing to go into things deeper than was necessary,” she jokes from her living room lined with a grandfather clock, an antique mirror and an old-fashioned writing desk.

The couple settled on 40th Street NW, and two daughters were born at Sibley Hospital.

But the suburbs lured them to a small home at N. 22nd and Nottingham streets. Her son was born at Arlington Hospital, which opened in 1944. She now enjoys five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

“I didn’t have the privilege of going to college, so I wanted to make sure they did,” Grant said.

The need for greater space brought them to her current home of some 70 years on N. 27th in the subdivision-in-progress near the earlier Livingstone Heights neighborhood. They picked a two-thirds-acre empty lot on the unpaved street. You had to walk to the Post Office at Glebe Road and what is today Langston Blvd to pick up mail.

Neighbors included Helen and Charlie Kettler (the family that would endow the Iceplex at Ballston Quarter). Another was famed Army Gen. Lucius Clay, who during and after World War II was a top administrator

Radio and Appliance (still going), while Nellie shopped regularly at Safeway and Preston’s Pharmacy and patronized the old Glebe Theatre. In the 1950s, she helped run the nursery at Westover Baptist Church.

Health, for this 102-year-old whose husband died in 1973, is good. “I don’t need to go to the doctor for anything.” The only time I was in the hospital was to have babies,” she boasts.

The secret for this centenarian who still makes toffee for guests: “I grew up when we had good healthy food and fish came out of good water. They don’t have that today.” *** If you’re familiar with Arlington’s share of the 40 boundary stones laid down in 1791-92 to demarcate the District of Columbia (some now deteriorated), you’ll appreciate the recent addition at East Falls Church’s Benjamin Banneker Park.

Next to the refurbished playground is a unique artist’s representation of the original stone (it’s still in a protective cage at the corner of N. Van Buren and 18th sts.).

“Jurisdiction of the United States; 1792, Benjamin Banneker Park,” reads the stone carved in 2020, next to a sign profiling Banneker as a surveyor and astronomer. It lists actual coordinates of the playground, I’m told by Parks and Recreation Department spokesman Jerusalem Solomon.

PAGE 6 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

(Published by Benton Communications, Inc.) FOUNDED IN 1991 Vol. XXXIII, No. 17 June 8 - 14, 2023 • City of Falls Church ‘Business of the Year’ 1991 & 2001 • • Certified by the Commonwealth of Virginia to Publish Official Legal Notices • • Member, Virginia Press Association •

N������� F. B����� O���� � E�����-I�-C���� �������������.���

N��� G��� M������� E����� ����������.���

S�� J������ A���������� S���� �������������.���

K���� T����� N��� R�������

������������.���

B���� R���� N��� R������� B����������.���

C������ C���� C�������� T�� W���� C��� E����� J���� I����� C���������� M������ �������������.���

TO CONTACT THE NEWS-PRESS �����: 703-532-3267 ���: 703-342-0347 �����: ���������.��� ������� ����������� �������������.��� 703-587-1282

���������� � L���� ��� �������������.��� ������� �� ��� ������ ������������.��� N��� � N���� �����������������.��� O��������� ����������.��� ������������� ������������ � �������� �������������.���

WWW.FCNP.COM The Falls Church News-Press is published weekly on Thursdays and is distributed free of charge throughout the City of Falls Church and the Greater Falls Church area. Offices are at 105 N. Virginia Ave.., #310, Falls Church, VA 22046.

Reproduction of this publication in whole or part is prohibited except with the written permission of the publisher. ©2022Benton Communications Inc. The News-Press is printed on recycled paper.

E ��������

E D I TO R I A L

Abortion Now Front & Center in F.C. Election

Who would have thought that a controversial stance taken by a candidate in the upcoming Democratic primary election not running here would become a focus of perhaps the single most contentious issues voters will face on June 20?

According to reports, Fairfax County commonwealth attorney candidate Ed Nuttall, running to unseat the current progressive Steve Descano, has gone on record stating he will indeed, even as a Democrat, enforce a bill that would imprison people on the basis of their reproductive choices, such as having an abortion. While almost anyone with a good sense, in our view, would reject such an awful course of events, especially in Northern Virginia and the City of Falls Church, it could be argued that this candidate is not on the ballot here, and thus his views should not unduly preoccupy us.

However, in this case, it comes right in the middle of a hotly-contested State Senate primary here, and that’s because one of the candidates, Sen. Chap Petersen, went out of his way in recent weeks to form a bond with said Ed Nuttall. He has taken the trouble to form a triad, an alliance involving him, Nuttall and Fairfax Sheriff candidate Stacy Kincaid, with TV ads paid for by Petersen.

Petersen’s opponent in the June 20 primary is Saddam Salim, the immigrant son of kitchen employees at Falls Church’s renowned Haandi Indian Restaurant .The News-Press has endorsed Salim.

That race is occurring for the first time among City of Falls Church voters, who until the November general election and the subsequent January 2024 swearing in will continue to be represented by State Sen. Dick Saslaw.

Petersen is widely considered among the most conservative Democrats in Richmond, and many consider his most recent “Common Sense” alliance with Nuttall and Kincaid an attempt to attract Republican voters to ask for Democratic ballots in the period leading up to June 20 and on that election day.

Meanwhile, the City of Falls Church is expecting to repeat its oft-achieved rate of highest voter turnouts in Virginia, even if the City’s 14,300 or so residents constitutes but a small portion of the overall 37th District.

But Petersen’s new “alliance” may be more trouble for him than it might be worth if the news of Nuttall’s stance on abortion gains more traction.

Petersen’s track record on LGBTQ+ issues has not been the best, to say the least, but now he’s likely to be tarred with a direct assault on something impacting the lives of a majority of his constituents; women.

Indeed, Falls Church voters deserve far better than what Petersen represents, and the June 20 primary may turn out to be a significant testing ground for how the 2024 presidential election might turn out.

In our view, the reproductive rights issue is actually far more important than almost anyone is acknowledging right now. Sadly, too many women are being told to hold back their anger so it sneaks up on the GOP. But that could backfire.

P������� 1. Keep the news clean and fair 2. Play no favorites, never mix business and editorial policy 3. Do not let the news columns reflect editorial content 4. Publish the news that is public property without fear or favor of friend or foe.

5. Accept no charity and ask no favors.

6. Give ‘value received’ for every dollar you take in.

7. Make the paper show a profit if you can, but above all keep it clean, fearless and fair.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

L ������ �� E ����� Councilmember Duncan Health Update Editor,

Thirty-one days since my bilateral lung transplant surgery, I was discharged Saturday, June 3 from Inova inpatient rehab to home, where (hopefully) I’ll continue my recuperation through the summer. The rest is just elaboration.

I have a list of assigned exercises and tasks to do daily, and a fistful of anti-rejection meds to take multiple times a day. For awhile I’ll get periodic nurse and physical therapist visits at home.

Because of my compromised immunity, I’m ordered to limit my indoors contact with others, and to avoid restaurants and other crowded settings. No driving, and for awhile I’ll be passengering in the back seat; air bag deployment and transplanted lungs don’t get along.

I won’t be getting out much except for follow-up appointments and procedures at Inova.

I’ll mostly rely on phone calls and text/email/Teams to keep in touch with the outside world. Visits on my back screen porch are a possibility, if it’s warm and my energy level is steady; please call before visiting.

Leslie has been my primary contact to y’all since my transplant surgery. I’d like to catch up with everyone individually, but I can’t work the wee hours online shift anymore, so there will be noticeable delays and gaps in my corresponding.

Les is the trooper in all this. She’s my meds administrator and has quickly become an adroit wrangler of all the pills, potions and needles I need to fight my body’s natural impulse to reject the transplanted lungs.

Les is also our nutritionist and chef; manager of house and grounds; tender of cats; and transport driver. Plus she works full-time and has to worry about her parents Carol and Chet (92 and 98) across town. It’s enough work for four people.

I’m happy to be back home, but it’s a LOT more work for Les. The “8 week walking program” I’ve been assigned says that by August I should be walking 40 minutes daily. Right now I’m managing only 10 minutes, with four rest breaks. And that’s only one of the stamina targets I’m supposed to hit.

It’s a steep climb ahead.

Lung-function numbers look good; my care team is still in the early stages of calibrating my meds

mix to fight rejection of the transplanted lungs while still leaving me enough energy to exercise and build stamina. A work in progress.

I was advised that because I’m on heavy immunosuppressants, I should avoid indoor settings that bring me in close contact with others. So for the foreseeable future, I’ll be participating in Council meetings via Teams, as I did for Monday’s work session.

And that, I hope, will do it for awhile on me yammering about my health.

Councilmember Phil Duncan

Got Beef?

Send us a letter and let us know what you think. The deadline for Letters to the Editor is 5 p.m. Monday each week of publication Letters should be 350 words or less.

Email letters@fcnp.com

Mail or drop off Letters to the Editor, c/o Falls Church News-Press, 105 N. Virginia Ave., #310, Falls Church, VA 22046

CO MME NT

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 7

A Penny for Your Thoughts

WITH A HOME STANDBY GENERATOR

$0 MONEY DOWN + LOW MONTHLY PAYMENT OPTIONS Contact a Generac dealer for full terms and conditions

REQUEST A FREE QUOTE CALL NOW BEFORE THE NEXT POWER OUTAGE

(844) 947-1479

FREE

*To qualify, consumers must request a quote, purchase, install and activate the generator with a participating dealer. Call for a full list of terms and conditions.

BACKED BY A YEAR-ROUND

CLOG-FREE GUARANTEE

ORE

BEF

Shoplifting, W Broad St, May 29, 2:38 PM, three unknown suspects entered a business separately and took multiple items without paying. Suspects described as 1) a skinny male, wearing a black sweatshirt, dark blue jeans, black shoes, white shoe laces, with a black bag, with facial hair, 2) skinny male, wearing a black sweatshirt, white undershirt, white sweat pants, with a metal cane, black and white shoes, with facial hair and 3) a heavyset male, wearing a blue short sleeve shirt, wearing light grey sweat pants, a baseball cap, and black shoes.

Larceny from Vehicle, Gibson St, between

Attempted Commercial Burglary, W Broad St, June 1, 2:56 AM, a known suspect unsuccessfully attempted to break in by forced entry, kicking the door, picking the lock, and burning the business mailbox. Investigation continues.

Drug/Narcotic Violations, W Broad St, June 1, 11:22 PM, a female, 40, of Broad Run, VA, was charged with Felony Possession of a Controlled Substance.

Drunk in Public, S Washington St, June 3, 6:59 PM, a female, 63, of no fixed address, was arrested for Drunk in Public.

ter fFil

Lea

E

TT

NATIO

1

ER GUA

EXCLUSIVE LIMITED TIME OFFER!

20% + 10% OFF

C i t y o f Fa l l s C h u r c h CR IME R EPORT Week of May 29 - June 4, 2023

lter

afFi

R Le

E AFT

 Penny Gross is the Mason District Supervisor, in the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. She may be emailed at mason@fairfaxcounty.gov.

8 PM, May 30 and 12 PM, May 31, unknown suspect(s) damaged the door handle of a Ford Econoline and removed items of value.

7-Year Extended Warranty* – A $695 Value!

’S

neighborhood. I recall the story of a traffic stop several years ago. The driver protested to the police officer, “but I’m in my own neighborhood,” but discovered that geography doesn’t matter. He got a ticket. The speed limit is the speed limit.

The Residential Traffic Administration Program (RTAP) provides an opportunity for residents to address speeding and cut-through traffic via a community process. Many neighborhoods and civic associations have maneuvered successfully through that process, and the result is the many speed humps and speed tables on local streets.

Although the speed reduction plan must be endorsed by the Board of Supervisors, the affected community first must vote in support of the devices and their placement.

Many neighborhoods are successful in garnering support, but some have not been able to come to agreement the first time around. Whether you love them or hate them, speed humps help slow traffic, but the primary responsibility for traffic safety belongs to the driver. Slow down, and save lives.

N

cessful, despite the Brood X cicadas’ hum competing with the speakers, that subsequent graduations have taken place there – and the weather has cooperated. Congratulations to all graduating students!

The night after graduation sometimes, sadly, brings news of vehicle crashes as students celebrate a bit too much.

However, it was not a new graduate driving a speeding vehicle on Braddock Road that struck an occupied parked vehicle, flipped over, skidded along its roof, and hit the parked vehicle again before coming to a stop in front of aghast neighbors.

