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Classified Advertising April 16, 2014

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Oak Hill, Herndon Home Sales: March, 2014

In March 2014, 58 homes sold between $975,000-$160,000 in the Herndon and Oak Hill area.

Oak Hill, Herndon Home Sales: March, 2014

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Tax Burden Targets Low-Income Workers in Northern Virginia

Average tax burden for low-income workers is highest in Arlington, Alexandria and Fairfax.

Families that are struggling to make ends meet in Northern Virginia are the target of local governments in Northern Virginia, which has the highest tax burden in the region for low-income workers. Wealthy people face the highest tax burden in Prince George's County and Montgomery County. But here in Virginia, poor people face the biggest tax burden in Arlington, according to a new study by the Office of Revenue Analysis in the District of Columbia. Alexandria ranked second, and Fairfax County ranked third.


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Beyer Rakes in Campaign Cash in Democratic Primary

Fundraising numbers reveal former lieutenant governor has significant edge.

Campaign finance documents released this week show Don Beyer well ahead of his competitors in the race for cash, giving the former lieutenant governor a significant edge over the nine other Democrats in the race to replace U.S. Rep. Jim Moran (D-8).

Chess Champions

FCPS students sweep team titles at Virginia Scholastic Chess Championships.

Students from three Fairfax County public schools won team championships in all four K-12 divisions at the Virginia Scholastic Chess Championships held recently in Roanoke. Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) students also won individual championships in the K-3 and K-5 divisions.

Editorial: Celebrate Earth Day

Get outside with your family, participate in group activities, or just walk in your favorite park.

Earth Day is April 22, observed April 19-27 and beyond. Fairfax County offers many useful and educational ways to enjoy the day. Don’t miss the chance to get outside, observe the developing spring weather, flora and fauna. Here are some of the opportunities:


Challenging A Child’s Mind

Experts say reading is critical to cognitive and emotional development.

Arlington mother Holly Karapetkova reserves time for reading in the schedules of her two young children. It has become such an important part of their daily routine that it is a treasured family activity. It is also vital to her children’s development says Karapetkova.

Dying of Curiosity

As I was completing last week’s column ("I Thought I Was a Goner") and thanking my oncology nurse, Ron, in the process, for the excellent care he has provided me for nearly five years now; a week after I wrote a column thanking my Certified Holistic Health Coach, Rebecca Nenner, for the health and fitness-type knowledge she has given me over those same five years; it dawned on me that perhaps my subconscious mind knew something that my conscious mind didn’t: that I should move closer to the undertaker like Radar’s Uncle Ernest did two days before he died, in the M*A*S*H episode titled "Novacaine Mutiny" from season four.

Week in Herndon

Herndon Town Council Holds Budget Hearings A $48,827,100 budget was presented to residents to discuss at the April 8 Herndon Town Council meeting. The meeting provided residents the opportunity to gather information about the 2014-15 budget. A second hearing will be held April 22, at 7 p.m. at 765 Lynn Street. “In this climate, my proposed FY 2015 budget takes a conservative approach to allocation of town resources while continuing our focus on redevelopment of the downtown, planning for transit-oriented development near Metrorail's Herndon station and maintenance of the quality of our public facilities and infrastructure," stated Herndon Town Manager Arthur Anselene in a press release.


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Eggs-ellent Pre-Easter Swim

Herndon Community Center hosts third annual Aqua Egg Hunt.

Energetic children splashed about in a pool, frantically grabbing colorful plastic eggs bobbing in the water before time ran out. Herndon Community Center’s Third Annual Aqua Egg Hunt attracted about 80 swimsuit-clad children on Saturday. “I think it’s an opportunity for both the child and parent to do something together,” said Aquatic Services Manager Kerstin Severin.

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Snap Fitness Holds Grand Opening

24/7 fitness center looks forwards to serving community.

After more than three years of successful operation of a fitness location on Franklin Farm Road, in Herndon, business owner Sean Boyd decided to open a new Snap Fitness location at the Herndon Kmart Shopping Center on Elden Street. Several martial arts studios are located in the area, but there has been no fitness center serving the neighborhood since Gold’s Gym closed its location in 2008.

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Mind Heart Vision Exhibit Opens at ArtSpace

Senior students display work at community art gallery.

Every spring art teachers at Herndon High School invite senior artists to participate in a juried art show at ArtSpace Herndon, the community art gallery created and supported by art lovers in the greater Herndon area. The exhibit includes paintings, photographs, drawings, and sculpture. “The show is a chance for our art students to show their talents, and they are talented,” said Herndon High art teacher Alexa Mamatas, a 2008 graduate of Herndon High. Students show paintings, photographs, drawings, and digital art. This show was juried by professional local artist and teacher Melanie Stanley, Jeanette Burkle Galie of Galie photography, and Richard Suib of Richard Suib Images. “I think it is a great opportunity for other people to see our art,” said Herndon senior Saif Siraj, who has a computer-generated image on display in the exhibit. “The picture took about a week to make,” said Siraj.


