OCCOQUAN — Kenny Allen Boddye is the Democrat that will face Republican Ruth Anderson for the Occoquan District Supervisor’s seat.

Boddye handily beat Aaron C. “A.C.E.” Edmond in a Democratic Primary Election on Tuesday by 27 points. This is his first political win, in his second campaign. Boddye unsuccessfully challenged Delegate Hyla Ayala in a Primary Election in 2017.

Boddye works on a marketing team at an insurance firm that specializes in cyber security and liability for community associations. He told Potomac Local that, if elected, he plans to focus on education, improving Old Bridge Road, and improving access to mental health services in the county.

Ruth Anderson has championed transportation in her district, holding transportation “think tanks” and town halls on addressing issues on Old Bridge Road — the main thoroughfare through the District. On Interstate 95, a road that usually falls under federal and state purviews, Anderson has been advocating for converting a shoulder lane between Route 123 and Prince William Parkway for use by southbound drivers on Interstate 95.

This winter, Gov. Ralph Northam announced the state would fund the shoulder conversion project.

WOODBRIDGE — Democratic voters retired Woodbridge District Supervisor Frank Principi.

On Tuesday, political newcomer Margaret Franklin beat Principi in a Primary Election in eastern Prince William County where Principi, since winning a seat on the Board of County Supervisors in 2007, had referred to as “New Woodbridge.”

Franklin beat Principi by nearly nine points with 54% of the vote. She’ll go on to run in the November General Election on November 5 and, if she wins, she could join Victor Angry — who also won his Primary challenge Tuesday — who won his seat to serve in as the Neabsco District Supervisor in a special election in April, following the death of former Supervisor John D. Jenkins.

He’s the first African-American to serve on the Board of County Supervisors.

“Things are changing. Things have been changed demographically and now things are just catching up politically,” Franklin said following her win.

The Democrat credited fellow members of her party at the state level who were elected in 2017 to include Delegates Jennifer Carroll Foy, Hala Ayala, and Danica Roem for helping to pave the way for her win Tuesday.

Franklin told Potomac Local she has worked closely with Principi in the past to support party initiatives. She ran against him because she felt he and the rest of the Board of County Supervisors were out of touch with the lives of everyday county residents.

“I thought the Board, as a whole, lacked everyday experiences with transportation, the housing market, the revitalization of Route 1,” said Franklin, who commutes to Capitol Hill for work as a legislative director. Previously, she served as a legislative aide for New York Senator Kristen Gillibrand, who’s currently running for president.

Principi will join three others on the Board of County Supervisors who will not return to the Board in January. Current Chairman At-large Corey Stewart chose not to seek re-election, as did Potomac District Supervisor Maureen Caddigan.

Coles District Supervisor Marty Nohe chose not to keep his seat as Coles Supervisor and lost a race for Chairman At-large during a Republican Firehouse Primary Election.

Alice Marie Chitwood, (nee Norland), 92 of Burkeville, Virginia, was born to Hjalmar Norland and Jennie Askelin on January 20, 1927, in Minneapolis.

She was the youngest of four children, which also included sisters Elsie (Nurmi), Lucille (Nick), and brother Suante Norlund. She arrived in this world two months after her father succumbed to a farming accident. Alice spent her early childhood in the largely Finnish immigrant town of Finlayson.

She attended Finlayson Elementary School, commuting to school in a horse-drawn, covered wagon. She also attended and sang at the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church.  A bright student, she began elementary school a year early and was then allowed to complete the fourth and fifth grade together, as she was the only fourth-grade student in her school. Alice graduated from Central High School in Duluth in 1943 at the age of 16.

Enterprising by nature, she then travelled alone by bus to Takoma Park, Md. and worked in Washington, D.C. for the Government Accounting Office, Caswell Industrial Company, the law firm of Smith, Ristig and Smith, the Coolerator Company in Duluth, and ultimately, the civil service, working for the U.S. Department of the Army.

She met her future husband, Maj. Glenn Chitwood, in Heidelburg, Germany in 1950, and they were married there on March 31, 1951.

Returning to the United States in April 1954, they were founding members of Grace Lutheran Church in Woodbridge, Va.  Alice spent 13 years driving a school bus for the Prince William County school system.

She obtained her Associate’s degree in Information Systems from Northern Virginia Community College and was a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.  She received many citations and commendations for her work in various federal government agencies, retiring from the Pentagon Library, in July 1993.