At least one person was taken to the hospital with moderate injuries. This was not the first time that speed and driver inattention caused damage on Braddock Road near Columbia Pike, and it provides a reminder to all drivers about their responsibility when they get behind the wheel of a few thousandpound vehicle. The speed limit on most neighborhood streets is 25 mph, and when vehicles are parked on one or both sides of a narrow street, even more care by the driver must be observed.

Moving from a primary road with speed limits of 35 or 40 mph onto a neighborhood street obliges a driver to slow down and observe the 25 mph speed limit throughout the entire

GU

High school graduations have begun, and thousands of Fairfax County students are leaving the familiar surroundings of classrooms and friends to embark on new life challenges. Seniors from Annandale, Falls Church, Justice, and Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology — all located in Mason District — graduated to the cheers and tears of family and friends this week. Most ceremonies, except Annandale’s, are being held at Eagle Bank Arena at George Mason University, perhaps the busiest place in the county this week, as thousands of celebrators vie for the best parking spaces and seats as graduating classes rotate in and out of the cavernous arena.

For decades, the Annandale High School graduation occurred at the DAR Constitution Hall near the White House. It was a prestigious location, to be sure, but a long drive for students and their families trying to navigate D.C.’s notorious evening rush hour, with few parking options in the area. When the Covid-19 pandemic forced cancellation of classes and all school activities, Annandale’s administrators took the opportunity to reassess graduations via a community poll and decided to hold the 2021 ceremonies on the school’s football field. That was so suc-

Prepare for power outages today

D

By Supervisor Penny Gross

TH

News of Greater Falls Church

R

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

YOUR ENTIRE PURCHASE *

OFF

SENIORS & MILITARY!

FINANCING THAT FITS YOUR BUDGET!1 Subject to credit approval. Call for details.

1

Promo Code: 285 FREE GUTTER ALIGNMENT + FREE GUTTER CLEANING*

CALL US TODAY FOR

A FREE ESTIMATE

1-877-614-6667

Mon-Thurs: 8am-11pm, Fri-Sat: 8am-5pm, Sun: 2pm-8pm EST *For those who qualify. One coupon per household. No obligation estimate valid for 1 year. **Offer valid at time of estimate only. 2The leading consumer reporting agency conducted a 16 month outdoor test of gutter guards in 2010 and recognized LeafFilter as the “#1 rated professionally installed gutter guard system in America.” Manufactured in Plainwell, Michigan and processed at LMT Mercer Group in Ohio. See Representative for full warranty details. Registration# 0366920922 CSLB# 1035795 Registration# HIC.0649905 License# CBC056678 License# RCE-51604 Registration# C127230 License# 559544 Suffolk HIC License# 52229-H License# 2102212986 License# 262000022 License# 262000403 License# 2106212946 License# MHIC111225 Registration# 176447 License# 423330 Registration# IR731804 License# 50145 License# 408693 Registration# 13VH09953900 Registration# H-19114 License# 218294 Registration# PA069383 License# 41354 License# 7656 DOPL #10783658-5501 License# 423330 License# 2705169445 License# LEAFFNW822JZ License# WV056912

Make the smart and ONLY CHOICE when tackling your roof!

Before

After

Limited Time Offer!

SAVE!

60% OFF

ON YOUR INSTALLATION

FREE ESTIMATE

1.844.902.4611

Expires 6/30/2023

10% OFF

TAKE AN ADDITIONAL Additional savings for military, health workers and first responders

New orders only. Does not include material costs. Cannot be combined with any other offer. Minimum purchase required. Other restrictions may apply. This is an advertisement placed on behalf of Erie Construction Mid-West, Inc (“Erie”). Offer terms and conditions may apply and the offer may not available in your area. If you call the number provided, you consent to being contacted by telephone, SMS text message, email, pre-recorded messages

by Erie or its affiliates and service providers using automated technologies notwithstanding if you are on a DO NOT CALL list or register. Please review our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use on homeservicescompliance.com.

All rights reserved. License numbers available at eriemetalroofs.com/licenses/.

VA License Number:†2705029944.

MADE IN THE U.S.A.

LO CA L

PAGE 8 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

2nd Annual Battle of Broad Street An Unauthorized Bid to Rename Brings Back Fun Food Competition W&OD Bridge?

by Kylee Toland

after “falling in love with” Falls Church when first opening the restaurant and wanting to be a part of the community.

The Battle of Broad Street is back for its “Other business owners, residents and second year, and one lucky — or unlucky — guests were coming in and just being helpful barber will have a tattoo to show for it. and nice,” Harvey said. “I wanted to be able The Battle of Broad Street, hosted at to give back.”

Harvey’s restaurant on June 15, will once After speaking with the Neighborhood again serve up a family-friendly food challenge Barbershop about starting a charity event, involving five barbers from Neighborhood Harvey said he came up with the idea of Barbershop and a tattoo artist from Mister having the five barbers create five dishes and Finster’s Tattoo Studio. Ten percent of sales people can decide which they like the best. made at the event will go to the Falls Church The item that sells the most gets tattooed on Education Foundation (FCEF). the person who’s item sold the least. The winHarvey’s owner Thomas Harvey said he ner gets their creation on Harvey’s menu for created The Battle of Broad Street a year ago the month of July.

“From last year to this year, the [barbers] have put a little more thought into it,” Harvey said. “Last year it was a little bit more of them trying to be goofy and this year, they’re like ‘Oh wait, this is something we should actually try.’”

Local brewery Audacious Aleworks and local winery MetroCellars, which were featured at the event last year, will be back to serve drinks, with Harvey saying that he hopes the event will be an annual occurrence that can benefit the city and community.

“I just like the fun of it,” Harvey said. “I’d like to get this going annually and absolutely THOMAS HARVEY came up with the idea keep it within Falls Church businesses to supof Battle of Broad. (Photo: Sue Johnson) port Falls Church.”

Falls Church News-Press

by Charlie Clark

Pedestrians and cyclists crossing Arlington’s /Falls Church’s two-year-old W&OD Bridge might notice two new green signs at each end of the bridge. Attached to a sign pole warning that the path becomes slippery when wet is a smaller sign reading: “Pete Beers Memorial Bridge: ‘We should go for a bike ride.’ ” An online obituary shows that local computer programmer and cycling enthusiast Peter Andrew Beers (1964-2020) was killed on his bike by a falling tree near his home in August 2020. Active in the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, Beers worked in repairs at Bikenetic A NEW GREEN sign at the W&OD in Falls Church and advocated for safety pro- Bridge has been mounted anonytocols. Tributes and fundraising on Facebook mously. (Photo: Charlie Clark) included one from his friend, the world-famed cyclist and marathoner Rebecca Rusch. the sign, and that this isn’t their type of activity.

The problem is the sign was apparently On the back of the sign is a sticker reading mounted anonymously on the state-funded “Sign Fabrication” for Interstate signways and bridge without the permission of either the VDOT’s name, printed in August 2022.

Virginia Transportation Department or NOVA A Washington area bicycling activist who Parks, which supervises the W&OD trail that spoke on condition of anonymity said the signs, crosses the bridge. A VDOT spokeswoman told which cost under $300, were mounted by a the News-Press that they knew nothing of the group of Beers’ friends and family who felt sign and referred queries to NOVA Parks. The that going through the confused bureaucracy nonprofit’s board member Mike Nardolilli said, of VDOT and NoVA Parks would have taken “The sign is not authorized by NOVA Parks or years. Given how beloved and active Beers VDOT and will be coming down.” was in the bicycling community, the source The cycling association’s spokesman said, “what good would it do now to take the Jeremiah Lowery says his group did not erect signs down?”

Tinner Hill Heritage Music Festival to Take Place This Saturday

by Sam Mostow

Falls Church News-Press

For its 29th year, The Tinner Hill Heritage Music Festival will celebrate African American history in Falls Church, with proceeds supporting the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation. The event will be held on Saturday, June 10 from 11:00 a.m. — 8:00 p.m.

At 11:15 a.m., Rocknoceros will take the stage followed by a performance by Gaye Adegbalola at 11:55 a.m. Shamans of Sound ft. Gordon Sterling will follow at 12:55 p.m.

The Boneshakers will perform at 2:15 p.m. with Joe Louis Walker following at 3:45 p.m. Dumpstaphunk, the headliner, will begin at 5:30 p.m. The day will conclude with DJ Stylus at 7 p.m.

Executive Producer Tori McKinney, who leads the band selection process, said she always selects a children’s band to begin the event.

Otherwise, she has always chosen a band from New Orleans, a national blues band, a regional band and a local band.

Band selection is a joint effort between McKinney and a committee

of volunteers. About three-quarters of the volunteers are McKinney’s friends and the other quarter are on the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation board. In August, the committee comes up with a wish list of potential acts, and in September, they find out who is available. They are very selective in the bands they choose.

“We try to align the lineup with the mission of the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation,” McKinney said.

McKinney, emphasizing her own ties to New Orleans, said her “biggest win” is booking Dumpstaphunk. “[Dumpstaphunk] are the next generation of The Neville Brothers,” she said, referring to a historic band from New Orleans. “It’s a pretty cool band that has a lot of great, deep history in the music scene in New Orleans.”

Ed Henderson, a board member of the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation, is looking forward to Gaye Agedbola and Joe Louis Walker.

“I really like our lineup this year,” Henderson said.

Henderson noted changes from when the event first took place. For

12 years, the festival was known as the Tinner Hill Blues Festival, before changing the name to a more general term in 2019 to encompass all genres.

This year, they included “heritage” in the title for the first time.

Although McKinney streamlined a shift to generalizing the event to a music festival, rather than a blues festival, Henderson believes it is still a blues festival at heart.

Henderson takes inspiration from jazz festivals in New Orleans, which feature all sorts of genres, yet still connect to jazz and the blues. He also mentioned the importance of the blues to the African American community.

“When you’re talking about heritage and you’re talking about Tinner Hill and you’re talking about African American history, then you’re talking about blues and jazz,” he said.

“Throw in a little reggae… and you’ve got everything.”

Proceeds from the festival support the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation, who hope they can fundraise enough to hire an executive director for the organization.

THE TINNER HILL Heritage Music Festival will take place on Saturday from 11 a.m. — 8 p.m. (Photo: Tori McKinney) “[The money] supports our history, research and programming in the community,” Henderson said.

“To research and preserve African American and civil rights history.”

McKinney echoed Henderson’s sentiment, adding that patrons can visit the Tinner Hill Heritage Village to learn more about the foundation and its history.

“The most important part of the Tinner Hill Music Festival is to raise

awareness [and] funds for the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation,” she said.

“The net proceeds from the festival help the foundation promote their annual programs.”

Anyone wishing to learn more or purchase tickets for the festival can visit tinnerhill.org.

“We’re really excited about next Saturday,” McKinney said. “And we’re hoping that all of Falls Church City and beyond attends the festival.”

