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Centreville Home Sales: January, 2014

In January 2014, 52 Centreville homes sold between $715,000-$222,000.

Centreville Home Sales: January, 2014

Chantilly Home Sales: January, 2014

In January 2014, 14 homes sold between $680,000-$175,000 in the Chantilly area.

Chantilly Home Sales: January, 2014

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Money on the Shelves: Jurisdictions Take Variety of Approaches to Funding Libraries

Some have recovered from the recession, others are still struggling.

What is the future of the neighborhood library?


Roundups

House Fire: $100,000 Damage A house fire over the weekend caused an estimated $100,000 damage to a single-family home in Centreville. Fire investigators say the blaze was accidental. They blamed it on an electrical anomaly in the air-conditioning wall unit in the garage that had been converted into a daycare center. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department units responded Sunday, Feb. 16, around 2:15 p.m. to 7105 Ordway Road. First-arriving firefighters saw smoke and fire coming from the garage. They brought the fire under control in approximately 10 minutes. Working smoke alarms provided early warning and allowed the home’s occupants to escape unharmed before the firefighters arrived. No one was injured, but the fire displaced four adults and three children.

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‘To Be Graceful and Fast’

Westfield High freshman Nicole Bachman isn’t an Olympian, but she is an accomplished ice skater. And on Feb. 27, she and Team Ashburn will compete in the Synchronized Skating National Competition in Colorado Springs. A resident of Centreville’s Virginia Run community, Bachman’s among five girls from Fairfax County on the 15-member team. They skate at the Intermediate Level — the U.S. Figure Skating Assciation’s most competitive level. And this is the first time an Intermediate team from the Washington Metropolitan area has made Nationals.

Just Chillin’ in the Snow

Two snowstorms, Feb. 12-13, brought 14 inches of snow initially, plus 4 more inches later, to the local area, bringing dogs and people out to play.


Women of Faith Discuss Peace

Concerned about unrest in the world and wanting to do something about it, the Women’s Auxiliary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community hosted an interfaith event. Held Feb. 8 at the Mubarak Mosque in Chantilly, it gave women from different walks of life the chance to discuss their perspectives on peace. The event was called “World Crisis and the Pathway to Peace.” And during its course, the women presented their ideas on: * How to save the world from destruction, * How to create true peace and harmony in the world, and * What’s the role of religion in promoting justice, freedom, human rights and peace?

Man Charged with Setting Home Fire

A Centreville man has been charged with arson in connection with a fire at the home where he was a renter. He is Giancarlo Deleon, 25, and the fire was at a single-family home on Scotch Run Court. Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department units responded there last Thursday, Feb. 13, around 12:30 a.m. And despite heavy snow and dangerous driving conditions, firefighters arrived at the scene quickly. They encountered flames coming from the basement of the three-story house and spreading to a neighboring home.

Editorial: Fundamental Freedom To Choose To Marry

Virginia is historically slow in extending rights.

In 1967, Virginia was one of 16 states that banned interracial marriage and had criminal penalties for violators. Mildred Jeter, an African-American woman, and Richard Loving a white man, married in 1958, were convicted and banished from living in Virginia for 25 years to avoid serving a one-year prison sentence. On June 12, 1967, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Loving v. Virginia, overturned the convictions of Mildred and Richard Loving, declaring the ban on interracial marriage unconstitutional.


Until Further Notice

Not to state the obvious (which I readily admit I do), but to be given a terminal diagnosis: stage IV, non-small cell lung cancer, along with a rather disappointing prognosis: "13 months to two years" is a challenging set of extremely unexpected (given my immediate family’s medical history) circumstances. I don’t want to say that I live under a dark cloud – because I don’t like the negative implication or reaction it conjures, but I definitely feel as if I have a metaphorical sword of Damocles hanging over my head; which I only refer to as an-out-of-context Three Stooges reference wherein a non-Stooge was innocently standing under a pie which Moe had thrown to the ceiling and there it stuck, hanging precariously over the character’s head. Now I still don’t know the proper historical context of the sword of Damocles, I only know the Three Stooges version, but there was some imminent danger involved (not death, mind you), but rather a falling pie which ultimately landed flush on the character’s face as she looked up to make further inquiries. Nevertheless, pie issues/references notwithstanding, having seen my oncologist today while being infused and receiving a big smile/ "you’re going great"/thumbs-up set of gestures/reactions while reclining in my Barcalounger with a chemotherapy I.V. dripping medicine into my right arm, is the kind of super-positive feedback with which I can live. Along with my every-three-week pre-chemotherapy lab work and my every-three-month CT Scan followed by my every-three-month face-to-face appointment with my oncologist, this is how I roll. Worrying about upcoming tests, waiting anxiously for results, trying not to anticipate good, bad or indifferent; living day to day and trying to appreciate my good fortune and the unexpected above-average quality of life with which I’ve been blessed – for a terminal cancer patient, that is.

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How Red Is the 10th District?

Wolf’s retirement sparks crowded political stage as both parties vie for coveted Congressional seat.

U.S. Rep. Frank R. Wolf’s announcement in December that he would not seek reelection to an 18th term in Congress came as a surprise to both Republicans and Democrats. Wolf’s retirement notice instantly set off a feeding frenzy among politicians maneuvering to gain the Northern Virginia Congressional seat.

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Envisioning a Launch Pad for Young Adults

Paws4people develops pilot for former foster children, others.

Imagine if in your childhood, it was normal for a social worker to show up unexpectedly, hand you a big black garbage bag and tell you to pack your things.


Editorial: Fundamental Freedom To Choose To Marry

Virginia is historically slow in extending rights.

In 1967, Virginia was one of 16 states that banned interracial marriage and had criminal penalties for violators. Mildred Jeter, an African-American woman, and Richard Loving a white man, married in 1958, were convicted and banished from living in Virginia for 25 years to avoid serving a one-year prison sentence

'This School Was My Safe Place'

Mountain View High holds winter graduation.

61 Mountain View students donned caps and gowns, Friday, Feb. 7, and filed into Centreville High’s auditorium for their school’s winter graduation.

Letter: Correcting Error on Mental Health Services

Fairfax County serving more people now.

A Feb. 11 editorial by Mary Kimm, referencing reporting by Michael Pope, makes an incorrect assertion that our services to people with mental illness in Fairfax County have been “dramatically cut back.”


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Westfield’s Freix Wins Conference 5 All-Around Title

Robinson wins team championship, Oakton finishes second.

The Westfield gymnastics team placed third at the Conference 5 meet on Feb. 6.

Rock Run Annual Spelling Bee

Rocky Run students competed in their annual spelling bee.

She’s Working To Build a School in Liberia

Novel to fund effort and raise awareness.

Angela Peabody released her novel, "When the Games Froze."


Letter: Fully Fund Our Schools

To the Editor

Letter: On Racial and Social Equality

To the Editor