Alice loved her home state, Minnesota, but was an adventurous traveler and up for any new experience.  She appears as an extra in the movie “Deep Impact.” She was athletic, a musician, and a fan of the outdoors, especially when it involved water. She was steadfast in her Lutheran faith and a devoted mother to her children.

She loved nothing better than to be surrounded by friends and family on holidays, cooking enormous meals for anyone she could round up. Her Midwestern niceness and down-to-earth nature were accompanied by a lightning-fast wit. She was a regular contributor to her local newspapers and appeared as a guest contributor to the Washington Post.

Alice is preceded in death by her husband, Maj. Glenn William Chitwood, U.S. Army (Ret).  She is survived by her children: Shirley Anne Wiser, Gwendolyn Marie Lovera, Jorg Huckabee-Mayfield, David Glenn Hjalmar Chitwood, Joan Lea McDonough and John Thomas Chitwood, her grandchildren: Jennifer Chitwood Garvey, Christine Chitwood Grashorn;  Kiplin Lea McDonough, Shane Thomas McDonough and Matthew Brice McDonough,  Desiree Allyn Biggers, Jessie Lynn Wiser, Caitlin M. Wiser, Harlan Glenn Lovera and Victoria M. Lovera, and great-grandchildren: Harrison Lee McDonough and Alice Kiplin McDonough.

The viewing will be held at Puckett Funeral Home at  115 Covington Court in ?Farmville, Va. at on Friday, June 14th from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The funeral service will be held at St. John’s Lutheran Church at 1301 Milnwood Road, Farmville, Va on June 15  at 3 p.m.  Condolences for the family can be left online.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to support vascular dementia research at Johns Hopkins Neurology.

Interment will be with her husband Glenn at Arlington National Cemetery – date to be advised.

The Fauquier Bank will host a free dinner and financial planning workshop on Thursday, June 20.

The workshop will take place at the bank’s Centerville Road branch at 8780 Centerville Road in Manassas.

Pizza from Tony’s New York Pizza in Manassas will be served, and attendees will be able to ask questions about saving for retirement, college, investments, private banking, estates and trusts, and more.

The workshop with dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m. and last until 8 p.m.

Those who want to attend the free workshop are asked to RSVP by calling 540-349-0202.

Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt is a poetry and prose writer who has lived in Prince William County since 1999. She has published six books and is working on a seventh. Learn more about her at KatherineGotthardt.com, and follow her work on Facebook by searching #KatherinesCoffeehouse.

By Katherine Mercurio Gotthardt

That’s what I tell myself when I want to procrastinate (which is too often). Quit messing around. Well, sometimes I use stronger language, but this is a family publication. It’s enough for you to know I give myself a stern talking-to, and then I sit down, and I do the hard work.

See, like most people, I can’t afford to wait until inspiration and motivation waft in like some fabled specter. This isn’t a Charles Dickens novel. Messenger ghosts and visions of dead bosses don’t suddenly appear, tap me on the shoulder and say, “Write, oh bard! Write!” No. Like everyone, I’ve got deadlines. And sometimes, I’ve got deadlines to write about inspiration and motivation when I have neither. But here’s one thing I’ve discovered about those two elements that make life so worth living: Doing something and doing it well inspires and motivates me.

That’s right. The work itself motivates me, no matter what the work.

Here’s how to make that happen for yourself:

1.   Close your eyes. Remember how good it felt to complete a difficult project in the past.

Let that feeling seep into your skin. Revel in it.

2.   Open your eyes. Make a list of things you need to do to complete the task.

3.   Work in 20 or 30-minute increments and start crossing items off that list.

4.   Every time you cross something off the list, put a smiley face next to it, pat yourself on the back or tell your dog, “I did it!”

5.   Repeat until the job is done.

Now here’s why it works.

First, whenever you connect the senses to something abstract, it becomes less abstract. So when you allow a good feeling to overtake your whole body and you associate it with a memory, you ingrain that into your psyche and you want more of it.  

Then there’s writing down your list. This is basically a short-term goal setting, cementing each small goal kinesthetically by holding pen to paper and forming words. You can meet those goals if you know you aren’t going to get overwhelmed. Short bursts of work are usually doable, which is why 20 or 30-minute sessions work.

Move yourself through a few of those and reward yourself with a “Great job!” By the time you get through the process, you’re ready to go back to the first step and integrate that wonderful feeling, which…yes—gives you the motivation and inspiration to keep going. Before long, you’re working in longer spurts because crossing tasks off that list is so damn satisfying. And sometimes by then, you’re even enjoying the work itself.