FCNP.COM | FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 9

Meridian Class of 2023 Graduates

Turan Rabbani Ahmad IB V M Diana Gabriela Aikens-Urias Caroline Elizabeth Akins V M Abigail Kate Aldrich Rani Joseph Altarazi IB V M Rony Alexander Amaya-Caceres Jordan Paul Ashby Elizabeth Maria Aversa V M Ethan Kaleb Bartlett V M Alen Henry Bean V M Henry Chandra Behr Fernando Antonio Benitez-Pineda Julian Benton Nathaniel John Berol V M Tai Noah Bhalla Zachary Ryan Bledsoe Matthew Ryan Bloss-Baum V M Brady O’Kennon Board V M Julia Katharine Bonilla Ian Michael Brown Owen Stirling Bruce IB V M Chloe Rose Calabrese IB V M Julie Nicole Capozzi V M Daniel Casarrubias Morgan Franklin Cash Belarmino Steve Castillo-Juarez Pablo Alejandro Choque Denzel Jose Choque-Crespo Zoe Dru Clement V M Brielle Kahealani Estella Collins IB V M Kiana Noelani Christine Collins IB V M Anna Comenetz Jacqueline Frances Connolly Vaishnavi Grace Constance Lura Nicole Cook Isabel Sylvia Philpott Costa IB V M Elizabeth Loretto Creed V M Richard James Crespin IB V M Grace Eleanor Crum IB V M Marshall Hughes Davies Anna Louise Dickson IB V M Sofia Joie Diemel M Noah Zachary Dinner Inigo Diz John Hanson Doebel IB M Joseph Dignam Donovan Sophia Grace Dylhoff Philippe Donald Eppler Jack MacFarlane Ettinger M Jacey Leigh Evans V M Isabella Jane Fazio IB V M Jane Kathryn Fiegel Tamara Flores-Crespo Oliver Vincent Frandano Penn George Frates Daniel Robert Fried Carson Kennedy Funk Thomas Alexander Gallaway Leslie Camila Garcia Alexander Lin Latt Gardner V M Graham Scott Gaskins V M Sophia Elizabeth Gavasheli V M Thor Patrick Gettings Aidan Thomas Gillaspy Elisa Goislard Nguyen IB V M Ryan Joseph Green IB V M Hanna Clay Hall V M

Katharine Jane Hall IB V M Emma Caroline Anne Hart V M Nicholas Ordway Hastings M William Steven Hauber Blaise Ann Hebert Fernando Herbas Jr Henry Christopher Hladky IB V M Ryleigh Frances Holthus Evan Wai-Ock Hom Virginia Grace Hoofnagle Sarah Ellsworth Hubbard IB V M Nicholas Adam Huber Jay Leonard Humphreys V M Megan Elizabeth Jackson William Frederic Jacobson V M Christopher James Jaramillo Kyle Thomas Jinks IB M Finn Clayton Johnson IB M Nikita Wyatt Johnson IB Peyton Abigail Jones V M Helen Grace Jordan IB V M Dean Leonidas Kalavritinos Michael Samuel Kasher IB V M Clara Virginia Kasik V M Alyssa Marie Kay Aylish McKenzie Keehan Ryan Andrew Kester Shaamin Abeer Khwaja Min-Ji Kim Ashley Grace Kirkland Hope Macht Kleinberg V M Sophia Victoria Koo V M Maia Lillian Kramer Danielle Evelyn Kuck M Victoria Weixin Lam IB V M Adelaide Wise Langford M Sean Aden Lester IB V M Annalise Cadence Levitt V M Yuancheng Li IB M Argyle Athanasius Lindsay Charlie Michael Lyons Maximilian Hikaru Madar Ameer Eiad Makled Jill Rachel Mankofsky Ian Andrew Mason Mia Brigitte Sung Mayer IB V M Benjamin Liam McCracken IB Oisin Lewis Meadows Andre Isaiah Mejia-Romero Maya Jane Melito Emilie Elizabeth Miner Matheo Fabien Mourot IB M June Petra Musurlian V M Ailene Elizabeth Neal IB V M Garon William Neubert Dangkhoa Anderson Nguyen Terah Truc-Anh Nguyen V M Alexis Janine Niemi IB V M Evan Anton Nordberg V M Abigail O’Regan V M David Abhishek O’Regan V M Elijah Joshua Kawika Ogden Daniel Ashton Oppenheimer IB V M Axel Morten Ottosen Jia Park IB V M Elijah I Pelton Diwata Maria Dayanghirang Peñaranda IB V M IB IB Diploma Candidate

V Valedictory Scholar

Alexander George Perez IB Ella Mallory Petree Isabel Anne Pierce Miles Clifton Pierre Victor Carlisle Pilson Matias Wen Yang Pittaluga Sydney Subhra Price Rosie Grace Puschnik V M Emerson Rabin Rath IB Katherine Samford Rice IB V M Jocelyn Amber Ripley IB V M Natalie Elise Ripley Jasmine E’Lise Rodriguez-Black V M Toby Alexander Rogers M Sara Elizabeth Rollins Emma Swan Roncoroni IB V M Noah Ray Rosenberger Jeremiah Elijah Rumingan Carson Gabel Ruoff Charles Patrick Russell Maxwell Thomas Saaty Hana Lee Saldate IB V M Sydney Salinger IB V M Joshua Charles Saret M Camden Kenneth Schonauer Alexandra Mira Schwartz IB V M Jaden David-Yongjae Shin IB V M Andrew James Siegel Samuel Michael Skiba Mafy Ryan Solofonirina Matthew Jacob Stamilio Alexander Gerald Steinbach Wesley Nelson Sturgill IB Erin Kathleen Tarpgaard IB V M Isabella Lowe Theriot Christian Dakota Thompson Ivan Thompson Josephine Houlaymatou Thompson Anna Sophia Tibbetts John Collins Toole IB V M Erick Alfredo Trejos Garay Lilian Jolie Trevisan Wyatt Jay Trundle Kaya Dillon Tuncan Stella Maria Turner IB V M Senya Jane Urbom V M Katherine Yessely Valerio Chavez Kaethan Sanjay Virmani IB V M George William Vogel-Rogers V M Andre Sebastian Wahlberg Caroline Camille Walker M Olivia Riley Wanick IB Joshua Martin Wattles Phoebe Marie Way Brandon Isaac Werbel IB V M Alexander Matthew Werner IB V M Jacob Quinn Whiteacre Gayle Simone Smith Williamson Jamie Sophia Smith Williamson Tobin Tutchings Windisch Elysha Bee York Fatima Ayman Abrahym Youssri Priscila Christelle Zeballos Zeballos Isabella Rose Zullo M Claire Olivia Zywicki V M

M Meridian Scholar

This program reflects all information available to us at press time on June 1, 2023

LO CA L

PAGE 10 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Memories to Last Lifetimes Made at Meridian High Wednesday

THE GRADUATING CLASS OF 2023, composed of 202 happy Mustangs, who joyously celebrated the seminal achievement graduating from Meridian High Wednesday morning.

(Photos: Sam Mostow and Sue Johnson)

Arlington County Officially Rebuts `Missing Middle’ Lawsuit

by Charlie Clark

Falls Church News-Press

The county attorney for Arlington on May 23 filed a legal rebuttal urging dismissal of the lawsuit brought in April by 10 Arlington homeowners who claimed that the process by which the revised housing zoning ordinance approved March 23 by the county board and advisory commissions was flawed and illegal.

The seven-page response to the plaintiffs, 162-page April complaint was drafted by attorney MinhChau N. Corr and challenged the lawsuit’s assertions on the issues of standing, state law and government transparency.

In Marcia Nordgren et al v.

Arlington County Board (naming the county board, county attorney and Planning Commission as defendants), the homeowners argued that the Circuit Court should block the rezoning— set to take effect July 1—that expands countywide the right of landowners to build multifamily structures up to six units in areas currently restricted to singlefamily homes.

Reiterating the rhetoric of opponents of the policy change, the suit drafted by Fairfax attorney Gifford Hampshire cited seven ways that plaintiffs believe the board’s “arbitrary and capricious” policymaking violates state and local law. Among them: an insufficient January advertisement and a failure to conduct detailed studies of the zoning

changes’ impact on the economy, tree canopy, storm drainage, traffic, schools and parking. They also alleged violations of FOIA law requiring prompt release of documents.

The county’s plan “only increases density without promoting goals in the public interest,” said the plaintiffs. They cited the locations of their own properties that allegedly would be harmed.

In seeking a dismissal, the county attorney first requested that the judge allow major additions to the record created by the plaintiffs. These should include, the county argued, the Zoning Amendment itself (passed in March), the text of the Resolution Approving Advertising, the county board’s voting record

and the legislative record of the Planning Commission, plans and presentations from county staff and public correspondence and speaker slips at multiple hearings.

MinhChau Corr then argued that the plaintiffs lack standing, that the matter is not yet ripe (since nothing has been built) and that “there is no legal requirement to conduct such studies or investigations for every legislative action taken by the board.” She dismissed the characterization “arbitrary and capricious,” saying the county’s action met the ‘fairly debatable” And she noted that the statute relating to the alleged violation of rules on posting meeting plans doesn’t require “online,” only release at same time as pre-

sented to board. The plaintiff’s demand to have seen the chairman’s mark online was without merit, she argued, because the document simply outlined the order for items to be discussed at a meeting.

The plantiffs’ Fairfax-based attorney Hampshire declined a News-Press request for comment. But he noted that the four Arlington Circuit Court Judges—William Newman, Daniel Fiore II, Louise DiMatteo and Judith Wheat—on May 25 sent an order notifying the Virginia Supreme Court that these judges should properly be disqualified for being “situated” in Arlington. Hence the case, set for a July 11 hearing, could be assigned to a judge outside the county.

FCNP.COM | FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 11

PAGE 12 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

FCNP.COM | FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 13

LET THE FESTIVAL FUN BEGIN SATURDAY

JUNE 10 11 PM - 8 PM

Cherry Hill Park 312 Park Ave Falls Church City

LIVE MUSIC SCHEDULE PERFORMERS

START TIME*

Rocknoceros

11:15

American Children’s Band

Gaye Adegbalola

SUPPORT THE FESTIVAL Interested in supporting the Festival through a donation or sponsorship? Learn more at:

www.tinnerhill.org/donate

11:55

Blues

Shamans of Sound ft. Gordon Sterling 12:55 Reggae

DC Retro Jumpers

2:00

Double Dutch (on the basketball court)

The Boneshakers

VOLUNTEER Interested in volunteering? Sign up here:

2:15

Soul Blues/Rock

www.tinnerhill.org/volunteer

Joe Louis Walker

FOLLOW & TAG US

Dumpstaphunk

Stay tuned for more exciting announcements on:

DJ Stylus

3:45

Blues

5:30

New Orleans Funk

@TinnerHillMusicFestival

Festival Dance Party

@TinnerHillMusicFestival

* Subject to change

7:00

BIKE, RIDESHARE, METRO & PUBLIC PARKING Capital Bike Share has multiple stations near park

RideShare / Uber / Lyft: 312 Park Ave Falls Church City

Personal Bike Racks at Community Center

METRO: To & From East Falls Church Station, West Falls Church Station

Kaiser Permanente Parking Garage: 201 N Washington St Falls Church City

George Mason Square Parking Garage: 103 W Broad St Falls Church City Limited Street Parking (please note signage)

PAGE 14 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

LO CA L

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 15

News-Press

Community News & Notes

THE ADULT AND FAMILY LITERACY CENTER (AFLC) celebrated the end of the semester on Thursday, May 11 with a potluck, gathering students, teachers, aids and volunteers.

Students received certificates verifying their attendance in class before heading over to celebrate with their classmates and teachers. (Photo: Hannah Jordan)

A FULL HOUSE at One More Page Books on Westmoreland was charmed by readings from his new novel, “You Don’t Belong Here,” by Falls Church author Jonathan Harper Sunday. (Courtesy Photo)

FC Forward to Hold Community Business Discussion

composer Saunder Choi titled “Song of Exile,” commissioned by the Chorale. This piece is set to a poem

by Iranian-born poet Sholeh Wolpé to describe the challenges refugees face in leaving their homes and putting down roots in a new community.

Join Falls Church Forward on Sunday, June 11 at 4 p.m. at Harvey’s to hear firsthand from local business owners about what it takes to open and run a business here, and why they chose the Little City. The goal is to find ways to improve policies and processes that enable future businesses to successfully open and operate here (and discover the story behind the most expensive sink in Falls Church).

The Falls Church Episcopal Hosting Blood Drive On Thursday June 8th The Falls Church is hosting a Blood drive alongside Inova Blood Donor Services. The Inova Blood Donor Services Bloodmobile will be located in The Falls Church Parking Lot (166 E. Broad St) from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. One can register to donate by visiting this link: bit.ly/ FallsChurchE or by calling 1(866) 256-6372 and using Sponsor Code 8735.

Applications Open for Arts, Culture, Etc... Program Grants The City of Falls Church welcomes applications from eligible nonprofit organizations based within the City of Falls Church that support the arts, culture, theater and history. The

application deadline is July 28, 2023, and funds must be utilized before May 16, 2024.

The application and details on eligibility can be found at fallschurchva. gov/AHGrants.

arrived and Welcoming Falls Church needs volunteers to help. Join a team at signupgenius.com for moving furniture and household goods to a larger storage unit, on Saturday, June 10, 10:00 a.m. — 1:00 p.m.

Hosts Needed for Chamber Orientations

Free Back to School Health Equity Fairs Coming Soon

Although all networking mixers are booked for the year, there is another opportunity to consider — hosting the chamber orientations in one’s office. This is a way to showcase a business and bring networking to a space. Contact Cathy Soltys at fallschurchchamber.org to reserve a spot. The next orientation is scheduled for July 20, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m. and they occur every other month.

