INSIDE
4 Stafford’s heritage defies Hollywood stereotypes
10 Trail plays up a level at Mount Olive
7 Are you a dog owner or pet parent?
VOL. 30 | NUM. 8
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WWW.INSIDENOVA.COM
JUNE 1, 2018
Foster parenting changes lives
STAFFORD REMEMBERS THE FALLEN
M Stafford County marked Memorial Day with an observance May 25 at the Armed Forces Memorial that was dedicated last summer. The county sheriff ’s office presented the colors and Deputy Deuntay Diggs sang the national anthem. For more, turn to page 9. ALEKS DOLZENKO/INSIDENOVA
Fredericksburg Christian could be home to public school » BY TRACY BELL
tbell@insidenova.com
Stafford County has debated borrowing millions of dollars to purchase and expand Fredericksburg Christian School’s now-closed North Stafford location. Under a county administration recommendation, the Stafford would borrow $22.5 million over the next several years for the project, but the school board has concerns that Ferry Farm Elementary School is in need of attention. At a recent school board meeting, board member Patricia Healy, Rock Hill District, said that it’s al-
ways been North Stafford versus south Stafford since her time on the board, but that’s not the case for Ferry Farm. She explained that years ago, Ferry Farm was at the top of the priority list, but the school community didn’t want to expand. The community was happy to receive renovations but liked the small, personal school the way it was. Earlier last month, the school board and board of supervisors met to talk about converting the FCS school building, located off Garrisonville and Shelton Shop roads, into a school for Head Start students
and pre-schoolers in a special education program. The school board first discussed purchasing and renovating the school at a cost of more than $10 million; however, a county administration recommendation increased the project work load with the addition of 30 classrooms and the much steeper price. School board member Dewayne McOsker, George Washington District, has been a strong proponent of giving the Ferry Farm school the improvements that are due. SCHOOL
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ost volunteers in Stafford County go home at the end of the day. Foster parents volunteer around the clock to give a child a sense of permanency, well-being and safety – the mantra of the Stafford Department of Social Services, according to the county. “Foster families are our work engine. We could not do what we do without them,” said Karen Stidsen, a 30-year Department of Social Services veteran. “Everybody needs a family, and every child needs permanency. We start thinking about that as soon as a child comes into foster care.” The number of children in foster care in Stafford is half of what it was 10 years ago. Stidsen credits this to the work by Social Services caseworkers. They do preventive work with families in crisis and work toward a permanent home with relatives or adoptive families. Stidsen shared several stories of children who have gone on to overcome difficult conditions with the care of a loving foster family. Stidsen remembers when staffers were called to a home where they saw what they thought was a baby doll but turned out to be an infant who weighed less than five pounds at 3 months of age. An experienced foster mother took her in, and that baby is thriving today. There was also another child who had been moved to different foster homes because of her behavior. Fortunately, she was adPARENTS » PAGE 3
STAFFORD COUNTY SUN
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