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ArtSpace Herndon Hosts Americas Ensemble Concert

Audience learns about rhythm and musicians’ life journeys.

“This is a perfect example of how the arts in Herndon has both an educational and entertaining mission to bridge cultures in our local community,” said Scott Mayhugh. Mayhugh was attending the Saturday evening music performance hosted at ArtSpace Herndon featuring artists of a group named Americas Ensemble.

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Lutheran Mission Team Feeds the Hungry

Members of the Good Shepherd Lutheran Church missions team, Helping Hands, reached out to the Selma community once again, donating $7,000 of food to the local food pantry. Concordia students helped shop, deliver and unload the hundreds of pounds of canned food to Christian Outreach Alliance, an organization that gives hundreds of food bags to the hungry each month. Good Shepherd, based in Herndon has sent several mission teams to Concordia College over the years. Also on the mission trip was Matthew Dickert. The team also painted buildings on campus during their time in Selma.

Herndon High in National Business Plan Competition

The Business Management Virtual Enterprise class at Herndon High recently placed first in best sales presentation, first in website design, second in company business card, and fifth in human resource case study during a trade show at Virginia Wesleyan College. The students created the company V-LO Chip, Inc. Their chip is the size of a stamp and can be placed on any item which would allow one to locate a lost, stolen, or misplaced object using a smartphone, laptop, or tablet. It can also be used for medical purposes to locate disoriented loved ones suffering from dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease. Team members include Paria Ahmadi, Daniel Cozza, Eduardo Delgado, Bobby Emmons, Bailey Hubble, Anthony Lieu, Stephanie Paendong, Nathan Petrelli, and Sam Sepassi. Team officers also played a part in the success of the competition but did not attend; they traveled to New York City on March 31, to represent Virginia in the National Business Plan competition. Officers are Steven Barbaro, Andrew Ipinza, Robert Koss, Travis Langtry, Andrew Maccini, Sara Pena, and Han Phan.


Classified Advertising April 9, 2014

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Connection Papers Win Awards

Reporting, photography, design and editorial cartoons commended at annual Virginia Press Association meeting.

"Great work exposing serious challenges and obstacles in the way of the public's access to public information. The articles are well written and well researched, providing concrete and compelling examples of the flaws in the systems." That was what the judge said when awarding first place for In-depth or investigative reporting to Michael Lee Pope in the Arlington Connection. The Virginia Press Association announced its press awards for 2013 at the annual meeting on Saturday, April 5, in Richmond.

"I Thought You Were a Goner"

So has said my longtime oncology nurse, Ron, who has tended to me since June, 2009. Originally, I had been assigned to a different oncology nurse, Holly, with whom I developed an immediate rapport. She cared for me from the beginning, early March 2009, when I began my every-three-week chemotherapy infusion through June, when she transferred from the Infusion Center to a different unit (oncology does take a toll). Initially, after Holly’s departure, Jane, another nurse in the unit, took me on as a patient. However, and this is where the details get sketchy, within a subsequent infusion or two, I was told one day upon my arrival at the Infusion Center, that Ron, still another oncology nurse, who I had certainly seen there previously but with whom I had minimal interaction, would be taking over for Jane – who was not transferring out – and henceforth would be my new oncology nurse. Apparently, I had been traded. For another patient? For future considerations? For a lunch-to-be-paid later? To this day, nearly five years later, I’ve never been able to uncover the truth. I got along fine with Jane; I’m a very low-maintenance patient/ person; I don’t think I did anything to precipitate such a decision. Nevertheless, a deal (my word) had been struck.


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Green Lizard Lights it Up Blue for Autism Awareness Day

A good sized crowd gathered last Wednesday evening at Herndon’s Green Lizard Cycling to see the storefront lit up with blue lights. Buildings and landmarks across the country and the world turned on blue lights as well Wednesday night for Autism Speaks 4th annual “Light It Up Blue” campaign for World Autism Awareness Day.

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Clean for Spring

Local organization experts offer tips to help with spring cleaning.

Betsy Fein found herself in the middle of a spring fling in Fairfax recently. She wasn’t at a festival or involved in a new romance, but in the midst of organizing a cluttered bedroom that was littered with piles of shirts, pants, shoes and books. Spring often means renewal and local organizers like Fein are offering suggestions for clearing out winter clutter. From closets that are overstuffed with wool sweaters and down coats to kitchen drawers overflowing with batteries and appliance manuals, they offer suggestions for getting organized without getting overwhelmed.