Inova Cares Clinic for Children and Inova Partnership for Healthier Communities are now scheduling appointments to provide children ages five and up with free School Physicals and Immunizations to begin the 2023-24 school year. This will take place at Inova Cares Clinic for Children in Herndon, Manassas and Falls Church. MCCP will be providing dental screenings, health education and resource information at each event this summer.

Call (703) 531-3100 to schedule an appointment today.

Adult & Family Literacy Center Celebrated End of Semester The Adult and Family Literacy Center (AFLC) celebrated the end of the semester on Thursday, May 11 with a potluck, gathering students, teachers, aids and volunteers.

Students received certificates verifying their attendance in class before heading over to celebrate with their classmates and teachers.

Welcoming Refugees Need Volunteers for New Family Another family from Afghanistan, with three young children, just

Arlington Chorale Premieres Work Highlighting Refugees The Arlington Chorale will perform an hour-long concert titled “We Stand Together” at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Arlington on Sunday, June 11 at 5:00 p.m. The program features music by living composers and raises awareness for refugees, focusing on the importance of community.

A concert highlight will be the world premiere of a new work by

Red Cross to Host Blood Drive at Holy Trinity Lutheran The Red Cross will be at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church on Friday, June 23, from 10 a.m. — 3 p.m.

Register at redcrossblood.org, enter zip code 22042 and refine search by the date (June 23). The church is located at 3022 Woodlawn Ave., Falls Church

Local Students Awarded Scholarships The Greater McLean Republican Women’s Club (GMRWC) awarded Betty Greer Scholarships to two local Fairfax County high school graduating seniors during their Annual Scholarship Event on June 3rd at Katie’s Coffee at The Old Brogue, Great Falls, Va. The scholarship winners excel academically while actively participating in their school and local community. Aleksey Svetlichniy is a senior at South Lakes High School and will be attending Marymount University. Kevin Lim is a senior at McLean High

School and will be attending the College of William and Mary.

Falls Church Boy Scouts Awarded Rank of Eagle Scout Six Falls Church Boy Scouts were awarded the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest achievement in Boy Scouts on Saturday, June 3, 2023.

George Vogel-Rogers, Paul Salinetti, Noah Salinas, Cyrus Assadzadeh, Matthew Toman and Karlos Martinson-Rodriguez are members of Boy Scout Troop 681 based at the Scout House in Falls Church, Va and sponsored by St. James Catholic Church in the Little City.

The boys all joined Scouting at age six and have spent 12 years learning the skills and ideals of leadership and outdoor life. Each candidate must earn 21 merit badges and complete a community or church service project to earn his Eagle rank. Along with seven elective merit badges, first aid, cooking, camping and emergency preparedness are among 14 merit badges required of all Eagle candidates. The six service projects included dugout painting and preservation at Idylwood Park, construction of a food storage shed at a local area food bank and several garden and planter beds benefiting area churches and the homeless.

PAGE 16 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

Fa l l s C h u r c h School News & Notes 8th Grader Receives C-SPAN Award C-SPAN Director of Education Relations Craig McAndrew came to Henderson Middle School last week to honor eighth grader Sesh Sudarshan, who won second prize in C-SPAN’s annual student documentary competition, StudentCam (studentcam.org). He placed second out of 3000 entries and the top entry out of Virginia and was presented with a $1500 check. He also received letters from Gov. Glenn Youngkin and Sen. Mark Warner.

The annual national documentary competition encourages students to think critically about issues affecting communities and nations. Middle and high school students were challenged to create a short documentary addressing the theme: “If you were a newly elected member of Congress, which issue would be your priority and why?”

Critical Decision Points Session Coming Soon FCCPS Special Education & Student Services is excited to invite parents to attend an informative fullday session hosted in partnership with VDOE. The session is called “Critical Decision Points for Parents of Students with Disabilities” and it will be held Friday, June 9 between 9:30 a.m. — 2:30 p.m.

OSE Students Participate In Science Olympiad Congratulations to all the Oak Street students who participated in Science Olympiad: Aimee Barnette, Amund Anderson, Colby Marlin, Cora Schroeder, Davis Gordon, Elena Mercado, Elisa (Ely) Tarrant, Evan Mohel, Greg Harper, Hunter Marlin, Ian Black Palacios, James Callan, João Rezende, Marabelle Loker, Nathan Conley, Nikhil Kapadia, Sebastian Savitz and Violet Sakata. Those who placed in the regional competition also deserve to be recognized: Nikhil and Evan in Air Rockets, Nathan and Greg in Gunk – Gooey Stuff and Aimee and Hunter in Astronomy – Telescopes.

Two FCCPS Students Win IB Excellence Awards Nora Walker — a fifth grader at Oak Street, and Preston Lieu — a 10th grader at Meridian High School — won Primary Years Programme and Middle Years Programme awards, respectively.

Nora’s teacher said, “Nora is a wonderful part of the class. She looks deeply into the topics we learn in class, is open-minded, and often examines different perspectives to see different sides of an issue. She consistently demonstrates her dedication to the PYP curriculum through her academics and as a supportive member of her class community. It has been a privilege to watch Nora

SCHO O L

grow as a learner and a member of our class.”

Preston’s Journalism II Teacher said: “Preston has embodied leadership as a journalism student this year.

He has taken on the challenges of his role as Section Editor by leading his staff writers, providing timely feedback, and assisting in the writing process. Preston selflessly accepts any task that will assist in making Lasso the best student publication possible. His efforts have earned him a promotion to Public Relations and Outreach Editor for the 2023-24 school year, and there is no one I would trust more in this position.”

According to the website, “The IBMA Student Excellence Award is designed to recognize outstanding PYP, MYP, CP and DP students from member schools who represent the ideals of the IB Learner Profile and have displayed a commitment to service. Applicants must be IB students from IB Mid-Atlantic member schools. An IBMA Student Excellence Award will be granted to at least one student enrolled in each level of the IB continuum (PYP, MYP, DP, CP), provided that the IBMA Student Excellence Award Selection Committee determines that there is at least one applicant per program level who qualifies for the award.”

OSE Students Ran the Girls on The Run 5K Girls on the Run (GOTR)

C-SPAN DIRECTOR OF Education Relations Craig McAndrew came to Henderson Middle School last week to honor 8th grader Sesh Sudarshan, who won 2nd prize in C-SPAN’s annual student documentary competition, StudentCam. (Photo: John Brett)

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

from Oak Street Elementary participated in its spring 5k on May 21 on a closed loop in Tysons.

This event, which represented the culmination of 10 weeks of training (2x per week before school), included numerous schools and more than 1,000 runners from around the area. Before the race began, many girls celebrated their incredible achievements thus far with festive hair colors, colorful hair ribbons and face stickers.

The girls were accompanied by buddy runners who also completed the hilly course. A large cheering section energized and fueled the girls as they met the final portion of the run.

Over 50 girls from Oak Street participated in GOTR. For many, it was their first 5k, while many had completed multiple 5k runs already. The Oak Street Elementary team was supported by nine volunteer coaches who instructed the runners each practice and logged many miles through the process.

GOTR is a national organization designed to empower young women by boosting self-confidence, valuing relationships, and highlighting how women can impact their communities. A daily lesson often accompanied each training session.

GOTR will be back in the fall under new head coach Carla Sidhu. Look for sign-up shortly after the next school year begins.

Adjusted Start Time for JTP Next Year For the upcoming 2023-2024 academic year, the Jessie Thackrey Preschool (JTP) will commence its daily schedule 20 minutes earlier than the current time.

Existing Student Schedule: 8:15 a.m. — 2:20 p.m.

New (2023-2024) Student Schedule: 7:55 a.m. — 2:00 p.m.

Existing Student Early Release: 8:15 a.m. — 12:40 p.m.

New (2023-2024) Student Early Release: 7:55 a.m. — 12:20 p.m.

The school doors will continue to open 10 minutes before the start time, shifting to 7:45 am.

The move solves a logistical challenge of four buses dropping off approximately 150 secondary students at the MEHMS/MHS campus at 7:30 a.m., 35 minutes before school starts, while also managing the JTP bus run. By adjusting the drop-off time for these secondary students to 7:50 a.m., they can be ensured an additional 20 minutes of sleep. This change allows the secondary students to be picked up 20

minutes later, aligning their arrival time with the rest of the students at the secondary campus each morning.

Mustang Mysteries a Raging Success Meridian High Schools Mustang Mysteries Club put on its second charity murder mystery night on Saturday, May 20. The event, benefitting the Innocence Project, raised over $1100 and hosted a large crowd. The club members wrote and performed the second show of its kind. The plot, more complex than the last but all the more captivating, centered around a decades-old conspiracy to cover up a murder in 1983. The twist ending, inspired by Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express,” revealed that they all had their hand in the murders and their cover-ups.

The night ended with a heartfelt farewell from senior club founder and president Alex Steinbach who then announced his successors, Riley Chirico and Olivia Pierre.

FCCPS Discuss Digital Media & Mental Health A group of parents concerned about the effects of digital technology on young people’s development gathered to discuss the problems they are seeing and potential solutions. The group, which is a working group of the Health and Wellness Advisory Committee, is led by Komal Bazoz Smith and Laura Gould, School board member Jerrod Anderson was also in attendance. The group of a dozen parents exchanged ideas about how boundaries around technology use can be reinforced at home and in school, including ideas about how to reduce phone use in school. Multiple attendees also expressed disappointment that their child’s school-issued laptop didn’t have content filters and that parental controls are difficult to install on personal devices.

Moving forward, the group plans to speak with school staff about what policies are in place around technology use in schools and how the policies are being enforced.

“We started thinking about this as a civil discourse and critical thinking issue,” Komal Bazoz Smith said about social media, teens, and the digital age. “But we also saw that parents were concerned about their kid’s development and mental health.”

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

CA L E NDA R

JUNE 8-14, 2023 | PAGE 17

THIS WEEK IN THE LITTLE CITY THURSDAY JUNE 8 F.C. High School Graduation

borhoods while respecting the origins and importance of taking to the streets in the fight for equality.

Logan and Dupont Circle areas. (P St. NW and 17th St. NW, Washington, DC), 3:00 p.m. — 7:30 p.m.

Cornhole Tournament

Remembering Juneteenth concert.

Capital One Hall (7750 Capital One Tower Rd., Tysons, VA), 6:30 p.m.

F.C. Class of 2023 graduates. EagleBank Arena (4500 Patriot Cir., Fairfax, VA), 9:30 a.m. — 11:30 a.m.

Find out who is the best on the boards in NOVA! Cash bar and lawn games for open play. Founder's Row (109 Founders Ave., Falls Church), 6:00 p.m. — 9:00 p.m.

FRIDAY JUNE 9 F.C. Arts All Member Show

FCA features member works from artists with last names L-Z. Falls Church Arts (700-B W. Broad St., FallsChurch),11:00a.m.—6:00p.m.

J. Hoard

J. Hoard performs. Kennedy Center Millennium Stage (2700 F St. NW, Washington, DC), 6:00 p.m.

SATURDAY JUNE 10 Dulin Yard Sale

With clothing, furniture, books, artwork, electronics, and more! Dulin Church (513 E. Broad St., Falls Church), 8:00 a.m. — 12:00 p.m.

Great Cherrydale Yard Sale

Shop 70+ participating homes for a vast variety of items! Cherrydale and Waverly Hill area (east of Glebe Rd. between Langston Blvd. and I-66., Arlington, VA), 8:00 a.m. — 1:00 p.m.

F.C. Farmers Market

Shop the award winning market every Saturday, year-round! City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Ave., Falls Church), 8:00 p.m. — 12:00 p.m.

Tinner Hill Music Festival

The 29th Annual Tinner Hill Music Festival returns to Cherry Hill Park. Cherry Hill Farmhouse (312 Park Ave., Falls Church), 11:00 a.m. — 8:00 p.m.

Capital Pride Parade

This beloved tradition honors and acknowledges the history and evolution of D.C.'s LGBTQ+ neigh-

The McLean Symphony

SUNDAY JUNE 11 Capital Pride Festival

Enjoy three stages of entertainment, vendors, and advocacy with over 300 exhibitors at the largest annual event in the D.C. region. Free to the public. America's Mainstreet (Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC), 12:00 p.m. — 10:00 p.m..

F.C. Forward: Supporting Community Business

Join for bites and discuss supporting community business. Hear from local business owners about what it takes to open and run a business here, and why they chose The Little City.