This might seem like a pretty basic process, but it’s one that has worked for me for decades. Turns out, the process is pretty solidly based in education and psychology, too. And it can be applied to just about anything, making you more productive and feeling better about the work you’ve been putting off.

Now to be transparent, I wasn’t planning to share my trade secret when I sat down to write this column. It just kind of happened, and I don’t regret it. I started off struggling, I went through the process, I got inspired and poof. Seemed like the right thing to do, so I did it. And it feels good. So I’ll probably knock out next week’s column, too. But first, a short poem.

Some days

I wish for a specter,

the ghost of Christmas past, perhaps,

to remind me of better mornings.

See how he carries me in from the cold,

sets me softly down,

points to the gift?

Look at that red ribbon.

How will I untie it,

when all I can think of

is dreaming?

Enough, he tells me.

Wake up!

Run your fingers

across the shiny surface.

        Inhale the care

        it took to create.

Absorb the effort

it required to wrap

a masterpiece.

Understand it was for you!

Place the bow’s end

between finger and thumb.

Hold fast, now.

You’re almost there.

Until next time,

Katherine

The Bull Run Rotary Club awarded $10,000 in Lou Maroon Rotary scholarships to four academic scholars to further their education in mathematics and science.

From Stonewall Jackson High School: Kaitlyn Agostini

Kaitlyn has very impressive credentials.  She is a member of the National Honor Society.  She was named outstanding student in IB Spanish, IB Biology, IB History, IB Math, and Art.

She is also accomplished in sports.  She was captain of cross country and indoor and outdoor track and was awarded Most Outstanding Player in Cross Country and Indoor Track.

Kaitlyn has a 4.6 GPA and is ranked 5th in her class of 522.  She plans to attend James Madison University and study Mathematics Education.

From Osbourn High School: Zachary Nowak

In addition to attending Osbourn High School, Zachary was enrolled in the Governor’s School at Innovation Park.

He is a member of the National Honor Society where he was Secretary.  He is a member of the Math Honor Society.  He is also President and Founder of the Math Modelling Club where he led a group of students in national math competitions.  Zachary was also Cross Country and Track Team Captain.

Zachary scored a near perfect 790 on his Math SAT.  He has a 4.55 GPA and is ranked 1st in his graduating class.  In the fall, Zachary will be attending Carnegie Mellon University where he will study Mathematics and Computer Science.

From Manassas Park High School: Diksha Jothi

Diksha is Vice-President of Student Government, President of the Beta Club, and a member of the National Honor Society and Math Honor Society where he was Secretary.

Diksha is President of DECA, which competes in international competitions.  His team placed top 20 in the international competition in 2018.

Diksha scored 800 on his Math SAT.  He has a 4.5 GPA and is ranked 1st in his class.  In the fall, Diksha will be attending the University of Virginia to study Computer Science.

From Osbourne Park High School: Mallika Datta

Mallika also attended the Governor’s School at Innovation Park.

Mallika is President of Hospital Occupations for Students of America.  She is vice-president of Biotechnology Specialty Program and Club.  She is a member of the National Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, and Math Honor Society.  She also competed on the Osbourn Park Cross Country Team.

Mallika has a 4.8 GPA and is ranked 1st in her class.  In the fall, Mallika will be attending Virginia Commonwealth University.

The Lou Maroon Rotary Scholarships were established in 1994 in honor of long time Rotarian Lou Maroon.  He was a local businessman, a member of the school board, a city councilman, and a member of this club.

In honor of Maroon’s special interest in mathematics, the Lou Maroon Rotary Scholarship recipients are selected based on the student’s accomplishments in math and science.

The Lou Maroon Rotary Foundation joined forces with the Bull Run Rotary Club in 1994 to put on the Lou Maroon Rotary Scholarships Golf Tournament to fund these scholarships.  Each year since then they have awarded these scholarships to deserving high school students.

In 2017, the Lou Maroon Rotary Foundation was dissolved, and the club took over sole ownership of the Lou Maroon Scholarships program.

They will be hosting another golf tournament on Sept. 9 which will fund next year’s scholarships.

Members of the golf tournament committee include Chuck Rector, Mike Massey, John Heltzel, and Don Kline.

The tournament has become the biggest fundraiser for the club.  According to Kline, it has become so successful over the years that they are also able to provide funding to local charitable organizations.

In the past they have donated over $150,000 to SERVE, $100,000 to the Prince William Hospital, and $100,000 to Prosperity House.

