Social media is a game changer. For those readers not familiar with “viral” in any context but a cold, it works like this: I write an article. You read it. You share it on Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, and LinkedIn.
(If there’s a photo, you may share on Pinterest and Instagram!)
I recently volunteered with my Lions Club at the winter shelter in Woodbridge. The shelter, located on Potomac Mills Road, is open to homeless men and women for overnight use from November 1 through March 31.
We were at the shelter in May for a Meet and Greet. Our Lions Club brought a Sight and Hearing van and we performed vision and hearing screening for any homeless people who wanted that service.
What was the most amazing thing you saw or read on the internet this week? I watched this TED talk. If you are not familiar with TED talks, you definitely should investigate. Videos are produced by a non-profit organization, shared globally, and are intended to both educate and inspire us all in 18 minutes or less.
The video I watched explains Biomechatronics. What’s that, you ask? That, my friends, is something many of us loved more than 35 years ago. The catch phrase; “Gentlemen, we can rebuild him.” became part of our vocabulary for many years. The opening of each episode of the Six Million Dollar Man started with our hero, Steve Austin, a man barely alive.
I saw a photo of two schools (Two prototype schools. The one on top is Freedom, the one below is Patriot) The Prince William County School Board recently had to select which model the next (13th) high school should follow.
In my heart, I’m yearning for that big, beautiful, light-filled, elegant structure. I think the Freedom design looks dated, institutional, boxy and unfriendly. In my head I’m thinking the Freedom design is much less expensive. I’m also recalling the exorbitant cost of the 12th high school with all the bells and whistles, soon-to-be built at the intersection of Hoadly Road and Va. 234.
5th Annual Occoquan River Clean-up Results
The Prince William Trails and Streams Coalition successfully coordinated and conducted a multi-prong clean-up event from 9 different sites along more than 25 miles of the Occoquan River and 10.5 miles of Cedar Run.
Have you ever volunteered to work a cleanup? Have you supported a cleanup in some way? I bet you have, perhaps without even realizing you’ve done so.
Beginning in March and working through April, untold numbers of volunteers work to remove trash, litter and debris from parks, creeks, rivers and roadsides. We work large cleanups like the one at Marumsco Creek. That’s one we do twice yearly and in response to the flooding that occurred in Woodbridge a few years ago. Photos of this Marumsco Cleanup are here . Volunteers removed 2,135 pounds of trash this time. (Don’t forget we did this six months ago.)
I just got an email from a grade school friend, telling me St.Augustine Church is undergoing some renovations. If you follow that link you’ll see photos of the restoration work. If you click here, you’ll get a virtual tour of one of the most beautiful Catholic Churches I’ve ever seen in the rather unlikely place of Jeffersonville, Ind.
I attended St. Augustine School from 1959-1967. The school was over 100 years old when I went there and closed two years after I graduated, then eventually was demolished in 1975. Our school was a victim of sprawl. For a time, the population steadily grew until we were actually overcrowded. Then, as subdivisions were built, farther away from the town center, new schools were built to accommodate those new houses and new families. St.Augustine, located in an aging neighborhood, saw their children grown, graduated and moved to another location. Enrollment diminished and eventually led to the demise of the school and nearly of the town itself.
When my eyes flash open in the morning, (They do “flash” open. None of this slow leisurely awakening for me!) A deluge of thoughts pour out. It’s as if, while sleeping, all these thoughts have been dammed up, just waiting for the opportunity to get out there in my conscious world.
Today, as I lurched from sleep, I was already considering the events recently past and the day ahead. There’s no yawning and stretching, no snooze alarm, no snuggling back under the covers or otherwise transitioning into the day. It’s full tilt awareness with a sense of urgency that grabs my body and mind from the sound slumber of a moment before.
It’s 50 degrees outside and the sun is shining brilliantly. Fat, yellow Daffodil heads are nodding in a little whisper of breeze. The last remnants of the most recent snow are dripping off the roof and traveling melodically through the downspouts to share water with the Crocus, Tulips and Hellebores that are rising from their sleepy winter mulch beds.
I’m feeling it! I don’t want to write about overcrowded schools or politicians who may not be meeting my expectations. I can’t find it in my head or my heart to opine about builders, developers, roads or transportation. I consider writing about my miserable experience being stuck in traffic last week and missing a luncheon with the League of Women Voters of Virginia, but it’s just impossible to focus on the sad, the bad, or the mad stuff!
I attended the Prince William Committee of 100 forum on March 20. The topic was the revenue share agreement between Prince William County and Prince William County Schools and the question was posed to a panel to determine if they thought the current revenue share was sufficient or if schools actually require more funding from the county.
The panel was composed of Gainesville District Supervisor, Pete Candland, the owner of intelligencecareers.com and many other job sites, Bill Golden, School Board Chairman Milt Johns, and teacher/student advocate from Bull Run Middle School, Riley O’Casey. Our moderator was David Kinsella, teacher and Vice-President of the Prince William Education Association.