Collaborate on ways to improve policies and processes for future business success (and learn of the most expensive sink in F.C.). Harvey's (513 W. Broad St., Falls Church), 4:00 p.m.

MONDAY JUNE 12 City Council Meeting

City Council meets. Public may sign up to speak at fallschurchva. gov/publiccomment. Watch in-person, at fallschurchva.gov/councilmeetings, or on FCCTV (Cox 11, RCN 2, Verizon 35). A recording will be available online. Council Chambers (300 Park Ave., Falls Church), 7:30 a.m. — 11:00 a.m.

Government Operations Committee Meeting

Government Operations Committee meets. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 1:00 p.m. — 3:00 p.m.

FCCPS Retirement Celebration

Celebrate the careers of retiring Blanca Avila, Ken DiCesare, Jan Garrett, Janet McEvoy Price and Ingrid Schoenburg. Meridian High School (121 Mustang Alley, Falls Church), 4:15 p.m. — 6:15 p.m.

Sondheim Sing-Along

Everything's coming up Sondheim!

Race against the clock, count down, and sing out (Louise!) the final songs in the Sharing Sondheim project.

Signature Theatre (3200 Campbell Ave., Arlington, VA), 7:30 p.m.

TUESDAY JUNE 13 Housing Commission Meeting

Housing Commission meets.

City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 6:30 p.m. — 8:30 p.m.

FCCPS School Board Meeting

The public is welcome to attend in-person or virtually at meet.google.com/rre-tjxu-ote or phone at 585-491-8350, code 342084775#. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Council Chambers, Falls Church), 7:00 p.m. — 10:00 p.m.

WEDNESDAY JUNE 14 SWMPAC Meeting

Solid Waste Management Plan Advisory Committee (SWMPAC) meets. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 11:30 a.m. — 1:00 p.m.

Citizens' Advisory Committee on Transportation Meeting

Citizens' Advisory Committee on Transportation meets. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 7:00 p.m.

Recreation and Parks Advisory Board Meeting

Recreation and Parks Advisory Board meets. F.C. Community Ctr. (223 Little Falls St., Kenneth R. Burnett Bldg., Falls Church), 7:00 p.m. — 10:00 p.m.

Architectural Advisory Board Meeting

Architectural Advisory Board meets.

City Council Chambers (300 Park Ave., Falls Church), 7:30 p.m. — 10:30 p.m.

Appointments Committee Meeting

Appointments Committee meets.

City Hall (300 Park Ave., Oak Room, East Wing, Second Floor, Falls Church), 8:00 p.m. — 9:00 p.m.

ABOVE, OFFICERS, members, and staff of AFGE join in the Capital Pride Parade. (Photo: Jay Mallin). Below, the 2022 Tinner Hill Music Festival entertains guests. (Photo: Alex Russell). Both events return Saturday.

LO CA L

PAGE 18 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Falls Church Presbyterian Welcomes First Woman Pastor in 150 Years

by Kylee Toland

Falls Church News-Press

In their sesquicentennial year, The Falls Church Presbyterian has recently welcomed their first female pastor, Reverend Yena Hwang, who is also the first woman of color leading the church.

She began her term as a transitional pastor on May 16 and has received positive feedback from church members who praised her warmth, outgoing personality and constant smile.

“It’s delightful to have a youthful, exciting, vibrant person like Yena in our leadership role now,” church member Chuck Hobbie said. “We expect her to be a great leader in this transition period for us.”

Growing up in a small, immigrant church in Maryland, Hwang said being involved in “various church leadership roles” such as a Sunday school teacher and youth minister inspired her to seek out opportunities that she could be involved “in the life of church.”

“I had not seen any female ministers at that point, let alone

a Korean-American female [minister],” Hwang said.

“Representation matters, so I felt really called into ordained ministry so that others could see female ministers doing all the things that ministers do.”

Hobbie, who has been a member of the church for almost 40 years, was the head of the five member team that interviewed applicants for the transitional pastor position after their former pastor James Sledge retired this January. After being impressed with Hwang’s “enthusiasm” and “candor,” Hwang was chosen to be the church’s transitional pastor.

“She’s very straightforward and direct talking with you,” Hobbie said. “She’s very honest about your weaknesses and your strengths, and the obstacles that you are expected to overcome.”

The church’s Clerk of Sessions Carolyn Bruce repeated the same sentiments as Hobbie, as she was also on the committee that chose Hwang. Bruce said Hwang’s genuineness came across “pretty quickly” during the interview process, as well as her train-

ing with the International Coach Federation (ICF), which works with individuals, church leaders and organizations.

“A lot of times when a church goes through a pastor leaving, it can be a sort of a more turbulent time where things aren’t always as smooth,” Bruce said.

“I thought one of the things she could [do was] bring connections to different groups in the church.”

Since starting her role as transitional pastor, Hwang said she has been “really busy,” but her favorite part so far has been “getting back in the pulpit” to lead worship every Sunday, as well as getting to know church members with one-on-one meetings.

Bruce said the reaction from church members toward Hwang have been “positive,” with a lot of people commenting on how her first sermon tied older scriptures to more modern, relatable aspects such as Amazon Prime.

“She can take a topic that may not be super happy and make it more positive,” Bruce said. “I think that people need positivity

PASTOR YENA HWANG is the first woman of color pastor at The Falls Church Presbyterian Church since it opened its doors 150 years ago. (Photo: Kylee Toland) now more than ever.”

In order for her to “bring the Bible alive in 2023,” Hwang said incorporating both modern themes and the coaching skills she has learned through ICF is “relevant” in each church member’s life. She hopes that by the end of her term as the church’s transitional pastor, she will help the congregation “see their

strengths and their resourcefulness.”

“It’s really helping them recognize that these are things that you possess, these are your assets and these are your gifts,” Hwang said. “If they call a pastor that can help them accomplish what they want to do as a church in the world, then I have done my job.”

History Moves Forward: Opening of Capital Jewish Museum in D.C.

by Phebe Fahmy

Falls Church News-Press

Jewish Washingtonians are an integral part of the vivid makeup of the diversity in the nation’s capital. A location where immigrants were able to find employment, D.C. quickly became a central location for Jewish Europeans. It became their home, and their pathway into approval and recognition into society.

The new Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum recounts the District’s Jewish history. Opening on June 9, the Museum — located at the corner of 3rd and F Streets NW — has free general admission for visitors seeking to study and connect with the stories and culture created

by Jewish Washingtonians. As the first museum in Washington, D.C. committed to storytelling the Jewish community’s influence, it houses notable photos, film, relics, interactive spaces and more.

“We really concentrate on how ideas and people and communities come together … and how our perspectives change over time … and really that’s what history museums are about,” said Executive Director Ivy L. Barsky.

Three floors are available to the

public, and offer a wide array of exhibitions. The first floor houses the museum’s shop and orientation gallery, welcoming you to the literature and education that is to come.

Located on this floor is a part of the historical synagogue, as well as the chronological history of the Jewish community’s arrival to the District.

The 1876 Synagogue is the museum’s leading artifact.

“The idea of connecting the past and the present was really an overarching design goal for us,” said lead designer Bettina Neudert-Brown.

“The simple materials of the synagogue … are mirrored with their modern counterparts.”

After a thorough look at the chronological history, visitors access the second floor, which carries the museum’s action lab, sanctuary and Core Gallery. A place for prayer, the sanctuary doubles as a space of education, showing a film that transports guests to the beginnings of community establishments in the late-19th century. The sanctuary portrays dramatic sounds and eloquent images which thoughtfully explain the vivid history.

The Community Action Lab is a place where inspiration becomes

action. Meant for visitors of all ages, the action lab makes guests aware of how they can contribute to ideas which inspire them. Hands-on activities, such as button-making, and workshops are examples of ways visitors become engaged in this space.

The Core Gallery takes up the largest portion of the second floor.

Divided into four sections, the gallery showcases Jews from different time periods, tells stories of Jewish liberation, explains forms of Jewish community, and illustrates Jewsupported social justice movements.

The gallery allows individuals to connect with past and present Jewish leaders and customs through interactive displays. The Core Gallery is where a visitor may go to unearth differing perspectives and reflect on personal values.

“Here we seek to share these stories, the expected and the unexpected,” said Visiting Curator and University of Richmond History Professor Erick Yellin. “...Our hope is that you will find many such surprises in the stories here.”

The remaining third floor holds a unique exhibition: the traveling exhibition of Notorious RBG: The Life

THE LILLIAN AND ALBERT Small Capital Jewish Museum recounts D.C.’s Jewish history. (Photo: Phebe Fahmy) and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsberg.

Based on the book of the same name

by Irin Cannon and Shana Knizhnik, the display gives an overview of the late Supreme Court justice’s life, with each section showcasing a court case she worked on. It explains her childhood, background, passion projects and gives a glimpse into the mind of the late Justice. The Capital Jewish Museum is the exhibition’s last stop and will be displayed until Nov. 30, 2023.

The Capital Jewish Museum is a

facilitator for storytelling. It tells the story through the lens of hundreds of past and present Jews. A community whose stories must be shared, Jewish Washingtonians finally have a location in the nation’s capital for their rich history.

“We want to make sure that everyone understands that they are part of this story, whoever you are when you walk in here… regardless of where you come from, you have something to say and to contribute to the story,” said Barksy.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

SPO RTS

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 19

Hammerheads Claim Title in Thrilling Post-Season Tournament Win

by Erika Toman

Falls Church Kiwanis Little League’s regular season came to an exciting end on Saturday evening, epitomizing the best of Little League baseball. The Hammerheads (coached by Nick Toman, sponsored by Chandler Heating & Plumbing) clawed back victory from a 4-0 first inning deficit against the Red Robbers (coached by Joe Greiner, sponsored by The Mount Rushmores) to clinch the post season tournament win.

The Robbers took an immediate lead on second baseman Hayes Vaughan’s hard-hit RBI single to left field. Power hitting right fielder Calvin McEwan also singled allowing three runs to score. The Hammerheads answered, bringing in Bronson Rogers, who immediately recorded two outs to end the rally.

Rogers went on to pitch four and one third shutout innings, yielding only two hits and notching five strikeouts.

The Hammerheads answered in the bottom of the frame when first baseman Landon Tucker continued his recent hot streak with a single to center field, driving in Luca Pipia and Will Wood. In the bottom of the fourth, the Hammerhead’s center fielder Casey Waldron put a ball in play, driving in Tucker, making the game 4-3. In the sixth, Hammerhead outfielder Hugo Collins drew a key walk. Shortstop Luca Pipia then doubled to deep center field, allowing Collins to tie the game. The Hammerheads proceeded to load the bases, but the tough Robbers’ defense forced the game into extra innings.

The Hammerheads were able to claim victory in the bottom of the eight in dramatic fashion.

Collins drew another key walk, and advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt from outfielder Ben Bolin.

Catcher Evan Toman walked it off with a blast to deep left field, allowing Collins to score the game win-

ning run.

Key contributors for the Red Robbers included Teddy Greiner, who pitched five innings, giving up only two hits. Aiden Ortiz pitched three and one-third innings, giving up only three hits. Greiner, Ortiz, Vaughan, McEwan, Jonah Malloy and Otto Litton contributed with hits. For the Hammerheads, Luca Pipia appeared in relief allowing only one hit, helping secure the victory. This game is the last regular season game coached by Joe Greiner in his illustrious Little League career spanning 12 years, 30 teams coached, five time All Star manager and multiple board positions held, including four years as League President.

In the FCKLL Minors Division, Team Richards (sponsored by Patient First) won the A-Level tournament, Team Thompson (sponsored by Local Thrift: Falls Church) won the AA-Level Tournament, and Team Alderson (sponsored by NDI Homes) won the AAA-Level tournament. The Richard Marsh Award went to Vince Kidder. The Bill Rose Sportsmanship Award went to Max Caddy in the Minors Division, and Gilbert Cronin in the Majors Division. The Brandon Milhorn MVP Award in Major’s went to Jack Mullin. The following coaches were recognized with the Double Goal Coaching Award: Adam Roy (Tee Rookie), Ben Salisbury (Tee Slugger), Kime Brittain (A), Jay Owen (AA), Alex Kuczkowski (AAA) and Joe Greiner (Majors). The following coaches were recognized as the Team Manager of the year: Casie Disantis (Tee Rookie), Mike Sawyer (Tee Slugger), Anthony Shetter (A), Drew Thompson (AA), Adam Alderson (AAA), Nick Toman (Majors), Amanda Springmann (Challengers) and Brian Dewhurst (Intermediate).

