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Vol. 39, No. 13 | Richmond Suburban News | November 30, 2022
Ashland Olde Time Holiday Parade By Christina Amano Dolan Editor
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fter two years of excited anticipation, the Hanover community welcomed the return of the beloved Ashland Hanover Olde Time Holiday Parade to the streets of Ashland. The Kiwanis Club of Ashland has dedicated 25 years to spreading holiday cheer to all with the annual parade on the Sunday before Thanksgiving. The club was founded in 1923 and is currently comprised of around 70 volunteers dedicated to serving the local community through a variety of projects and programs. Now in its 53rd year, the historic parade continues see PARADE, pg. 7
With this year’s Great Cycle Challenge USA officially in the books, Mechanicsville resident George Gagnon and his grandsons ranked nationally for their exceptional contribution to the annual fundraising challenge. With thousands of dollars accumulated in community donations and hundreds of miles cycled, the family team pedaled their way even closer this fall to a cure for childhood cancer. This year marked 72-year-old Gagnon’s sixth see GAGNON, pg. 9
our er! Y t Ge y Che ida Hol
PHHS students give thanks to support staff with a Thanksgiving meal By Christina Amano Dolan Editor
Photo courtesy of The Town of Ashland
Ashland Town Council and Town Manager Josh Farrar pose in their festive attire while getting ready to cruise through the town in the Ashland Hanover Olde Time Holiday Parade.
Gagnon, grandsons raise $12K for fight against childhood cancer By Christina Amano Dolan Editor
Prsrt. Standard U.S. POSTAGE PAID Mechanicsville, VA Permit No.141
Contributed photo
George Gagnon and his grandsons, Michael and William Dickey, raised thousands of dollars cycling for “TeamGeoff” this year to help combat and raise awareness for childhood cancer in the annual Great Cycle Challenge USA.
On the morning before Thanksgiving Break, Patrick Henry High School students in the Positive Dogs program spread the season’s spirit with a special Thanksgiving lunch honoring the school’s custodians, cafeteria staff and other support staff employees essential to the Patriot community. Positive Dogs program students gathered in the cafeteria for a special lunch with the school’s essential staff, featuring an abundant potluckstyle spread of homemade Thanksgiving dishes, comfort food, baked goods and more made by the students and their parents. “A lot of the parents came in strong,” said Brandon Farrar, PHHS assistant principal and founder of the Positive Dogs program. Positive Dogs member Peyton Dyer even brought
Celebrate the holidays with the Bennet sisters in this charming sequel to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.
Christina Amano Dolan/The Local
Patrick Henry High School cafeteria faculty line up for the first pick of the Positive Dogs Thanksgiving spread.
a Thanksgiving turkey cooked by his mother the night before. Farrar, who has led the program for five years, first introduced the Positive Dogs program to Mechanicsville see PHHS pg. 16
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