This year, in addition to raising money for the scholarships, their goal is to provide a donation in support of Habitat for Humanity – in Prince William County.  After this year’s tournament they will have donated over $50,000 to Habitat, according to Kline.

STAFFORD -- The Stafford Board of Supervisors has decided to move forward with plans of a bond referendum in order to help fund transportation projects. Developing a funding plan for transportation is listed as one of Stafford’s 2040 strategic priorities.

County officials say 10 major road construction projects are desperately needed after they reviewed the results of a year-long Comprehensive Road Study. Together the 10 projects cost $180 million based on preliminary estimates.

This article is FREE to read. Please Sign In or Create a FREE Account. Thank you.

WOODBRIDGE — (Press Release) A large group gathered on Saturday, National Trails Day, for the long-awaited opening of the Neabsco Creek Boardwalk. The boardwalk — which is three quarters of a mile long, 10-feet-wide, and elevated with a two-story observation deck — is part of the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail and the newly formed Neabsco Regional Park. The new park includes the Julie J. Metz Wetlands, the Rippon Lodge historic property and the Rippon Landing Neighborhood Park.

Woodbridge District Supervisor Frank Principi spoke at the ceremony saying that he worked to bring the boardwalk to the Woodbridge District since 2008, when a small group of residents suggested the idea. It was worth the wait, however. “Good things come to those who wait. A decade later, we stand here today and celebrate the opening of … the Potomac National Heritage Scenic Trail, Neabsco Creek Boardwalk and Neabsco Regional Park.”

Principi went on to say that the boardwalk will join people with the environment. “The boardwalk connects us to both our nature and our history. The boardwalk connects us to our tidal wetlands and the wildlife habitats of fox, deer, muskrat, beaver, herons, egrets, ospreys, eagles, haws, snakes and an assortment of fish and birds. As we embarked on this journey, we knew we needed to strike a balance between our desire to be one with nature and the need to protect and preserve it for generations to come.”

“The boardwalk, regional park and the Potomac National Scenic Trail also connect people to history,” Principi said. “Whether you want to explore a trail used by Native Americans or Civil War embankments at Leesylvania State Park, or the Colonial and Civil War history at Rippon Lodge, you’ve come to the right place. We have something for everyone.”

Principi also said that the boardwalk will serve as an educational tool for county students as part of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism’s Science in the Park program. “The step downs along the trail will allow our school students to engage with the aquatic life and learn about ways humans can both harm and heal our environment. Interpretive panels will highlight delicate ecology and encourage conservation.”

Virginia Senator Jeremy McPike also spoke at the opening and talked about the importance of the county’s wetlands “Places like this connect to the Chesapeake Bay and they connect all through Virginia. Places like this are the foundation for a healthy ecosystem everywhere. This is just a perfect place where we can experience it firsthand. This is an important place to teach our future generations how important it is to treat our environment right and enjoy it.”

Tanya Gossett, the superintendent Prince William Forest Park, said National Trails Day was meant to raise awareness about the importance of trails to communities and a day to encourage everyone to venture out on a trail close to home. She said the boardwalk and the new regional park helped in the effort to get people out to the Potomac National Heritage Scenic Trail. “It winds its way from the historic town of Occoquan through two national wildlife refuges, four county parks, one state park and one national park, and to this string of pearls, today we add the stunning Neabsco Creek Boardwalk.”

Susan Conklin, former Prince William County school teacher, was visiting from Texas and took some time to visit the boardwalk. Conklin, who taught ecology at Woodbridge Middle School for 30 years and retired in 2002, said the boardwalk was “tremendous.”

“Friends of mine know how interested I am in ecology. This is better than anything else I could do today. It’s beautiful,” she said.

Cynthia Stanley and Judy Hopper, both teachers at Swann’s Creek Elementary School, came to see the new board walk. Stanley said she looks forward to visiting the place daily. “I look forward to coming every morning and walking. I love the peace and quiet and the scenery.”

Hopper said she heard about the opening a month ago and marked her calendar. “I couldn’t wait. I’m looking forward to bringing my students out here for field trips.”

Hope Cajayln, a Northern Virginia Community College student, also enjoyed her time on the boardwalk. “I really like how it’s open. It’s really scenic and a pretty place to take pictures.”

Joan Gifford drove from Gainesville to see the boardwalk. She said the visiting the park was worth the drive across the county.  “It was an important trek because this boardwalk connecting the trail is such a great idea. I love the idea that it connects the parks together as part of the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail.”

More information about the boardwalk and the Neabsco Regional Park can be found online.

This press release was distributed by the Prince William County Government.