FCKLL All-Stars Tournament play starts the weekend of June 17.

THE HAMMERHEADS claimed the victory title in a thrilling win. (Courtesy: Erika Toman)

THE PURPLE DRAGONS the News-Press sponsored FCKLL team. (l. to r. Vaishnav Sidarth, Kaushal Sidarth, Emilia Crum, Daniel Nelson, Griffin Light, Harrison Thomas, Clark Crum, Bryce Dornellas, Ignatius Starr, William Tinsley. ( Photo: Catherine Kane)

Boys Soccer Blanks Lafayette 5-0 in State Quarterfinals

by Ryan McCafferty

With the VHSL soccer playoffs having now entered the state tournament, both Meridian’s boys and girls were in action on Tuesday night, and both played against Lafayette. The girls went on the road and lost 0-2, however, the boys earned a home contest for a chance to play in the state

semifinals.

It was clear from the start that the Mustangs were the better team, and it only took two and a half minutes for Tucker Albaugh to open the scoring as he found the back of the net from a tough angle. Alex Gardner and Fletcher Saaty added tallies later in the first half, and then Jack Ettinger and Charlie Russell scored after the

break, giving Meridian a 5-0 lead that it would hold for the remainder of the match.

The state semis will be played at Riverbend High School in Fredericksburg this Friday. Meridian’s opponent is unknown, but should they win, they would advance to play in the finals on Saturday at the same location.

The Bath or Shower You’ve Always Wanted

IN AS LITTLE AS A DAY

1000 OFF

$

*

AND

No Payments & No Interest For 18 Months **

OFFER EXPIRES 6.30.2023

CALL NOW (844) 945-1631

*Includes product and labor; bathtub, shower or walk-in tub and wall surround.

This promotion cannot be combined with any other offer. Other restrictions may apply. This offer expires 6/30/23. Each dealership is independently owned and operated. **Third party financing is available for those customers who qualify. See your dealer for details. ©2023 BCI Acrylic, Inc.

PAGE 20 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICE

The Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA) of the City of Falls Church, Virginia will hold a public hearing on June 15, 2023 at 7:30 PM in the Council Chambers, located at 300 Park Avenue, for consideration of the following items: Variance application V1640-23 by 127 Broad Street, LLC, applicant and owner, for the following variances: Section 48-1265(1) to allow wall sign area and quantity above the maximum (50 square feet and two signs per tenant) permitted in the zoning district; Section 48-1265(1)(b) to allow a sign placement higher than 20 feet maximum above grade; Section 48-1265(2) to allow projecting sign area and quantity above the maximum (10 square feet and one sign per tenant); Section 48-1269(b) to allow aggregate sign area and quantity above the maximum (125 square feet and four signs) permitted, for the Broad and Washington mixed-use building and Whole Foods Market located at premises known 111 E Broad Street, RPC #53-104-037 of the Falls Church Real Property Records, zoned B-2, Central Business.

Variance application V1641-23 by Joe Larson and Ann Marie Rosas, applicants and owners, for a variance to Section 48-238(3)a. to allow a front setback of 24 feet instead of 30 feet minimum to construct a second story addition, located at premises known as 310 Shadow Walk, RPC #51-110-083 of the Falls Church Real Property Records, zoned R-1A, Low Density Residential.

Variance application V1642-23 by David and Phoebe Hilde, applicants and owners, for a variance to Section 48-238(3)a. to allow a side setback of 10 feet instead of 15 feet minimum to construct a second story addition with an open porch over the existing garage, located at premises known as 312 Forest Drive, RPC #53-207-026 of the Falls Church Real Property Records, zoned R-1A, Low Density Residential.

Public comments and questions may be submitted to zoning@fallschurchva.gov until 4:30 pm on June 15, 2023. Agenda and application materials will be available the week prior to the scheduled hearing at: http://www. fallschurchva.gov/BZA Information on the above application is also available for review upon request to staff at zoning@fallschurchva.gov.

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING CITY COUNCIL CITY OF FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA A public hearing and final City Council action on the following is scheduled for Monday, June 26, 2023 at 7:30 p.m., or as soon thereafter as the matter may be heard.

(TR23-15) RESOLUTION TO ADOPT THE EAST END SMALL AREA PLAN AS A GUIDING DOCUMENT IN DECISION MAKING FOR PLANNING, ZONING, AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS, CITY REGULATIONS, AND POLICIES All public hearings will be held in the Council Chambers, 300 Park Avenue, Falls Church, Virginia. Remote participation information at www.fallschurchva.gov/publiccomment. Comments may also be sent to cityclerk@fallschurchva.gov. For copies of legislation, contact the City Clerk’s office at (703-248-5014) or cityclerk@fallschurchva.gov or visit www.

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

C L AS S I F I E DS fallschurchva.gov/councilmeetings. The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation for any type of disability, call 703-248-5014 (TTY 711).

CELESTE HEATH, CITY CLERK

We are pleased to announce that Northern Virginia Pulmonary and Critical Care Associates has joined Inova Health System.

To make an appointment or to request medical records, please contact: Inova Pulmonology 3289 Woodburn Rd., Suite 350, Annandale, VA 22003 703-641-8616 If you would like to transfer your medical records to another provider or receive a copy of your records, visit Inova Pulmonology’s practice location website and look for the “patient info” page to download the medical records transfer form. Upon receipt of the completed transfer request form, the records or copies will be sent, within a reasonable time, to the provider of your choice or provided to you. You will only be charged the actual costs of copying and mailing or delivering the records.

ABC NOTICE Empire Grocery LLC trading as Centro Market, 2930 Patrick Henry Drive, Unit E, Falls Church 22044, Fairfax County. The above establishment is applying to the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Authority for a Retail Off Premises Wine and Beer License.

Geetottam Sainju, Member Empire Grocery LLC. Date notice posted at establishment: 5/28/2023. NOTE: Objections to the issuance of this license must be submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www.abc.virginia.gov or 800-552-3200 Virginia Brass LLC trading as Aurora Nail Spa, 4000 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite B, Arlington VA, 22203. The above establishment is applying to the VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL (ABC) AUTHORITY for a Marketplace license to sell or manufacture alcoholic beverages.

Hai Trieu Bach-Huynh, Owner Note: Objections to the issuance of this license must be submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www.abc.virginia.gov or 800-552-3200.

HELP WANTED Part time bookkeeper / administrative aide to run accounting software.

Would like someone with accounting experience. Will train on software.

Also general secretarial, light typing, data entry Will help coordinate shipments to domestic and overseas customers.

General computer skills, word processing, willingness to learn.

Flexible hours 3-5 hours a day, salary based on qualifications.

Email nick@tranzglobal.com

FOR SALE National Mem. Park/King David Mem Gardens 7482 Lee Hwy, Falls Church Va. 22042. 703-560-4400 Lot 698 sites 2,3 and 4 Block X value $14,995.00 ea. Will sell all three for $20,000.00 or $6995.00 ea. Call Art: 540-850-1181 Unbelievable Deal!National Memorial King David Memorial Cemetery. Two choice desirable sites Block T Lot 471 spaces 3 & 4. Beautiful area below the Living Cross at the Fountains. Selling for an unbelievable price $3,000. Valued at $8,495 each. Call George @ 843-650-999

AUCTIONS

HOME IMPROVEMENT

Shine at Home Residential Cleaning Services 703-232-8328 Jeanneth Gamboa, Owner References Available

Cleaning Services

Doug's Handyman Service Interior/Exterior Repairs FREE Estimates Licensed, Bonded & Insured Call: 703-556-4276 www.fallschurchhandyman.com

Other Services

House Cleaning Service Avaliable 7 days a week Weekly - Bi Weekly - Monthly or One time Jobs Move out - Move in 28 years Experience • Good references • Free Estimates

R

For Information Call Susy Real Estate Auction: 442+/- Acres offered in 8 Tracts located in Monroe County, WV. Perfect mountain getaway with 3 homes on the property. Pasture and wooded land, abundant wildlife. Breathtaking views. Farm and timber trails throughout. Auction held at Peterstown Middle School on June 29 at 1 PM. 5% Buyer’s Premium. 2% Broker Participation Offered. For details visit woltz.com or call Woltz & Associates, Inc. Real Estate Brokers & Auctioneers 800-551-3588. (WVAL #1000) ATTN. AUCTIONEERS: Advertise your upcoming auctions statewide and in other states. Affordable Print and Digital Solutions reaching your target audiences. Call this paper or Landon Clark at Virginia Press Services 804-521-7576, landonc@vpa.net

HOME IMPROVEMENT Now Offering Financing! Ronnie Jenkins II Windows, Siding, Roofing and Gutters! FREE Estimates! Call 804-739-8207 for More Details!

American Made Products!

Eliminate gutter cleaning forever! LeafFilter, the most advanced debris-blocking gutter protection. Schedule a FREE LeafFilter estimate today. 15% off Entire Purchase. 10% Senior & Military Discounts. Call 1-877-614-6667 GENERAC Standby Generators provide backup power during utility power outages, so your home and family stay safe and comfortable. Prepare now. Free 7-year extended warranty ($695 value!). Request a free quote today! Call for additional terms and conditions.

1-877-636-0738 The Generac PWRcell, a solar plus battery storage system. SAVE money, reduce your reliance on the grid, prepare for power outages and power your home. Full installation services available. $0 Down Financing Option.

Request a FREE, no obligation, quote today.

Call 1-833-688-1378 Replace your roof with the best looking and longest lasting material steel from Erie Metal Roofs! Three styles and multiple colors available. Guaranteed to last a lifetime! Limited Time Offer - $500 Discount + Additional 10% off install (for military, health workers & 1st responders.) Call Erie Metal Roofs: 1-844902-4611 Safe Step. North America’s #1 Walk-In Tub. Comprehensive lifetime warranty. Top-of-theline installation and service. Now featuring our FREE shower package and $1600 Off for a limited time! Call today! Financing available.

Call Safe Step 1-877-591-9950 The bathroom of your dreams for as little as $149/month! BCI Bath & Shower. Many options available. Quality materials & professional installation. Senior & Military Discounts Available. Limited Time Offer - FREE virtual in-home consultation now and SAVE 15%!

Call Today! 1-844-945-1631

703-901-0596

LANDSCAPING LAWN & LANDSCAPE SERVICE Spring Clean Up • Planting flowers • Bushes Install Mulch • Lawn Program • Debris Removal

fcnp.com

Call Gabriel - 703-546-6383 References • Free Estimates

Classified Ad Rates $20 dollars for up to 20 words and $0.50 for every word after.

Contact Us: classads@fcnp. com 703-532-3267

PETS Use Happy Jack Mitex on dogs & rabbits to treat yeast infections. At Northwest Ace Hardware & Southern States stores. www. fleabeacon.com

SERVICES DIVORCE-Uncontested, $475+$86 court cost. WILLS-$295.00. No court appearance.

Estimated completion time twenty-one days.

Hilton Oliver, Attorney (Facebook). 757-4900126. Se Habla Espanol. BBB Member. https:// hiltonoliverattorneyva.com.

Portable Oxygen Concentrator May Be Covered by Medicare! Reclaim independence and mobility with the compact design and longlasting battery of Inogen One. Free information kit! Call 888-608-4974

Your Ad Here To Advertise Call Us: 703-532-3267 Or Ads@fcnp.com

FREE high speed internet for those that qualify.

Government program for recipients of select programs incl. Medicaid, SNAP, Housing Assistance, WIC, Veterans Pension, Survivor Benefits, Lifeline, Tribal. 15 GB internet service.

Bonus offer: Android tablet FREE with onetime $20 copay. Free shipping & handling.

Call Maxsip Telecom today! 1-855-970-1995 Caring for an aging loved one? Wondering about options like senior-living communities and in-home care? Caring.com’s Family Advisors are here to help take the guesswork out of senior care for you and your family. Call for your FREE, no-obligation consultation: 1-844-494-0682

fcnp.com

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

The Reach

by Brian Reach

Falls Church News-Press

GOP Presidential Bids Start Piling On It’s apparently 2024 already, so primaries, here we go! So far we have nine Republicans running, three of whom announced in the last two days.

