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Sport and Health Hosts Concussion Forum

Former NFL players, doctors discuss diagnosis and care for athletes.

Worldgate Sport&Health Clubs hosted a forum for local parents and coaches Tuesday, Sept. 10 to discuss proper diagnosis and care for athletes with suspected concussions.

Commentary: Voter Suppression

As fundamental as the right to vote is to a democratic republic, free and open access to voting continues to be a contentious issue. From the earliest days of our nation’s history when only white male landowners could vote to recent history when the Voting Rights Act was intended to ensure that voter registration processes were open and fair, there have been expansions of the suffrage followed by efforts at retrenchment. While the Emancipation Proclamation may have freed the slaves, African Americans and other minorities have seen a steady stream of legislation and intimidation to keep them from voting.

Week in Herndon

Woodland Park Crossing to Host HarvestFest

Woodland Park Crossing presents the third annual HarvestFest, a fun fall-themed family event on Saturday, Sept. 28 from noon until 4 p.m. All are welcome to enjoy free entertainment, including a giant walking scarecrow, a juggling unicyclist, DJ music, and free activities such as face painting, glitter tattoos, pumpkin painting, fitness demos, prizes and more. Participating Woodland Park Crossing merchants and restaurants will offer giveaways and samplings at their booths, and Finnegan’s is hosting tastings of food and fall brews on their patio. Fitness demos will be presented by LA Boxing and Down Dog Yoga. Select HarvestFest proceeds will benefit local charities.


Seniors Spell in Bee, Expert Youth Speller Moderates

Herndon Senior Center hosted 200-plus senior attendees from 15 senior communities and 22 contestants on Sept. 11 in a spelling bee to remember. Lori Anne Madison, 7, the youngest ever participant in the Scripps National Spelling Bee from 2012, gave a presentation and assisted in word calling. The overall winner was Ruth Siegerson of Falcon's Landing.

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A Playful Homage to Hitchcock

“The 39 Steps” opens at NextStop Theatre, Fairfax's newest professional theater.

"Hitchcock meets hilarity" is the way cast member Nick Rose describes "The 39 Steps," the first production of Fairfax County's newest professional theater company, NextStop Theatre in Herndon.

Record Crowds, Record Fundraising in Dulles Day Plane Pull

More than $226,000 raised for Special Olympics Virginia.

A record-breaking crowd—more than 16,000—turned out for the Sept. 14 Dulles Day Festival and Plane Pull at Dulles International Airport. In its 21st year, the event is a fundraiser for Special Olympics Virginia, pitting teams of 25 against one another to see who can pull an 82-ton, 164,000-pound airplane the fastest. Seventy teams registered to participate in the event, raising over $226,000—a record amount for the event. A new addition to the festivities this year was an early morning 5K on the Dulles runway, in which 2,000 runners participated. A highlight of the afternoon was the arrival of an FA2 fighter attack sea harrier jet, which demonstrated its vertical take off and landing capabilities to a rapt crowd.


Herndon Parks and Recreation Wins Awards for Marketing

Approximately 450 delegates from Virginia gathered in early September for the 59th annual conference of the Virginia Recreation and Park Society, which was held in Williamsburg. The conference is a learning exchange and provides an opportunity for recreation and park professionals to collaborate and ultimately improve the delivery of parks and recreation services. A highlight of each conference is a presentation of awards. This year Herndon Parks and Recreation had two items, which were selected in the 25,000 and less population category:

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Planning Area’s Future Transit

Transportation officials discuss transportation funding, projects.

The Northern Virginia Transportation Alliance hosted their annual "What You Need to Know About Transportation" seminar Thursday, Sept. 12 at the Gannett building in McLean.

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A New Beginning for Fairfax County Public Libraries?

Library trustees vote to discard beta plan in favor of more public outreach sessions.

On Wall Street, a “beta” test refers to assessing the risk, volatility and expected return of a particular portfolio. If Fairfax County Public Library (FCPL) officials had a crystal ball to assess the volatility of its planned beta tests this fall, it’s likely they may have steered clear of the project that became a quagmire of epic proportions.


What’s Wrong With This Picture?

