Chantilly High Presents 26th Annual Jazz & Pizzazz
When it comes to rousing, high-octane, simply dazzling entertainment, it’s hard to beat Chantilly High’s annual Jazz & Pizzazz show. Starring the Touch of Class Show Choir, Chantilly Jazz Band and Chantilly Combo, it’s a colorful kaleidoscope of music, costumes, lights and sound.
Volunteering on ‘Red Day’
The agents of Keller Williams Realty of Chantilly/Centreville put on their work gloves Thursday, May 10 to help remove invasive garlic mustard plants from Eleanor C. Lawrence Park in Chantilly. Their efforts were part of the company’s “Red Day” when agents take a day off and volunteer in their communities.
Police Unity Tour
U.S. Treasury Agent Kevin Whalen of Centreville points to the cheering crowd lining Route 29 at the intersection with Route 28 on Saturday, May 12 as the Region IV Police Unity Tour riders make the last leg of their 3-day journey through Centerville from Richmond to the National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial in Washington D.C. In its 16th year, the Tour has the goal of raising awareness of fallen police officers and raising money for the National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial Fund. This is the second year that Chapter IV has had a team on the ride.
Families Fight For Northern Virginia Training Center
Center provides care to more than 150 residents with disabilities.
Susan Infeld, a registered nurse, remembers vividly the night she knew she had to get involved with the Northern Virginia Training Center. She was working as a hospice nurse at a local hospital when a patient from NVTC came in suffering from pneumonia in the middle of the night.
Game On
George Mason University students develop video games aimed at curtailing gang recruitment in Virginia.
Law enforcement officials now have two unlikely weapons in the fight against gang activity in Virginia: video games and college students.
Rocky Run Against the World
Robowiz team develops groundbreaking research.
With food safety being of vital importance these days, a group of students mainly from Rocky Run Middle School created a way to prevent e coli from forming in reusable grocery bags. For their efforts, they took second place in a state championship and third in the world.
Shall We Dance?
Special-ed students have fun at day prom.
Proms in the daytime can be just as much fun as those in the evening. And the special-ed students attending the FCPS Day Prom, last Thursday morning, May 3, at the Waterford in Fair Oaks had a great time.
Roundups for May 9
Worker Dies on the Job A Herndon man working on a job in Chantilly died Sunday after an accident involving heavy equipment. Fairfax County police identified him as Gerardo Santiago Paulette Ruiz, 47. The tragedy occurred May 6, shortly before 3 p.m., at a business in the 4100 block of Lafayette Center Drive. Police say Ruiz was operating a forklift in the warehouse area and “apparently attempted to pass through a doorway when the forklift struck an overhead beam.” The beam then dislodged and fell on him. Ruiz was pronounced dead at the scene.
Local Man Pleads Guilty to Murder
He killed his father in Centreville.
Gbassay “Omar” Koroma was slated to stand trial for murder, May 7, in Fairfax County Circuit Court. Instead, he pleaded guilty in March and will be sentenced next month.
Clifton Rolls Out the Welcome Mat
It’s the 40th annual Spring Homes Tour.
French chandeliers, antique furnishings, original paintings and whimsical collections are among the delights awaiting all those attending the 40th annual Clifton Spring Homes Tour. It’s slated for Thursday, May 17, from 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., and includes a marketplace, silent auction and raffle, from 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m., at the Paradise Springs Winery.
Saturday Is Chantilly Day
Parade, food, music, cars, children’s activities.
Grab the children, comfy shoes and sunscreen — and come to the Sully Place Shopping Center, this Saturday, May 12, for the first-ever Chantilly Day celebration. It’s free and open to everyone, no matter where they live, and promises to be a day of fun and entertainment.
Presidential Visit to Washington-Lee
President Barack Obama made his first visit to Washington-Lee High School on Friday, May 4.
Northern Virginia Bill Signing Puts Human Trafficking and Domestic Violence in Spotlight
A rare moment of bipartisanship between Republican governor and Democratic legislators.
Strangulation will be punished more aggressively to combat violence against women. Campus police will work with other police agencies to crack down on domestic violence of unmarried couples. And the telephone number for a human trafficking hotline will be placed in the restrooms at strip clubs across Virginia.
Housing Discrimination Alert
Officials step up education, outreach efforts to reach immigrant communities about "fair housing" rights.
Housing discrimination cases have been on the rise in Fairfax County in the past few years. And the Office of Human Rights and Equity Programs (OHREP), the agency that enforces fair housing laws in the county, is shining a spotlight on the problem through seminars for housing providers, realtors, community groups and other interested parties. "Sadly, housing discrimination is alive and well and we’ve seen an uptick in complaints during the past six years," said Kenneth Saunders, executive director of OHREP.
Murder Case Goes to Grand Jury
Testimony heard about Centreville woman’s death.
Dressed in the green outfit of a Fairfax County prisoner, Benjamin Luke Walker listened in court last week while others testified during his preliminary hearing. When they were done, Judge Michael Cassidy sent Walker back to jail and certified the murder case against him to the grand jury.