So far GOP candidates include Donald Trump, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, Asa Hutchinson, Tim Scott, Ron DeSantis, Mike Pence, Chris Christie, and Doug Burgum. Up until Christie and Pence came onto the scene this week with scathing remarks about former President Trump, it was really the Trump and DeSantis show.

We have been spared the candidacy of U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) this round, as he will not be seeking the Presidency and instead will focus on reelection, signs that either he or his constituents have become slightly more self-aware.

Governor Youngkin (R-VA) does not appear to be running, though he certainly spends a lot of time out of the Commonwealth.

Liz Cheney, Kristi Noem, and John Bolton are rumored to be considering bids for the GOP nod.

Mike Pompeo, Chris Sununu, and Josh Hawley aren’t.

This writer is really not enjoying writing these names and considering what the debate season might look like, especially given the current climate, so I’ll just stop there.

On the Democratic Side, Marianne Williamson and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. have announced that they will challenge Joe Biden for the nod.

Kennedy, it appears, believes that the government controls people using algorithms, and believe vaccines cause autism, so probably not a serious contender there.

Williamson launched her campaign with a platform of legalizing psychedelics, declaring a national gun emergency, reaching 100 percent renewable energy in about a decade, and reinstitute Roe vs.

Wade. Though this writer finds Williamson to be a very interesting, intelligent person, in all likelihood this is Joe Biden’s nomination.

Pence Needs To Work On His Timing.

Former Vice President Mike Pence announced his 2024 Presidential bid on Wednesday,

and contrary to what this writer was expecting, what he said was decidedly not boring, though fairly insulting.

“The American people deserve to know, on that day [January 6, 2021], President Trump also demanded I choose between him and the Constitution.” said Pence, who up until this spring had failed to provide us with that fact.

This is also the same Mike Pence whose lawyers have been desperately fighting to keep him from having to testify about January 6. The same Mike Pence who was the alleged head of the pandemic task force, yet stayed silent as then-President Trump filibustered Dr. Fauci during the daily public briefings. The same Mike Pence who vouched for Trump as a devout man.

This writer believes Mike Pence blames Trump for January 6th, but if it takes the man two years to speak out against a man he now says endangered the lives of him and his family, as well as Democracy itself, on that day... is he really ‘leadership material’?

HRC Declares First-Ever State of Emergency in U.S. On Tuesday, Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ advocacy organization (which you may recognize from their iconic yellow-on-blue equal sign bumper stickers), issued a National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans, and launched a web campaign following the state of LGBTQ+ rights in the U.S., with ten categories of legislation (two good, eight bad) displayed in an infographic across each state.

“We have officially declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people in the United States for the first time following an unprecedented and dangerous spike in anti-LGBTQ+ legislative assaults sweeping state houses this year,” says HRC on their website before noting that more than 75 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been signed into law so far in 2023, more than twice 2022’s final tally, which at the time was the worst year on-record.

“Our community is in danger, but we won’t stop fighting back.

Not now, not ever.” HRC ends.

The ACLU is tracking 491 laws introduced recently, most of which target Trans individuals specifically, though the atlarge LGBTQ+ community is also under attack, with ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bills and other legisla-

PO LI TI CS tive attempts at LGBTQ+ erasure (like book bannings), forced outing, and the banning of drag performances.

More than half of the 491 bills are either advancing (271) or have been signed into law (75+), with only 125 defeated.

Again, drag queens are female impersonators by trade. They’re performers — sometimes a drag queen is a straight male who’s just really good at lip-synching.

A Trans person can be a phenomenal drag queen, but that isn’t usually the case, and regardless it is a totally different thing.

Trans people are as varied as everyone else, with one thing in common: they have a genuine, immutable gender identity that does not match their birth gender.

For the record, a Trans person can also identify as straight or gay. If that doesn’t make sense to you, don’t worry about it, because it doesn’t affect you.

It’s Pride Weekend (Again)!

This weekend includes the Capital Pride Parade (Saturday) and Festival (Sunday), which are an amazing celebration of individuality and self-acceptance.

Over the last two weeks, several smaller prides have taken place across Northern Virginia. At least for Fairfax City’s first pride event, a group of anti-LGBTQ+ protesters showed up — a reminder that Virginia may feel “blue,” but it is in fact one single vote away from a Republican supermajority — and laws mirroring the hateful ones passed in states like Florida and Texas were introduced here.

One single vote flip would have put us back into the bucket with the hate states. Go check out the festivities. It’s a blast!

But Why Call It Pride?

After all Pride, in the Bible, is a sin — and a “mortal” one at that, is it not?

But that’s Pride in terms of arrogance, self-righteousness, and feelings of superiority… essentially pride is seeing yourself as better than others.

Gay Pride, however, is a response to the stigma and shame that most LGBTQ+ individuals are raised sensing, to some degree.

Being present at Pride is an act of internal and external bravery. Just like coming out of the closet, being out in public, especially in large numbers, is a self-affirming, emotional, uplifting experience.

But at no point are queer peo-

ple saying we’re superior.

Pride is a proclamation of our existence — and a plea to be treated with dignity.

Pride is a message to queer kids that they aren’t alone.

Pride is a place where people whose parents abandoned them meet the moms and dads of others who show them parental love and approval for the first time.

Pride is us showing you who we are, and begging you to listen, so you can be equipped to counter disinformation when you hear it.

When we say we have pride, we are saying we love ourselves, flaws and all. We’re saying we’re not ashamed to exist, and deserve equal legal protection.

Pride releases some of the pressure of stigma and shame that plagues our society with tension and disunity.

When we say we have pride, we are saying we deserve love — most importantly from ourselves.

When it comes to our core identities and attractions and interests — just like you the reader, we just are who we are. I’m proud whenever I see anybody being that unapologetically.

So we’re not saying we’re proud because we’re better. We’re saying we’re not ashamed, which is a totally different concept than the biblical reference, so march with your heads held high, kweens!

All those biblical references are about something else entirely.

Don’t be afraid to make people uncomfortable by being yourself.

You aren’t making them uncomfortable. They are.

Also vote between now and June 20, and again November 3.

To my LGBTQ+ family this Pride Month: Be yourself. Be proud. Be safe. Be loud.

Trans Leader Accepts Fairfax Co. Pride Month Proclamation.

On Tuesday, Amber Beichler, board member and board clerk for Transgender Education Association (TGEA) and At-Large Trans Woman Commissioner on the Fairfax County Commission for Women, accepted the Fairfax County Pride Month Proclamation on behalf of the LGBTQ+ Community.

Beichler echoed many sentiments our readers may recognize, mentioning a brief experience at last weekend’s Reston Pride Festival, where a group of teenagers asked her about her identity.

“They were happy to see older

JUNE 8-14, 2023 | PAGE 21

Trans people, people like themselves, walking about, being visible. It’s possible they hadn’t seen an adult Trans person before me.

I’ve spoken to many trans youth who didn’t believe they would make it to adulthood,” Beichler said when addressing the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

Beichler continued by mentioning that she spoke with many parents, either that identified as or had children who were LGBTQ+, and that families are very conscious of and concerned about the uptick in anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment, legislation, and hate crimes plaguing society.

“They’re scared for their children. Scared that schools won’t be able to even mention LGBTQ+ people... scared that they will be forced to use the wrong bathroom, opening them to harassment and violence... scared they won’t be able to get their child the healthcare they need to survive.”

The coming of Pride Month has elevated the visibility of this wave of hate, and hundreds of local LGBTQ+ individuals have expressed concern on social media, with many begging their straight friends to pay attention and speak up.

Beichler made a similar plea.

“These laws are not based in science or fact, they’re only meant to further ‘other’ LGBTQ+ people, to force us out of the public eye and into the closet. Make no mistake, these laws will kill. These laws have killed.

“If you have ever considered yourself an ally, now is the time to stand alongside us and fight for our right to exist,” she continued, pointing out that June may be Pride Month, but many keep the fight for equality alive throughout the year — and that this year LGBTQ+ folk need our allies to step up.

“We need your help as well, whoever may be here or listening. Please, talk about us, especially when we are not in the room. Talk to your representatives, ask whether they support LGBTQ+ rights and if not, why they need to. Support however you can LGBTQ+ organizations, especially those providing mutual aid and resources to the most vulnerable among us.”

Beichler ended by sharing an all-too-relevant quote.

“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”

-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

LO CA L

PAGE 22 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

I� M�������:D����� F������

Donald Patrick Fanelli, 68, beloved son of Betty and Len Fanelli of Cumberland, VA died May 11, 2023. His residence was in Falls Church, Va. Don grew up in Maryland and attended University of Maryland as a merit scholar. He then attended Salem College earning a B.A. in Biology and a M.A. at George Mason University. He worked as a photo interpreter of hazardous waste at EPA and as a teacher of Environmental Science and Biology Lab. As a lover of nature, music and art, Don enjoyed travel, reading, hiking, concerts and art galleries. His travels took him to Italy, Germany, England, Ireland, France and the Netherlands, with a sense of adventure, history and

C ������ C �����

family roots.

Don was preceded in death by his grandparents, father, two aunts and two cousins.

Left to cherish his memory are his mother, brother Michael Fanelli of Rockville, Md., his sister Patricia Apperson (George) of Culpepper, niece Stephanie Hall, nephew Nicholas Apperson and much loved great nieces Laney and Zoey Craig as well as close friend Jim Turner and others. His wit, intelligence, good humor and love will be greatly missed by those who loved him and shared these years with him.

A private burial service will be held at St Peter’s Church Cemetery in Waldorf, MD. at a later date. Puckett Funeral Home is serving the family. www. puckettfh.com.

I� M�������: A��� C����� E����� C�����

It is with profoundly broken hearts that we share with you that our beautiful sister, Anna, lost her struggle with COPD on April 2, 2023, at Porter Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Anna was born on December 17, 1955, in Arlington, Virginia, to parents Wilson and Claire Earman. She was one of 10 children. Her parents, and two of her brothers, Nick and Wilson (Susan) Earman preceded her in death. Anna leaves behind her adored son, James Corder III, his wife, Victoria, a granddaughter, Zoraida, and grandson, Orion.

Seven siblings survive her — Mary Anne Glitz (Bill Glitz, deceased); Denise Fauteux (Tom

Fauteux, deceased); Bing (Debbie), lent Shows, where she played the Joe (Tina), Margie (Greg Smith), guitar and sang). Wherever there was Chris (Susan), and Joanie Earman. music, Anna was singing. Anna was She is also survived by 33 nieces and kind, generous, and deeply loyal. nephews and great nieces and Her heart knew no bounds and she nephews, many beloved cousins, would, and did, give the shirt off her other family members, and countless back to those in need. Anna was also hilarious, and her smile and her thunfriends.

Anna grew up in the City of Falls derous laughter were some of our Church, where early on her parents greatest joys.

Anna moved to Denver to spend realized she was a force to be reckoned with. Attending her first day of time with her son and his family. She kindergarten at St. James, she re- will be missed by them, as well as by turned home and told them she could her siblings and relatives, and by her take naps, eat graham crackers and many friends. We will miss her but drink milk at home, and she wasn’t know she’s shining brightly in the going back. There was no second afterlife with her parents, her brothers and too many of her wonderful day of kindergarten for Anna.

To those who knew her, we don’t friends also gone too soon. Rest in need to tell you what a brilliant light peace Anna.

A Celebration of Life is tentashe was in this world. Besides being Largest in did Metro Guns,scheduled Knives & Accessories! for sometime beautiful insideGun andShow out (she winDC!tively the coveted Miss High Point Beauty this summer in Falls Church, dePageant!). Anna was also talented tails of which will be posted on (often entertaining us at GMHS Ta- Facebook.

Expert Vendors & Training ge

0 !

130 LES B A T

ed wl no ng!

K i t ain per Ex & Tr

w Lo es! ic r P

TICKETS SOLD ONLINE ONLY

THIS PUPPY is tired after a long walk to the Falls Church Farmers Market!

Just because you’re not famous doesn’t mean your pet can’t be! Send in your Critter Corner submissions to crittercorner@fcnp.com.

Premier Land

AUCTION

Fri, Jun.23 at 12:30pm next to Post Office at 14211 Moneta Rd, Moneta, VA

228 Acres 129 Acres Beautiful

The NRA's Na onal Firearms Museum presents collec on of Tom Selleck's personal firearms including his Sharp's Rifle from Quigley Down Under, a set of custom Colt pistols from Magnum P.I., & many revolvers from his Westerns.

near Smith Mountain Lake

on Leesville Lake

Bedford Co.: Scenic theVA and Utah Conc pyestate or development tract on Rt.122 between Saturday or Sunday $1 ap ine’s ur WEMountain yo rand post H library office just 3mi from Smith Lake.