County suspends discarding of library books.

Just when Sam Clay, Fairfax County’s Public Library director, thought FCPL’s public image couldn’t get any worse, Supervisor Linda Smyth (D-Providence) released photos of bins filled to the brim with discarded library books.

Letter: Joining Forces to Prevent Homelessness

You can prevent homelessness, you can end chronic homelessness, you can move people rapidly out of homelessness. What you cannot do is stand aside and let people fall. This simple belief—that together we can change the rate and severity of people losing their homes—brings together nonprofits, for-profits, civic leaders and government staff. We each play a special role, depending on our location and mission. For United Community Ministries (UCM), prevention is the key.

Column: Now This is What

Do nothing (no more treatment) and live life to the fullest (for as long as I’m able, and right now, I’m extremely able); start another chemotherapy protocol – with an I.V. chemotherapy drug which, according to my oncologist, has not been proven in any clinical setting to be better than the patient doing nothing; or, try to get into a Study (Phase 1, 2 or 3) at either N.I.H. (National Institutes of Health) or Johns Hopkins (in Baltimore) and let the treatment chips fall wherever experimental/research medicine takes them. This is what my oncologist discussed with Team Lourie at my most recent appointment, my first appointment with him since my hospitalization and subsequent release.


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NVAR Summit at GMU’s Mason Inn

Complex shortage of homes for sale likely to persist; boomers not planning to retire, not planning to move, experts say. Rising mortgage rates should inspire renters to buy soon.

Nationally syndicated columnist and moderator Kenneth R. Harney introduced the expert panel for the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors (NVAR) 17th annual Economic Summit Thursday morning, Sept. 5. Dr. David Crowe, chief economist and senior vice president of the National Association of Home Builders, joined economic experts David E. Versel, a senior research associate at the George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis, and Dr. Lawrence Yun, senior economist for the National Association of Realtors.

Condo Renovations

As sales of condominiums grow, so does demand for luxury renovations.

More people are moving from leafy, sprawling suburbs to more urban areas, neighborhoods both in the city and in Northern Virginia that offer close proximity to restaurants, jobs, cultural activities and Metro.

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Big Ideas for Small Spaces

Local designers offer ideas for decorating small rooms.

Whether one is sprucing up a small powder room or decorating a studio apartment, space limitations often pose a design challenge. However, local designers say that no matter how a small space’s square footage or how awkward the layout, there are plenty of decorative cures for small spaces. Whether one is sprucing up a small powder room or decorating a studio apartment, space limitations often pose a design challenge. However, local designers say that no matter how a small space’s square footage or how awkward the layout, there are plenty of decorative cures for small spaces.


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Top-to-Bottom Makeover Embraces Longterm Horizons

The Hollis family wanted a house that would work better today — and long into the future.

Sometimes it’s not limited square footage that makes a house feel inadequate — it’s how that square footage is configured.

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Like Magic

New plan in built-out 1940s colonial gains vital square footage as young family looks ahead.

In the end, a skillful spatial reconfiguration is like a deft magician's trick — you've seen it with your own eyes, but you still can't figure out how they did it. “Really, I don't know how this plan created so much more usable space,” Alexandria resident Alice Goulet said, discussing a recent reconfiguration to several rooms in the family's 1,800-square-foot center-hall Colonial.

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Northern Virginia Designers Awarded Rooms in Showhouse Event

Northern Virginia/metro area interior designers Kelley Proxmire of Kelley Interior Design and Wayne Breeden of E. Wayne Breeden Design are among 17 designers awarded rooms at the benefit Winchester Showhouse & Gardens, open to the public through Sept. 29.


Sun Design Named One of U.S.’s Fastest Growing Private Companies

Sun Design Remodeling Specialists, Inc., of Fairfax, was named by Inc. Magazine as one of America’s fastest-growing private companies. This is the fourth time the magazine has included Sun Design on its annual Inc. 5000 list.

Week in Herndon

Bolger said he has worked for 30 years fixing problems in our community, protecting families' homes from aggressive creditors, bringing residents together to improve street safety and schools. Now, Bolger says, he is running for Congress to bring these same problem solving values to Washington.