Details online. t S t FirearmTrainingStor ea ar len !

GUN St w Y ang!

Va Day Details .com | 434.847.7741 | VAAF501 Ne a B at TRFAuctions

Low

th

wi

1300 TABLES! Buy! Sell! Trade!

VPN

NATION’S GUN SHOW

PRO-GUN JUNE 16, 17 & 18 VOTE JUNE 20TH!!!

Dulles Expo 4320 Chantilly Shopping Center, Chantilly, VA 20151

w Lo es! ic r P

VA C& 57 Cou CWUtah ) 3 rs 31 es -1 43 9

Expert Professionals, Enormous Selection & Training!

FRI: 3 - 8 | SAT: 9 - 5 | SUN: 10 - 5

Huge Selection, Low Prices, Expert Dealers!

VA C& 57 Cou CW ) 3 rs 31 e -1 4

540-951-1344 | www.TheNationsGunShow.com | www.ShowmastersGunShows.com

Expert Professionals, Enormous Selection & Training!

&

L cre ow P dib ric e le Se s lec ti

In

on

The NRA National Firearms Museum presents a Collection of Arms from one of America's most extraordinary chief executives, Nobel Prize and Medal of Honor recipient Theodore Roosevelt.

Tra in (7

All CDC & VA GOVERNOR GUIDELINES MUST BE FOLLOWED!

(7

VA & Utah Co

!

Get Your Supplies While You Still Can!!!

r ou r ty ar Yea t S w a e B N a th wi

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

Falls Church Business News & Notes

JUNE 8 - 14, 2023 | PAGE 23

Where To Find The News-Press

Local Restaurants and Shops Highlighted Arlington Magazine highlighted two local restaurants for having noteworthy patios: Thompson Italian and Taco Rock. A new restaurant, Kyo Matcha, drew the attention of Eater DC recently. Noted as new to the restaurant scene and the fastest-growing chain with matcha products used in lattes, crepe layer cakes and tiramisu among other offerings. Penzeys Spices made the list of five specialty shops in Northern Virginia Magazine for the array of spices used for baking, salads, desserts, curries, soups and more.

Local Companies Make 2023 Fortune 500 List and 1000 List Virginia Business Magazine reported that 36 Virginia companies made the 2023 Fortune 1000 list, 24 of which made the Fortune 500 List. Northrop Grumman was 113 this year with $36,602 billion in revenue. Freddie Mac, Raytheon Technologies, and Boeing Co. were the highest-ranking companies in Virginia.

Corporations are ranked by total revenue and include private and public companies for which revenue information is available.

Owners Speak on Doing Business in Falls Church Falls Church Forward, supported by the Falls Church Chamber, is hosting a conversation on running a business in Falls Church. Thomas Harvey is hosting the gathering at his restaurant, Harvey’s, at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 11. Joined by Matt Lee of Lee Design Studio, they will share their reasons for selecting a Falls Church location for their business and their experiences opening and operating in the Little City. It is said that the story of the most expensive sink in Falls Church will also be shared. The gathering is open to the public and RSVPs to https:// fallschurchforward.org/business are encouraged for planning purposes.

BAE Collaboration on National Security BAE Systems has established the Mission Advantage technology partner program through which participants will have access to mentorship and business growth consultancy and prospective customer opportunities. BAE’s Intelligence and Security Sector will share its expertise in cybersecurity, digital engineering, radars and modeling and simulation to aid the research and development efforts of the partners in the program. This program provides the ability to respond quicker to evolving customer requirements and address their most complex national security challenges.

Cybersecurity Webinar The Virginia SBDC is hosting a session, “Why Cybersecurity is Relevant to Everyone” on Tuesday, June 13, 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. The webinar will provide safe computer and network usage tips for small business owners – and individuals.

Quiana Gainey, a Virginia SBDC Cyber Industry Expert, is the speaker. This session is online and free, and the Zoom link will be shared upon registration.

Register at: clients.virginiasbdc.org

 Business News & Notes is compiled by Elise Neil Bengtson, Executive Director of the Greater Falls Church Chamber of Commerce. She may be emailed at elise@fallschurchchamber.org.

• 24 Hour Fitness, 1000 E. Broad St. • 450 W. Broad St. Lobby Building • 7 Eleven (Box), 3019 Annandale Rd. • 7 Eleven (Box), 201 S Washington St. • Amazing Smiles, 444 W. Broad St. – D • Arlington Hospital Center (Box), 1701 N. George Mason Dr. • Anthony’s Restaurant, 3000 Annandale Rd. • Arlington Hospital Center ER (inside), 1702 N. George Mason Dr. • Bakeshop. E Fairfax St. • Borek G Turkish Mom’s Cooking. 315 S Maple Ave. • Bowl America, 140 S. Maple Ave. • Box at Federal Credit Union, 1226 W. Broad St. • Broad Falls Apartments, 809 W. Broad St. • Brown’s Hardware, 100 W. Broad St. • Burke & Herbert Bank, 225 W. St. Broad St. • Bus Stop (Box), Lee Hwy. and Hollywood Rd. • Café Kindred, 450 N. Washington St. • Celebrity Deli – Graham Park Plaza, 7263A Arlington Blvd.

• Central Library. 1015 North Quincy Street.

• Cinthia’s Bakery, 5860 Columbia Pike.

• City Hall. 300 Park Ave. • Clare & Don’s Beach Shack, 130 N. Washington St. • Crumbl Cookies, 1106A W. Broad St. • Cuates Grill 502 W. Broad #5t.

• CVS, 1150 W. Broad St. • CVS (Box), 134 W. Broad St. • CVS (Box), 6404 N Williamsburg Blvd.

• Dogwood Tavern, 132 W. Broad St. • Dominion Hospital, 2960 Sleepy Hollow Rd. • Dominion Wine and Beer, 107 Rowell Ct. • Don Beyer Volvo, 1231 W. Broad St. • East Falls Church Metro (Box), 2001 N. Sycamore St. • El Tio Restaurant, 7630 Lee Hwy. • Elevation Burger, 442 S. Washington St. • Eaves Fairfax Towers, 2251 Pimmit Dr. • Exxon Gas Station, 400 W. Broad St. • Falls Church Arts Gallery, 700-B W. Broad St. • Falls Church City Public Schools, 800 W. Broad St. • Falls Church City Public Utilities, Gordon Rd. • Falls Church Community Center, 223 Little Falls St. • Falls Church News-Press, 105 N. Virginia Ave. Suite #310 • Falls Church News-Press, 105 N. Virginia Ave. Lobby • Five Guys, 913 W. Broad St. • Flippin’ Pizza, 800 W. Broad St. • Floyd’s 99 Barbershop, 8296 Glass Alley, Fairfax • Foxcraft Design Group, 110 Great Falls St. • Giant Food, 1230 W. Broad St. • Giant Food, Loehmann’s Plaza • Goodwin House, 3440 South Jefferson St. • Happy Tart. 410 S. Maple Ave. • Harris Teeter, 301 W. Broad St. • Harvey’s, 513 W. Broad St. • Hillwood Cleaners, 165 Hillwood Ave. • Hilton Garden Inn, 706 W. Broad St. • Idylwood Towers Condominium, 2300 Pimmit Dr. • Idylwood Towers Condominium, 2311 Pimmit Dr. • Ireland’s Four Provinces, 105 W. Broad St. • Islamic Center, Leesburg Pike and Rio Dr. Bus Stop • Java Loco Coffee & Tea. • Jhoon Rhee Tae Kwon Do, 1136 W. Broad St. • Lazy Mikes Deli, 7049 Leesburg Pike • Ledo Pizza, 7510 Leesburg Pike • Liberty Barbecue, 370 W. Broad St. • Lil City Creamery, 114 W. Broad St. • Lincoln. At Tinner Hill Apartments, 455 S. Maple Ave. • Long & Foster Realtors, 4600 Cherry Hill Rd. • Lost Dog & Cat Rescue, 6801 Wilson Blvd • Madison Apartments, 600 N. Roosevelt Blvd.

• Mark’s Pub, 2190 Pimmit Dr. • Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School, 7130 Leesburg Pike • Mary Riley St.yles Library, 120 N. Virginia Ave.

• Medical Building, 405 N. Washington St. • Medical Building, 407 N. Washington St. • Meridian High School, 121 Mustang Alley • Merrill House Apartments, 210 E. Fairfax St. • Metro Diner, 4711 Lee Hwy. • Moby Dick House of Kabob, 444 W. Broad St. • Modera Founders Row. 110 Founders Ave. • Mom’s Organic Market, 8296 Glass Alley, Fairfax • Multicultural Center. 701 W. Broad St. • Munson Hill Apartments, 6729 Leesburg Pike • N Virginia Av & W. Broad St. (Box), 105 N. Virginia Ave. • N. Washington & E. Columbia St., 106 E. Columbia St. • Northern Virginia Immigration Law, 180 S. Washington St. • Northern Virginia Pediatric Associates, 107 N. Virginia Ave • Northgate Apartments (lobby), 450 N. Washington St. • Northside Social, 205 Park Ave. • Falls Green Apartments, 501 N. Roosevelt Blvd.

• Park Towers Condos, 200 N. Maple Ave. • Peach Tree Towers, 2042 Peach Orchard Dr. • Pearson Square Apartments, 410 S. Maple Ave. • Pete’s Barber Shop, 5847 Washington Blvd.

• Tysons-Pimmit Regional Library, 7700 Leesburg Pike • Pizzeria Orso (Tax Analyst building), 400 S. Maple Ave. • PNC Bank, 402 W. Broad St. • Point of View, 701 W. Broad St. • Post. Office, 800 W. Broad St. • Preservation Biscuit 102 E. Fairfax St. • Professional Building, 313 Park Ave. • Quick Copy, 417 W. Broad St. • Rare Bird Coffee Roasters, 230 W. Broad St. • Read Apartments, 402 W. Broad St. • Rembrandt Assisted Living, 6669 Gouthier Rd. • Roosevelt Towers, 500 N Roosevelt Blvd.

• S. Washington & W. Broad St. (Box) 101 W. Broad St. • Safeway, 5101 Wilson Blvd.

• Safeway, 2500 N Harrison St. • Safeway – Route 29, 7397 Lee Hwy. • Sfizi Café, 800 W. Broad St. • Silver Diner, 3200 Wilson Blvd.

• Sislers Stone, 7139 Lee Hwy. • Smokey’s Garage, 1105 W. Broad St. • Solace Outpost 444 W. Broad St. • Sonic Car Wash, 1050 W. Broad St. • The Spectrum, 444 W. Broad St. • The Spectrum Cleaners, 444 W. Broad St. • Starbucks, 244 W. Broad St. • Sunrise of Falls Church, 330 N. Washington St. • Super A Market, 2800 Graham Rd. • Taco Rock, 116 W. Broad St. • Target, 500 S Washington St. • Target – Skyline Mall (Box), 5107 Leesburg Pike • Tasty Dumpling, 112 W. Broad St. • The Broadway Apt (in mailroom), 500 W. Broad St. • The Byron Apartments, 513 W. Broad St. • The Falls Church Episcopal, 115 E Fairfax St., • The Kensington Falls Church, 700 W. Broad St. • The Neighborhood Barbershop, 417 W. Broad St. #103 • The Original Pancake House, 7395 Lee Hwy. • The UPS St.ore, 1069 W. Broad St. • Thomas Jefferson Library, 7415 Arlington Blvd.

• Towne Place Suites – Marriot, 205 Hillwood Ave. • Unity Club, 116-B W. Broad St. • UPS Store Seven Corners, 6312 Seven Corners Ctr. • US Post Office, 2045 Wilson Blvd.

• Verso Founders Row, 105 Founders Row • Westlee Condominium 2200 N. Westmoreland • Wendy’s – Bus St.op, 7391 Lee Hwy. • West Falls Church Metro (Box) 7040 Haycock Rd. • Woodrow Wilson Community Library, 6101 Knollwood Dr. • Yayla Bistro, 2201 N. West Moreland St.

Interested in a subscription, please email us at delivery@fcnp.com or give us a call 703-532-3267

PAGE 24 | JUNE 8 - 14, 2023

Paid for and authorized by Chap Petersen for State Senate

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM